Meet Kimberly Dennis | Psychedelic and Plant Medicine Consultant, Therapist, Artist

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

Hi Kimberly, other than deciding to work for yourself, what was the single most important decision you made that contributed to your success?
I can say with great certainty that had I not taken the leap and moved from Georgia to Colorado 6 years ago, I wouldn’t be in the place I am now. I was stuck in many ways in Georgia: let down by healthcare and modern medicine, feeling depressed by a career that had started to affect me negatively physically and emotionally, and in a spiritual crisis of sorts trying to figure out what I should do with my life – that looked a lot different than what I thought it would when I was a young child.

Moving to Colorado with just my cat Luckie and only the belongings that fit into my Mustang helped give me immense strength, built up my sense of independence, and instilled in me an awesome sense of adventure.

The natural beauty of this state captivated me, and I love the health-conscious culture out here. I am grateful to live somewhere that values the healing potential of plant medicine and psychedelics, has progressive laws so that people can pursue healing in alternative ways, and that has an exciting art scene. This environment has truly helped me blossom into the person I am now, and I am so grateful to be here!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am a psychedelic and plant medicine consultant, a therapist, an occasional blogger, a mixed media artist inspired by nature and the mind, body, spirit connection, and an animal and music lover. It’s been a long strange trip and winding path that has led me to my current work through The Psychedelic Healing Project. The big challenges in my life have helped me dream big about my future and the positive impact I could have on others.

After spending over a decade in veterinary medicine and having some unfortunate adventures in chronic illness and pain, I realized that I both wanted and needed to switch gears and focus on helping people. Having been affected by chronic illness and pain since the age of 13, I felt incredibly inspired to help others like me and wanted to transform my own suffering into a way to be of service to others. I had a profoundly healing experience with cannabis concentrates that helped me get off of doctor-prescribed Fentanyl, given to me because nobody knew what to do about my chronic pain related to Crohn’s Disease and Endometriosis. I had tried everything, and at one point relied on a gallon-sized Ziploc bag full of medications to get through each day. It was a terribly painful existence.

It was after that life-changing cannabis experience that I moved from Georgia to Colorado with my beloved cat Luckie, and eventually entered the cannabis dispensary world where I found joy and purpose in helping people with plant medicine. I truly connected with patients using cannabis to help their chronic illness symptoms and to help get them off of opioids and other medications that came with unpleasant side effects. I was amazed at some of the stories I heard and the strength within some of the people I encountered. I was proud of the resilience and strength I had cultivated within my own mind, body, and spirit as well.

A few years later, I found myself feeling unfulfilled in that industry. I had a profound psychedelic “out-of-this-world” experience with psilocybin which was the catalyst for me to go back and get my Masters degree in Mindfulness-Based Transpersonal Clinical Counseling from Naropa University. This degree emphasizes the importance of mindfulness and spirituality in the therapy space, and also prepares students for work in the Psychedelic Assisted Therapy space. This experience was also what inspired me to create The Psychedelic Healing Project in 2019. It started off as just cannabis consultation, education, and demonstrations intended for patients through a few dispensaries and has expanded in beautiful ways since then.

Going through 3 years of a Master’s program, especially one that required such intense examination of your history, trauma, and having to do non-stop inner work was very difficult for my mind, body, and spirit. The universe seemed to put me through a lot that truly tested my dedication to the path I’d chosen. There were definitely several times I almost gave up, and most of those times coincided with painful, stress-induced flare-ups of my chronic illnesses. I was in a car accident that totaled my Mustang and left me injured, and having to tack on several doctor appointments a week on top of an already overwhelming schedule. I also lost my cat Luckie after almost 16 years during my last year of grad school, and the grief from that almost consumed me.

Here I am now, beginning to see the fruits of my labor in this season of life. I graduated with my Master’s degree in 2023, I am a therapist on the verge of opening my own private practice by the end of 2024, I do psychedelic and plant medicine consulting for chronic illness and chronic pain patients, dispensaries, and small groups, I make artwork with love and intention that I call (he)artwork. I begin my certification in Psychedelic Assisted Therapy in July through the Integrative Psychiatry Institute so that I can learn more about how to support future private practice clients in the preparation phase, psychedelic experience realm, and post-experience integration phase. I have years of my own experiences to draw insight from as well.

Having witnessed firsthand the healing power that comes from a loving relationship with an animal through my cat Luckie, I am also working on a certification in Animal Assisted Therapy. I created Luckie’s Legacy shortly after he passed last year – a sliding scale and scholarship program through The Psychedelic Healing Project that aims to assist those that identify as BIPOC, chronically ill, and LGBTQIA+ experiencing financial hardship that want individual consulting services.

