CPE Cohort #2 Review and #3 Preview

A couple of weeks ago, we finished the second run of my six-week cohort-based course, The Conscious Psychedelic Explorer.

Overall, beautiful. Helping others to work with psychedelics for learning and growing is something I find truly meaningful.

We had an amazing group come together with 10 members joining for this round. Now the dust has settled, I thought I’d share a few thoughts on this group, and my plans for the next cohort in January.

Diverse Group

We had a diverse group, which I always enjoy. We had members in France, Germany, Canada, Mexico, the US, and the UK. Love the international vibe. To my surprise, even two members of the group had no experience with any of the classic psychedelics, only plans and a desire for extra support and education before the first liftoff. A couple more were also new on the path of conscious use. 

Originally I built this course for intermediate explorers, but I did adapt it a little this time around and make it more beginner friendly, making sure to cover all the basics. The upshot of this is that there is something for everyone and a more mixed group, some who’ve lots of experience alongside newcomers.

The newcomers keep it fresh, help to remind us all of the fundamentals and key principles, and connect us to the beginner’s mind. The experienced members offer their experience, knowledge, and resources. That is something that I love about the mix. 

Community is a bit of a trite word these days but the wisdom and energy of a group really do contribute more than the individuals inside. Although I am facilitating the process and organizing, I do see that the group takes on a life of its own, becoming something of its own entity.

Camaraderie And Connection

What I also love is that the community sparks connections. I loved seeing friendships bloom. It has been great to hear that other members have been chatting with each other, or even better, planning ceremonies. 🙂 It’s cool to get updates from people before and after their experiences and to see the support from other members. 

On our final call, we had the chance to get a bit sentimental and misty, and many members remarked how the depth of connection with others was a surprise. One mentioned how they joined the course hoping to gain a technical understanding of how to organize psychedelic sessions, but received personal insights by way of the group. We had space for sincerity and openness to challenges and doubts, and also for fun and laughs.

Offshoots

We had a couple of offshoots from this group. One was a Psychedelic Film Club. We made a separate Signal group and shared film recommendations, and had some discussions there. A few members went deep on this, having their own “psychedelic film festival” and plowing through a bunch of films and doing their own deep dive. Very cool. I joined in for a couple, a screening of Aware: Glimpses Of Consciousness, which we watched at the same time, and joining a pre-and post-screening zoom call for a chat with other members. The other was watching a new personal fave Descending the Mountain. It has been a movie I’ve been wanting to see for years, so it was great to have a free and legit viewing sourced by one of our members and the group energy impetus to set aside the time even in a busy period.

As another side quest, I invited all members to join me in a daily awareness/mindful practice for 30 days on week 2. This coincided with week 2’s lesson on awareness, one of the lessons in the first module on foundations for working with psychedelics.

When the 30 days were up, one of the members suggested we keep it going for another 30 days, so we’re currently continuing with that, with a post and update in the Signal group each day. I like sharing and supporting others in meditation practice, so this is something I’ll definitely invite from future cohorts.

Embers

Ultimately I’d like to build something that outlasts me, that stands on its own, something that would just continue if I disappeared. And whilst this small community isn’t there yet, I see the embers of something great. So I’ve decided to reopen the course for another 10 members in January.

I like this group size, its small enough to keep intimate and give all members a chance to get to know each other, but large enough to have some group energy and diversity.

Registration will be open for one week from the 10th – 17th January. The course will begin with the first live call on the 19th.

If you’re interested, I encourage you to join the waitlist here for early access.

What’s Inside CPE in 2023

Beyond the 6 weeks, I will be offering a whole bunch of extras throughout 2023 for all new course members.

We will have monthly community calls for all course alumni, and I’m quite excited to see members new and old mixing.

I’ll also be offering quarterly workshops. The first, Music, Playlists, and the Art of Listening in Psychedelic Sessions, is already on the calendar for February 5th. These workshops will be included for CPE members, but I will also open them to others who’d like to join in the fun.

We will also have a bunch of guest classes, experiences, and calls.

This includes a neuroscience class from Manesh Girn, a live deep listening session with Wavepaths & founder Mendel Kaelen, a look into psychedelic facilitated nature connection with Dr Sam Gandy, a research overview and Q&A with Floris from Blossom, and a few others to be confirmed. These classes themselves could be a course and I’m excited to learn from these experts alongside the community.

If you want 2023 to be the year where you go pro in your knowledge and practice with psychedelics, this is an amazing opportunity. It’s a course with basically an added one-year membership to a club with expert classes, community calls, and quarterly workshops.

What’s On For You in 2023?

To close on a year’s end theme, I’d like to invite you to consider, what are your goals for 2023? What are your hopes, dreams, and aspirations? What would, if accomplished or experienced by year’s end, would make the year a meaningful one for you?

If it’s anything to do with psychedelics, come join us in the CPE!

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