Unleash
Frequently Asked Questions
Helping you make informed decisions
will I benefit from this program?
You will likely benefit from our program if you seek some kind of healing and/or growth through intentional psychedelic use.
If you are feeling stuck in anxiety, depression, PTSD, addiction, personal growth, confusion about your life's purpose, and are motivated to do whatever it takes to change, this program is for you.
If you are curious about peeking beyond the veil of your everyday perception, this program is for you.
If you are interested in deepening your spiritual practice or explore spirituality, this program is for you.
If you are interested but undecided, please contact us to book a discovery session.
Answers to the most important preliminary questions are below. Please note that the preparation session for a trip is a much more in depth and customized exploration conducted by a trip guide. Should you wish to explore other aspects of a psychedelic trip to help you ascertain if psychedelics are a good option for you, please contact us directly by email and/or request a free exploratory call.
What is included in the program?
The individual program is designed to provide support for those who wish to initiate or continue transformational change with psychedelic means. The individual ceremonial program includes: * a preliminary conversation and assessment of health factors * 2x 30-minute personal virtual preparation sessions * the actual 6-8 hours plant medicine ceremony with in-person support/guidance * 2x 30-minute personal virtual integration sessions * text and email support throughout the program * a Preparation and Integration PDF manual optional Microdosing coaching to help you continue to generate more insights and deepen those triggered by the full-dose trip, achieve higher levels of emotional and psychological well-being, and more (this offer is optional, but included in the program price) * our 1-on-1 ceremonial program was specifically created to include all of the essential elements for transformational change, while ensuring that you’re supported at each step along the way. It is possible to add additional preparation or integration sessions and/or bundle ceremonies for more in depth work. Small group ceremonies are also available. If you are interested in a customized program, please get in touch with us.
How many ceremonies does it take?
There is no short or easy answer to this. The best advice we can give you is to take your own journey of healing one step at a time, focusing on the mental, physical and emotional preparation, experience, and integration of one ceremony at a time. Approaching each ceremony with the necessary preparedness, an open mind and heart, and the intention to continue the work of integration will allow you to exploit its full benefits in accordance to the stage of your overall journey. It is not unusual to take several months to process the trip experience, as it will give up its meanings gradually. It is also not unusual to wish to have additional ceremonies which can enrich the context of your integration and propel your insights to new levels. The desire for additional ceremonies can occur as soon as 4-6 weeks after the first trip, or can take several months or up to a year to materialize again. While any amount of healing done through plant medicines can be invaluable, each ceremony can unlock different and deeper aspects of healing and go beyond that, into the realm of self-actualization.
How much advance preparation is necessary to schedule a ceremony?
There is not set generalizable preparation time. It depends on practical aspects, like booking schedules of the facilitators, but also on the individual mindset, health related factors, availability of desired setting. Most people seeking the communion with plant medicines have reached that place of readiness by themselves, either because other healing modalities have failed, have been less efficient than expected, or because they now feel especially called to try the psychedelic path. Nevertheless, preparation is essential, the progress of which is guided and assessed by the facilitators in dialogue with you. The current preparation/booking period is between 2-4 weeks. If you are interested in finding out more or booking a ceremony, please contact us.
Are there any age restrictions?
Participants must be 18+ years of age and in adequate health condition.
May I involve my therapist?
Yes, if there is openness on all sides, we can work with your therapist: sharing the preparation and immediate integration part with your therapist, which you the continue within your established therapeutic context, while the guide would facilitate the actual plant medicine ceremony. We can also assist you with finding therapists who are open to or specialize in psychedelic-assisted therapy.
What can I do to avoid a “bad trip”?
