NUMINOUS WAYS

Numinous Ways retreat focuses on fostering a deep connection with the transpersonal, the NUMINOUS. Our approach is not centred on psychedelics; instead, we use them as tools to facilitate and sustain this sacred connection, bridging the transcendent with the ordinary.

Your Numinous Way
We will help you to discover and develop your own numinous way, your unique way to mysteries of existence, awe and wonder. Our approach is anchored in four fundamental pillars designed to lead you to a more fulfilling and meaningful life:

AWE is a reminder of the nature of existence itself, and a gateway to a deeper, more interconnected, and more meaningful experience of life.

HEALTH is a fundamental aspect of human well-being, encompassing not only our physical state, but also our mental, emotional, and spiritual states.

MEANINGFUL LIFE - fulfilment, meaning, and purpose. It’s about discovering our passions, pursuing our interests, and finding our unique path in the world.

EMBRACING MORTALITY – death is a profound transition, marking the end of life as we know it and ushering us into the unknown. A profound mystery, the ultimate frontier of human understanding.

Who we are?
We are a diverse team of mental health professionals deeply invested in exploring the potential advantages of psilocybin for psychological healing and discovering a deeper sense of meaning.
Our facilitator team includes psychologists, psychotherapists, doctors, counsellors and various other complementary healthcare professionals. Although during your psychedelic experience, we will not be acting as your therapist (only as your facilitator) we bring a wealth of professional and personal education and knowledge to help you feel supported during your experience.

Other tools we use
In addition to the powerful psychedelic ceremonies, our retreat in the Netherlands offers a variety of meditation and bodywork workshops to help relax and prepare you for ceremony days. We also offer a facilitated breathwork session which offers a powerful experience for emotional release by utilising conscious cyclical breathing techniques to access deeper levels of awareness and promote healing on physical, emotional, and energetic levels. These transformative modalities work in seamless combination to facilitate deep healing, expanded awareness, and profound insights.

What to expect on the retreat?
Throughout the retreat, you will be immersed in a supportive and nurturing environment, surrounded by the beauty of nature and a community of fellow seekers. Our experienced facilitators will guide you through each step of the journey, ensuring your safety, and comfort.

You will be grouped into small pods of four, each led by a dedicated facilitator who will be your guide and support throughout your retreat. Between the psychedelic ceremonies, breathwork, and other meditation and bodywork sessions, you will have regular pod meetings with your facilitator. During these meetings, you will have the opportunity to check-in, share your thoughts, intentions, and any concerns that may arise.

Before embarking on your journey, you will also have a one-to-one discussion with your facilitator to explore your intentions and what you hope to gain from the experience. They will hold your intentions in mind throughout the retreat, reminding you of your purpose and offering gentle guidance if and when needed. With their unwavering support at hand, you will be encouraged to face and embrace whatever emerges during your psychedelic experience, fostering a sense of deep surrender. Your facilitator will serve as a compassionate ally, empowering you to trust the process, let go of control, and fully immerse yourself in the transformative potential of your journey. They will be there every step of the way, providing guidance, reassurance, and holding space for you.

As the retreat unfolds, you will have ample opportunities for integration and reflection, allowing the insights gained during the ceremonies to permeate your being and shape your path of personal transformation. Through group discussions, guided meditations, and integration circles, you will have the space to process your experiences, receive support, and harness the potential for lasting change.

The Numinous in Psychedelic Experience
A number of our team have a particular interest in breakthrough experiences. A breakthrough psychedelic experience is one where an individual touches a sense of the Numinous and transcendental aspects of oneself and encounters personal unity with the deepest substratum of reality. Research has shown that when someone has a breakthrough mystical experience, it has a much deeper positive effect on healing mental health difficulties such as depression and anxiety, as it often rewires very rigid neural pathways in the brain.

These sacred qualities of experience unfold uniquely for each person, making the journey truly tailored to your own beliefs and understanding of life. While we can't promise these encounters for everyone, we put our hearts into preparing each participant in various ways to enhance the chances of a profoundly enriching journey. Using the MEQ30 (Mystical Experience Questionnaire), a scientifically refined tool for studying mystical experiences developed by neuroscientist, Roland Griffiths, our research has revealed that 84% of our participants have reported profound mystical experiences over the years.

Many of us at Numinous Ways are training to work with psychedelic medicines in our professional practice when these become licensed as therapies in the UK. Until such time, we are committed to supporting people to experience psilocybin in other safe and legal settings.