Kari Mischell is a mother of four, entrepreneur, body connection coach, Reiki master, medicine woman, and ceremonialist who has created a beautiful business helping women and men reconnect back into their bodies to heal and thrive in life.
“ We are not our stories. We are not our trauma. We are not even these bodies we are in. We are not our emotions. We are so much more than this 3D world that we’re living in, and we can get there without the medicine. “
How can plant medicine heal trauma?
Kari: I like to call plant medicines “teachers”. Depending on which plant medicine you’re being called to, they all have their own way of bringing forward healing. The one I like to work with are psilocybin mushrooms. I’ve also worked with Mother Ayahuasca. They love to bring forward the challenge: “Here are the things that are blocking you. What are you going to do with them?” It’s what happens after the beautiful ceremony that’s really important, once you have all the information you need. How are you going to integrate that and release what they showed you? That is the work.
What can you say to people who want to try plant medicine, but are wondering whether the ceremony is really necessary?
Kari: The beautiful thing about psilocybin mushrooms is that you don’t have to go into a ceremony to experience their medicine. You can actually do microdosing, which I recommend for everyone but especially for those who are a little bit apprehensive about going into the full journey. I get that: It can get really scary because you’re doing the opposite of what people use drugs for, which is to avoid, numb, and check out. When you go into a ceremony, you are going in. Microdosing is a great alternative because you’re taking very small doses—so small that you’re not supposed to feel the medicine. You’re not supposed to feel altered at all. And if you do, you’re supposed to go down in dosage. You get the benefits of the medicine without having to go through this crazy journey.
How did you get into plant medicine?
Kari: I heard about Ayahuasca and psilocybin mushrooms at the same time a couple of years ago. I was at this place where I let my spiritual ego lead me. I was telling myself that I was “broken” and that I needed to be “fixed”. The mushrooms didn’t really call to me because it was a gentle experience. Mother Ayahuasca was the strict grandma. I was more drawn to that because it was like, “Oh, she’s going to destroy me.” And that’s exactly what happened. I had quite a few ego deaths. Eventually, it came to the point where Mother Ayahuasca said, “Stop searching outside of you. You have all the answers within. You are already whole.” I started going down the path of mushrooms where there is a lot of profound shadow work. Mushrooms are about reminding who you are—and who you are is whole, and god, and connected to everything and everyone. Once I got that, I was sold. Now it’s my mission to expose the world to what this medicine truly is. It’s not a party drug. When you use it the right way, it’s life-changing.
What significant event in your life made you decide that you really wanted to get deep into plant medicine?
Kari: I was molested as a little girl. I grew up in a very, very strict religion that created a lot of sexual suppression, shame, guilt, and judgement that was literally debilitating for most of my life. Then, I struggled with exercise addiction and eating disorders for about 12 years. There was just so much pain in my body and I got into this place where I dove into self-development and healing, and later I felt so called to plant medicine to aid on levels that I couldn’t quite get to in a sober state.
Why did you decide to shift from Mother Ayahuasca to psilocybin mushrooms?
Kari: Honestly, I don’t feel like I “chose” mushrooms. I feel like mushrooms chose me. I’d been a medicine woman in many lives, so that just came naturally to me. I felt that there was a level of awareness that needed to happen, and healing and shedding, of stories for mushrooms to get access to me. I went through a mushroom ceremony with some girlfriends without a shaman, and as soon as the medicine hit, the mushroom shared with me: “You’re not here for a journey for yourself. You’re here to hold space for your friends and help them process.”
What advice would you give to those who are just getting started on their journey with plant medicine?
Kari: There’s nothing to fear. The medicine is here to teach us and heal us. Do research from a heart space. There’s information out there for and against psilocybin mushrooms. Use your discernment and intuition around what you read. Decide: “Does that feel true to me?” and trust that. If you’re coming across things that are causing some dissonance in your body, then maybe it’s not your time. Maybe it’s not your medicine. And that’s okay. Not everybody is called to plant medicine. That doesn’t mean you’re “less than” or that there’s a problem with you. It’s just not for everybody. We can 100% get to a place of healing and transformation without plant medicine. That’s why I like to offer sober experiences such as coaching, breathwork, and emotional releases. It’s all to remember who we are. We are not our stories. We are not our trauma. We are not even these bodies we are in. We are not our emotions. We are so much more than this 3D world that we’re living in, and we can get there without the medicine.
How can bringing more awareness to trauma be so powerful?
Kari: We live in a society that puts bypassing on a pedestal. But just because you brush it under a rug doesn’t mean it’s not there. Trauma is something that really happens to our bodies and it really does create ruptures—wounds in our system. We need to address those wounds in the right way, which is with so much love and compassion and awareness. We can’t change something that doesn’t exist. Once we put a name to it, we gain the power and the choice to shift or stay in it. But at least we have a choice now. We can’t undo what happened, but we can meet the need. Once we meet the need on a regular basis that was not met when the trauma happened, we start healing that wound. It’s not as activated anymore. It’s not charged anymore. That’s the definition of a miracle: a change in perception. We perceive that experience differently. We see it with reverence and understand that: “This is something that my soul desired for growth and evolution.”
How is trauma and abundance interconnected?
Kari: I once believed that: “I’m not worthy of abundance because I’m a bad person.” I was feeling so much shame and that shame was affecting every part of my life. I had this deep belief that I am not enough. I do not deserve. And as you know, what you believe becomes your reality. You’ve got to pull the root that is your belief. That starts by becoming aware that your belief about yourself is only a reality because you created that belief, and that you can now create a new belief.
What is a limiting belief that stopped you for a long time from doing what you do now?
Kari: The biggest one was: “You are not enough.” If you want to know what your limiting beliefs are, just look around, because it’s literally slapping you in the face.
What are some of the biggest common misconceptions around pleasure and arousal?
Kari: We have been programmed to believe that arousal and pleasure are sexual. Like, it’s all about getting off or having an orgasm. No. I’m very aroused by this conversation that you and I are having. It brings me a lot of pleasure to me to have this experience. We’ve got to think outside the box that pleasure and arousal is just about intimacy in the bedroom, because it’s not. When you own your state of pleasure, you experience abundance via the constant gratitude that you feel in even the smallest things, like eating an orange. You’re constantly telling the Universe, “I receive… I receive… I receive…”
For women who are not used to receiving, what practice can you share with them to get used to being in that space?
Kari: As women, our natural state is not to hustle, hustle hustle, but to receive. My favorite practice is to focus on the breath. Breath allows you to notice the flow. When you inhale, notice how good it feels to receive in that breath. The first time I did that, I realized how shallow my breaths were. We live in a society that has very short breath, but breath is our life-force energy. Focus on the inhale and how good it is to receive, then exhale and experience how good it feels to let go. Receive in, release out.
Why have you decided to stay away from social media in the near future?
Kari: There are a couple of reasons: 1) I like to question: “Why is being on social media the only reason one can be successful in their online business?”; 2) It’s just noise for me. I don’t want to consume anything that doesn’t benefit me. As a shaman, what’s coming to me through spirit is that it’s important to me to be this clear channel and to clear out anything that’s creating noise and distraction. Clearing that out is creating more opportunity for me to be more discerning about what I’m consuming and what’s affecting my energy. What you put in, you put you.
Learn more about Kari Mischell:
Her website: https://starlight-coaching.com
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