Eddie LeShure, CADC

Eddie LeShure, CADC

Peer Support

He/Him/His

My primary experience with Spiritual Emergency occurred in 1992 after several weeks in Nepal, Bhutan and India on spiritual retreat. My time there was spent doing Buddhist practices with high level lamas, often in remote monasteries holding the energy of hundreds of years of intense practice, often with monks doing retreats there lasting over 3 years. In addition to this, while in Calcutta, India I unexpectedly met and spoke with Mother Teresa at Mother House, which was deeply heart opening. Upon returning to the US, I found myself in a deep existential funk, highly sensitive to noise and groups of people. I wondered, “What is the point?” I could barely function in my job. I was confused, wondering if I had gone crazy, and had no idea what to do. I couldn’t do sitting meditation, was too anxious. Intuitively, I began to do dynamic meditation and ecstatic dancing and eventaully felt a shift. Then one day I had a simple interaction with a stranger that gave my life a sense of meaning and I felt myself emerging back into functionality. Much later, professionally, I was on staff and received clinical supervision at the Center for Spiritual Emergence in Asheville, NC for 6 years until it stopped functioning in 2020. While there, I provided support for patients using mindfulness, movement and breathing practices which included offering Holotropic Breathwork. I also provided integration for those undergoing ketamine treatment.

I have extensive personal experience and training with addiction and recovery from addiction, and have worked with thousands of individuals struggling to attain and sustain recovery. I continue to do so as a Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor (CADC) so I have deep insight into how to help those who struggle with compulsivity. I have been doing yoga since 1972 (am certified as a teacher) and meditation (primarily Buddhist) since the early 80s, having spent the equivalent of 2 years in retreat settings. I bring this training and practice into how I help others compassionately tune into their bodies and observe the habit patterns of their mind. I also have been trained (though not certified) in Holotropic Breathwork and have 9 years experience guiding breathwork sessions. I co-lead monthly online Integrative Breathwork sessions. I have received training and been certified as a Peer Support Specialist. I also have studied and developed an understanding various plant medicines and psychedelics and collaborate with those offering guidance for that intentional spiritual work. I am also a trained Family Support Group Facilitator for the National Alliance for Mental Illness which has provided me with hundreds of hours facilitating Family Support Group sessions for those who have loved ones dealing with mental health issues. I also have a son who has lived with a severe mental illness for nearly 25 years. This has provided me with a deep understanding of mental illness and how it distinguishes itself from spiritual emergency. https://amindfulemergence.com/

My special interests and abilities in spiritual emergence/spiritual emergency are with addictive behavior, meditation (especially Buddhist practices and those doing intensive retreats), yoga, psychedelics.