FAQs
Find answers to our
most frequently asked questions
What are some key features of Gather Well Psychedelics?
- Collaborative leadership
- Women-led
- Queer-led
- Group-work format
- Emphasis on systems awareness/systems change
- Cultural sensitivity / identity awareness
- Experiential learning
- Apprenticeship model
- Emphasis on Psilocybin mushrooms
- Backed by an Ethics Infrastructure
- Tiered tuition model
- Indigenous practice informed, non-clinical framework
- Not-for-profit organization
What is the main objective of the Gather Well Psychedelics?
- Offering safe, ethical, comprehensive training to those who want to be psychedelic guides
- Playing a part in supporting a shift in collective consciousness via the wise and respectful use of psychedelics
What sets Gather Well apart from other training organizations?
- Less emphasis on individual healing, more emphasis on systemic forces that impact the individual
- Less emphasis on the clinical, illness-based perspective, more emphasis on Indigenous frameworks and belief on the individual as already whole
- A focus on community health and healing and a collective social/cultural lens
- A focus on group-format psychedelic sessions
- An Apprenticeship-based, experiential learning model
- Ethics Infrastructure supports students throughout the program and after
- An inclusive tuition model – those who have more, pay more, those who have less, pay less
- The program is designed to be slower, comprehensive and personally transformative
Is Gather Well online or in-person?
Both! Gather Well is a hybrid model, offering students from all over an opportunity to engage in our programs, with group work experientails in location-based cohorts.
What is Psychedelic-assisted therapy and is that what Gather Well does?
Psychedelic-assisted therapy, or PAT, is a widely used term to describe psychedelics used in a therapeutic framework. It is an approach to healing that combines traditional therapeutic modalities with the use of psychedelic substances. Psychedelics alter our brain chemistry in such a way that they help reveal, amplify, or deconstruct unconscious perceptions, patterns, and behaviors and reveal one’s inherent goodness or essential self, ultimately providing a sense of belonging and wholeness.
At Gather Well we prefer the term “psychedelic healing modalities” or “psychedelic care” (rather than Psychedelic- assisted therapy) as it is more inclusive of practices with psychedelics that do not ascribe to a psychotherapeutic framework or psychologized lens of self, other and the collective. Here at Gather Well we synthesize trauma informed counseling frameworks and ceremonial practices, approaching these practices with reverence and a goal toward healing, balance, and wholeness. For further explanation read HERE.
Gather Well Psychedelics provides education for those seeing to be psychedelic guides/practitioners. For more details about training go to our program page HERE
Who is the Psychedelic Guide Apprenticeship Program for?
Those who are drawn to an experiential learning format, have an interest in a slower, comprehensive program and who are genuinely interested in their own growth and development as a practitioner and a being. There are no specific professional license requirements to join our programs.
See our PROGRAMS page for more info
Which substances does Gather Well focus on?
At this time our focus in with psilocybin mushrooms. We anticipate including MDMA in time.
Are Gather Well programs legal?
Psychedelic-assisted therapies are currently legal in the United States with the use of Ketamine by prescription. MDMA, Psilocybin, and other substances may be approved by the FDA to treat or manage various diagnoses in the coming years. Our training does not provide any substances or engage in any illegal activity. GWP provides preparation, integration and session guidance within a harm reduction lens to those that have decided to ingest substances. All activities related to psychedelic substances are conducted in jurisdictions where it is legal, within partnerships with institutions following those jurisdictions’ policies.
Are the practices Gather Well teaches safe?
While no one can guarantee absolute safety with any modality of healing, psychedelic therapies, when used skillfully, are relatively safe. This, of course, depends on the self-awareness, training, and skill of the practitioner and a thorough mental and physical health assessment of the client.
Safety in these practices is paramount to what we teach at Gather Well. We emphasize screening and enhanced informed-consent practices. We have also developed a comprehensive Ethics Infrastructure that offers support, mentorship and accountability throughout one’s journey as a practitioner.
How does Gather Well intend to foster inclusivity and accessibility?
- By considering who has influence over the organization’s direction, infrastructure and decisions.
- Through class, race, gender, cultural and socio-economic diversity among staff, program facilitators and students as much as we are able.
- By embedding anti-racist and anti-discriminatory learning and policies at both the organizational and educational levels and celebrating diversity and liberatory practices.
- Program cost is designed so that tuition is proportional to one’s means. This will help to address inclusivity in relation to socioeconomic position.
What is Gather Well’s code of ethics?
HERE is a link to see more about our Ethics Infrastructure and our Code of Ethics
Where can I learn more about the history of Gather Well?
There is a blog post HERE that goes into how Gather Well came to be, including a personal reflection from one of the co-founders
Where can I learn more about the Mission, Vision and Values of Gather Well?
By visiting the site HERE
Is Gather Well a nonprofit organization?
Yes. Gather Well is a registered 501c3. HERE is a link to more on our ownership model.
How can I donate to Gather Well Psychedelics and what do my donations go toward?
Your support matters! You can make tax deductible donations HERE. Your donations provide education for those seeking to be psychedelic practitioners, having ripple effects on the health and vitality of collective consciousness.
What do I do if I have a grievance, concern or want to give feedback about someone at Gather Well?
HERE is a link to our procedure for reporting a concern.