Playing in the mud: A transofmational healing retreat for the bold & playful
Retreat overview
Online, April 28-May 16;
In-person, May 18, 2025;Location: 8500 W Bowles Ave., Littleton, CO
When & WHere?
Who Is this for?
This retreat is for people who:
Feel burnt out by over-medicalized, sterile clinical environments.
Have done traditional therapy but want a more alive, relational, and dynamic experience.
Open to a holistic and indirect approach to addressing experiences of depression, anxiety, trauma, and unsatisfying relationships with substance use.
Are artistic, direct service workers, health & wellness facilitators, or any seekers drawn to (or intimidated by!): improvisation, creative expression, and group process methods.
Believe in autonomy over expertise—wanting to reclaim their own capacity for play and transformation without prescriptive, strict protocols.
What to Expect.
Core Retreat Elements: What We Will Do
The method of the retreat is designed to remove the barriers to the spirit of play. Together, the group creates conditions where playful growth arises naturally-an interplay between structure & improvisation. Unlike clinical therapy, where "set & setting" aims to contain or control, here it is meant to evoke & expand. Here, we stress Set, Setting, and the 'Third Thing' (Beyond just “safe space” into “creative space”). We will use Four Pathways to Play:
Safe Engagement: We convene a carefully selected group by ensuring participants can be safely held and served. Our facilitators will meet people individually to determine eligibility.
Connection: We engage virtually to begin building bonds. Initiating an eventual expansion toward one another with curiosity, spontaneity, and humor.
Playful Preparation: Your sacred story gets heard, displayed, and validated. Our facilitators assist participants with flowering their intentions through a conversational exercise combining reflective listening and collaborative art.
Experiential Solidarity: A journey through a non-ordinary state experienced in community with carefully held standards of safety and special musical curation.
Retreat Inspriations
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Connection catalyzed by non-ordinary states
We believe connection occurs with effortless spontaneity. Through the power of supporting the blossoming of our participants’ personal narratives, gathering together to connect, relate, and bond—we safely explore the fluidity of identity across conscious and no-ordinary states.
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mindfulness & playful growth
Psychedelics pull us out of our heads and into the full-body experience of being alive. Through immersive conversation, creative collaboration, and embracing presence, we loosen emotional and mental blockages, allowing play to become a pathway to deep self-discovery and healing.
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Sincere absurdity & trickster energy
Wisdom isn’t always serious. The trickster archetype reminds us that laughter, paradox, and playful disruption are just as transformative as deep introspection. By engaging in humor, creative collaboration, and consciousness alteration, we shake up old narratives, invite new ones, and welcome absurdity.
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creative expression as integration
Insights are brought to life when they’re unleashed from the mind, and become part of the material world. Through art, journaling, music, and creative engagement, we bring psychedelic experiences into tangible forms—grounding the abstract into something real, something lived, something lasting.
pricing
Comprehensive Retreat Package Includes:
Medical Intake: A thorough health assessment to ensure safety and personalized care.
Individual Preparation Session: One-on-one guidance to set intentions and prepare mentally and emotionally.
Group Preparation Workshop: Collaborative sessions to build trust and community among participants.
Group Ketamine Session: A facilitated non-ordinary sate experienced in a supportive group setting.
Group Processing: Post-experience processing.
SUPPORTED
For those with limited financial resources.
$600 – $800
STANDARD
Reflects the true cost of the retreat.
$1,000 - $1,700
SUPPORTER
For those who can contribute more, assisting others who cannot afford the full cost.
$1,800 - $3,000
Please select the level that best fits your financial situation. If you can afford to pay more, we encourage you to do so, as it enables us to accommodate others who cannot afford the full cost.
FAQs
What medicine is being used?
Our preferred medication of choice is ketamine as it often has a unique ability to disrupt negative thought patterns, and quickly foster psychological & emotional flexibility, openness, and optimism. This typically allows people to gain new perspectives & insights. These characteristics align well with our ethos of healing & transformation through playful exploration.
Ketamine is a safe and widely researched medication. Developed in 1962 as a pharmaceutical anesthetic, ketamine has been extensively used in the medical field. Since the early 2000s, growing research has supported its use as an off-label treatment for symptoms of various mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety, trauma, and substance use disorders.
do I need to previous transformational experiences?
No prior experience is required, but this retreat is best suited for individuals who are comfortable navigating non-ordinary states.
We emphasize harm reduction and safe transformational experiences by providing thorough education, monitoring, and resources before, during, and after the retreat.
how is safety handled?
Medical intake: A thorough psychiatric and medical assessment will be conducted for each participant by our Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner to develop a personalized care plan and to confirm that it is safe for you to proceed with the retreat.
An experienced Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner on site during the medication session to ensure medical monitoring and safety of participants.
An experienced Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner on site during the medication session to ensure medical monitoring and safety of participants. Additionally, extensive education on the indications, mechanism of action, possible side effects, and contraindications of ketamine will be provided to all participants to ensure informed
consent.
Ketamine Information Document
Curious about how ketamine works during the retreat? This document covers everything you need to know about the medication process, safety protocols, and what to expect during your experience.
come play.
Mud season is here. Take off your shoes and step into the power of transformational, playful healing in community.