A Colorado Springs Counselor's Perspective on Psychedelics and Mental Health

There's a moment in a good therapy session where something that's been living beneath the surface finally comes into the light. A pattern clicks into place. An emotion that's been nameless suddenly has a name. Something shifts.

Psychedelics, at their best, can create a version of that moment — except faster, more intense, and without the gradual trust-building that therapy requires. As researcher Robin Carhart-Harris has said, if dreams are the royal road to the unconscious, then psychedelics are the superhighway.

I'm a counselor in Colorado Springs. I'm also someone with significant personal experience using psychedelics. This post isn't a clinical endorsement or a how-to guide — it's an honest perspective from someone who has sat with these experiences personally and professionally, and who thinks carefully about what they can and can't do for your mental health.

What Psychedelics Actually Are

The word psychedelic means mind-manifesting. That's worth sitting with.

These substances don't create something new in your mind — they surface what's already there. Unconscious emotional and relational dynamics, fears, patterns, unprocessed grief, things you've been circling around for years — all of it can emerge during a psychedelic experience with unusual clarity and intensity. That can be painful. It can be liberating. It can be profoundly cathartic.

But it is not magic. Taking a few grams of mushrooms or a bit of MDMA is not going to solve your life problems. What it can do is loosen rigid ways of thinking and shine a spotlight on parts of your inner world that have been difficult to access. What you do with that light is entirely up to you.

Colorado's Evolving Landscape

In 2023, Colorado's Natural Medicine Act began a significant move toward the decriminalization and regulated clinical use of psilocybin, psilocyn, DMT, ibogaine, and mescaline. This has created genuine excitement in the mental health community — and for good reason. A handful of legal psilocybin healing centers have already opened in Denver, and there are more opportunities than ever for Coloradans to explore these substances for their own inner growth.

But there's still a lot of work to be done. Regulation, training standards, and access are all still being figured out. The excitement is warranted — the infrastructure isn't fully there yet.

If you're in Colorado Springs and curious about psychedelic experiences, you have more options than you might realize. And more responsibility than you might expect.

The 10/20/70 Rule

Here's something I wish more people understood before they pursue a psychedelic experience:

The experience itself is about 20% of the work. Preparation is another 10%. The remaining 70% is integration.

That number surprises people. We tend to fixate on the journey — the visuals, the emotions, the insights, the peak experience. But a powerful psychedelic experience without integration is like reading a profound book and immediately forgetting everything you learned. The neuroplasticity that opens up during and after a psychedelic experience is a window, not a destination. You have to climb through it — intentionally, carefully, and usually with help.

This is where therapy comes in.

Psychedelics and Therapy — Why They Work Well Together

Think about how dreams have historically been understood in psychotherapy. From the earliest days of depth psychology, dreams were seen as the primary portal to the unconscious — disguised wishes, displaced fears, emotional residue from waking life processed in symbolic form. Most therapists today are still interested in dreams, not because of their symbolic content necessarily, but because of how they emotionally impact you and what they communicate about what you're working to process.

Psychedelics are like dreams — except you're awake, the imagery is more vivid, the emotions more intense, and the unconscious material surfaces with far less disguise.

In my experience — personally and in my work with clients — psychedelics are most powerful when paired with depth-oriented therapy. Not because a therapist needs to be present during the experience, but because what emerges during a psychedelic journey needs somewhere to go afterward. The themes that surfaced, the emotions that came up, the relational patterns that suddenly made sense — all of that becomes richer, more integrated, and more actionable when you have a trusted person to think it through with.

A skilled therapist can help you connect what you experienced to what you actually want to be different in your life. They can track the patterns across sessions — what keeps coming up, what your unconscious seems to be working on — and help you make room for what was previously hard to bring into awareness, with a focus on improving aspects of your inner world that lead to long-term well-being.

That original experience can stay lit and alive when you have someone to talk it through with. Without that, it tends to fade back into the noise of daily life.

What Integration Actually Looks Like

Integrating a psychedelic experience looks a lot like good therapy — because it essentially is good therapy applied to a specific set of experiences.

You explore the content and emotions that came up. You develop deeper understanding or insight around that content. And then you take concrete steps that experiment with the insights you've brought back with you.

It's the hero's journey in miniature. You dive deep into the unconscious and return, carrying what you learned back out into your relationships and your life. The descent is the experience. The return is integration. And the work of actually living differently — that's what happens in the space between sessions, with a counselor helping you track the themes and apply them to whatever you're genuinely trying to change.

Before You Pursue a Psychedelic Experience — Some Honest Counsel

If you're curious about using psychedelics for your mental health, here's what I'd want you to consider:

Set and setting matter enormously. The intention and mindset you bring into an experience shapes it more than almost anything else. Get clear on what you're hoping to understand or shift before you begin. Vague curiosity produces vague experiences. Genuine intention produces something you can actually work with.

Using psychedelics with a skilled guide or practitioner will serve you better than going alone. A good guide helps you articulate your goals, create a setting conducive to self-exploration, and frame what emerges in ways that are useful rather than overwhelming. If you're using psychedelics on your own, set and setting become even more critical — because there's no one else holding the container.

If you have a personal or family history of psychosis, bipolar disorder, or certain other mental health conditions, please consult with a licensed practitioner before pursuing any psychedelic experience. These substances are powerful and not appropriate for everyone. A professional who understands both psychedelics and mental health can help you assess whether they're a good fit.

Develop your inner resources first. The ability to ground yourself, regulate your emotions, and tolerate difficult internal experiences are essential tools to bring into any psychedelic journey. If you're currently in crisis or don't have basic regulatory capacity, this is not the right time.

One experience is not going to fix your life. Health takes work in every domain — physical, relational, psychological. A positive psychedelic experience can shake things up internally and make it a little easier to engage in more adaptive ways of thinking and feeling. But it won't do the living for you.

A Final Thought

I believe psychedelics, used thoughtfully and integrated carefully, can be a meaningful part of some people's healing journey. I've experienced that personally. I've seen it reflected in the work clients bring to me.

But the most important word in that sentence is integrated. The experience opens a door. Therapy — real, depth-oriented, relational therapy — helps you walk through it and figure out where you actually want to go.

If you've had a psychedelic experience and are looking for someone to help you make sense of it, or if you're considering one and want to think it through first, I'm happy to talk. That's exactly the kind of conversation I'm here for.

Blaise Selby is a counselor in Colorado Springs, Colorado, working with individuals on anxiety, depression, trauma, and relationship patterns. He offers a free 15-minute consultation for anyone curious about whether counseling might be a good fit.