The pitfalls of guiding
There is an ongoing discussion in different
forums about the problem of abuse in psychedelics circles and the need to train
guides better. I could not agree more. We all need to make a solid commitment
to safety, professionalism, and accountability in the field of
psychedelics-assisted guiding and psychotherapy, insisting on the importance of
comprehensive training for guides. It is my hope that the psychedelic community
worldwide, both above and underground, takes notice and keeps this conversation
going.
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Helping others to work with expanded states
of consciousness is not an easy job. Of course, every profession has its
occupational hazards; still, I am convinced that due to what it attempts to
achieve, being a psychedelic guide is not for the faint-hearted.
Psychedelics can be defined as unspecific
amplifiers or catalysts that make it possible to take a journey into one’s
psyche and explore otherwise inaccessible deep recesses of the unconscious[1].
This means that they bring whatever is hidden deep in the unconscious to the
surface. As any psychotherapist can tell you, this has an incredible healing
potential AND conceivably is also a recipe for disaster.
It is common knowledge that the unconscious
holds all kinds of repressed and disowned material. Among other things, it includes
our darkest impulses, hidden wounds, and private fantasies (often of a sexual
or aggressive nature). If that was not enough, we must add archetypal and
transgenerational forces dwelling in the collective unconscious.
The psychedelic guide job’s description
includes the willingness and ability to work with these wild subterraneous
currents, operating both in the clients and the guide, to facilitate healing
and growth. A good guide must be able to engage not only at the
mental-emotional level but also focus on the body, energetic, archetypal, and
spiritual ones. To do this, they must become skilled in Western psychotherapy
interventions as well as those emanating from the spiritual and shamanic
traditions of the world. Quite an undertaking!
With such a high bar to meet, mistakes are
bound to happen. In Mexico, an old proverb says: “In the soap maker’s house,
everybody either falls or slips,” meaning that one should not be quick to judge
others because, sooner or later, we too will make a blunder. In a way, guiding
happens at the soap maker’s house[2].
But how can we reduce the risk of making such mistakes? The answer is quite
simple: training, training, training. Or, more specifically, learning, doing
our inner work, and staying humble (and getting plenty of supervision
too!)
Being fully aware of the pitfalls of
guiding, any guide training should begin by discussing ethics. Then, continue
talking about it throughout, and end by reminding trainees again about the
value of ethical behavior and their responsibilities towards clients. When I
teach, I spend time talking about the transference (including the erotic one)
and countertransference, working with shadow material (the client’s and the
guide’s), teaching about working with physical touch, respecting boundaries,
working with childhood and attachment wounding, appreciating the
power-differential in the guiding relationship, etc. I put particular emphasis
on reminding students how and why the stakes are even higher when clients are
in expanded states of consciousness.
However, talking about ethics is never
enough. I help students to understand why these ethical principles and healthy
boundaries are needed. Experience has shown that ethical principles rarely work
when presented as a list of “thou shall not.” They only function when guides
internalize and commit to upholding these principles.
As it is often pointed out, psychedelics
are going through a “renaissance.” Among
the many aspiring practitioners who want to become guides, a few always want to
do it for personal (often unconscious) reasons. There is often a guru or
messiah syndrome somewhere to be found or old hidden childhood wounds crying
for attention. I see my job as an
opportunity to teach them that being a guide requires a profound humbleness, an
endless openness to learning, and an unwavering commitment to serve others. As
expressed initially, being a psychedelic guide or a psychedelic-assisted
psychotherapist is not for the faint-hearted. It demands standards of care,
ethics, and practice well above those in most related professions. The stakes
are higher, and the potential for damage (and healing) is formidable. Let us
all reiterate our pledge to continue working to become guides entirely devoted
to such standards. Let’s do it together.
Sergio Rodriguez-Castillo
[1] Grof, S. (2006). The ultimate journey: Consciousness and the
mystery of death. MAPS.
[2] Of course, as a good guide, I need to ask what unconscious motives
move me to quote a Mexican proverb here? Is it a concealed superiority complex
that makes me think that Mexican culture is better than…? Could it be an
attempt to resist the pull to be assimilated into the dominant culture? Maybe
it is a hidden unmet need to appear both wise and folksy. The fact is that we
never know what lurks in the unconscious. :0)
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