Find Your Purpose.
Transform Your Spirit.
Create Your Community.
Helping You Find Healing Through Sacred Solutions
Who We Are
Veteran-owned and operated, The Illuminating Co (TICo) is a pioneering nonprofit sanctuary protected by religious freedom to help people heal, transform, and seek their purpose through community, connection, and sacred medicine. TICo is an umbrella organization overseeing two additional non-profits. Our two non-profit sanctuaries include:
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Created for veterans, first responders, and Gold & White Star families to heal from and be transformed by the traumas they have endured. Take part in entheogenic ceremonies and holistic healing modalities to build resilience and achieve personal and spiritual growth.
Created for civilians seeking inner healing and spiritual alignment to live a life meaningful to them. Illuminating Souls supports people to embrace their inner strength through self-connection by offering emotional healing and spiritual growth via innovative approaches and community engagement. Part of the revenue from Illuminating Souls subsidizes Illuminating Heroes in our mission to make healing accessible to all people.
We offer guidance if you have found conventional healthcare and wellness plans unhelpful and discouraging. You feel failed by the wellness status quo and are open to other science-backed modalities to achieve personal transformation.
Our Values
We Uphold the Highest Ethical Standards At The Illuminating Co., integrity is the cornerstone of all our actions. We believe in transparency, honesty, and accountability. Our commitment to ethical behavior ensures we build trust with our community and maintain the highest standards in all our practices.
Inspiring and Guiding Positive Change We are dedicated to leading by example and inspiring others to reach their fullest potential. Through innovative solutions and visionary guidance, we empower individuals to navigate their personal journeys and achieve transformative growth. Our leadership is rooted in wisdom, courage, and the pursuit of excellence.
Empathy and Understanding in Every Interaction Compassion is at the heart of everything we do. We deeply understand the challenges faced by those we serve and are committed to providing a supportive and nurturing environment. By fostering empathy and understanding, we ensure everyone feels seen, heard, and valued on their path to well-being.
Building a Supportive and Interconnected Network We believe in the power of community and the strength that comes from mutual support. At The Illuminating Co., we cultivate a sense of belonging where individuals can connect, share experiences, and grow together. Our community is a safe and welcoming space for collective healing and expansive well-being.
What Are Entheogens?
The word “entheogen” is a Greek word meaning creating the divine within. Entheogens are sacred medicines, sometimes of a plant origin, which can produce an expanded state of consciousness and help you align with God, your Spirit, or your Best Self. Through rigorous scientific studies, entheogens have been shown to help people with trauma heal and thrive in ways traditional medicine cannot. Entheogens can create a mystical and spiritual experience to help you feel more connected with yourself, your community, and humanity as a whole.
At The Illuminating Co., we incorporate entheogens as sacred medicines to help you heal, transform, and find your purpose through deeper self-connection and community. Entheogens can expand your consciousness, allowing the deeper personal work to take root and transform your spiritual self, physical self, and overall well-being.
Find out more about the entheogens we use in our sacred ceremonies.
What Makes Us Different
We understand the toll that misalignment with your physical self and spiritual self can take on your daily life – from relationships to traumatic career experiences. We also understand how conventional medicine only treats symptoms instead of seeing a person as a whole body. A body with physical, emotional, and spiritual elements.
We intentionally have separate retreats for veterans and first responders (Illuminating Heroes) and civilians (Illuminating Souls). We are grateful for civilian support, but as a veteran-owned organization, we understand the specialized support needed for our veterans and first responders.
Most retreats begin when you step foot onto the retreat premises and end when you return home. Instead, we offer a 25-week uniquely personalized program to help you receive top support in your transformation.
The Illuminating Co. retreats occur in our sanctuary in the Hill Country of Texas, providing you with a safe and legal experience here in America. To seek out comparable retreats — in safety and legality — you will need to travel abroad for such an immersive experience our program provides.
