We rebuilt Ceremonia around one idea
Connection changes what becomes possible. After 60+ retreats and more than 400 alumni, we have a new look, a new home online, and a clearer way of saying why we exist.
In 2022 I started Ceremonia with a simple belief: people do not change alone. Since then we have run more than 60 retreats, and more than 400 alumni have come through them. The ceremony matters. But what people tell us, again and again, is that the change lasted because of who they went through it with.
So we rebuilt Ceremonia around that. Our flag line is now Awaken Together. Our promise is simple: feel fully alive.
We did not change what we do. We changed how clearly we say it.
Austin Mao, founderOur mission
To help people move out of disconnection, stuckness and over-controlled living through nonprofit, science-informed plant medicine retreats designed for lasting change.
What is new
- A new website at ceremoniacircle.org, rebuilt from the ground up.
- The Journey Archetype Quiz: discover your light and your shadow.
- Have a Great Trip, our six-week preparation course, free for a limited time (a $197 value).
- My TEDx talk, now on the site.
What stays the same
- We are a nonprofit, and science-informed.
- Every journey includes a month of integration, and the alumni community stays with you after that.
- The same lead facilitators: Austin Mao, Tamara Golden and Jo Ann Forristal.
Questions and answers
Is Ceremonia changing its name?
No. We are still Ceremonia. What changed is how we look and how clearly we say what we do.
Do existing bookings or alumni programs change?
No. Your dates, your calls and your coach stay the same. If you are an alum, nothing about your place in the community changes.
Is the Have a Great Trip course still free?
Yes, for a limited time. It is a $197 value, and you do not need a card to enroll.
Have a Great Trip: the Science of Safer, Smarter Psychedelic Experiences
How to prevent a bad trip, and what turns a hard moment into a great one.