From the Archives: 4 Principles for Trip-Sitters

Notes from Volunteer Peer Support Training with the Zendo Project at Burning Man in 2018, the culminating experience of my PTSD healing journey.

Dec 29, 2023

woman in the desert — Photo by Denys Nevozhai on Unsplash

If I’d had even one person who felt safe for me to turn to during my LSD trip at Coachella in 2017, I strongly believe my trip could have been turned around and I wouldn’t have ended up in the psychiatric hospital twice in the same year, jobless, depressed, and almost homeless with only $1 in my bank account.

Though I strongly recommend caution with casual psychedelic use, especially for anyone with any personal or family history of mental illness (read my blog post on this here), this blog post is for those of you who are going to do it anyway.

In 2018, I volunteered with the Zendo Project at Burning Man as the culminating step toward overcoming the PTSD caused by an LSD-induced psychosis. It was extremely healing to be able to transform my once traumatic experience into an opportunity to support others on their own psychedelic journeys. Below are my notes from the peer support volunteer training:

The 4 Principles for Psychedelic Trip-Sitting

Maintaining a safe space - A safe space is created through unconditional acceptance with boundaries. This means allowing the other person’s experience, as long as there is no damage to self, others, or property.
Sitting, not guiding - The experience will be what it needs to be dependent upon the other person’s healing needs. You do not need to guide the experience. Leave room for their inner healer to emerge. Maintain an open heart, open mind, and open body language. Make eye contact, but do not stare.
Talking through, not down - The other person already has all the tools they need to heal. The sitter’s role is simply to get them across the bridge. Do not dismiss their reality, but also do not make things bigger. Allow energy to express (physical movement, verbal, etc. - remain open to what the experience calls for).
Difficult is not the same as bad - Turn toward the other person’s experience. VALIDATE their experience.

If you take only one thing from all of my posts about my substance-induced psychosis, let it be this - find a sober peer you 100% trust to trip sit you!