As Seen In:
OUR 25 - WEEK PROGRAM
A COMPREHENSIVE PROGRAM THAT PROVIDES YOU THE TOOLS FOR PURPOSEFUL CHANGE
Our 25-week wellness program combines entheogenic modalities with comprehensive preparation and integration, therapeutic and psychospiritual support, and other holistic resources to help you journey toward self-discovery and personal transformation.
PREPARE
8-WEEK PREPARATION PROGRAM
Our personalized one-on-one sessions with our therapeutic professionals help you prepare for a safe and soul-immersive retreat by addressing any questions or concerns you have about your upcoming experience and offering you tools to build self-connection before you launch. An integration specialist will lead group preparation calls and guided activities to foster community development and self-discovery as you begin this journey.
COMMUNE
5-DAY RETREAT
Surrounded by a like-minded community invested in personal growth, you will be invited to take part in our immersive entheogenic ceremonies, expansive breathwork sessions, art therapy, guided meditations, nourishing cuisines, cohesive integration support, and community engagement activities to continue your spiritual metamorphosis.
INTEGRATE
16-WEEK INTEGRATION PROGRAM
The magic happens with the integration phase, and it’s now time to put into practice everything you’ve learned up to this point. This all-encompassing program emphasizes one-on-one and group integration sessions, peer-to-peer accountability exercises, bite-sized daily practices, and evidence-based techniques designed to support your journey of self-transformation and unity.
How Can My Family and Friends Support Me During My Journey?
The Family Matters program at Illuminating Co. is designed to provide crucial support to the partners, spouses, or friends of individuals becoming a part of our healing and transformative retreat journey. Understanding that this experience will affect not only the participants but also their loved ones, the program offers resources and guidance to help navigate this period of change together. Through a series of support calls and informational sessions, Family Matters equips loved ones with valuable skills, insights, and tools that will benefit their own well-being and enable deeper support and new ways of connecting with initiates of the Illuminating Co. programs.
At The Illuminating Co., we blend ancient wisdom from indigenous cultures with modern science to create a unique transformation experience for true healing and alignment. Our team of world-renowned scientists, licensed therapists, and visionary leaders is dedicated to better mental health and walking alongside each person in their personal development journey. Our science-backed and evidence-based approaches have been validated via the latest academic research and scientific scrutiny to provide a safe and informed experience.
Expand your consciousness into elevated states of awareness, acceptance, and understanding with sacred medicines rooted in indigenous history. Break through the pain, obstacles, and spiritual misalignment to undergo a metamorphosis with these healing medicines.
Our Approach
We believe in using holistic practices to accompany our sacred ceremonies to enhance your healing. Some of these holistic practices include:
Transport the healing medicine to every fiber of your being with yoga and meditation. You will be guided in daily yoga and meditation practices to help you better receive the healing from our entheogenic ceremonies.
Bring more awareness to your intentions, thought processes, and well-being with guided breathwork. Our Healing Breath specialist will lead you through transformative sessions to allow the sacred medicine ceremonies to take your awakening to higher levels.
Bodywork sessions complement your sacred healing ceremonies while breathwork restores your body’s physical and energetic self into balance. Our licensed masseuses work through pain points in your body that have stored years of spiritual misalignment, as well as physical and emotional pain.
Supplement your body with ample hydration, vitamins, and micronutrients to ensure you receive the full-body healing experience you are seeking. IV Vitamin Drips help restore nutrient deficiencies, prevent dehydration, and improve cognitive function – all crucial for ensuring a safe and transformative journey.
Release blocked energy to connect to your higher state of consciousness with our Immersive Sound Journey. Improved moods, balanced chakras, and deepened levels of entheogenic integration can all be obtained by immersing in an intentional and immersive sound journey.
Learn trust, communication, and empowerment with equine therapy. Interacting with horses helps restore a sense of control, regulate emotions, and regain verbal expression — things often lost when confronted with trauma.
