Psychedelic Integration: Experiential Practice Retreat for Clinicians

Days

Hours

Mins

Psychedelic Integration: Experiential Practice Retreat for Clinicians

October 19 - October 24, 2021

This 5-day experiential retreat is designed for therapists who practice psychedelic integration or psychedelic-assisted therapy, or are training to do so. Experiential training is a component of training in which therapists experience the transformative process of the given modality themselves, and apply their insights to their own lives and to their professional work with others. Experiential training is a key training experience for therapists who wish to engage with clients who have used psychedelics or facilitate psychedelic experiences. At this retreat, contemplative practices will be used to practice accessing and integrating non-ordinary states of consciousness in the same way one would approach psychedelic experiences.At Menla, we will be in the natural surroundings of the Catskill Mountains, a comfortable and safe haven to convene and practice engaging with and integrating non-ordinary states of consciousness into the larger fabric of our lives as we would assist our clients in doing. Together we will cultivate and practice working with non-drug contemplative practices using similar methods to those we use with psychedelic medicines. Writing, music, and creative expression are on the agenda in order to explore and extend our personal understanding of integration of non-ordinary states.The retreat space facilitates our focus on self-care, healthy meals, and learning together. We will learn and practice the skills and process of Noble Communication and effective inquiry skills. Each day will offer morning yoga and meditation and time to enjoy the natural surroundings. There will be a day of silence for cultivating reflection and insight. The merging of Eastern contemplative practices with Western psychotherapeutic modalities will be considered during evening talks and discussions. Participants will be invited to look deeply at how a variety of contemplative practices relate to psychedelic integration work, and can be used in conjunction psychedelics or on their own to benefit the integration process. Note: This program does not teach psychedelic-assisted therapy, does not include the administration of any psychedelic compound, and does not suggest or support the self-administration of any psychedelic compound during the retreat. This program does not offer continuing education credit, but is part of the certificate program in psychedelic integration psychotherapy offered by Fluence.

ScheduleTuesday, October 19th

3 - 6pm Arrival & Check in

6 - 7pm Dinner

7:30 - 9pm Program Opening Session

Welcome

Introductions of our team

Who is in the room?

Agenda and housekeeping

Expectations (precepts) for the week

Brief meditation and good night

Wednesday, October 20th

7 - 8am Morning Yoga

7:15 - 8am Meditation and Inquiry

8 - 9am Breakfast

9:30am - 12pm Morning Session

Take your seat

Mediation - why am I here (intention)

Brief writing about that

Seeds of Noble listening

Inquiry - introducing what is inquiry and why we do it (not a solutions oriented practice, continuation of meditation)

Morning close (thank yourself) and off to lunch.

12:30 - 1:30pm Lunch

2 - 3:30pm Optional Activities

(See list below)

4 - 5:30pm Afternoon Session: Mindfulness of body and breath

Walking meditation

Mountain Meditation

6 - 7pm Dinner

7:15 - 8:30pm Evening Program Part One: Values Card Sort in Partners

8:30 - 9pm Eventing Program Part Two: Introduction to the group mural

Thursday, October 21st

7 - 8am Yoga

7 - 8 Mural

7:15 - 8am Meditation and Inquiry

8 - 9am Breakfast

9:30am - 12pm Morning Session

Take your seat

Noble Communication: reflecting, validating, empathy

Practice in triads - Explain the roles - developing role of observer

Morning close (thank yourself) and off to lunch.

12:30 - 1:30pm Lunch

2 - 3:30pm Optional Activities

See list below

4 - 5:30pm Afternoon Session

State to trait: What is mindfulness and how do we relate it to psychedelic integration?

Practice noble listening with any ASC experience.

Group discussion How does noble listening facilitate ASC integration?

6 - 7pm Dinner

7:15 - 8:30pm Evening Program Part One

Ingmar talk about psychedelic integration, Buddhism, psychoanalysis, etc

8:30 - 9pm Evening Program Part Two

Instruction for tomorrow, Raisin exercise, Silent day (including mindful eating)

Friday, October 22nd (Silent until evening meal)

7 - 8am Yoga

7 - 8am Mural

7:15 - 8am Meditation and Inquiry

8 - 9am Breakfast

9:30am - 12pm Morning Session

Take your seat

Body Scan

Walking Meditation

Self-compassion meditation

Walking meditation

Morning close (thank yourself) and Reminder about mindful eating

12:30 - 1:30pm Lunch (Silent)

2 - 3:30pm Optional Activities

See list below

4 - 5:30pm Afternoon Session

Open awareness (introducing mindfulness of sound, emotions, thoughts)

Triads for breaking silence and practice listening using Listening Hands

6 - 7pm Dinner

7:15 - 8pm Evening Program Part One

Small group inquiry - Reflecting on today’s experience

8:15 - 9:15pm Evening Program Part Two

Sound Meditation

Saturday, October 23rd

7 - 8am Yoga

7 - 8am Mural

7:15 - 8am Meditation and Inquiry

8 - 9am Breakfast

9:30am - 12pm Morning Session

Take your seat

Guided visualization revisiting values and how those are working out for you.

Contribute to a group mural in a way that reflects that

Morning close (thank yourself) and off to lunch.

12:30 - 1:30pm Lunch

2 - 3:30pm Optional Activities

See list below

4 - 5:30pm Afternoon Session: Mindfulness of body and breath

Walking meditation

Mountain Meditation

6 - 7pm Dinner

7:15 - 9:00pm Evening Celebration with Music and group sharing.

Sunday, October 24th

7 - 11am Check-out of Rooms

7 - 8am Yoga

7 - 8am Mural

7:15 - 8am Meditation and Inquiry

8 - 9am Breakfast

9:30am - 12pm Morning Session

Take your seat

Moving on from here - integrating this into the larger scope of your life

Noble Listening Demo

Noble listening practice with talking about your experience of the retreat

Closing Circle: Soup with yarn

12:30-1:30 Lunch and Departures

Optional Afternoon Activities:

Sitting meditation with inquiry

Walking meditation

Guided hike

Outdoor time on one’s own

Spa (Massage/Sauna)

Restorative Yoga

Individual Meetings

Prepare for your group sharing

Mural Time (From Thursday forward)

*Please note that this schedule is subject to change.

ABOUT THE TEACHERs

Elizabeth Nielson, PhD

Dr. Elizabeth Nielson is a co-founder of Fluence and a psychologist with a focus on developing psychedelic medicines as empirically supported treatments for PTSD, substance use problems, and mood disorders. Dr. Nielson is a therapist on FDA approved clinical trials of psilocybin-...

Leah Gooch, 500RYT

Leah Gooch teaches yoga, meditation, writing, and art in order to help individuals approach a deeper awareness of their existence. After teaching art in New York City for eight years she facilitated the creation of a mural inside of Crossroads Detention Center in Brooklyn, comple...

Jayne Gumpel, LCSW

Jayne Gumpel, LCSW (she/her/hers) is a psychotherapist, trainer, and teacher with 30 years of experience working with couples, individuals, and groups in New York City and Woodstock, NY. Jayne is a professional clinical trainer in Psychedelic Integration Psychotherapy, is a membe...

David Gumpel

David Gumpel is an Integral Master Coach and a qualified teacher of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) through UMASS medical school. David is the co-founder of Access Mindfulness and a study coordinator for the MAPS sponsored MDMA-Assisted Therapy for the treatment of post...