CIRCLE FACILITATORS
Events are facilitated by carefully selected and highly-skilled core members of our integration community. All facilitators are experienced and well-versed in psychedelic states and incorporate their own individually vetted integration and healing modalities into their practice. Check our regularly-updated calendar of events, or join our mailing list to stay up to date with out latest offerings!
We look forward to holding space together with you!
CELISA FLORES, Psy.D.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR / FACILITATOR
Dr. Celisa Flores has worked as a therapist, program director, harm reductionist and clinical outreach professional in a wide variety of mental health and substance use disorder treatment setting since obtaining a Master’s in 2007 and Doctorate in 2013 in Clinical Psychology. Additional training as a trauma-sensitive yoga and meditation facilitator, as well as birth and end-of-life doula, she has been able to draw from a variety of modalities to support self-empowerment and recovery. She has also recently completed the MAPS Training in MDMA Assisted-therapy.
Her role has included national and international training and speaking engagements on psychedelic healing, eating disorders, mindfulness, yoga, body acceptance, and professional wellness, as well as facilitating psychedelic integration groups with PsychedeLiA in Orange County, CA and online.
PAUL ANTICO
SECRETARY-TREASURER / FACILITATOR
Paul is Psychedelia Integration’s Secretary-Treasurer and one of Psychedelia’s Integration Circle Facilitators. He is also a Certified Compassionate Inquiry Practitioner, Dr. Gabor Maté’s elegant and insightful approach to healing our triggers and traumas, a somatic style of working is very complimentary to psychedelic and plant medicine work. Paul is also a Rosen Method Bodywork intern, a powerful trauma release hands-on bodywork practice.
Paul brings diverse viewpoints to the table for a unique and insightful perspective gleaned from many modalities employed on his own healing journey from psychedelics to Jungian therapy and dreamwork, Somatic Experiencing, Rosen Method bodywork, Family Constellations, Internal Family Systems, Medicine Dance, and more. He honors the essence-tial part of ourselves that is leading us with courage toward our own healing, facilitated with presence, safety, non-judgement, acceptance and compassion.
Paul is a very active member in the Los Angeles psychedelic community. In addition to Psychedelia Integration, he co-produced the Los Angeles Psychedelic Science Symposium (June 2018 at UCLA), works with Decriminalize California on their Board, as well as a team member of the Aware Project. He has studied Rosen Method Bodywork, Psychedelic Somatic Interactional Therapy, as well as being a provider of Stephen Porges’ Polyvagal Theory based Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP). An avid sailor and mindful ecstatic dancer, Paul is constantly striving to expand his knowledge, education, and training to enhance his work in the service of others.
SEL SARKIN
FACILITATOR
Sel Sarkin studied Electrical Engineering with Post Graduate Degree in Digital Architecture. He became interested in Medical Electronics and did diagnostic research, development of Pacemakers and design of Electro magnetic Energy Machines (EMEM), also known as the Rife machine. In the early 80's, he became interested in Meditation and Psychology. This led him to a breathing technique known as Rebirthing, developed by Leonard Orr, and believes that breathing techniques could be used to purge traumatic childhood memories that had been repressed. He ran breathwork workshops and included various Improvisational dance forms such as Free Style dance and contact Improvisation. He later studied Acupressure, Massage, Cranio Sacral Balancing and Reiki. In 2010 he was approached by people who were reluctant to use chemotherapy to treat cancer. After hearing reports that the use of a potent extract of cannabis oil was having dramatic results with cancer he felt a calling to work with this medicine to see if it actually was effective. From there the world of Plant Medicines opened up and he began to research the nature and properties of the different Entheogens used to help people on their spiritual journey. Today Sel continues to consult with people with their health issues and the use of these medicines to help resolve and heal them from often very debilitating conditions.
JOHN SAUL
FACILITATOR
John Saul found himself rebuilding his life after having it turned upside-down a few years ago. In late 2012, he was struck by systemic sclerosis, or “scleroderma,” a debilitating, painful, incurable life-threatening illness. Through many means, including participation as a study subject in the MAPS-sponsored Phase II clinical trial of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for the treatment of anxiety due to life-threatening illness, John has been able to emerge out of the darkest place one could find themselves and rebuild his fortitude and his life. He hopes that by sharing his story of psychedelic healing he can show others that that it is possible to choose life over death, become your own cure, and meet the resulting challenges with love and an empathetic heart. John continues to explore and work with a wide variety of healing modalities including meditation, yoga and fitness, and is fascinated by witnessing the transformation of people who embark on therapeutic psychedelic journeys. John is a peer facilitator at the Santa Monica integration circles.
Nicki Wong
FACILITATOR
Nicki Wong (she/her) is a somatic plant medicine integration practitioner, a mindfulness teacher, and a trauma-informed guide in the realms for healing through connection with ourselves, others and the natural world. She has been supporting groups to connect to their bodies and the guidance found from within through sound journeys, guided meditation and somatic sessions in various forms for the past 10 years. Through partnerships with organizations like InsightLA and Insight In Action, she fulfills her mission to bring mindfulness to underprivileged communities. Through her journeys with plants, she has found the beautiful confluence of all of the healing modalities she practices of energy work, sound, mindfulness, and connection to the natural world to come alive and she is dedicated to the path of awakening for herself and others to bring forth the wholeness of this human experience.
Sharzad Shoraka
SPECIALTY FACILITATOR
Sharzad is PsychedeLiA’s Specialty Facilitator. She combines conscious cannabis and yoga for a unique and transformative experience. Sharzad is a Registered Yoga Instructor (RYT 500), a Certified Ganja Yoga Teacher (CGYT), and a double major graduate of UCLA. Her passion for sharing ganja yoga and cannabis facilitation stems from her own personal experience. Sharzad’s intuitive and compassion-centered approach allows clients to journey inward while finding peace, solace, insight, healing, and transformation. She facilitates cannabis enhanced yoga and holds cannabis medicine space for private and group sessions, events, and corporate wellness, both in person and virtual. She’s grateful to share this practice with others so that self-awareness, connection, healing and bliss that’s gained, may ripple out into the world.
You can find her on IG @bluedreamyoga
STAFF
Sarah Mahua
OPERATIONS SECRETARY & EVENT COORDINATOR
Born in Odessa, Ukraine, Sarah likens the breadth of her life to one long, rich ceremony saved by the healing she found in the psychedelic space. She is currently in the process of becoming a licensed psychedelic psychotherapist. As a grassroots member of PsychedeLiA Integration, she took on the role of Operations Secretary in April 2019 and was recently elected to the organization’s Board for her unwavering and dedicated contribution to our organization and the Greater Los Angeles psychedelic community that it serves.
OUR FOUNDER (Emeritus)
SHIRI M.GODASI, M.A. (she/her)
Shiri is the founder of PsychedeLiA and the co-igniter of the psychedelic community in Los Angeles. She is a pioneering psychedelic integration teacher, activist, visionary entrepreneur, depth poet and mother. A proponent of Self-shamanism and conscious collective innovation, her mission is to inspire queer culture and ignite positive social change. She is dedicated to creating grassroots systems that empower people to heal through play, live an authentic & free life and boldly lead their communities. Her approach draws from transpersonal psychology, Hermeticism, Eastern philosophy and New-Earth culture design, fusing ancient wisdom with modern practices to embody the visionary lifestyle in the now. Shiri resides in Costa Rica and though she is no longer an active member of PsychedeLiA she remains grateful for and supportive of the community that was her home.
(Note: Shiri is no longer associated with PsychedeLiA as she stepped down has moved on to other pursuits including child raising!)
