Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy & Expanded States
Expanded states of consciousness — whether reached through psychedelics, breathwork, meditation, or other practices — can be rich, fertile ground for harvesting wisdom from the psyche and beyond. When approached with skill and care, they offer fresh perspectives on long-standing patterns, trauma, and identity.
It is not the medicine or mode of accessing the expanded state, that is the magic bullet, but it is the work of integrating those experiences into day-to-day life that implements the change. It is the slow, grounded work of bringing extraordinary experiences into ordinary life with presence and care that is at the essence of breakthroughs.
“The awakening of insight is only the beginning. The real challenge is to live it in our daily lives.”
— Jack Kornfield, After the Ecstasy, the Laundry
My Experience
I am an integrative psychotherapeutic counsellor who has been consciously exploring these layers of reality for over 25 years. My current work spans three very different yet complementary settings:
- Graduate of the two-year Depth Relational Process Diploma in Psychedelic Assisted Psychotherapy.
- Clinical trials with DMT and psilocybin, where I serve as a study therapist and assist in clinical research with a range of participants.
- One of the founding team members of The Equinox Collective – A group of psychiatrists and therapists providing legal retreats using psychedelics in the Netherlands alongside a variety of other offerings in the UK all with the intention of bringing you home to yourself.
- Working in an elite boarding school, supporting adolescents who are beginning to question and experiment, and who are ripe for existential questioning. They are fresh from the expanded state of childhood, and their realities have not yet been shut down by the conditions in which they must conform to survive.
- A thriving private practice, where I specialise in attachment-based trauma and the growing use of psychedelics among young people and adults to improve mental well-being.
This breadth keeps my practice grounded in both rigorous science and real-world complexity.
I am also part of the founding team to set up The Equinox Collective, a non-profit community of experienced psychotherapists and practitioners dedicated to healing through expanded states of consciousness, ceremony, and connection.
Rooted in traditions from psychotherapy, breathwork, bodywork, ecology, animism and philosophy. We weave together these elements in our approach to providing retreats.
We have worked in-depth with expanded states for decades personally and professionally to cultivate the pathway we offer.
The origins of this programme began with our meeting on the training with the Institute of Psychedelic Therapy, where we shared the intention to create communal spaces grounded in integrity and relational depth.
Our next retreat is in April 2026 in The Netherlands.
Preparation & Integration
Preparation and integration are the twin cornerstones of any psychedelic journey:
- Preparation creates the container — clarifying intention, mapping personal history, and cultivating the inner resources needed for a safe descent. It helps set the scene, often called “set”, which forms the backdrop of the journey.
- Integration is where the gold is refined — translating peak-state insights into everyday action and meaning. Bringing back the gems from the hidden places accessed by opening up into an expanded state.
In these phases I offer a compassionate, steady presence, underpinned by somatic, attachment-informed, and systemic-constellation approaches. Together we can weave the threads of your experience into a coherent narrative, even when the encounter itself felt nonsensical or overwhelming. There is a saying that “You get what you need”, and I see this in my practice. The medicine knows what you need. These ancient practices are about re-membering, in a safely held container, to bring about lasting change.
Training & Approach
A graduate of the first cohort of the Institute of Psychedelic Therapy’s Depth Relational Process (DRP), I combine:
- Attachment & trauma-informed therapy
- Somatic work – tracking the body’s wisdom
- Systemic constellations – recognising the wider family and cultural field
This integrative lens allows me to hold All of It: awe, fear, grief, joy, mess and the mystery in-between.
Some potentially useful links:
https://acerintegration.com/
https://www.thepsychedelicexperienceclinic.co.uk/
https://www.psyaware.org/
https://www.drugscience.org.uk/