When the ceremony doesn’t end.
Bridging interdisciplinary perspectives from Psychedelic-Induced Psychosis to Spiritual Emergency.
Organized with the support of the McKenna Academy, join us for a comprehensive online educational seminar that brings together a diverse panel of experts to examine the complex phenomenon of psychosis in psychedelic experiences.
This event will feature mental health practitioners, traditional wisdom keepers, researchers, and facilitators exploring the intricate relationship between psychedelics and psychosis in various settings. Participants can also earn Continuing Education credits for their attendance.
This event will explore the subject through presentations, discussions, Q&A session, and Expressive Arts Therapy (EXAT) activities. It is designed for clinical professionals, underground practitioners, and individuals interested in psychedelics, mental health, and plant medicines.
The Seminar schedules includes:
Introduction to psychedelics and entheogens
Defining psychosis and “spiritual emergency”
Lee Kaiser’s case study presentation
Responses from each presenter
Guided discussion among presenters
Pre-recorded interviews with indigenous practitioners
EXAT activities (non-verbal exploration of the subject through creative expression) in breakout rooms
Q&A and participants’ reflections
Creative engagement for material integration
Closing commentary and future directions
We believe learning should be accessible to everyone. If the standard price is challenging, choose our sliding scale option and pay what you can. Your honesty helps us keep quality education within reach.
Important Note
Community Track is intended for personal learning and does not include professional certification credentials.
Presenters
Dr. Dennis McKenna
Principal Founder & President at McKenna Academy of Natural Philosophy
Dennis Jon McKenna is a distinguished ethnopharmacologist with over 40 years of experience studying Amazonian plant hallucinogens and ethnomedicines. He earned his Ph.D. in Botanical Sciences from the University of British Columbia in 1984 and completed postdoctoral fellowships at the National Institute of Mental Health and Stanford University. Dr. McKenna has held significant roles, including Director of Ethnopharmacology at Shaman Pharmaceuticals and Senior Research Pharmacognosist at Aveda Corporation.
He served as an Assistant Professor at the University of Minnesota’s Center for Spirituality and Healing, where he taught courses on Ethnopharmacology, Botanical Medicines in Health Care, and an intersession field course in Hawaii called Plants in Human Affairs. He was a founding board member of the Hefter Research Institute and played a key role in the Hoasca Project, the first biomedical investigation of ayahuasca used by a Brazilian religious group.
Dr. McKenna has authored or co-authored over 50 scientific papers and several books, including “The Brotherhood of the Screaming Abyss” and “The Ethnopharmacologic Search for Psychoactive Drugs.” In 2017, he organized the ESPD50 conference, marking the 50th anniversary of a pivotal event in psychedelic research. In 2022, under the auspices of the McKenna Academy he organized and presented ESPD55, a 55th anniversary commemoration of the original 1967 conference.
Now residing in Abbotsford, B.C., he continues his work in ethnopharmacology through directing scientific and cultural initiatives with the McKenna Academy of Natural Philosophy.
Dr. Ranji Varghese MD
CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER AND PARTNER AT INSTITUTE FOR INTEGRATIVE THERAPIES
Dr. Varghese is a board-certified Psychiatrist and Sleep Medicine specialist who completed his medical training at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, where he served as Chief Resident. He values the privilege of providing longitudinal care to individuals facing mental health and sleep challenges, emphasizing the uniqueness of each person’s story and the respect it merits.
His proficiency in pharmacology enables him to effectively manage the symptoms of various disorders. However, Dr. Varghese is deeply committed to uncovering the root causes of human suffering and believes in the transformative power of psychotherapy. His exploration into psychedelic medicines and integrative psychotherapy stems from his desire to help individuals break through psychological barriers and connect with their inner selves in a more profound way. He highlights the role of ketamine in facilitating this process by temporarily easing rigid thought patterns, thus enhancing the mind’s capacity to forge new self-perceptions.
As a pioneer in psychedelic research, Dr. Varghese serves as a co-investigator for Minnesota’s inaugural study on psilocybin, the psychoactive component of “magic mushrooms,” focusing particularly on its potential to alleviate anxiety related to cancer and mortality.
Dr. Varghese has received specialized training in ketamine administration from the PRATI Institute and in MDMA therapy through the MAPS Organization.
Currently, as an Assistant Professor of Neurology at the University of Minnesota, he teaches in the accredited Sleep Fellowship program at the Minnesota Regional Sleep Disorders Center at HCMC, where he also serves as Medical Director. Dr. Varghese currently serves as the Chief Medical Officer for Institute for Integrative Therapies in Minnesota, a psychedelic informed clinic offering ketamine assisted therapy.
Dr. Varghese also serves as Director for the McKenna Academy of Natural Philosophy.
Dr. Yarissa Herman
c. psych
Dr. Herman is a psychologist and course director with the University Health Network’s Psychedelic Psychotherapy Research Group in Ontario, Canada. She is also a psychologist at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, where she is the head of a substance use Harm Reduction Program for individuals who have experienced a psychotic episode. She has been working in the area of substance use treatment for almost 20 years, beginning with her doctoral research, which explored the relationship between cognitive functioning and outcomes in substance use treatment. In addition to her general practice in addictions, she has provided specialized substance use interventions for street-involved youth, indigenous communities, and individuals with psychosis.
