In this episode I humbly approach the prolific works of Stanislov Grof, founder of Holotropic breathwork, 40 year LSD researcher and psychiatric researcher, said to be the “godfather of LSD”, as he is referred to by Albert Hoffman. Here I take time to explore the Basic Perinatal Matrices (BPM), broadly defined as a range of intense, physical and emotional experiences linked to our somatic experience of birth. Grof wrote two books I reference in this episode, firstly: “LSD Psychotherapy” and secondly: “The Ultimate Journey- Death, Dying and Consciousness” which are both philosophical, highly complex deep dives into altered states and the psyche. This topic is not an easy topic to unpack and I do my best to translate the academic language into laden terms.

Subtopics that arise:

- Differentiating the “interoceptive” and the exteroceptive, ie. the transpersonal

- Basic Perinatal Matrices (BPM) 1, 2, 3 and 4

- Systems of condensed experiences (COEX)

- The importance of well trained facilitators in approaching BPM stages

The information in this podcast is not a substitute for medical advice, nor do I condone the use of psychedelic substances. The information provided is used for entertainment and academic purposes and I am not liable for any actions taken by listeners. Each individual is responsible for their own journey of growth and healing and I highly recommend seeking professional support if you are in need.

Song in the intro- "Light of the Mountain" by Brandon Tilt

I acknowledge that I learn, grow and heal on the unceded ancestral lands of the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm , the Katzie, the Stó:lō and the Tseil-Watuth First Nations. These lands were never abandoned nor surrendered by those with the ancestral rights to steward and protect these lands.

I honor and respect the elders, the children, the land stewards, the land protectors, the medicine keepers, and the men and women of all Indigenous nations.

Huy ch q’u (thank you) to those who support the indigenous communities and actively decolonize their minds and spirits.

Aho Mitakuye Oyasin, All my relations.

In this episode I’m hanging out by a snowy river bank, intentionally letting in the audio of the flowing river to soften the nervous system of myself and the listener. What began about the topic of healing and spirituality, becomes more of a free flow experience of just being in a deeply spiritual place, joyfully connecting to the elements and to the animals around me.

I don’t think you need to care about spirituality to appreciate my insights here, in fact I would say it’s better to have a foot firmly grounded in worlds both secular and metaphysical.

So enjoy this fun little river-side ramble, where I riff and flow with the help of Mother Water and my dear Grandmother tree.

Song in the intro- "Light of the Mountain" by Brandon Tilt

I acknowledge that I learn, grow and heal on the unceded ancestral lands of the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm , the Katzie, the Stó:lō and the Tseil-Watuth First Nations. These lands were never abandoned nor surrendered by those with the ancestral rights to steward and protect these lands.

I honor and respect the elders, the children, the land stewards, the land protectors, the medicine keepers, and the men and women of all Indigenous nations.

Huy ch q’u (thank you) to those who support the indigenous communities and actively decolonize their minds and spirits.

Aho Mitakuye Oyasin, All my relations.

In this episode, I interview Shane Peterson, a good friend and humble apprentice of the Shipibo plant dieta, a shamanic practice that acquires plant wisdom by dieting with master plants. He has close to 10 years of experience dieting with master plants, having drank the Amazonian brew ayahuasca hundreds of times, and is a trained facilitator at Caya Shobo, a traditional plant medicine retreat based out of Iquitos that I attended in late 2023. I refer to his learned perspective and life experiences, which modestly consider the depth of Indigenous knowledge that the Shipibo ayahuasqueros practice in ceremonies. These traditions are thousands of years old and contain the sacred wisdom of the Shipibo-Conipo people. I inquire about this topic for the sake of harm reduction, so that anyone seeking to heal with ayahuasca, or applying “la dieta” can further educate themselves and seek well-trained, traditional shamans.

Song in the intro- "Light of the Mountain" by Brandon Tilt

I acknowledge that I learn, grow and heal on the unceded ancestral lands of the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm , the Katzie, the Stó:lō and the Tseil-Watuth First Nations. These lands were never abandoned nor surrendered by those with the ancestral rights to steward and protect these lands.

I honor and respect the elders, the children, the land stewards, the land protectors, the medicine keepers, and the men and women of all Indigenous nations.

