If you plan to do a medicine ceremony I celebrate you for the strength and courage it takes to make that decision! If you are just curious and want to learn more about plant medicine preparation, I have created the following guide to prepare your body-mind and soul. The tools in this guide are optional but highly recommended in order to maximize the therapeutic benefits of the medicine ceremony and reduce harm. It is incredibly important to remember that the medicine itself is not a “magic pill” or a “cure-all.” The gravity and profundity of your experience, the amount of transformation achieved, is directly correlated to the amount of time you are willing to dedicate to doing this work before and integration after ceremony.
Physical Preparation:
★ 3-7 days before the medicine ceremony it is advised to do your best to reduce your use of electronics, reduce stressful obligations/stimulation like the evening news, social media, working overtime, interactions with people who stress you out etc.
★ 3-7 days before the medicine ceremony it is advised to get plenty of rest, good quality sleep, adequate water intake and prepare your body by eating healthy meals with organic animal or vegan protein and a lot of organic fruits and veggies. Do your best to avoid fast food, fried food, grains, simple carbohydrates, sugar, dairy, alcohol, caffeine, cannabis, other substances and smoking.
★ 2-3 days before the medicine ceremony it is advised to stop taking any herbal supplements or vitamins as long as it is medically safe to do so. Please consult with your doctor.
★ Some prescription medications will need to be stopped for a short period of time in order to safely ingest certain sacraments. This should always be done with the guidance of your prescribing physician. If it is not safe to stop taking the medication, even for a short period of time, then it is not advised to move forward with a medicine session for your health and safety. Mixing prescriptions with psychedelics can lead to serious side effects and even death. You can find more information here: https://tripsit.me/#hero or here: https://www.erowid.org/
★ On the day of ceremony it is best to have a very light breakfast and allow for 3 – 4 hours of fasting before ingesting most medicines. This will reduce the chance of purging and nausea. With psilocybin I recommend eating about 2 hours before to prevent nausea. You can also make a mushroom tea or lemon tek to prevent nausea but be aware this makes the effects of the psilocybin much stronger and come on quicker.
Mind-Body Preparation Done 1-2 weeks prior:
★ Resources are things that bring you a sense of calmness and ease, they could be butterfly taps, breathing calmly, sighing, rocking your body, a physical item or picture. Identify several internal and external resources, should you need to call on them during your medicine session, as a way to regulate your nervous system if anything becomes too overwhelming. I provide this service in my preparation sessions with my clients. Here is a guide I put together with nervous system resourcing and regulating tools to try: Nervous System Regulation and Resourcing Techniques
★ Practice mindfulness, meditation, breathwork or other somatic practices. Get outdoors and connect with nature. Ask to connect with the spirit of the medicine you will be working with. Pray, chant, dance, move, shake, create, make art, write, burn sage and palo santo. Connect with your guides and those who watch over you in the spirit realm, I invite you to open and stay curious, honor your “body as temple” and remind yourself that ALL OF YOU IS WELCOME HERE!
★Psychoeducation about the substance you are going to take is incredibly important. This will help you understand any physical side-effects and mental or emotional release that is possible as well as the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of the medicine. This is also something I provide for my clients in the preparatory phase of the journey. Please go to the links above to Trip Sit and Erowid for more info or you can check out Dance Safe’s resources at: https://dancesafe.org/drug-information/ You can also check out the blogs I have written providing psychoeducation, effects and safety info on MDMA and Psilocybin.
★ Write out your intentions for the medicine ceremony using the framework of: Show Me, Teach Me, Help Me. An example looks like this: Show me courage, teach me self love, help me with safety. This framework allows us to set reasonable intentions rather than expectations that the medicine is a “magic pill” or “cure-all” and will fix everything. The intention isn’t the destination, it’s something you take with you on the journey. I read my intentions out loud to myself every day leading up to the ceremony and I bring them with me and keep them in my pocket during the journey.
★Identify people who could be of support after the medicine ceremony and reach out to see if they can provide that support for you. It is best to have someone that has experience doing medicine ceremonies so they understand how to best support you. If you can’t think of anyone you can check out my resources page for free and experienced integration support during and after a medicine ceremony. If you want to find local psychedelic community you can go to:
https://globalpsychedelic.org/locator/
★ I’m sure you have heard the term “set and setting”. Set is referred to as mindset (which we’ve already covered) and setting is the physical environment around you where you are doing the ceremony. These are of crucial importance to reduce harm. Are you familiar with the location? Do you feel safe there? Are the aesthetics conducive to this type of journey? Are there stairs or safety concerns to have access to the bathroom while on medicine? Could there be any possible intrusions (other people, animals)? Will you play music, if so do you have a playlist curated for the ceremony?
★ Will you have a facilitator or guide or will you be alone? Do you trust your facilitator? Have they gone over things like informed consent, consent for therapeutic touch, their code of ethics, health screening for medical contraindications and medications?
★ Plan to have, at minimum, one day after the ceremony where you have no responsibilities and you have the spaciousness to move slowly and integrate the experience. If you are doing a ceremony with me, this day and the integration work is included in my offering.
★ It is best not to share details of your experience with anyone for at least 24 hours after and when you do it is best to be very discerning about who you share your experience with. A lot of people can’t understand this work and tend to judge rather than support the experience. Others just have no clue how to offer support and truly hear what you are sharing about your experience.
★ Don’t drive, take other substances, make any important decisions or sign any legal contracts for at least 24 hours after a medicine ceremony.
Informed Decision-Making:
★ Prepare yourself and have agency around the decision to partake in a psychedelic experience. Exercise informed consent by making yourself fully aware of the potential risks and benefits and the legality of these medicines in the county/state you will be ingesting them in. See the links above to Trip Sit, Erowid and Dance Safe to educate yourself on these substances. Please, vet your facilitator, there are far too many that don’t have the proper training and they are doing harm. Do they have a code of ethics? Do they provide psychoeducation, medical/health screening, preparation, integration?
This guide is an overview of best practices to prepare yourself for a ceremony and individual circumstances will vary. Always prioritize safety, responsible use and self-care when preparing for a psychedelic medicine session. If in doubt, seek guidance from an experienced professional. These medicines are not for everyone and unless you are a full “fuck yes” to doing a medicine ceremony then I don’t recommend it.
