Welcome to Anam Cara Centre
Bridging Contemplative Practices with the Art and Science of Healing
Our final website will be launched in the coming months; in the meantime, everything you need can be found here.
Anam Cara
The foundation of the Anam Cara Centre lies in the ancient Celtic understanding of “anam cara,” or “soul friend,” a principle that encourages deep connection and mutual growth. Empowering individuals to become a “friend of the soul” - to foster a compassionate, honest relationship with themselves, others, and the earth.
Our Pillars
Anam Cara Centre develops training, clinical and cultural retreat pathways for tomorrow’s compassionate, ethical, and skilled psychedelic therapists.
Evidence-informed and clinically focused
Our curriculum bridges contemporary psychedelic science with real-world therapeutic applications, ensuring practitioners are equipped with evidence-based tools that support safety, efficacy, and long-term integration.
Cultural holding and reciprocity
Anam Cara honours the diverse cultural roots of psychedelic healing, integrating Indigenous wisdom, ethical reciprocity, and community engagement into our approach.
Contemplative and wisdom practices
Our approach weaves contemplative traditions with therapeutic frameworks , recognising that both clients and therapists benefit from practices that cultivate self-awareness, compassion, deep listening, and ethical discernment.
Experiential, embodied, and creative
Learning is embodied, we combine theoretical knowledge with experiential practices, allowing students to explore creative expression, somatic modalities, therapeutic tools and contemplative methods. Students learn through knowledge and hands-on role play, with supportive mentorship.
Ethics
Ethics is rooted in care and accountability, requiring deep reflection and collaboration to guide our actions and decisions.
Metacognition
Metacognition involves the capacity to step back from experience, fostering insight and intentional action for personal and professional growth.
Potentiality
Potentiality arises from the interplay of creativity, impermanence, and a willingness to deepen understanding, allowing for continuous transformation and greater clarity.
Agency
Agency empowers individuals to take an active role in their healing, supporting a relational and process-oriented therapeutic stance.
Science
Science values evidence-informed inquiry, emphasising the scientific process of discovery, critical thinking, and the pursuit of knowledge through observation, experimentation, and reflection.
Transpersonal
Transpersonal acknowledges that the self is inseparable from the larger web of existence, recognising the interconnectedness of all life.
Holistic
Holistic honours the complexity of our bio-psycho-social-cultural-spiritual being, considering the entirety of a person in therapeutic practices.
Our Values
At Anam Cara Centre, our programs are rooted in values that shape the way we teach, the way we learn, and the way we walk alongside others on the path of transformation.
Our Therapeutic Frames
All Anam Cara Centre programs are grounded in therapeutic practices that are holistic, compassionate, and integrative, developed to meet the depth and complexity of psychedelic experience with skill, care, and reverence.
SWIM: Somatic, Wisdom, Interdependence, Metacognition
The concept of ‘oceanic boundlessness,’ as described in the research literature, captures the expansive feeling, deep connection with nature, and loss of separation between self and the world that many individuals report in psychedelic experience. Likewise, Jung likened the unconscious to the sea, describing it as a symbol where “unfathomed depths lie concealed beneath its reflecting surface”. There is vast beauty and salve in the psychedelic ocean of experience, and yet one may rapidly find themselves out of their depth. This applies to therapists, guides and journeyers alike.
SWIM aims to assist clinicians in engaging with the core processes that operate in personal transformation, from theory of mind, somatic awareness, attachment, adult development, wellbeing, and processes of change. These four frameworks support a transtheoretical approach that does not prioritise any school of psychotherapy and instead assesses evidence-informed, best-practice, embodied, and contemplative considerations suitable for psychedelic-assisted therapy.
Exploring SWIM
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Metacognition plays a central role in guiding therapeutic interventions, especially within psychedelic-assisted therapy. By cultivating the ability to monitor and modify cognitive and emotional states, therapists can help clients navigate the complexity of their inner worlds. Through our four metacognitive lenses —mindfulness, multiplicity, mindset, and meaning—therapists can help clients develop the capacity to develop awareness, attune to and adjust their internal experiences.
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Somatic approaches empower understanding of the complexity of the nervous system, emotional responses, and sensory experiences, supporting the recognition and re-patterning of behaviour, all while cultivating co-regulation. By working through the four somatic lenses—Agency, Neuroception, Regulation, and Embodiment—therapists guide clients in developing greater somatic awareness. These lenses work together to enhance emotional resilience, promote self-regulation, and facilitate lasting integration by supporting clients in staying present within their bodies.
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Interdependence is a key principle in psychedelic-assisted therapy, by developing awareness of this web of relations, individuals can shift from a mindset of independence to one that embraces unity and shared responsibility. Through the four interdependence lenses—Connection, Transpersonal, Creativity, and Transcendence—individuals develop a creative approach to everyday challenges, and moments of expanded awareness are sustainably woven into the fabric of everyday life.
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Wisdom is the act of engaging deeply with the question of what it means to live well, the act of engaging deeply with the question of what it means to live well, of cultivating a love of the pursuit. Wisdom invites the recognition of our own ignorance, not as a flaw, but as a doorway to growth. Through the four wisdom lenses—Philosophy, Contemplation, Ethical Maturity, and Eudaimonia—individuals cultivate an aspirational mindset that values the process of learning and reflection. Wisdom is an invitation to remain humble, curious, and committed to the journey of discovery.
EMPATHS
EMPATHS is a trans-diagnostic and multi-medicine model that embodies a unique approach deeply rooted in existential, contemplative, cognitive and somatic practices. EMPATHS invites both therapists and clients to embark on a profound exploration of their psyche, body and personal trajectories. By intertwining contemplative discernment and embodied awareness, this framework offers a rich tapestry for therapeutic engagement, facilitating a deeper understanding of one’s inner landscape and facilitating meaningful growth. This integrated approach empowers therapists and clients alike to navigate the complexities of the human experience with greater knowledge, compassion, and psychological skills, fostering a therapeutic, educational and clinical environment conducive to personal and community healing.
The term "empath" has become diluted in popular culture and is often met with caution, as it can sometimes foster a victim mentality or emotional overwhelm. EMPATHS addresses this by promoting "wise empathy" – the ability to connect deeply without being consumed by others’ emotions. This model empowers individuals to cultivate compassionate, grounded, and effective therapeutic practices while preventing burnout and emotional exhaustion.
