Welcome to this Week's Edition of Red Things on Tuesday.

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The Felt Sense of Safety, Relational Safety

I've just been thinking about the different ways that we contemplate and experience safety lately. Psychedelic use is risky business, and the presence of a guide, a shaman, or a community container doesn't immediately erase that risk. It can perhaps mitigate some of them, but it also introduces more levels of complexity that we might not immediately intuit.

Good integration coaching helps us to unpack these layers. It supports clients when they need to make sense of their experiences, their needs, and their path forward.
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1. The felt sense of safety. Your capacity to feel safe inside your own body. This is how your psychology, emotionality, and nervous system respond to a variety of stimuli. We work on this with yoga, somatic practices, polyvagal work, etc.
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2. Relative/Relational safety. This is how we take care of others, and how others take care of us. Do we respect each other’s autonomy? Are we thoughtful, ethical, and kind? If we’re practitioners, we always want to be working to be safer and safer for our clients. Sometimes, in journeys, we realize that in the past, we didn’t always have the relational safety that we might have wanted, and that might open the door to some Francis Weller style grief work.
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3. The safety of the material world. From the Buddha’s perspective, this doesn’t really exist. We’re all going to die, we don’t know when, and we’re going to suffer pain and indignities until we do. Sometimes, contemplating this creates a perspective of presence and preciousness. Other times it can make someone feel even more unsafe than they already do. It takes skill and rapport to discuss this with a client elegantly.
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4. Spiritual safety. There is a hindu text that proclaims that we are all held in perfect safety in the mind of God. It’s often reported that people have experiences where they feel perfectly, completely safe. This is often a wonderful, corrective experience for people that is healing on some very deep levels.

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Good integration coaching helps us to unpack these layers. It supports clients when they need to make sense of their experiences, their needs, and their path forward. Let’s talk about it. We discuss these topics and more in the golden road coaching community.
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The Beyond Addiction Conference taking place September 19–21, 2025. This event is the first conference in the world devoted entirely to exploring the role of psychedelic therapies in addiction recovery. We’re bringing together an all-star lineup of leading researchers, clinicians, practitioners, thought leaders and people with lived experience to hold this essential and often overlooked conversation. This conference is produced by Danielle Nova of the SF Psychedelic Society and Daniel Shankin of Tam Integration, with sponsorship support of The Etheridge Foundation and Dr. Bronner's. Our expert-led talks feature speakers including Melissa Etheridge, Dr. James Fadiman, Zach Leary, Gül Dölen, and other leading voices in the space.
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Addiction is a response to what is really a pervasive, global crisis of human suffering and alienation. It’s a symptom, rather than a root cause. Psychedelics can reveal the root causes and the perpetuation of addiction, and open up a path to healing the pain that leads people to self-medicate in the first place. We invite you to join us in rewriting the narrative of addiction treatment at the first annual groundbreaking conference. The first day of the conference is entirely free to join!

Gain insight into how these substances can offer new perspectives, healing, and inspiration to those on the path to recovery.

Topics include:

🍄Psychedelic treatments for addiction

🍄Personal stories of individuals using psychedelics for addiction recovery

🍄Intentional application of psychedelic tools in long-term ongoing addiction recovery

🍄Trauma, somatics, and nervous system repair

🍄Neuroscience, research, pattern interruption, and neuroplasticity

🍄The roots of addiction and avenues for healing

🍄Psychedelic perspectives on traditional models

🍄Responding to triggers, cravings, and relapse

🍄Community support, integration, and transformation

​Get tickets here! ​

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Some sounds!

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👉 Come Study and Practice with the Tam Community. 👈

Meditation for the Journey: Autumn Retreat in the Berkshires

September 26-27-28, Plainfield, MA
​Link to Register​

Join a group of like minded explorers

for a weekend of transcendent practice and ceremony

~ Explore the guided somatic practices and visualizations that you can share with your clients.

~ Experience how mantra and sacred sound can deepen somatic awareness and release.

~ Enjoy ceremony in the gorgousness of New England Autumn

~ 15 people max.

What’s included:

• Lodging
• Delicious organic and locally-sourced meals
• Meditation, yoga, dharma talks
• Introduction to guiding Yoga Nidra to support come up anxiety
• Chanting the chakras for somatic awareness and release
• Cannabis ceremony with guided Yoga Nidra
• Drum Journey Ceremony
• Playing in nature/ nature walk
• Hot Tub
• Art making
• Autumn Leaves!

This retreat weekend offers training for individuals who wish to approach their coaching and guiding practice from a deeper, more centered place. First, our training will provide you with an opportunity to deepen your personal practice in a way that will support the way you show up for your clients and communities.

Our curriculum is based on the theory that more centered beings make better guides.

You will also be offered practices designed to explore the depths of your body, mind, and consciousness with simple clarity.

We’ll open Friday with some sound healing, exploring how our voice can be used to express and release in ways that support catharsis while maintaining a regulated nervous system. This will lead into our drum led ceremony.

On Saturday, we’ll explore the intersection of visualization and somatics as a wonderful adjunct to a journey. Continuing the theme from Friday, we’ll look at how we support a calm inner environment in through our presence and guidance. This will culminate in our Saturday evening ceremony.

Sunday, as we integrate our experience, we’ll explore how our stories can convey deep universal truths, and how taking our seat as a teacher can provide deep value to our students.

​Link to Register​

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Group Coaching and Mentorship- The Golden Road Collective

I have a group offering called The Golden Road Collective.

The Golden Road is a collective of psychonauts, healers, guides, and transformational change agents. We work together to create and embody the visions that have been gifted us in our ceremonies. We’re stepping into a shared future that is mindful, resilient, and committed to the versions of ourselves that we know we can be.

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It's a chance to receive teaching, mentoring on your personal or professional practice, and group coaching with Daniel. There are also group meditations and monthly special guests. You can join at any time. Learn More Here​

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Links to All Integration Circles

All Donation-based Circles

https://tamintegration.com/psychedelic-integration/​

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Disclaimer

Nothing in this email should be considered medical or legal advice. We're not suggesting that you break any laws or do anything dangerous. This email is offered as education and entertainment in the spirit of harm reduction. Consult medical and legal professionals if you have questions.

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