A three-stage training pathway combining psychotherapy, psychedelic science, transpersonal approaches, experiential learning and the ancestral wisdom of Ireland. Designed for people who want to develop the knowledge, practical skills and experience required to support psychedelic processes safely, ethically and responsibly.
A 60-hour online introduction to psychedelic facilitation, covering the foundations of psychedelic therapy, preparation, integration, ethics, harm reduction and the therapeutic use of non-ordinary states.
Best suited for: mental health professionals, therapists, psychotherapists, integration practitioners, and others interested in Inwardbound’s approach of bringing together science, psychotherapy, spirituality and transpersonal work.
Format: Online
Duration: 60 hours
An immersive, in-person training focused on the practical skills of psychedelic facilitation — including ethical practice, therapeutic presence, holding space, working with challenging experiences, and supporting participants through non-ordinary states.
Best suited for: therapists, psychologists, mental health professionals and others ready to deepen their practical facilitation skills through experiential learning and supervised practice.
Format: In-person immersive training
Locations: Netherlands & Costa Rica
Duration: 110 hours
Netherlands
24–30 May 2027
Costa Rica
4–11 December 2027
An invitation-only apprenticeship for selected graduates who are ready to deepen their practical experience within the Inwardbound retreat setting. Apprentices shadow and support the facilitation team across three retreats, gaining supervised experience in preparation, holding space, integration and the wider responsibilities of psychedelic facilitation.
An invite-only basis: for those who have completed State 1 and 2 of the Inwardbound training programme.
Format: Supervised apprenticeship
Duration: 260 hour
Timeline: Approximately 2–3 years
Entry: By application and interview
For more details please email: [email protected]
Inwardbound’s training brings together psychotherapy, psychedelic science, transpersonal psychology, experiential learning and the ancestral wisdom of Ireland. We believe effective psychedelic facilitation requires more than theoretical knowledge: it asks for personal maturity, embodied presence, ethical awareness and the ability to stay grounded in complex and non-ordinary states.
Our programme is designed to develop both knowledge and practical capacity. Alongside clinical and scientific perspectives, trainees are invited to explore relational skills, self-awareness, integration, harm reduction and the cultural and spiritual dimensions of psychedelic work.
The aim is not to promote a single model of psychedelic therapy, but to support practitioners in developing a thoughtful, responsible and personally integrated approach to facilitation.
Currently, there is no standardized psychedelic-assisted therapy certification that is recognized globally or across Europe. The most developed regulatory frameworks currently exist in Oregon and Colorado in the US, where state-licensed psilocybin facilitator models have been established. These systems are region-specific and are not internationally standardized.
Inwardbound’s training is designed within the context of this emerging global field, drawing on best practices from psychedelic research, established therapeutic frameworks and leading training models.
The Inwardbound Psychedelic Facilitation Education Programme is structured as a progressive three-stage pathway.
Stage 1 — Theory & Preparation
Builds the theoretical, ethical and clinical foundations of psychedelic facilitation.
Stage 2 — Practice & Foundation
Develops practical facilitation skills through immersive and experiential training.
Stage 3 — Apprenticeship & Implementation
Provides supervised experience within the Inwardbound retreat setting, allowing participants to deepen their practical skills over time.
Across the programme, trainees develop knowledge and practical capacity through experiential learning, evidence-informed approaches, ethical practice, harm reduction and supervised experience, with the aim of supporting psychedelic processes safely and responsibly.
Completion of the full pathway is based not only on attendance, but also on demonstrated competency, professional conduct, reflective capacity and readiness to work responsibly with people in non-ordinary states. Applicants with relevant prior professional or psychedelic-facilitation training may also be considered for recognition of equivalent experience, with entry into later stages assessed individually and, where appropriate, through interview.
Graduates receive certification from Inwardbound reflecting completion of the training programme, while recognising that broader European and international certification standards in psychedelic-assisted therapy are still developing.
Graduates may be considered for roles within legal psychedelic retreat centres; however, completion of the programme does not guarantee employment with Inwardbound or any other organisation. Employment opportunities are subject to individual assessment and depend on experience, suitability and organisational fit.
Martin is the director of the OakTree Charitable Trust, a nonprofit organization that runs the Irish Centre for Shamanic Studies and The Transpersonal Institute at Dunderry Park.
The Centre is dedicated to promoting and preserving shamanic traditions from around the world, particularly those of the pre-Celtic and Celtic era. Contemporary Transpersonal approaches are also taught at the centre. Martin has worked as a mental health care professional since 1977. He has trained in various forms of consciousness raising methods including Holotropic Breathwork with Dr Stan Grof, Dreamwork, Trance dancing and Firewalking with Michael Harner
His grandfather and mother are traditional folk healers and he is following in their footsteps. His work is influenced by the Druid traditions of ancient Ireland.
He has done fieldwork with indigenous Shamans from Mongolia, Mexico, the Amazon, Andes, and Africa and also has trained in core Shamanism with the Foundation of Shamanic Studies (U.S.A.) and the Scandinavian Centre for Shamanic Studies.
Martin brings warmth and compassion to his shamanic practice. He has strong values with regards integrity, honesty and openness, in particular he believes in empowering the individual to find healing, knowledge and wisdom within themselves. More about Martin: https://www.shamanismireland.com/
Passionate about creating safer spaces for everybody, and bringing healing and awareness in the “shadowy” areas of life, Atira has worked as a trauma-informed integration specialist in ayahuasca retreat centers such as the Temple of the Way of Light in Peru and is currently the head of integration at AYA Healing Retreats.
