Meet some of our team members

With experience as an advisor to start-ups, most recently in the healthcare space, Justin brings a blend of business acumen, leadership skills and a nose for futuristic health models to the MycoMeditations team.

Throughout his career Justin has worked as a business leader across a range of industries, helping innovative companies identify opportunities, communicate their vision and deliver profitable products. But he has also been on a personal quest to explore alternative healing therapies to combat his own anxiety and depression.

Over the past 20 years Justin has delved into both transpersonal and Jungian depth psychology, explored psychedelic modes of healing and developed meditation and breath work techniques, which he taught in Germany.

After attending a private retreat with MycoMeditations in 2017, he saw the opportunity to combine his unique business skills with his interest in alternative healing methods. Justin joined the MycoMeditations team soon afterwards, becoming partner and CEO in 2019.

As a retreat facilitator, Justin draws inspiration from the profound healing he is privileged to witness and believes that psychedelics offer an exciting path forward for mental health.

When completing his Bachelor of Commerce degree in University, Mike suffered from depression, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Conventional treatments he tried didn’t help, which was when he discovered psilocybin mushrooms and began to explore his mind in a quest for healing.

After his first experiences, psychedelics became his primary interest. He realized these compounds were completely misunderstood by society and offered something far greater than he ever imagined.

Looking to take his exploration further, Mike went to MycoMeditations in its early days and over the course of a week in Jamaica, undertaking three of the biggest psilocybin experiences of his life, everything changed for him. This transformative week allowed him to leave with a completely different perspective on life. The experience completely reframed his understanding of personal issues, the human mind, and reality. He has pursued psychedelic exploration ever since.

Mike immediately dropped his career plans to join MycoMeditations and provided initial funding. He oversees business-related projects and often works at the retreat as a facilitator.

With over a decade of management experience in the hotel and hospitality industry and an impressive background in photography and design, Abbie brings a wide variety of skills to the MycoMeditations team. 

Abbie brings her unparalleled organizational skills to on-site logistics and operations in Jamaica and is always available to past, current, and future guests who need assistance. She coordinates all our vendors, transport team, massage therapists, and villa staff, maintaining a high level of service and quality for all our guests.  

In addition to her hospitality experience, Abbie is an award-winning photographer and is responsible for all the beautiful imagery included on the MycoMeditations website and social media platforms.  After completing a degree in Photography and Design from the Hallmark Institute in Massachusetts, Abbie ran a New York based studio from a British photography company, where she was awarded International Photographer of the Year in 2019. Prior to this, she was the first American woman to ever be awarded an Associateship with the British Institute of Professional Photographers.

With her combined love of hospitality and design, Abbie has been a fundamental part of elevating the guest experience at MycoMeditations to a new standard.

In addition to working in the psychedelic-assisted therapy field, Gwen is a licensed marriage and family therapist. She specializes in working with clients with eating disorders, which often means treating depression, anxiety, and trauma.

Gwen has been working in the mental health field since 2007 and holds a designation as a Child Mental Health Specialist.  She has worked in a variety of settings ranging from weekly outpatient care to involuntary psychiatric hospitals. Additionally, she has obtained certifications from MAPS’ MDMA-Assisted Therapy Training Program and for Substance Use treatment.

Gwen’s own relationship with psychedelics has led to continued personal growth and increased insight.  She attributes her ability to move through life’s challenges and goals and tend to relationships that better align with her values to this work.

While working with others in this field, she may use skills from Motivational Interviewing, DBT, IFS and Lifespan Integration. Our guests are drawn to Gwen’s calm, supportive energy, and her genuine care for others is a daily presence on retreat.

Steven completed his graduate training in clinical social work in 1984. Since that time, he has worn many hats including developing his own private practice, supervising a team of six therapists in an agency setting, providing mental health consultation in a college setting, and raising five children who are now launched and chasing their own dreams.

Steven has learned through the years that psychotherapy becomes unnecessarily limited when the process is maintained at an intellectual level only. True change happens when there is a felt sense of something being experienced physically. Steven‘s capacity to slow things down and bring awareness to energetic shifts is the heart and soul of his work. He quickly realized that his style of allowing a space for real healing and not just internal management, was a resonant fit for integrating psychedelic experience.

In keeping with this focus, Steven has trained in and utilized a number of different therapy modalities including EMDR, hypnotherapy, and Somatic Experiencing. He is also a Level III Internal Family Systems practitioner which represents his deepest dive into somatic based therapy approaches.

Steven’s personal relationship to the mushroom carries both a reverence and a lightheartedness. His own exploration with plant medicine has fostered a deep appreciation for the wonder we discover in ourselves and the gift of our connection to our fellow travelers in our ever-changing world.

Caterina is a Board Certified, Art Therapist and Trauma Specialist working primarily in private practice since 2013. Throughout her experiences providing individual and group therapy within multiple populations, Caterina noticed the benefits of incorporating Art Therapy practice into the integration of adverse experiences. This allowed her to cultivate a passion for blending neuroscience, somatic experiencing, attachment theory and creative practices to support others as they process and unpack cues from the subconscious. By using non-verbal forms of self- expression to explore, gain insight and make meaning of the metaphor and symbolism within psychedelic experiences, participants are able to gain additional understanding of themselves. Her passion is focused on empowering individuals through engagement in the creative process in order to gain understanding of the self and their experience, while providing support in the process of uncovering one’s innate healing intelligence.

Currently, Caterina is an integration provider within the Psychedelic.Support network and Contributing Artist for Women on Psychedelics. She continues to focus on increasing access to Psychedelic Art Therapy Integration while working towards EMDR Certification. She is also a professional member of the European Federation of Art therapy and the Jungian Art Therapist Association.

Emilia is a licensed psychotherapist specializing in psychedelic integration and trauma-focused therapy. She uses mindfulness meditation and body-based approaches, to help clients access their healing potential. She has completed training in clinical hypnotherapy, ketamine assisted psychotherapy and various forms of meditation.

Emilia’s own experiences with psychedelics have fueled her commitment to supporting individuals who are exploring them for healing and personal growth. The transformation observed, both personally and in others, has been a big motivation for Emilia to do this work.

As an integration specialist, Emilia supports guests in processing any emotions and insights from the psilocybin sessions, to help facilitate lasting changes.

When not in Jamaica, Emilia manages a counseling practice focused on psychedelic education and support. She also enjoys travel and dance, as ways of nurturing her own personal growth.