A to C
Aftercare. The support arranged for a participant in the days and weeks after a ceremony. Ethically, it is arranged before the ceremony, not offered afterward.
Appropriation. Taking the forms of a tradition without its obligations, its permissions, or any benefit flowing back to the community that carried it. See tradition, lineage, and honesty.
Ceremony. Used here for any structured ritual setting in which a sacred medicine is taken. Deliberately broad, because the structures vary enormously.
Container. The full set of arrangements holding an experience: who is present, what they are responsible for, the physical space, the agreements, and the emergency plan. Often used to mean atmosphere. It should mean decisions. See designing the container.
Contraindication. A condition or circumstance that makes participation unsafe or unwise. Absolute contraindications rule it out. Relative ones require clinical judgement.
D to I
Depersonalisation. A persistent sense of detachment from oneself, as though observing from outside. Brief versions occur within many experiences. Persistent versions after one are a reason to seek clinical help.
Derealisation. A persistent sense that the world is unreal or at a distance. Same rule as above.
Dual relationship. Holding more than one role with the same person, such as facilitator and employer, or facilitator and friend. Each additional role makes it harder for them to say no to any of them.
Ego dissolution. A loosening or loss of the ordinary sense of being a separate self. Reported across many practices, described very differently depending on the language available to the person.
Facilitator. A person holding a ceremonial space. Not a regulated term, not a clinical qualification, and not an indication of any particular training.
Informed consent. Agreement given with an accurate understanding of what is offered, what is known, what is unknown, and what the risks are. Given in advance, in writing, and freely withdrawable. See consent, power, and money.
Integration. The work of turning an experience into a changed life, over months. Not a session, not a group, and not a purchase. See the first ninety days.
Intention. What a person is bringing to the experience. Most useful when small and specific, least useful when large and outsourced.
L to R
Lineage. A traceable line of transmission from teacher to student within a tradition. Frequently claimed, rarely documented. Worth asking about specifically.
Non-dual. Describing states in which the division between observer and observed is not experienced. A description, not an explanation.
Preparation. Everything done before a ceremony to make it safer and more useful: screening, consent, medical review, intention, and the weeks of ordinary work beforehand. See what ethical preparation means.
Reciprocity. Material and ongoing return to the communities a practice came from. Not acknowledgement, not a photograph, not a one-off donation.
Referral. Directing a participant to a professional better qualified for their situation. The most important skill in a facilitator's toolkit. See scope of competence and referral.
S to Z
Scope of competence. What you are actually qualified to do, as distinct from what you feel able to do.
Screening. The structured assessment of medical history, psychiatric history, medications, and circumstances before participation. Only meaningful if it can result in a no. See screening and contraindications.
Serotonin syndrome. A potentially dangerous reaction caused by too much serotonergic activity, often from combining medications or substances. A reason why full medication disclosure is not optional.
Set and setting. A person's state of mind and their physical and social environment, both of which substantially shape an experience. One of the better-supported findings in this field.
Spiritual bypass. Using spiritual ideas or practices to avoid unresolved psychological or practical problems. Common after intense experiences, and often mistaken for progress.
Spiritual emergency. A period of acute destabilisation following a spiritual or altered-state experience. Some resolves with support. Some is a clinical presentation. Assuming the first is how people get hurt.
Titration. Working with smaller amounts or shorter exposures deliberately, rather than as much as possible. Frequently the more responsible choice and frequently unfashionable.