Consciousness Medicine: Indigenous Wisdom, Entheogens, and Expanded States of Consciousness for Healing and Growth

A comprehensive guide to the safe and ethical application of expanded states of consciousness for therapists, healing practitioners, and sincere explorers

Psychedelic medicines also known as entheogens are entering the mainstream. And it’s no wonder: despite having access to the latest wellness trends and advances in technology, we’re no healthier, happier, or more meaningfully connected. Psilocybin mushrooms, ayahuasca, and LSD--as well as other time-tested techniques with the power to shift consciousness such as drumming, meditation, and vision quests--are now being recognized as potent catalysts for change and healing. But how do we ensure that we’re approaching them effectively?

Françoise Bourzat--a counselor and experienced guide with sanctioned training in the Mazatec and other indigenous traditions--and healer Kristina Hunter introduce a holistic model focusing on the threefold process of preparation, journey, and integration. Drawing from more than thirty years of experience, Bourzat’s skillful and heartfelt approach presents the therapeutic application of expanded states, without divorcing them from their traditional contexts. Consciousness Medicine delivers a coherent map for navigating nonordinary states of consciousness, offering an invaluable contribution to the field of healing and transformation.

FRANÇOISE BOURZAT is a consciousness guide and counselor. She has a master’s degree in Somatic Psychology from New College of California and is a Certified Hakomi Practitioner. Residing in the San Francisco Bay Area, she has been weaving the healing potential of expanded states of consciousness and psychology together in her practice for over thirty years. After traveling the world as a young woman, Françoise found her way to San Francisco in the early 1980s. It was there she met her first teacher, a pioneer exploring the intersection of indigenous healing and psychotherapy. She later met her teacher of the last twenty years, an indigenous Mazatec woman leading healing ceremonies with sacred mushrooms in the high mountains of Southern Mexico. Drawing from years of close apprenticeship with her Mazatec teacher, as well as training in other indigenous traditions, Fran.oise has developed a comprehensive approach that bridges Western and indigenous modalities for healing and growth. She trains therapists and facilitators, teaches at the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS), and lectures internationally.

KRISTINA HUNTER is a healing guide, writer, and Certified Hakomi Practitioner living in the San Francisco Bay Area. She has spent over ten years traveling the world, studying the transformative potential of expanded states of consciousness. Her work explores the intersection of psychology, plant medicine, and Buddhist meditation. She offers individual counseling and integration support for psychedelic and initiatory experiences. She also offers mentoring and consultation to healing practitioners who wish to integrate expanded states of consciousness into their practice.