Embracing change, in pursuit of better mental health.

Cam Leids is an entrepreneur, podcast host, and plant medicine guardian.

He started his career working in tech sales, and even though he was quite successful, he felt like he was missing something. This led him to start working intentionally with various plant medicines.

He is passionate about mental health and helping people unlock their full potential as human beings. He believes we all already have the answers we seek within ourselves; we just need some guidance to help us unlock these answers.?

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Cam and I met through our mutual network and connected over our shared experiences in pivoting. Namely, about the road to from 'checking the boxes' in a corporate career (and frankly, life) to something that feels much more aligned.

This roundup is part of what I learned about Cam's inspirational and brave journey. I personally learned a lot - there is a lot of wisdom in how he took a far less conventional path to find what he's truly meant to be doing.

Check it out and let me know your thoughts!

5 Questions with Cam Leids

1. What was the catalyst for knowing you wanted to make a change in how you approach your mental health and life??

I’d say the true catalyst for changing how I approach my mental health and life was deciding to go to Peru to sit with Ayahuasca.

Before that, my life was going pretty well on paper.

→ I had a six-figure salary 2 years out of college

→ I was living in Chicago at the time and had all these friends around me.

→ I was social and active and doing everything I was supposed to do, but something still didn’t feel quite right.

→ I made that decision to use ayahuasca to help me figure out why I still didn't feel quite right.

That experience showed me more than I ever could’ve hoped for.

To sum it up, it showed me that I wasn’t living my life for me at the time. I was living it based on what my parents expected of me, what society expected of me, and what my friends expected of me, and at my core, I didn’t know who I was without all of these other influences in my life. It gave me the courage to figure out for myself who I am.?

2. What were your first steps??

My first steps may seem counterproductive, but they were actually to do nothing—not nothing in the sense that I continued to live my life as if nothing happened, but I mean that I gave myself time and space to sit and intentionally do nothing.

I had to sit and feel every repressed emotion or uncomfortable thought I had ever had, because not dealing with them was what got me into this situation, to begin with.

To reiterate, I wasn’t in a bad place, but I still didn’t feel good about where my life was going and I knew I needed to change it.

I did that until I reached a place of acceptance. From there, it was about building back each aspect of my life in a way that made me feel fulfilled.

→ I moved to a different city.

→ I stopped working in tech.

→ I started my podcast, The TripSitting Podcast, to discuss some of these questions I was asking myself at the time.

Ultimately, I stopped caring about what other people might think of me and I did things because I felt like doing them with no end goal in mind.

This is contrary to what a lot of people might tell you, but doing things for the sake of doing them without feeling the need to turn them into some type of income or justify them in any way is quite empowering. I learned what it felt like to live in the present moment.?

3. Can you share a bit about resources you tapped in to??

I mean, obviously, ayahuasca was a huge resource, but so much of the change and growth that can occur from these psychedelic experiences happen after the fact. The medicine might only play 10% of the role.?

Ayahuasca is a powerful psychedelic plant-based brew from the Amazon, used traditionally for spiritual healing and self-discovery, often inducing intense visions and emotional insights.

I started reading books that deepened my sense of spirituality. A couple of these books I recommend are The Power of Now by Eckart Tolle, The Untethered Soul by Michael Singer, and The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz.?

From there, I made it a point to find a community of people who had gone through similar experiences and were asking the same questions I was asking at the time. There were online forums, social clubs in my city, and conferences that were all centered around these substances and ways of thinking.

If I had to give it a ranking, I would say being in a supportive community is the most important thing anyone can do if they are looking to change anything about themselves. It’s so true that the people you are around shape so much of your perception of the world, so make sure you are around people you trust and respect.

4. What has been one of the biggest surprises on this journey?????

One of the biggest surprises on my journey was how difficult some of these changes were, and at the same time how supported I felt by a higher power. I jumped into the unknown, fully embracing the fact that I had no idea what to expect or even where I was going, but I knew that if I let my heart lead the way, I would be fine.

There are so many instances of people and opportunities popping up for me that allowed me to keep going. I have so much gratitude for every experience I’ve had along the way, including some of the “bad” ones. Without those experiences, I never would’ve known when I was veering off-course in other aspects of my journey.?

I’d also like to stress how nonlinear this journey felt and how much self-doubt and fear still came up as I was going through it. I knew in my heart that I was heading in the right direction, but there were still many times when it felt like I was moving backward or nowhere at all and I was questioning if this was all for nothing. Sitting with these feelings was just as much part of the journey as anything else.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that if you trust the universe and allow your heart to guide you, you will always end up exactly where you need to be.

5. What are you optimistic about as you look out to 2025??

I’m optimistic about a lot of things as I look to next year. I know that there are obviously a lot of crazy things happening in the world right now, but at the same time, there is a monumental shift in consciousness that so many people are waking up to.

This is only the beginning, and it’s certainly a long road ahead, but I’m optimistic that the more people who decide to look deep within themselves to heal and discover the type of world they want to live in, we will collectively shift the way our society operates and co-create a much more peaceful world.?

Bonus question: If folks want to learn more about you, where can they find you??

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tripsittingpod/

The TripSitting Podcast on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1JukVgG7FJr3YhmPuuxqjM?si=381e759b3e184445

The TripSitting Podcast on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-tripsitting-podcast-w-cam-leids/id1648915949

The TripSitting Substack: https://tripsitting.substack.com/

If you are looking to explore a plant medicine retreat, check out Conscious Retreats, a business I run to help connect people with trustworthy retreat centers: https://consciousretreats.net/

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In the meantime, thanks for reading, and until next time, stay well!

Alison

Founder & CEO | unBurnt