Embodied Psychedelic Mysticism for the Alchemy of Trauma

 
 
irene-ortiz-3JcFnHLSMP8-unsplash.jpg
 
 

In the face of a Lack of visionary guides to transforming trauma, Somadelics℠ brings an affirmation of the sacred pain of healing work. offering embodiment practices that weave together insights from tantra, psychedelic medicine, and social justice, Valeria McCarroll, Ph.D. integrates her personal history as trauma therapist and consciousness guide into a map which illuminates a practical and poetic path to cultivating a sense of purpose in the face of a planet in crisis.  

 
 

Somadelics℠ can be broken into three parts: view, method, and fruit.

 
 
 

The view of Somadelics is essentially nondual, i.e. an orientation towards the world which understands everything as fundamentally interconnected and interdependent. We orient towards the various crises of modernity (climate change and systemic oppression) as resulting from beliefs of separateness which drive patriarchal, white-supremacist, and capitalist paradigms (i.e., ‘the patriarchy’.) The patriarchy manifests both externally, outside oneself, and internally, in the facets of our body, mind, heart, and spirit.

 
 
 

The method of Somadelics makes use of the power of expanded states of consciousness to transform consciousness. Across the facets of being, our body, heart, mind, and spirit, expanded states of consciousness can serve to uproot pathological manifestations of the patriarchy. The Somadelic path contains a series of practices designed to support a person in replacing patterns of domination and oppression with patterns of co-creation.

 
 
 

The fruit of Somadelics is a state a radiant embodiment: an experience of the four facets of body, heart, mind, and spirit in a state of harmonization and synchrony with each other. Cultivating radiant embodiment is an act of integration. It is the liberation of the traumas of the patriarchy and the essential freedom of the Somadelic practitioner. Somadelics yields the fruits of a sense of purpose in the face of planetary crisis.

  • Ever since I heard Valeria speak about the shadow sides of psychedelics at the International Transpersonal Conference in Prague in 2017, I’ve been moved by the depth and compassion in her approach. Somadelics is an outstanding expression of her therapeutic approach combining the mystical with the mortal, and the awareness of our interconnectedness with the precious nature of our bounded individual lives. Somadelics is a call to action to ground our inner spiritual, therapeutic development with actions to advance social justice in the outer world.

    Rick Doblin, Ph.D. Founder and Executive Director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS)

  • It was a true delight to be a student of Valeria and learn about Somadelics, her body of work. Her relational, clear and beauty-filled teaching style supported my neurodivergent, queer brain in understanding, sensing and moving with the wisdom and power of somatics within the realm of expanded states. Valeria is a radically inclusive and affirming ally of marginal identities, she never fails to address power dynamics, and her learning environments reflect the healing experiences she is so skilled at crafting. She uplifts, centers and supports BIPOC, queer and female lineages and ways of knowing, while bringing her own unique threads of wisdom to the conversation. Valeria’s teachings are necessary for educational and healing spaces to transform spiritual and intellectual bypass into embodied, justice-oriented, and revolutionarily loving wisdom, so needed in this time of collective truth-telling and transformation.

    Gaia Esensten, MA

    Transformative Counselor, Jewitch

  • Valeria has a brilliant mind, enormous heart, and a deep connection to the mystery. I’ve sat with her as a client and she’s guided me through some seriously challenging places in my psyche that needed healing. I’ve also referred clients to her and witnessed their lives transform. She has an amazing ability to create a space where the deeper layers of your being can unfold and be known and healed, leaving you more connected to your essence and the divine.

    Adrian Klaphaak, Founder of A Path That Fits

  • In the age where the guru’s unwavering authority has demonstrated many shadows: Valeria is committed to radical honesty and radical love. I believe this is the foundation of the revelation(s) she has experienced. Part of her medicine, to me, is this diamond like power: the alchemy of staying with and being transformed by the truth of things, even the painful truths. She has walked the path of self-empowerment, of self-making and self-claiming. She isn’t selling a fairy tale or a way to stop the pain, she will ask you to do, as she asks and has asked of herself, to show up in the inglorious and demanding task of uncovering the veils in your heart to yourself, your divinity and this divinity that unites us all and manifests in this wild and precious world.

    Lily Ritchie, M.A., Ph.Dc

Upcoming Somadelics Classes & Events

 

PSYCHEDELICS, ENTHEOGENS, & SPIRITUAL CARE

hosted by the Chaplaincy Institute

January 28-29, 2023~ Online

With psychedelics and plant-based theologies rising to meet the needs of the fastest-growing religious demographic, “spiritual, not religious,” it is crucial that Theologians, pastoral counselors, and those of faith understand what these powerful substances can offer. This seminar will examine historical and present-day uses of a host of substances while also looking at the broader history of “drug use” in the United States. We will place the so-called psychedelic renaissance in the context of the War on Drugs and explore a host of specific religious traditions that use plant and animal-based altered states of consciousness in order to gain a connection with the divine. Race, gender, and sexual identities will also be utilized as lenses to examine what might be called a War on the Ecstatic. The insights of treatment modalities from harm reduction to 12-step programs will also be considered. This course aims to introduce all participants to the world of Religion, psychedelics, and entheogens.

Cost: $340. Click here to register.

Cultivating the Seat of the Guide

A 10-month transformational journey for therapists, counselors, coaches, organizers, creatives, and visionaries alike.

Click here to learn more.

Enrollment for Fall 2022 is full! Sign up to be notified of future offerings.

 

SOMADELICs OFFERINGS

Teaching

Learn more about cultivating radiant embodiment across the four facets of body, heart, mind, spirit. Sign up below to find out about the latest classes & teachings.

 
 

Writing

Curious to read more about Somadelics? Get to know Somadelics steward Valeria McCarroll, check out her latest writings and future book.

 

Consultation

Curious how to weave the principles and practices of Somadelics℠ into your organization? Valeria provides consultation to individuals and organizations in the field of psychedelic medicine. In her work she has innovated and developed ethical protocols for working in expanded states, supported curriculum design in the education of psychedelic guides, and has a particular interest in creating programs which are based in holistic and transpersonal paradigms, grounded in social justice.

Rates available on request.

 

About Valeria

Valeria McCarroll, PhD, LMFT, is a licensed marriage and family therapist in private practice and a teacher of somatic and transpersonal psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies. Having studied and been in the field of psychedelic therapy for the better part of a decade, Valeria was part of the California Institute of Integral Studies’ first Certificate in Psychedelic Therapies and Research, the groundbreaking training program for psychedelic therapists around the globe. With a background in traditional Tantra, study in indigenous traditions of psychedelic medicine, and a deep investment in social justice, today her work centers around transforming the traumas of embodied systemic oppression. Valeria lives in Northern California with her partner and daughter. When not innovating and refining liberative systems for deconstructing the patriarchy, she enjoys playing outdoors and creating beauty.

A long-time artist and creative, Valeria also creates amulets for inner voyages, found at The Somadelic Studio.