FAQ

Is this therapy or counselling?

No. This is a coaching and education service. I am not providing therapy, counselling, or any form of clinical treatment. While my approach is informed by somatic and trauma-informed frameworks, this work is offered in a personal coaching capacity — not as a registered health practitioner operating within a clinical scope. If you are looking for clinical mental health support, I am happy to help you find appropriate referrals.

What kind of person comes to this work?

People who feel drawn to this space often share a sense that cognitive insight alone is not enough — they want to understand themselves through the body, not just the mind. They may be navigating significant transitions, returning from meaningful experiences, or seeking a more embodied relationship with themselves. This is not a crisis service. If you are in acute mental health distress, clinical support is the more appropriate starting point, and I am happy to assist with referrals.

Is this work suitable if I have a mental health history?

Depending on your history and current circumstances, this work may or may not be appropriate. This is one of the reasons a health and safety questionnaire is required before we work together. I do not provide clinical mental health care and am not a substitute for professional support. If you are currently working with a psychologist, psychiatrist, or GP, I recommend discussing this work with them before proceeding.

What is Cor Ritual?

Cor Ritual is a held group ceremonial space that combines somatic practices with plant allies — cacao and sceletium tortuosum — to support embodied presence and felt-sense awareness. “Cor” is Latin for heart, reflecting the intention of the space: a grounded, open connection with yourself and others. It is not a therapy group, a performance space, or a psychedelic ceremony. The emphasis is on safety, pacing, and allowing your system to guide your experience.

What are plant allies and which ones do you use?

Plant allies are botanical substances used within a ceremonial context to support awareness and presence. In Cor Ritual, I use cacao and sceletium tortuosum (kanna).

Cacao has been held as sacred across Mesoamerica for thousands of years — offered in ceremony, shared at moments of transition, and understood by the Maya and other indigenous peoples as a plant of the heart. Long before it became the world’s most consumed confection, it was a relational and ceremonial substance: something that opens, warms, and gathers people toward one another.

For me, cacao also carries a personal thread. It grows in the Amazon basin — in the soil of the country I come from. There is something that feels quietly right about carrying a plant from that landscape into ceremony on the other side of the world. Not as ownership, but as living continuity. A root that travels.

The name Cor Ritual is Latin for heart — and that is not incidental. Cacao arrives at the opening of the ceremony as an invitation: to feel the body settle, to slow down, to become a little more present with what is already here. It has been used that way for millennia. I hold it in that same spirit.

Sceletium tortuosum has been used for centuries by the Khoi and San peoples of Southern Africa — held within ceremony as a plant of connection, presence, and open-heartedness. Traditionally shared at gatherings to ease tension and soften the space between people, it was understood not as medicine in the clinical sense, but as a relational and ceremonial ally.

I came to kanna through that ceremonial lineage, not through the supplement industry. What drew me to it was its quality of invitation — the way it supports the body’s willingness to arrive, the nervous system’s capacity to soften, and the heart to feel a little more available. In Cor Ritual, it is offered for exactly that reason: as one element within a carefully held ceremonial container, alongside cacao and somatic practice, to support the kind of embodied presence that thinking alone rarely reaches.

I hold its origins and the communities who have long known its value with respect.

Is sceletium tortuosum safe?

Sceletium tortuosum is generally well-tolerated, but it has real pharmacological activity and is not suitable for everyone. It acts on serotonin pathways and must not be combined with SSRIs, SNRIs, MAOIs, tricyclic antidepressants, or certain other medications. A health and safety questionnaire is required before attending any ceremonial space, and I will follow up directly if there are questions about your circumstances. If you are taking any medication, please list it in your questionnaire and contact me before booking.

I’m currently taking antidepressants — can I attend?

Possibly not for ceremonial spaces involving sceletium tortuosum, as it interacts with medications that affect serotonin. Please complete the health and safety questionnaire and I will be in touch to discuss. Preparation and integration sessions do not involve plant allies and are available regardless of medication status.

Is Cor Ritual a psychedelic ceremony?

No. Cor Ritual uses cacao and sceletium tortuosum — both legal botanical plants, neither of which is a scheduled or prohibited substance in Australia. These are not psychedelic substances in the clinical or legal sense. The ceremonial space is designed to support embodied presence and somatic awareness, not altered states in the way associated with psilocybin, MDMA, or similar substances.

What is the difference between preparation and integration?

Preparation happens before an experience — whether that is a ceremonial space, a significant life transition, or a planned therapeutic experience through a lawful pathway. It focuses on internal readiness: self-knowledge, grounding, intention-setting, and understanding what to expect. Integration happens after — supporting you in reflecting on, grounding, and making meaning of what you have experienced, and bringing that understanding into daily life in a sustainable way.

Do I need to complete preparation before attending Cor Ritual?

Preparation is built into the process — new participants receive a preparation guide before attending, covering what to expect, how to arrive, and what the experience asks of you. For those who would like more personalised support before their first ceremony, individual preparation sessions are available. They are an option, not a requirement.

Do you offer preparation for psychedelic-assisted therapy for lawful overseas experiences?

Yes. I offer preparation support for people who have independently chosen to access psychedelic-assisted therapy through a TGA-approved clinical pathway, or who are planning to engage with a lawful ceremonial or therapeutic experience overseas. This is a coaching and education service — I have no involvement in the substance experience itself and do not provide, recommend, or facilitate access to any substance. My role is to support your internal readiness before that experience.

Do you offer integration support after a psychedelic experience?

Yes. Integration support is available for people returning from psychedelic-assisted therapy programs, lawful overseas experiences, or other significant altered state experiences. The focus is on reflection, grounding, nervous system awareness, and bringing insight into everyday life. This is a non-clinical, coaching-based service and is not affiliated with any clinical program or therapeutic trial.

Can I come for integration if I haven’t worked with you before?

Yes. You do not need to have worked with me previously to access integration support. Many people come following experiences through clinical programs, overseas settings, or other personal contexts. A health and safety questionnaire and an initial conversation will help us determine whether this work is a good fit for where you are.

What if I need clinical support during or after our work together?

This work is not a substitute for professional mental health care. If clinical concerns arise, I will support you in accessing appropriate professional help and can provide referrals to allied health and mental health practitioners. Your safety comes first.

Do you work online or in person?

Both. One-on-one sessions — preparation, integration, and individual somatic work — are available online and in person in Western Australia. Ceremonial group spaces are held in person.

Do you work in languages other than English?

Yes — I work with clients in both English and Portuguese.

Is this covered by Medicare or private health insurance?

No. As a non-clinical coaching and education service, these offerings are not covered by Medicare or private health insurance. They are not medical, psychological, or occupational therapy services.
A sliding scale is available for those experiencing financial hardship. If cost is a barrier, please mention this in your initial enquiry and we can discuss what is possible.

How do I know if this is the right fit?

Begin with an expression of interest or enquiry form. From there we can have an initial conversation to explore whether this work is aligned with where you are and what you are looking for. I do not take on all enquiries — this work is best suited to people who are ready to engage honestly and at their own pace.

Where do I start?

Complete an expression of interest or reach out directly. If you are interested in Cor Ritual or any group space, a health and safety questionnaire is the first step. For one-on-one preparation or integration sessions, an initial conversation is the place to begin.