Atira has mapped the trauma recovery of hundreds of plant medicine participants in her private practice as an integration trauma specialist. She co-facilitates Trauma-informed and Somatic Experiencing Plant Medicine retreats and ayahuasca dietas in Peru with AYA Healing Retreats. She is also the pioneer and founder of the Trauma-Informed Plant Medicine Program, which has over 150 graduates in 2 years.
Atira has also worked for over a decade internationally in community organizations and international development as a consultant, clinician, and supervisor, as well as an educator in non-for-profit settings. She is currently a Ph.D. candidate at the European Graduate School in Switzerland, researching the effectiveness of somatic and creative trauma recovery interventions for sex-trafficked survivors in Asia. Atira also has presented at numerous conferences alongside Dr. Peter Levine, Dr. Stephen Porges, Dr Pat Ogden, and Dr. Gabor Mate, just to name a few.
She co-wrote, along with Inwardbound co-founder Rob Ó Cobhthaigh, an international code of ethics: "Sexual Trauma- A guideline for navigating sexual trauma and harm prevention in psychedelic/ plant medicine ceremony spaces"
You can find out more about her work at www.atiratan.com
In the Netherlands she worked at governmental institutions for mental health and in her own practice.
As a psychotherapist, she is trained in various methodologies, with an emphasis on the hypnotherapy treatment of complex PTSD and intergenerational transmission of trauma, cognitive behavioural therapy, gender and relationship problems and transcultural aspects of mental problems.
She works with expanded states of consciousness employing Focusing (Eugene Gendlin) Hypnotherapy (Milton Erickson) and Active Imagination (Carl G. Jung, Gerald Epstein, Robert Moss.)
Lately she included in her therapeutic approach Regres- sion to Previous Lives (Paul Aurand) and work with the Wheel of Life (Daan v. Kampenhout)
Throughout her career she pursued two other passions: art and spirituality. Her interest in spirituality led to a study in comparative religions and later in Buddhist psychology with Thich Nhat Hanh, Zen Master and poet.
Her passion for art was reflected in a theatre training (De Kleine Academie, Brussels) a dance-and somatic movement training (School for New Dance Development, Amsterdam) and a study of the scientific base of creativity (OU, UK.)
Donca Vianu has a rich psychological toolbox with which she helps people with most diverse challenges and complaints to recover and grow.
She is known in the Netherlands and Germany as highly skilled integration therapist for psychedelic experiences, in which she was a forerunner for many years.
She is the founder of ACSMINDWORKS - a group of specialists working on healing and states of consciousness in a variety of ways (www.acsmindworks.com). Sophie-Charlotte Adler is a member of the MIND Foundation as well as the KRIYA- Consultation Group with Dr. Raquel Bennett and Dr. Jessica Katzman in California.
Declan Hammond is a homeopath, transpersonal therapist and shamanic practitioner, co-founder and former director of The Irish School of Homeopathy. His life and work has been a passionate search for the most effective healing tools for himself and his patients. This journey has taken him all over the globe studying Eastern and Western approaches to healing and traditional shamanic practices. Declan has developed a unique synthesis of these ancient and modern healing techniques and works with individuals and groups to empower deep personal growth and spiritual development.
He is passionate about working with the challenges of non-ordinary states of consciousness. He has a particular interest in drug harm reduction work and is part of the Kosmicare Medical Team at Boom Festival
https://declanhammond.com/
Dr Ruffell’s work encompasses two paradigms: the spiritual and the scientific. He is committed to working alongside the Shipibo-Konibo people to translate knowledge of Amazonian plant medicines, where possible, into scientific data and terminology whilst ensuring traditions are respected.
Henry has also trained over 1500 psychological therapists since 2003, supervising mental health professionals for ACT and Trauma work in the NHS. He is also a passionate integral thinker, publishing journal articles and book chapters on the integration of therapeutic models including, REBT-mindfulness, ACT-TIR-CBT, Person-centred-TIR. His psychedelic plant medicine path has changed how he does psychotherapy especially with self-concept issues. He has written, co-written and edited training manuals for ACT, TIR and FAP (relational psychodynamic). Now he focuses his research on the development of ACT-consistent models for psychedelic preparation and integration, with psychedelic process research for Regents University London. He is also author of a new model of psychological flexibility A Spectrum of Selves, tailored to a psychedelic therapy context published 2021 in Frontiers in Psychiatry.
Stage 1 is suitable for mental health professionals, therapists, integration practitioners and others with a serious interest in psychedelic facilitation. Entry requirements become more specific at later stages, and suitability is assessed individually.
The programme is designed as a progressive three-stage pathway. Some participants may choose to complete only Stage 1 or Stage 2, while those wishing to progress toward supervised facilitation experience can apply for Stage 3.
Applicants with relevant professional experience or previous psychedelic-facilitation training may be considered for recognition of equivalent experience. Entry into later stages is assessed individually and may include an interview.
No. There is currently no standardized psychedelic-assisted therapy certification recognised globally or across Europe. Graduates receive certification from Inwardbound reflecting completion of the programme and its training requirements.
Stage 1 is delivered online. Stage 2 takes place through immersive in-person training, currently offered in the Netherlands and Costa Rica. Stage 3 involves supervised apprenticeship experience within the Inwardbound retreat setting.
Stage 1 is 60 hours, Stage 2 is 110 hours, and Stage 3 is 260 hours. Because Stage 3 is based on supervised apprenticeship and retreat experience, completion of the full pathway may take approximately 2–3 years.
No. Graduates may be considered for roles within legal psychedelic retreat settings, but completion of the programme does not guarantee employment with Inwardbound or any other organisation.
If you are unsure where to begin, you can contact the training team to discuss your background, previous experience and goals.