Energize your healing with a nutrition-packed menu developed by our talented and artisanal chef. Proper and hearty nutrition helps you fully absorb the transformative sessions — leaving your body, mind, and soul revitalized and nourished. Our nutritionally charged menu helps clarify and cleanse your body, mind, and soul.
Our Program May Be a Match If You
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Are a curious person and want to go deeper in personal transformation
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Have found immense frustration in the conventional healthcare system and still feel like there’s more to life than what you’re experiencing
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Have internal blocks and can’t seem to break through them
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Want to heal deep traumas and self-limiting beliefs
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Understand your spiritual self is a key component of overall wellbeing
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Want a built-in community to support and feel supported by along this journey
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Are a veteran or first responder and are seeking to heal from trauma
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Provide personal care for a veteran or first responder
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Have a family member who is a veteran or first responder
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Have lost a family member to suicide
Our Safety Commitment
Ensuring Your Wellbeing Every Step of the Way..
Our programs are rigorously tested and researched to establish their safety and effectiveness
We stay up-to-date on scientific developments to refine and enhance our practices.
Our team consists of certified and experienced professionals, blazing the trails for others in their fields.
We ensure our staff remains leaders of the pack in the wellness and entheogenic communities with continuous training and professional development.A comprehensive pre-screening assessment of all members ensures you are meeting your specific needs according to your tailored plan.
We ensure each member is suitable for our program through detailed medical and psychological evaluations.All sessions are conducted in controlled and secure environments designed to provide comfort and safety for all members.
We have established procedures for immediate response to any adverse reactions or emergencies our members may encounter.
Staff are trained in first aid and emergency response protocols to ensure quick and effective action when needed.
We continuously monitor our clients during sessions to act quickly if any concerns arise.
Post-session follow-ups are conducted to assess delayed effects and provide additional support if necessary.We provide a detailed explanation of all procedures, potential risks, and safety measures before beginning any program or therapy.
We ensure participants fully understand the nature and scope of the treatments they will receive.
We encourage participants to voice any concerns or questions about the safety or their experiences.
We provide accessible points of contact for ongoing support and information.
Our Legality Statement
We are a non-denominational church protected by religious freedom located in the United States. Our religion is helping others heal and find community. Our sanctuary is within the spirit found deep inside ourselves connected to our core. The medicines we use are sacred sacraments to allow us to connect, heal, and transform with ourselves and with the surrounding community.
In 1993, Congress passed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) to evaluate if the government’s legal burden was justified as an infringement on a person’s religious freedom. The RFRA was intended to protect individuals of all faiths when any law burdens the freedom to exercise one’s chosen religion. President Clinton stated that RFRA reaffirms the solemn commitment to protect the first guarantee of our Bill of Rights — the freedom to exercise religion. In the great tradition of our Nation’s founders, this legislation embraces the abiding principle that our lawns and institutions must neither impede nor hinder but instead preserve and promote religious liberty.
The Illuminating Co. Mission:
Empowering Healing and Transformation Through Entheogenic Wisdom
The Illuminating Co. is on a mission to help people from all walks of life access entheogenic medicine, spiritual healing, and transformation here in America. Founded by Marine and former firefighter Justin LaPree, our sanctuary offers a space to restore your well-being, create an intentional and empowered life, and develop community along the way. We serve as a compass on your path of self-discovery to connect with yourself, the world, and those surrounding you.
"Participating in this program has been the most transformative experience of my life. I was able to release an immense amount of pain and suffering, forgive pain caused by others, and truly understand so many things that troubled me for decades …"
"Just coming from the dark place I was in before to where I am now is shocking – to me and everyone around me. I seem to be handling everything so much better now."
"Initially, the idea of healing through a plant medicine retreat sounded absurd – more like a party than a wellness retreat. However, I discovered these medicines to be incredibly valuable when administered correctly, paired with weeks of preparation and integration, and approached with healing intentions."