I had an amazing experience with Kasham and her wonderful assistant on the day, Nayane. I’ll break down this review into before, during and after sections.
Before my private ceremony:
I am a very ‘science-oriented’ person, with an open mind and a strong, longstanding desire to understand myself more deeply to become a better version of myself. Before arranging my ceremony, I had spent a lot of time understanding the latest neuroscientific research on serotonergic psychedelics (I recommend Robin Carhart-Harris, from Imperial College on YouTube). This, combined with the history of these powerful medicines prepared me well in a way suited to me personally. I worked hard on trying to define my intentions. Assisted by Kasham in our pre-ceremony call, I reached a state of mind where I was open to the journey and prepared to submit fully to the experience. This submission was certainly there on a conscious, intellectual level, but there is so much we cannot control as well.
On the Day:
I was in no way stressed and was truly looking forward to my journey. Kasham and Nayane made me feel both welcome and safe. Kasham is not only highly experienced and qualified as a facilitator and guide, but she is naturally caring, understanding and had an ability to ‘tune-in’ to my emotional state. I found her very easy to talk to and trust. The setting was, as expected, ideal for what I wanted to get out of this experience. Every box was checked and I could focus on my journey with no distractions or worries lingering in my mind. I had a beautiful journey that was at all times physically and psychologically comfortable. I knew it was impossible to predict what the experience would be like and it was certainly very different from what I had imagined in the days leading up to it. There was a lot of ‘untitled catharsis’ during my journey.
After my Ceremony:
1) Felt I had addressed and resolved traumas that I had collected throughout my life.
2) Had an amazing ability to objectively and non-judgementally examine the way my mind reacted to the external world and my resulting ‘default’ behaviours. This meta-cognition was truly astonishing.
3) Quit smoking
4) Quit anti-depressants (already stopped for a while to prepare for the ceremony)
5) Understood my wife and children much better and had a calmer way of dealing with them. I simply never lost my temper. Now, almost 2 months later this has faded a bit, though I find that with regular meditation I can restore much of the original effect.
6) Discovered meditation and regularly practised it.
7) Quit sugar almost entirely.
8) Lost weight and my eating is more mindful.
9) Reduced my alcohol consumption dramatically – I barely drink now. I used to be pretty much the biggest drinker in any gathering. This is again due to me understanding the drivers that made me like that and the underlying traumas.
…. Please note that I wrote this in two halves. One month after ceremony I wrote the ‘before’ and ‘during’ parts. Two months later I wrote the ‘after’ part.
I will be reaching out to Kasham again when I can next be in Portugal. My journey continues.
- Anonymous
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