Huy ch q’u (thank you) to those who support the indigenous communities and actively decolonize their minds and spirits.

Aho Mitakuye Oyasin, All my relations.

In this episode I’m using my RODE Go 2 wireless mic at the top of Eagle mountain, while it’s snowing, walking around and reflecting on a wide range of topics. I do ramble a bit here, but I come around pretty strong towards the end!

Topics such as:

- Resistance is pervasive

- Breaking the “cycles” to avoid spiralling

- Less caffeine, more spaciousness

- Drawing energy from spiritual practices

- Surrounding yourself with people who interrupt negative loops

- Avoidance through “working”

- “Problem-solving” parts

- The limitations to healing shame as a coach

- Recapitulation styles and Parts work

Song in the intro- "Light of the Mountain" by Brandon Tilt

I acknowledge that I learn, grow and heal on the unceded ancestral lands of the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm , the Katzie, the Stó:lō and the Tseil-Watuth First Nations. These lands were never abandoned nor surrendered by those with the ancestral rights to steward and protect these lands.

I honor and respect the elders, the children, the land stewards, the land protectors, the medicine keepers, and the men and women of all Indigenous nations.

Huy ch q’u (thank you) to those who support the indigenous communities and actively decolonize their minds and spirits.

Aho Mitakuye Oyasin, All my relations.

In this episode I reflect on my perspective of caffeine, with some wisdom gathered from Andrew Huberman and looking to my personal relationship to caffeine in general. I’m also taking a 7 day caffeine break, which has really heightened my emotional experiences, relating how I see my parts coming into play . I also riff on how I theorize we ought to strive for “holism” biologically as well as mentally (and possibly even spiritually to some extent).

Other subtopics that arise:

- Exploring the need for caffeine

- The ADHD mind and caffeine

- Adenosine and the brain

- How we shouldn’t search for the “cure”

- How our internal system craves balance

Song in the intro- "Light of the Mountain" by Brandon Tilt

I acknowledge that I learn, grow and heal on the unceded ancestral lands of the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm , the Katzie, the Stó:lō and the Tseil-Watuth First Nations. These lands were never abandoned nor surrendered by those with the ancestral rights to steward and protect these lands.

I honor and respect the elders, the children, the land stewards, the land protectors, the medicine keepers, and the men and women of all Indigenous nations.

Huy ch q’u (thank you) to those who support the indigenous communities and actively decolonize their minds and spirits.

Aho Mitakuye Oyasin, All my relations.

In this episode I explore the topic of Internal Family Systems (IFS), more specifically looking at the ways the model can be used to heal shame. I also reflect how my personal experiences of unburdening shame, and how this can be done with an IFS therapist, or in other ways with trained practitioners, possibly even shamans.

Other subtopics that arise:

- Gabor’s definition of trauma

- How our language perpetuates trauma narratives

- Shame and sense of self

- Healing shame isn’t the first step

- Ethical practice of “unburdening” shame

- Healing “nonverbal shame”

Song in the intro- "Light of the Mountain" by Brandon Tilt

I acknowledge that I learn, grow and heal on the unceded ancestral lands of the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm , the Katzie, the Stó:lō and the Tseil-Watuth First Nations. These lands were never abandoned nor surrendered by those with the ancestral rights to steward and protect these lands.

I honor and respect the elders, the children, the land stewards, the land protectors, the medicine keepers, and the men and women of all Indigenous nations.

Huy ch q’u (thank you) to those who support the indigenous communities and actively decolonize their minds and spirits.

Aho Mitakuye Oyasin, All my relations.

In this episode I explore the topic of Ethical shamanism, clarifying the difference between healers and “Brujos” a term in Spanish that refers to sorcerers that seek power. Referring to some of Chris Kilham’s “Ayahuasca Pilot’s handbook”, and “Singing to the Plants” by Stephan V Beyer. Both deeply insightful and well researched resources that explore the topic of shamanism and Ayahuacsa harm reduction.

