What a Trip! Adventures in the Psychedelic Space

Psychedelic journeys can be quite a trip! Join Amanda Schendel, the founder and leader of Buena Vida Psilocybin Retreats, and Shandi Littlefield, The BV's Operations Director, as they interview past guests, plant medicine specialists and magical healers about their (unexplainable?) experiences with psychedelics. We’ll dive into the deeper lessons of the universe, question our current paradigms and remember that we are our own gurus.

S2E1: Healing Meets Neuroscience: Dr. Rayyan Zafar’s Journey with Psilocybin 04/30/2025

PART 2: The Importance of Intentional Integration When Healing with Psychedelics: with Past Buena Vida Guest, Paige Grant 09/18/2023

PART 1: The Importance of Intentional Integration When Healing with Psychedelics: with Past Buena Vida Guest, Paige Grant 09/13/2023

Canceled, Moved, Shifted & Reborn with Rohini Elyse 07/02/2022

Acknowledging and Claiming your Healing with PJ Johnson 05/25/2022

Acknowledging and Claiming your Healing with PJ Johnson SEASON 2 COMING SOON! **Join us for a LIVE Q&A every Tuesday 3pm CT here: Apply for an upcoming Retreat or find out more about what we do here at The Buena Vida at: Follow our Mushroom Journey on Instagram @the_buena_vida How do you cope with a difficult diagnosis? You have all the symptoms of an underlying issue, but still, the doctors don’t know what’s wrong. They prescribe many painkillers and different surgeries, but you’re only getting worse. How do you stay positive, love yourself and still have faith that it will all work out in the end? In today’s episode, Paul Johnson shares his healing journey from having different regional pains, frequent sharp electrical pains, paralysis, three shoulder surgeries to finally finding healing. He also expounds on his challenging journey to finding the right diagnosis, testing positive for Lyme disease, finding healing in the Iboga tree plant in Africa, as well as getting through the different visions while undergoing treatment. Paul explains how acknowledging your healing, using self-compassion and belief that it will work out have positively impacted his healing journey. If you are in despair about your condition and don’t know whether you’re going to make it, this episode is for you! Timestamps (Please note these begin after the intro) [00:28] About Paul Johnson. [03:04] Having symptoms and doctors not having to know what’s wrong [13:55] Effects of chronically taking painkillers [15:45] What it was like for Paul’s mental health, not knowing whether he will ever recover [19:01] Paul’s journey seeking treatment in Mexico [26:33] The Iboga tree- plant medicine [29:40] Visions and hallucinations while undergoing treatment [30:52] Testing positive for Lyme disease [36:07] How Lyme disease multiples in the system [41:27] Effects of the pandemic on Paul as he was still undergoing treatment [46:37] Paul’s financial crisis [51:10] When everything shifted for Paul and staying positive through it [58:39] Having faith and belief that it can work [1:01:10] Paul’s feeling in his 14 days of medicine [1:06:14] Doing it for yourself and having enough compassion for yourself [1:08:37] Paul’s second Iboga experience and getting his healing [1:22:44] Acknowledging and claiming the healing [1:31:51] Not showing cruelty to yourself [1:40:04] Having grace and compassion for yourself [1:42:58] Paul’s lessons from his disease and pain Notable Quotes There is a condition many people don’t know with painkillers. When you take them chronically, they can start to degenerate their own pain signals. Anybody can go on top of the mountain. What are you going to bring back? Have faith and the belief that you can do it. Having clarity and congruence is such an important part of healing. If there is an opportunity to be the most fully realized true self, move past the fear, take the chance, and something good will come out of it. You are really good at doing things for other people. So, have compassion for yourself and do it for yourself. If you are offered the opportunity to crossover, don’t take it because you will die. When I do my breathwork, it reminds me like there is a divine breath in this physical body that I have the opportunity to connect and activate every day. When your body breaks down over and over, you lose trust, and there’s a deep self-hatred for yourself and your body. We are all going to have reactions to things, but what’s next? Surrender, let it pass through and come back to that state of peace. Self-love allows shame to be there and anger to be there. It doesn’t turn that away. Congratulate yourself even for the smallest pieces. You invented the good soldier to your traumas as a child and the sensitivity you had as a person. You created these things to protect yourself. But there is a point in life where you can thank the good soldier for their service and let it go. Resources Mentioned Book- /episode/index/show/whatatrip/id/23229287

Your Intention determines your Journey 05/14/2022

Ayahuasca VS. Mushrooms: Uncategorized Plant Medicine with Julie Dunnigan 05/07/2022

Ayahuasca VS. Mushrooms: Uncategorized Plant Medicine with Julie Dunnigan **Join us for a LIVE Q&A every Tuesday 3pm CT here: Apply for an upcoming Retreat or find out more about what we do here at The Buena Vida at: Follow our Mushroom Journey on Instagram @the_buena_vida Ep103: AYAHUASCA VS. MUSHROOMS: Uncategorized Plant Medicine with Julie Dunnigan Welcome back to What a Trip! Podcast with me, Amanda Schendel, leader, and founder of The Buena Vida Psilocybin Retreats. In this episode, we’re joined by Julie Dunnigan, a 3-time guest at The Buena Vida and an avid supporter of mushroom medicine work since our very first retreat in January 2019...(And 2 more between then and April 2020 when this was recorded. We do touch slightly on the experience of being in the depths of lockdown, but this conversation was so magical and inspirational that we felt called to share here!) Julie and I dive into how psilocybin has helped her gain a universal perspective, how the hype behind ayahuasca led her to a broader and more expanded awareness brought on by mushrooms, and how divine timing can change your entire path in life. 00:00 – Introduction 02:00 – Julie’s Starting Point: An unexpected detour, turned divine timing 04:15 – Michael Pollan’s “How to Change Your Mind” – 05:30 – “Ayahuasca was only to get you HERE” – our mission to un-categorize plant medicine 09:00 – What you expect is rarely what you will receive 13:05 – “It doesn’t get easier; you just get stronger” – Psilocybin and Depression 16:45 – Gaining a broader, universal perspective 20:20 – Shadow Work: Explained 25:15 – Shame and anxiety in varying aspects of your life, and why you’re feeling it 28:00 – The compassionate and forgiving reward of looking your fears directly in the face 31:20 – Plant Medicine in Ceremony vs. Recreational Use 49:30 – What makes dosage so magical 50:30 – Julie describes the biggest source messages that have shifted her perspective 1:06:45 - Healing yourself by going within /episode/index/show/whatatrip/id/23036993

Founder of The Buena Vida: Amanda Schendel 05/06/2022

Self-love, breathwork and embodiment coach Stevie Wright 03/16/2021

What a Trip! Adventures in the Psychedelic Space

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