Meet Irene Dubin | Psychotherapist, Psychedelic Integration Practitioner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Irene Dubin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Irene, is there a quote or affirmation that’s meaningful to you?
I like the quote – “Life is Real Only Then, When I am” by George Gurdjieff. Actually, it is the title of one of his books. It resonates with me since I discovered my inner journey and became more conscious and alive in my mid 40s. I found my way and my path to live my life with awareness and mindfulness every day. It is not an easy task as our mind tricks us into slipping away to a trance state without noticing it. It takes practice and patience to keep bringing yourself back into a more awakened state of mind.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
I chose to practice psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy after my experience working in the field of addiction. This work made me search for better tools and modalities to work with trauma, as mostly all of my clients who suffered from addiction had a previous history of the trauma. When I searched, I found MAPS organization that conducted clinical research with psychedelics for years for particular conditions such as treatment resistant depression, end of life anxiety, trauma and addiction. I was amazed by the results in the studies and was eager to learn more about it. That’s how I started my professional journey to become a psychedelic-assisted psychotherapist. It took me years to learn all about native entheogens and how to use them in safe and controlled settings for therapeutic purposes. It is my life mission now to help people to alleviate their mental and emotional suffering when it’s possible and teach them how to connect to their inner healer. That brought me to another like-minded person, Tradd Cotter, Author, Mycologist and founder of the Blue Portal Wellness and Retreat Centre. We joined forces and started our work together. Since then Blue Portal helped hundreds of people to claim back mental, emotional health and wellbeing. We’ve seen lots of successful cases and this is the best reward that we ever wanted – to see people having their lives back without debilitating symptoms of depression, anxiety or addiction.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I would invite them to Costa Rica to our Blue Portal eco-resort where the Caribbean Sea meets the jungles. I love it over there, it is pure nature, wildlife and cool people. Our guests come from all over the globe, everyone is unique, talented, and has a beautiful soul, mind and heart. You will meet new friends, listen to the stories from the best storyteller and author Tradd Cotter, you will go on nature walks to see sloths, monkeys, toucans and have gourmet healthy meals. If you love nature and tranquility, this place is for you and we will be happy to host you there. Blue Portal is always open for your transformation and a new journey.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to say thank you to my son Tim, who has always supported me in my new career as a holistic practitioner. My son as a videographer helped me to start my independent practice, established my first website, filmed short videos and other social media content to jumpstart my practice. As an immigrant I started a new career again in my 40s, leaving behind my previous profession as a pharmacist from the Soviet Union era. I had to start all over again in a new country with a new language, and without the support of my family, I would not have been able to succeed.

Website: Blueportalretreat.com

Other: https://psychedelic.support/network/irene-dubin-ma-casac/

Image Credits
by Timothy Djent