BPS Presents: Navigating the Psychedelic Underground

Join BPS on Sunday, February 4th in a rare public forum where we’ll talk openly about the various joys and perils of pursuing healing and growth in the psychedelic underground.

Many people pursuing healing and growth fail to end up in truly safe and supportive relationships, and this isn’t their fault. Our aim is to equip you with the knowledge and resources (and connections!) needed to find your way into truly safe and supportive journeys in the underground. Afterwards, we’ll have snacks and tea and time for meeting new friends!

The panel will bring together the BPS Facilitator Committee—the minds and hearts behind our vetted facilitator list (available to BPS members)—along with special guest Daniel Shankin. Each of them brings a unique perspective to the various ethical, safety, and cultural issues, both urgent and subtle, prevalent in New York’s psychedelic wilds.

Topics we’ll cover:

• How to find quality facilitators
• How to know if a facilitator is right for you
• How to source safely
• Green flags, red flags
• Horror stories, success stories
• Screening protocols
• Price ranges
• Safety issues
• What to do when something goes wrong
• How to provide feedback

Bring all your nitty-gritty concerns–all the questions you’ve been afraid to ask–and prepare for a rich, knowledge-filled conversation! 

Speaker Bios:

Yaquí Rodriguez is the descendant of folk healers and farmers from the central mountainous region in the Dominican Republic. She has dedicated the past 13 years to study, taking more than 40 trainings with diverse teachers of different modalities in the healing arts. Her work is rooted in healing intergenerational trauma, reviving ancestral practices, earth reconnection towards individual and collective liberation within the framework of decolonization.

Daniel Shankin is the founder of Mt. Tam Psychedelic Integration. An Integration coach with a thriving practice, he offers private coaching, integration circles, and a year long coaching training program. He enjoys yoga, meditation, the Grateful Dead, and foraging for mushrooms with his wife and two boys.

Mike Fowler is a guide for transformational experiences. He is the founder of Still Within, through which he offers guided meditation, mentorship, coaching, and spiritual direction. Mike has received training in the Hakomi method of mindfulness-centered somatic psychotherapy, transformational coaching, and through a community of established, ethical guides with the Congregation for Sacred Practices.

Cate Jester is a psychedelic research therapist, coach and consultant. Cate is completing a MA in mental health counseling and has certification in applied positive psychology, master shamanic reiki, laughter wellness and training in multiple modalities of psychospiritual facilitation. Creator of the BS-Free Life project, Cate is committed to offering safe space for exploration, insight, and meaningful experiences.

Community is the Medicine