Our recommendation is to begin by reframing the connotations of the “bad trip”. Strictly speaking, there is no such thing as a bad trip. It is much more useful and fruitful to understand that some psychedelic experiences can be more challenging or more difficult than others, while at the same time potentially yielding much greater benefits to our transformation in the day to day lives than purely ecstatic ones. Pushing ourselves out of our comfort zones is what allows us to grow and develop the self-confidence and resilience within! This is not to say that we are not partial to ecstatic experiences! But we advise against using black and white distinctions: good/bad — these are not only arbitrary and moralistic, but they also disregard the purpose of taking psychedelics for personal healing and transformation. In short, a “bad trip” is a trip in which challenging emotions may surface. This is a temporary discomfort which arises because one (finally) dares to face one’s fears and confront disagreeable or repressed aspects of oneself; it is a discomfort endured for immeasurable long-term benefits. Having said that, it is of great importance to prepare yourself before the trip (guidance and manual provided) and to trust in the benevolent presence of your trip guide. This will ensure that you are embarking on your journey with a safety net.
What are the success rates?
As with the previous question, this is challenging to answer in absolute terms because of the highly individual nature and measure of success, the amount of inner work that you are prepared to undertake, and also because success itself is not a final state, but a continuous process. For example, for someone with anxiety, success may present as reduced restlessness and intensity of panic attacks, increase ability to focus or ease of falling asleep; for someone who suffers from PTDS, success may present as the less frequent occurrence of flashbacks, and increased mood stability; for someone who is battling addiction, success may present as a decrease in the intensity of substance craving or irritability. Nevertheless, what we can say is that all clients who have sought healing through psychedelic medicine have made progress. For example, they: - have gained important insights into the nature of the problem they are preoccupied with - have been able to change perspective on their lives and themselves, - have been able to demystify and disarm their fears, - have gained a deeper appreciation of their bodies and their health, - have been able to become or stay sober, - and have since been able to continue to draw on their inherent power and strength to pursue deeper healing and the realization of other goals. Our results are anecdotal (for now), but supported by the outcomes of larger studies.
Which psychedelics do you work with?
We work primarily with clients who wish to experience psilocybin, a.k.a. magic mushrooms of the psilocybe cubensis sort. We do not have a preferred strain, but take into account that there are differences in effects and potency and as a result dosage.
What dosage do you recommend?
While the dosage is determined based on each client and their specific intention, we usually work with clients who benefit from our support with and during high-dose intentional journeys. The range is between 3-5 grams, but can go to 10+ grams of psychedelic mushrooms for experienced psychonauts.
Can I use plant medicines if I am also taking prescription medication?
Taking an SSRI (a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) or an SNRI (selective serotonin/nor-epinephrine reuptake inhibitor), such as but not limited to zoloft, prozac, lexapro, effexor, cymbalta, trintellix, and buspirone, does not, in principle, pose any restrictions on your eligibility to participate in plant ceremonies. It is often individuals who are managing conditions such as depression, anxiety, or chronic pain with serotonin based medications who are interested and stand to benefit enormously from plant medicines. Nevertheless, we strongly advise participants who take SSRIs/SNRIs to discuss their intention of participating in a plant ceremony with their trusted healthcare provider and discuss the potential drug interactions with them. It should be noted that people who are taking prescription medication have reported less intense psychedelic experiences compared with others using the same dose. This is relevant because the transformative benefits are linked to the intensity of the psychedelic experience. Adjustments of dosage, incl. increasing the dosage during the ceremony, are useful in those cases. We cannot guarantee the same intensity of experience of those who are free from all possible interactions of serotonin based medications. Unleash New Hope are open to supporting these and all individuals to take advantage of the unique characteristics of psychedelics by creating the right environment for their transformational journey. In general, it is preferable for you to be as clean and clear as possible heading into a psychedelic ceremony. This can also mean cutting or reducing inflammatory foods from your diet (such as meat and sugar, as well as alcohol) in the days before your ceremony, and adding vegetables, fruits and sufficient hours of sleep.
How much does the program cost for groups?
We offer a 20% bundled pricing discount for groups of four or more. The discount is applied to the basic package cost only. Additional costs related to third-party rentals or travel may be applicable.