Dr. Herman is involved in clinical and research endeavors in the domains of substance use interventions as well as psychedelic assisted psychotherapies. She has particular interest and experience in psychedelic integration and the relationship between psychedelic use and psychosis.
Kyle Keller
MSW, LICSW, Psychotherapist, Certified Psychedelic-Assisted Therapist
Kyle Keller is a psychotherapist and certified psychedelic-assisted therapist with extensive experience in mental health care. As co-founder and former Chief Clinical Officer of Ellie Mental Health, he oversaw clinical programming and innovation across a national franchise system. Kyle specializes in treating PTSD, addiction, OCD, and existential distress. He has led the development of psychedelic clinics, focusing on clinical development, training, and adapting research to real-world settings. With a background spanning community-based social work to operating a large mental health agency, Kyle now consults to support clinician-owned psychedelic practices. He holds an MSW and LICSW, and is certified in MDMA-assisted psychotherapy through the California Institute for Integral Studies.
Mariya Garnet
traditionally trained psychedelic facilitator, exat student-therapist
Mariya Garnet is a multifaceted practitioner specializing in Expressive Arts Therapy (EXAT), sound healing, and indigenous wisdom.
With over 15 years of apprenticeship in Peruvian Vegetalismo under Enrrique Santiago Paredes Melendes, Mariya brings a wealth of experience in traditional psychedelic practices to her work.
As the former owner and director of Cato Luz Centre for Research and Cultural Preservation, Mariya has guided thousands of individuals through traditional psychedelic experiences. Her approach integrates ancient wisdom with contemporary therapeutic techniques, offering a unique bridge between indigenous practices and modern mental health care.
Currently pursuing postgraduate studies in Expressive Arts Psychotherapy at the CREATE Institute in Toronto, Mariya continues to expand her therapeutic toolkit. She is an active member of the sound healing duo, Project Mariri, and regularly hosts community events and workshops that leverage music and creative expression as powerful tools for healing and self-discovery.
Mariya’s practice focuses on one-on-one therapy, psychedelic mentorship, and leading retreats in the Peruvian Amazon. Her holistic approach enriches the human experience by blending art, play, and a deep connection to nature, inviting clients to explore their subconscious and unlock their full potential. With her extensive background in both traditional and contemporary healing modalities, Mariya offers a compassionate, informed approach to mental and spiritual health, supporting individuals on their journey towards wholeness and self-discovery.
Lee Kaiser
wildlife biologist and independent consultant
Lee Kaiser is a wildlife biologist, ceremonial participant, and advocate for therapeutic and shamanic counseling. His personal experiences with psychosis, psychedelics, and the integration of natural medicines into therapeutic practices will serve as a case study for the seminar discussions, providing valuable insights into the lived realities of individuals navigating these health challenges.
Lee experienced two separate episodes of paranoid psychosis within a span of three years, while living a lifestyle immersed in ceremonial use of entheogens in the form of psychotropic plants, principally from the South American Andes and Amazon. He has a background as a scientist, was a supporter and team member for different retreat centers, and has personal relationships with healers across various modalities. These experiences in different cultural contexts will be explored given the lesser discussed or understood aspects of personal healing and shamanic journeys that relate to crises of the psyche and mental health.
Enrrique Santiago Paredes Melendez
traditional peruvian vegetalista (healer)
Expert “Vegetalista” and proprietor of Santuario Huishtín Traditional Amazon Healing Centre
For over forty years, Maestro Santiago Enrrique Paredes Melendez has studied the pharmacopia of medicinal plants, vines, and trees of the surrounding rainforest. A healer in the tradition of Vegetalismo (plant spirit shamanism), he was trained by a Cocama indigenous teacher, and has apprenticed many healers in the region, from Shipibo to Ashaninka, beginning from a young age when he was able to cure his mother’s illness with plants.
Since then, Santiago Enrrique has developed a strong intuition of the intelligence of plants and how to cure a wide variety of maladies both physical and spiritual in nature. At Santuario Huishtín, he works closely with his brothers Hegner and Belasario, and former partner, Ayme, who are all also vegetalistas and now leads his own training programmes in Amazon traditional medicine.
Lloyver Yui, Shipibo
artist, ceremony facilitator
Loyver Yui was born in the community of San Francisco de Yarina Cocha, in the Alto Ucayali region near Pucallpa, Perú. As a young boy he was first initiated by his mother, a healer who was trained by her grandfather, father and father-in-law, who recounted her many experiences of Medicine and ceremony to her young son. Two important lineages came together in Loyver (or Wesha´kea, his Shipibo name, which signifies ‘infinite patterns of possibility’): the lineage of his maternal grandfather, who contacted him in dream from early age and taught him to dream lucidly, and the lineage of his paternal grandfather, a traditional Shipibo ayahuasquero.
Loyver learned how to heal with ayahuasca and the pharmacopeia of the rainforest through many years of ceremony and dieta in isolation. Loyver also traveled through the region of Ucayali to study and take medicine with other masters and some relatives during his young adulthood. He also works as an artist, exhibiting his paintings throughout Peru, which express some of his lived experiences.