Trigger warning: some of the material speaks to indirectly about abuse of power and sexual assault

Other subtopics that arise:

- Recap of Ep. 33

- My introduction to Ayahuasca

- Discernment between Shamans

- Shamans and personal disclosure

- The role of community in reporting abuse

- Self-control and urges to do harm

- Containment of our darkness

Song in the intro- "Light of the Mountain" by Brandon Tilt

I acknowledge that I learn, grow and heal on the unceded ancestral lands of the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm , the Katzie, the Stó:lō and the Tseil-Watuth First Nations. These lands were never abandoned nor surrendered by those with the ancestral rights to steward and protect these lands.

I honor and respect the elders, the children, the land stewards, the land protectors, the medicine keepers, and the men and women of all Indigenous nations.

Huy ch q’u (thank you) to those who support the indigenous communities and actively decolonize their minds and spirits.

Aho Mitakuye Oyasin, All my relations.

In this episode I refer to a post a friend of mine tagged me in that was calling out “Men’s Coaches” who work primarily with women practicing predatory, unethical coaching practices. The post goes on to explore how there can be safe ways men can support women in their healing journey and how conversely there are a variety of ways male life coaches exploit women and cause harm. I am not an expert on this topic and simply offer my lens as a male life coach and practicing counsellor. I feel called to do a “part 2” on this topic interviewing a friend of mine who leads women’s circles, and coaches and facilitates healing with other women.

The audio quality isn’t perfect in this episode, I was trying out my wireless mic set and recording outdoors, in the forest.

Song in the intro- "Light of the Mountain" by Brandon Tilt

I acknowledge that I learn, grow and heal on the unceded ancestral lands of the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm , the Katzie, the Stó:lō and the Tseil-Watuth First Nations. These lands were never abandoned nor surrendered by those with the ancestral rights to steward and protect these lands.

I honor and respect the elders, the children, the land stewards, the land protectors, the medicine keepers, and the men and women of all Indigenous nations.

Huy ch q’u (thank you) to those who support the indigenous communities and actively decolonize their minds and spirits.

Aho Mitakuye Oyasin, All my relations.

In this episode I explore the concept of “emotional nuance” talking about how my experience of numbing out my emotions throughout my life has created a necessity to understand my emotions differently than most people. What started as a kind of “dysfunction” became an intentional process of learning how my body and my mind process emotional nuance.

I draw wisdom from the book “Beyond the Self” coauthored by Matthieu Ricard and Wolf Singer, a book that bridges neuroscience and Buddhism.

Other subtopics that arise:

- How I was disconnected from my feelings

- How “we all feel differently”

- The problem with broadly categorizing emotions

- The neutrality of mental states

- “Opening the door” for emotions

- Titration and knowing your edge

- Contradictory emotions can coexist

Song in the intro- "Light of the Mountain" by Brandon Tilt

I acknowledge that I learn, grow and heal on the unceded ancestral lands of the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm , the Katzie, the Stó:lō and the Tseil-Watuth First Nations. These lands were never abandoned nor surrendered by those with the ancestral rights to steward and protect these lands.

I honor and respect the elders, the children, the land stewards, the land protectors, the medicine keepers, and the men and women of all Indigenous nations.

Huy ch q’u (thank you) to those who support the indigenous communities and actively decolonize their minds and spirits.

Aho Mitakuye Oyasin, All my relations.

In this episode I explore my personal vision for podcasting, first exploring what my vision is in general, and then going onto explore my original intention for creating this platform, further reflecting on how this might begin to evolve as I bring in guests/ star on other podcasts.

Subtopics that arise:

- My personal values

- My personal vision/purpose/intention

- Podcasters and energy

- Communities and collective vision

- Introducing my desire to strengthen community-based values

Song in the intro- "Light of the Mountain" by Brandon Tilt

I acknowledge that I learn, grow and heal on the unceded ancestral lands of the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm , the Katzie, the Stó:lō and the Tseil-Watuth First Nations. These lands were never abandoned nor surrendered by those with the ancestral rights to steward and protect these lands.

I honor and respect the elders, the children, the land stewards, the land protectors, the medicine keepers, and the men and women of all Indigenous nations.

Huy ch q’u (thank you) to those who support the indigenous communities and actively decolonize their minds and spirits.

Aho Mitakuye Oyasin, All my relations.