Existential Therapy for Spiritual Experiences in Virginia & Florida
Opens secure scheduling. Choose Consultation or first full session. (HIPAA-compliant video sessions)
Your profound spiritual experience changed everything.
Whether it was a guided ceremony in Peru, therapeutic plant medicine treatment in Oregon, a peak experience on a hike, or a spontaneous awakening during meditation.
You’ve glimpsed something that shattered your understanding of reality.
Now you’re back in Virginia (or Florida), sitting in your office, and nothing feels the same.
What you really want is to integrate these profound insights without losing your mind, your career, or your relationships.
Schedule free consultation or first full session. (HIPAA-compliant video sessions)
At home, your spouse asks how your day was. You can’t explain that you spent it feeling like a stranger in your own life.
You’re afraid they want the ‘old you’ back – the one who used to bond over career achievements. Now that feels hollow.
The Problem (What You Think Is Wrong)
You think the problem is that you can’t “get back to normal” – that you need to dismiss your experience as “just a trip” or abandon your successful life to honor what you’ve learned.
Meanwhile, board meetings feel like watching a performance while everyone discusses quarterly profits and you’re thinking about the interconnectedness of all beings.
You built your identity around career success, but now that feels meaningless.
You used to be driven by ambition and competition; now you can barely focus at work and don’t know what motivates you anymore
This question haunts you late at night: “What if I wasted my life pursuing the wrong things?”
Unfortunately, you’re convinced you have to choose between spiritual authenticity and practical responsibility.
What You’ve Tried (And Why It Hasn’t Worked)
You tried to “get back to normal” by throwing yourself into work, but the emptiness only grew stronger.
You’ve been pulling tarot cards and consulting oracle decks hoping for clarity about your next step.
While these tools offer insight, they can’t replace the embodied integration work that creates lasting transformation.
Unfortunately, spiritual books and online forums are a little too “woo woo” for your taste.
Plus, they assume you can just “follow your bliss” but ignore your mortgage, family, and professional reputation.
In the past, therapists either dismissed your experience as “just drugs” or tried to medicate away the “symptoms.”
They didn’t understand this is spiritual emergence, not simply mental illness.
Self-help books give you techniques.
However, they can’t help you navigate the complexity of being a successful professional who’s had a life-changing experience.
What You Really Want
To honor the profound insights from your spiritual experience without destroying the life you’ve worked so hard to build.
You want to look at your law degree or MBA on the wall without feeling like you wasted decades of your life.
Building your professional identity and financial security was important then, authentic family connection and service to something greater is more important now.
That’s ok. You’re evolving.
You want to tell your spouse “I’m thinking about what fulfillment means to me” without fearing they’ll think you’re having a breakdown and want a divorce.
Most of all, you want to integrate these insights without losing your mind, job, or marriage.
You’re worried you’ll slowly forget these profound insights and return to your old numbed-out existence.
Why Working With Me Is Different
Unlike traditional therapists who might dismiss your altered state of consciousness or spiritual experience as mental illness, I understand that what you encountered is substantial and meaningful.
As a Licensed Professional Counselor specializing in spiritual integration, I’ve helped dozens of professionals with remarkably similar challenges:
- Executives questioning whether their industry standards aligns with their newfound values
- Healthcare professionals feeling disconnected from colleagues who don’t understand their transformations
- Consultants struggling with the meaninglessness of corporate culture after experiencing profound connection and oneness
My approach uses EMDR and mindfulness-based techniques specifically adapted for spiritual integration, not generic anxiety treatment.
Traditional therapy tries to manage your symptoms, but these aren’t simply symptoms to eliminate.
They’re signals that you’re in a profound existential transition that deserves to be honored, while maintaining your relationships and responsibilities.
I know how unsettling it can be when your former identity no longer fits but you’re not sure what comes next.
You’re fluent in corporate speak but your heart is speaking a different language now.
Who This Is For
This work is designed for accomplished professionals in Virginia and Florida who’ve had profound spiritual experiences and are struggling to integrate the lessons into their daily lives.
You’re likely in healthcare, technology, finance, or consulting.
You’re successful by external measures but feeling the dread of disconnection from your purpose after a significant spiritual experience.
You value both spiritual growth and practical responsibility.
Additionally, you want to bridge the transcendent with the tactical rather than choosing between your spiritual insights and your practical life.
This isn’t for you if you’re looking for someone to convince you your experience wasn’t real, want quick fixes to “get back to how things were,” or aren’t ready to examine fundamental questions about your life direction.
What To Expect
We’ll work together to process your peak spiritual experience, understand its meaning for your life, and develop practical strategies for integration.
Methods include EMDR, body-based approaches, and transpersonal techniques that honor the spiritual and existential dimensions of your experience.
Sessions are 50 minutes via secure telehealth platform.
This allows for consistent support regardless of your location within Virginia or Florida.
Many clients find online sessions more comfortable for discussing sensitive spiritual experiences.
Integration is highly individual.
Some clients find significant relief within a few months as they develop new frameworks for understanding their experience.
Others benefit from longer-term support as they make gradual life changes and face new developments.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is spiritual integration therapy different from regular therapy?
Spiritual integration therapy specifically addresses the unique challenges of processing profound spiritual experiences.
Instead of treating your spiritual insights as symptoms to manage, we work together to understand their meaning and integrate them into your daily life in practical ways.
