Galia Tanay Ph.D., comes on the show to share about her life's journey from imagination and exploring the mind, depression, meditation, higher education in psychology, and the wisdom she gained along the way. Topics discussed are the mental health system / medical model, and its narrow concept of what is acceptable; Galia's realization that "being a part of the system without any call for radical change did not feel ethical”; founding a program for mindfulness based therapies for practitioners, creating a network of therapists grounded in systemic perspectives on human suffering; the growing demand for alternatives to the medical and psychiatric models, and that we can all help develop those new models; the war on consciousness, the war on weirdness; the need for communities in our society with cognitive and sexual freedom; the danger of commodifying and marketing psychedelics; the complex phenomena of depression; dismantling the “cage” by creating an environment with space for community, sharing, and expression; Sacred Pleasure by Riane Eisler, and moving away from authority, toward dialogue and boundaries and respecting autonomy; acknowledging and taking responsibility around hierarchies (and what a painful process it can be), to give ourselves the chance to envision and enact alternatives; that we can all take the steps to live differently, to dismantle hierarchies in wider and wider circles; that therapeutic processes are processes of building an alternative life, and restoring the ability to listen to one’s internal compass; self compassion; and that we must all stay WEIRD!

Dr. Galia Tanay is a practitioner of the ancient ways and teacher on the path of freedom. She spent many years in deep traditional Buddhist practice and had been teaching intensive meditation retreats for the past 8 years. Galia is a certified Yoga teacher who teaches Yoga therapy and emphasizes the embodiment in awareness practice. Galia has a Phd in Psychology and for many years had worked with patients as well as taught and trained therapists in academic and non-academic programs. For 13 years Galia has been working with psychedelics, mainly Psilocybin mushrooms and Ayahuasca, traveling through these altered states and accompanying others on this path. Galia is a vocal artist, a musician and a writer who believe that freedom is a form of art and creativity is necessary in our coming home to our being.

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