Immersion Experience, 2023

The Immersion Experience is an invitation to participate in a heart-opening journey at the culmination of 12 months of learning and growth. Building upon the success of the highly acclaimed Immersion Experience in August 2022, we are pleased to present you with the opportunity to experience a Synthesis-style retreat firsthand.

Join your peers from the training program for an experience that combines trusted elements of former Synthesis retreats, refined over years of psychedelic facilitation, known as ‘The Way of Synthesis’, along with new elements that complement the interdisciplinary approach of the training program.

The Immersion Experience serves as a living embodiment of the values and principles underlying this work, often described by graduates as the pivotal point where “it all comes together.” It is the essential piece that brings the Psychedelic Practitioner Training to life, and reinforces and puts into practice the various lenses explored during the foundational digital training.

What you can expect from participating in the Immersion Experience: 

1. Integrated curriculum: The curriculum encompasses a range of topics in psychedelic practice, including breathwork facilitation fundamentals, guidance on dosing and consent, preparation and intention-setting practices, touch preference conversations, flight instructions, integration techniques, debriefing and Q&A sessions with the facilitation team, and peer and group sharing circles. It provides you with the opportunity to witness, experience, and facilitate Synthesis retreats alongside your peers.
2. Three (3) ceremonies with psilocybin-containing truffles or mushrooms: Led by experienced facilitators with years of experience facilitating psilocybin retreats, including Synthesis retreats, the program includes workshops, activities, and three psychedelic ceremonies. During one of the first two ceremonies, you will support your peers on their own psychedelic journeys, both as an Active Witness and a facilitator under the supervision of a team member, while collectively participating in the third ceremony.
3. Gain Practical Experience: Both as an active witness and facilitator, the Immersion Experience offers a comprehensive integration of all aspects of this work. Through this immersive approach, you will align and strengthen your professional practice, offering an embodied understanding of the journey. You will internalize the importance of being non-directive, grounded in your body, and upholding ethical practices as a facilitator. This experience provides you with a sense of spaciousness where you can explore and support the development of an authentic, personalized, and multi-faceted approach to your work while learning to uphold the highest ethical and safety standards.
4. Deepen Your Personal Practice: Experience a deepening of your personal practice, gaining inspiration and motivation to continue and expand your spiritual journey, and embrace daily contemplative practices to maintain a strong sense of connection
5. Experience Communitas: You’ll form deep connections that fuel your communitas experience, the “intense togetherness and shared humanity that temporarily transcends social structures”, and engage in meaningful conversations, share insights, and form relationships that go beyond the confines of the program.
6. Expand Your Awareness and Perception: Experience reverence for the interconnectedness of all things and explore the natural world from a different perspective, gaining a newfound appreciation for the intricate web of life and nature’s perpetual cycle of renewal and growth.
7. Connect with Wisdom Practices: Experience different facilitation styles, from modern therapeutic to ways learnt in indigenous plant medicine ceremonies, that open your mind to new perspectives and approaches in your personal practice.

Why invest in the Immersion Experience? 

The work of psychedelic facilitation is highly nuanced and subtle, requiring a delicate balance of skill, intuition, authenticity, embodiment, and an attuned, compassionate presence. This immersive program is designed to help you develop and refine your skills by experiencing the roles of witness, facilitator, and participant within the same container alongside your trusted peers.

Within this supportive space of trust, connection, and care, you can fully immerse yourself in each role, allowing for deep integration and growth on your journey to becoming a knowledgeable, embodied, and intuitive practitioner.

The Immersion Experience offers an opportunity to:

• Improve your ability to offer support and address needs during psychedelic sessions and ceremonies, knowing when to actively intervene and when to let the process unfold naturally.
• Gain confidence in facilitating group settings, drawing from the Synthesis team’s expertise in holding a collective space and incorporating ceremonial aesthetics.
• Appreciate the value of a non-directive approach, where facilitators refrain from interpreting or advising, creating a strong and supportive container for participants to navigate their own experiences.
• Set a high bar in your own professional practice by striving to match the level of care observed in the Synthesis facilitation model.
• Develop an awareness of the “waves” of experience participants go through during a journey, allowing for non-interference while maintaining a keen sensitivity to their needs.
• Discover the beauty and significance of ceremonial aspects which can enhance the sacredness and intentionality of the facilitation process.
• Learn how to provide timely and appropriate support during psychedelic journeys, understand the importance of regulating emotions, and be attentive to participants’ experiences.
• Gain valuable examples of caring and presence as facilitators create a safe and supportive space, attending to the needs of each participant.
• Learn simple ceremony songs and better understand how music, vocal opening, and singing can enhance and empower participants, and foster communitas in retreat experiences.

The Venues 

The Netherlands: New Eden is a unique residential retreat center, nestled within 50 acres of serene and tranquil meadow and woodland, just 90 minutes away from Amsterdam. For nearly 30 years, since August 1994. Beyond being a mere venue, New Eden provides an environment that is ideally designed for immersive and deep-dive experiences. Throughout your stay, you will enjoy comfortable and peaceful accommodations, and savour nourishing and tasty meals, lovingly prepared by our own devotional retreat chef, the talented Tara Steemers.

Costa Rica: Holos is a retreat center nestled in the sacred Diamante Valley in Costa Rica. This emerald haven is a magical landscape of cascading waterfalls, lush jungle, and mountain peaks. Holos Retreat Center has a stunning bamboo air shala, a ceremony space that breathes with the rhythm of nature. Chefs provide nutrient-rich foods, much from their own lush vegetable garden. Relish the experience of being immersed in nature, with the open-sided shala, luxury glamping accommodation, outdoor showers, and the glorious Diamante Falls nearby.

Please note:

1. Registration is now open for the April and July 2022 cohorts. At a later date, registration will also open for the October 2022 Oregon and non-Oregon cohorts.
2. Your eligibility to have a psychedelic experience during the retreat is subject to health screening results and the decision of the lead facilitators.
3. Participating in this retreat is not required in order to obtain the Core Training Certificate of Completion, nor is it a requirement for Oregon students seeking licensure.

In the grand tapestry of your learning journey, this moment stands as a pivotal point, where all the pieces of knowledge and growth converge into one illuminating, heart-opening, and immersive experience.

We look forward to embarking on this journey with you.

Choose Your Immersion Experience:

Register for the Immersion Experience – Jul 26 – Aug 3, 2023 – Netherlands

Register for the Immersion Experience – Aug 24 – Sep 1, 2023 – Costa Rica

Register for the Immersion Experience – Sep 13 – Sep 21, 2023 – Costa Rica

Payment plans are also available. You can pay in 6 installments of $1025, (equaling $6150). Here are the links to the payment plan options: Jul 26 – Aug 3, 2023 – Netherlands – Payment Plan or Aug 24 – Sep 1, 2023 – Costa Rica – Payment Plan or Sep 13 – Sep 21, 2023 – Costa Rica – Payment Plan

The 2023 Immersion Experience retreat team* consists of Lead Facilitator Costanza Di Prisco, Gabriele Cotronei, Juan Tepui, Hanneke Meesters, all former members of the Synthesis retreat team. They are joined variously by special guest facilitators Anja Loizaga-Velder, Ph.D., a veteran psychedelic practitioner and Synthesis learning facilitator, Tony Back. Together this team brings decades of relevant experience and attuned presence that they will use to co-create the experience alongside you.

*Please note that the facilitator line-up will vary between dates and locations.