I have been slowly working with my dog Stella in preparation to get her certified as a therapy dog so she can one day work alongside me if she wants to. She’s very sweet, loves squeaky toys and sticks, and is really interested in loving on and being with people having been dumped as a puppy in Texas and bottle-fed by humans. In my years living out here I have also acquired a Kenyan Sand Boa named Moon, and a pet mouse named Nebula – sticking with an outer space theme for my animals because remember: a psychedelic “out-of-this-world” experience changed the trajectory of my life!

I am also an ordained minister in the state of Colorado and can hold ceremonies and marry clients. I am plant medicine and LGBTQIA+ friendly and am open to non traditional requests. I make mixed media he(artwork) that I sell through The Psychedelic Healing Project, ranging from drawings to jewelry, and I just began blowing glass. The glass blowing experience brought me great happiness in a time of sorrow and post-graduation depression, and it was then that I realized I also want to integrate art creation into my future practice for those interested, along with Animal Assisted Therapy and Psychedelic Assisted Therapy. I have recently started collecting used equipment to create an art and glassblowing studio where I can express myself creatively and then one day help my future private practice therapy clients express themselves in the same way.

The key lessons that I’ve learned since I’ve been living, learning, and healing in Denver are to not define or limit myself based on chronic illness or pain, that I’m stronger than I think and more powerful than I know, and that my own pain and suffering can be transformed in beautiful ways to be of service to others. I used to be very self conscious about chronic illness and the severe pain that I would experience that few I knew would actually understand. However, I see now that those aspects of myself have contributed to my inner strength and my entire life path in a way I couldn’t have imagined in my wildest dreams. That is why though I am excited to work with all people, I particularly love working with those that also struggle with chronic illness, chronic pain, those that have addiction or depression issues due to their physical conditions, and those that are navigating a spiritual crisis. It feels like very meaningful, full circle work to me.

I am both thrilled and honored to share my intrinsic gifts of compassion, empathy, and creativity with the world through The Psychedelic Healing Project and whatever comes next. Look out for my future plant medicine themed events and local community offerings, upcoming jewelry and (he)artwork for sale, along with my private practice that is coming soon. If you are an individual or business in need of consulting as far as plant medicine and psychedelics are concerned, please reach out – I’d love to help!

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?
If someone was visiting Denver and wanted some cool and memorable things to do, I have a lot of suggestions after living here for 6 years!

First I’d recommend visiting Denver Botanical Gardens on a nice sunny day and catching a show at Red Rocks after lingering around downtown Morrison for some food and shopping at the local stores there.

Since I don’t drink alcohol, I like Honey Elixir Bar’s herbal concoctions and exploring the street art in that area. Sushi Rama’s conveyor belt restaurant is a must for date night, and located right down the street.

Meow Wolf is an awesome psychedelic art installation adventure to explore that I recommend visiting on a week night, maybe after spending time at one of Denver’s beautiful parks like Cheesman or City Park.

I’d also recommend checking out the local glass art scene and stopping by Illuzion Glass Gallery and Explore Glass Gallery. There are some amazing artists living in Denver and there’s a lot of impressive glass art to check out at those places!

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’d like to give recognition to my parents Cindy and Gary, and my grandparents for giving me love, support, and guidance as I have navigated many challenges in life related to chronic illness, chronic pain, and the adventure that was grad school and grief. They didn’t give up on me when I wanted to give up on myself.

It’s also important for me to give gratitude to my cat Luckie who gave me 16 years of his unconditional love and gentle presence. The bond formed with him has been the catalyst for pursuing certification in Animal Assisted Therapy, along with giving me a sense of purpose when I felt I otherwise had none. My dog Stella has been my saving grace for the past year in Luckie’s absence and has deepened my desire to work with animals into my future private practice.

I’m also grateful for a handful of close friends and a previous partner that helped support me through the past 3 years. Without having them as a sounding board and a part of my support system, I’m not sure I would have made it through grad school!

Speaking of grad school, I am extremely thankful for the diverse teachers and students I met through my education at Naropa University. It was there that I saw I could be my authentic self, share my full truths, and be supported unconditionally.

I would also like to thank the great staff at Klarisana, a local ketamine clinic that helped open my eyes to the amazing healing power of psychedelics that aren’t plant derived. When I say it’s like having years of therapy in a couple hours, I mean it. Those experiences I pursued to try to address severe chronic pain and treatment resistant depression definitely played a role in me pursuing a post-graduate certification in Psychedelic Assisted Therapy.

Website: https://thepsychedelichealingproject.com

Instagram: @thepsychedelichealingproject

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thepsychedelichealingproject

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thepsychedelichealingproject

Image Credits
Kimberly Dennis