This is not written for the average person but instead open-minded people that know what its like to be at rock bottom, the kind of people that actively work to get their shit together and sustain a healthy, happy mindset. The kind of people that want to be better then their past, more positive then their elders and successfully manifest elemental growth. In this article you will get a glimpse into my past, the answer to how I climbed out of hell and the 10 ways I became a better parent through the use of psychedelics.
To start at the beginning, I began using drugs really young – cigarettes at 9, alcohol & cannabis at 10, magic mushrooms at 13, ecstasy at 15 and so on… I come by it honestly too, while I am 110% responsible for my actions, during my early life all I knew was how to party, alcohol, religion, anger, neglect and abuse. Sure, that may be framing me as a victim but in some cosmic way I believe I chose this life and really grateful for everything I have experienced as I have walked my path in life.
When I lost my dad to a morphine overdose at 17 years old, I swore off the pharmaceutical industry. My mom however did not, when I was 21 years old, I found her on the kitchen floor, blue in the face, wearing several fentanyl patches. Another common opioid made by big pharma. Yes, sad but I am far from alone, there are over 120,000 deaths worldwide annually attributed to opioids – who knew the street drugs you can grow at home were better for you?
When I had my wake up call / spiritual awakening / rock bottom / breakdown – whatever you want to call it, I was 25 years old walking the ocean shore when I suddenly knew I had to go back to the village I once called home to face my past, heal myself, break my addictions and rise up to meet my potential as a human being. I am doing just that and have already achieved much more then I ever could have imagined at that time in my life. In fact, today I am a published author, collect certifications like they are Pokémon and a healthy, happy, grateful mama. You know what else? I am still practicing with psychedelics, at least the earth grown ones that we have been using since Paleolithic times (approximately 60,000 years ago), around the world!
Since I came out of the closet as a psychonaut to my colleagues, friends and the internet, I have been asked to cover the topic of psychedelics and parenting. So here are the 10 ways I became a better parent through the use of psychedelics.
- Personal Development: Truth is I didn’t know about personal development until I quit drinking. What really turned me on to it though, was Leo from Actualized.org. I stumbled upon him when I was seeking self-help resources on YouTube. The rabbit hole expanded more and more after that – I learned that life is school and have since dove deep into personal development, in fact I have been a practicing health coach since 2017 and was certified as a Master Coach in 2019. The way to really master something however, is by strengthening your practice and sharing it with others which I do daily.
- Family Karma / Evolution: If you are anything like me, you may believe in some weird hippie dippy stuff like crystals, reiki, magic and spirits, none of which are science. Evolution and ancestral connects are though and I think that in itself proves a whole lot about our mission on earth. It proves that we have the opportunity to improve on how our elders connected with others, walked this earth and release the drama. Psychedelics helped me with this too. Mushrooms helped me heal my own karma by reliving it as an older, wiser version of my self. I was able to give myself what I needed and didn’t receive as a child so I could with ease and familiarity give my son what he needs. If you’re still following me, Kambo helped me purge the darkness that remained inside of me, setting my spirit free from the karmic ties linked to my Aboriginal ancestry.
- Liberated & Authentic: Did you know another name for magic mushrooms is liberty caps? It’s true, not only because they are found under elm trees but because they expand your mind. That’s what psychedelic means – mind expanding, or soul manifesting. My experiences with natural psycho-active substances has allowed me the freedom to liberate myself, align to my mission in life and confidently speak the truths inside of me.
- Addiction / Mindset: I had fortunately already freed myself from the chemical industry, SAD (Standard American Diet) foods, alcohol and cigarettes for two years before I knew I was pregnant. It took much contemplation, some kundalini yoga and Terence McKenna’s Heroic Dose. That doesn’t mean the work was done, I am still working on my mindset and crusading addictive behaviors as I see them come up. Difference is that I don’t have any fears about relapse as I am progressing through recovery.
- Mental Saboteurs: You can’t defeat an enemy that you don’t see, or one that successfully masquerades as your friend. So, the first step is to identify your Saboteurs and expose their lies to discredit them. Shirzad Chamine wrote the book on how to achieve one’s true potential for both professional success and personal fulfillment by identifying and conquering our top mental Saboteurs. Common Saboteurs include the Judge, Controller, Victim, Avoider, and Pleaser. Using psychedelics, I can navigate my emotions with understanding, love and little push back from ego – meaning I can not only maintain flow in my life but teach these skills to my son with loving awareness.
- Subconscious Behaviors: Consciousness is the state or quality of awareness, the subconscious is the mental activities and learned behaviors. So often our learned behaviors are from childhood, or even deeper our genes – both of which we have full control to change. I am living proof of this because if I didn’t have that ability to unschool my learned behaviours and reprogram in ones which serve me, I would likely be a dead or worse a dead-beat alcoholic. Instead I am alive and thriving.
- Our Kids Are Our Reflection: This is a fun one to talk about because psychedelics teach us a bunch about fractals. Fractals put simply are patterns which repeat themselves infinitely. Our subconscious mind programs patterns which we manifest over and over in our life, sometimes we even repeat our elder’s patterns and sometimes our children repeat ours. We are fractal, simply another image of each other – in fact if you look in your child’s eyes, you will literally see your reflection. As a psychonaut parent I use this awareness to love myself, to play with enthusiasm, to be curious and ask questions. I use this awareness to make myself better so I can model better behavior naturally.
- Emotional Intelligence & Empathy: I touched on this above when talking about mental saboteurs. Emotional intelligence is more then just identifying a saboteur or emotional trigger but also your ability to allow yourself to feel your emotions as they pass through you. As an oppressed species we have totally lost interest in learning these skills but as a psychonaut parent I can tell you emotional intelligence is a super power. Digging deeper empathy grants us the ability to understand and share the emotions with one another. It is our automatic drive to respond appropriately to another’s emotions. With practice these skills will migrate into your subconscious mind.
- Less Worry, More Flow: A teacher once told me that fear & worry were useless emotions because the thing your worried about may never happen, or may be out of your control. To me this meant that these feelings were literally stealing my focus and robbing me of life force energy. I personally don’t think anything is useless but do see the value in using your energy for good. As the saying goes – where focus goes, energy flows. This awareness allows me to channel my energy into things I wish to manifest for Fynn and I, instead of allowing fear (which triggers the same parts of the brain as excitement) to decide what I will focus on or manifest in my life.
- Coming of Age Tradition: In many cultures, psychedelic use begins at a young age. Some are even used throughout pregnancy and childbirth. Natural psychedelics like peyote and mushrooms are used in religious ceremonies and cultural education, while marijuana and Datura flowers are often used in coming-of-age ceremonies. Ram Dass said it best “WE ARE LIVING IN A DEPRIVED SOCIETY, as far as spiritual rituals are concerned. We suffer from a shortage of rites of passage—or at any rate a shortage of meaningful rites of passage.” Personally, I have not yet decided when or how to celebrate with Fynn, we will figure it our together when the time feels right. I am empowered to create many of our own traditions, holidays and ceremonial rituals. Rites of passage are traditionally a catalyst that propels a boy into manhood, these traditions for the most part have been lost in the western world. Many cultures believe psychedelic substances are an integral aspect of raising responsible, aware adults. A coming-of-age ceremony allows teenagers to clearly transition to adulthood.
Additional Resources:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK553166/
https://www.positiveintelligence.com/