Regular therapy might focus on reducing your anxiety about your career, while spiritual integration therapy helps you understand what that anxiety is telling you about living authentically.
Will you understand my experience, or will you dismiss it as mental illness?
I approach spiritual experiences with respect and understanding.
Having worked with many professionals processing similar journeys, I recognize these experiences as meaningful and potentially transformative, not as mental health symptoms to eliminate.
Your ayahuasca journey, ketamine session, or spontaneous awakening revealed something real about consciousness and reality – we’ll work with that truth, not against it.
I had an ayahuasca or plant medicine experience. How do I know if I need therapy?
If you’re struggling to integrate insights from your experience, feeling disconnected from your daily life, or experiencing anxiety about living authentically, specialized support can be invaluable.
The integration period after profound spiritual experiences is crucial for making lasting positive changes.
Many people try to integrate alone and end up feeling more confused or isolated.
What if my family doesn't understand my spiritual experience?
This is incredibly common and something we can work on together.
Part of integration involves learning how to communicate about your experience in ways that honor both your insights and your relationships.
You don’t have to choose between your spiritual growth and your family connections.
How long are sessions and how do I book?
Sessions are 50 minutes and you can schedule through my contact page, online booking system or call (804) 404-5593 directly.
I typically recommend weekly sessions initially, though we can adjust frequency based on your needs and progress.
What are your rates and do you take insurance?
Therapy is $250 for each session (typically 45-55 minutes).
I have limited spaces available for several major insurance plans including Aetna, Optum, Oscar, and United.
I also offer a limited number of sliding scale spots for those with financial constraints.
Many clients choose private pay because they want complete privacy and autonomy in their therapy and personal growth work.
With insurance, you need a mental health diagnosis on your permanent medical record, and insurance companies may review your treatment notes.
With private pay, there’s no diagnosis requirement, no session limits, and your work stays completely confidential between us (with the standard legal exceptions that apply to all therapy, like safety concerns, court orders, etc.)
Investment in specialized support often pays for itself through increased clarity and life satisfaction.
Do you see clients in person?
I provide telehealth services only to clients in Virginia and Florida.
This allows for consistent support regardless of your specific location and many clients find online sessions more comfortable for discussing sensitive spiritual experiences.
What is spiritual integration and how long does it take?
Do you provide psychedelic-assisted therapy or ketamine treatment?
No, I do not provide, prescribe, or administer any substances.
I’m a licensed therapist who specializes in integration work – helping you process and make sense of spiritual experiences after they’ve occurred.
Think of me as the therapist you see after your experience, not during it.
While I have occasionally joined clients virtually during their ketamine sessions at medical clinics for support, I do not facilitate psychedelic experiences.
My role is helping you integrate insights from peak experiences you’ve had, whether through ketamine therapy at a medical clinic, psilocybin treatment in Oregon, ayahuasca ceremony in Peru or Costa Rica, or a spontaneous spiritual awakening.
If you’re looking for psychedelic-assisted therapy, I may be able to provide referrals to appropriate medical providers.
My specialty is the integration work that comes after – helping you bridge those profound insights with your daily life and responsibilities.
What makes someone a good fit for this work?
You value both spiritual growth and practical responsibility.
What if I need to cancel a session?
I know that things happen sometimes.
I ask that you contact me at least 24 hours before your scheduled session to cancel.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before your session, or simply fail to appear, you’ll be charged for the full session.
If you’ve prepaid for sessions, you will forfeit that session.
What others are saying about Andrea Shipley, LPC …
“If you’re seeking to address issues or anxiety with a therapist who is warm and genuine, Andrea would be a great fit for you. Focused on a mindfulness based approach to her work with you, she has the skills and compassion to help you reach your goals.”
– Ms. Lisa Curtis, Clinical Social Work/Therapist, LCSW, CASAC
“I highly recommend Andrea Shipley. Andrea is a caring and supportive therapist who helps her clients find healthy ways to manage their stress and anxiety. Andrea is committed to fostering her clients’ inner strength so they can reach their goals.”
– Carol Covelli, Clinical Social Work/Therapist, MSW, LCSW
“Andrea is the go-to person for anyone who is looking for a compassionate and supportive therapist who really challenges you to think outside of the box. Her authenticity shines through in her professional approaches. I highly recommend her.”
– Kimberly Goodrich, Clinical Social Work/Therapist, LCSW, LCADC
“I highly recommend Andrea as a therapist and as a coach. She is warm, understanding, and thoughtful. She does a phenomenal job helping individuals figure out how they want to design their life in a way that is meaningful to them.”
– Dr. Morgan Levy, Psychologist, PhD
Ready To Begin?
Don’t navigate your spiritual journey alone.
The insights you’ve gained are too valuable to lose to confusion or isolation.
You don’t have to choose between honoring your expanding consciousness and maintaining your successful life.
That profound experience opened a door that can’t be closed.
The question isn’t whether to integrate these insights, but how to do it in a way that honors both your expanded awareness and your life circumstances.
Schedule your consultation today and take the first step toward integrating your profound insights into a fulfilling life that honors both your spiritual growth and your practical responsibilities.
Call (804) 404-5593, email andrea@andreashipley.com or book online to begin your integration journey.
Opens secure scheduling (HIPAA-compliant video sessions)