The Essence Institute: An Exploration of Psychedelic Medicine In the Netherlands
The founders of Essence Institute gave me some time to talk about their psilocybin truffle retreat, and their journey towards establishing Essence.
The Netherlands is cementing itself as a psychedelic hub. Researchers like Kim Kuypers and Michiel van Elk are set to pioneer more groundbreaking work into the effects of psychedelics over the coming years.
The legal loophole regarding psychedelic truffles has also led to a myriad of legal retreat centres popping up all over the country. Essence is one of the most recent centres offering psilocybin truffle retreats in a legal and safe setting.
Psychedelic Roots
After being best friends for over thirty years, William Wilson and Derk Mulder founded Essence retreat in 2019. But the path to establishing Essence was a long one. Wilson set off on his journey with a degree in mechanical engineering. But, after discovering that technical stuff wasn’t for him, he pursued a career in coaching and therapy. Mulder, on the other hand, is a social organisational psychologist by training. In 2004 he established the Neurofeedback Institute, with the ultimate goal to enhance consciousness through brain stimulation methods.
