Post Studio Life

What is PsyCare you ask? It is a service that is provided by a harm reduction agency to ensure the safety and welfare of people attending gatherings/music festivals. We give out information about safer partying, vitamins, ear plugs, condoms, sunscreen… and we provide both group and 1:1 care for people having difficult experiences due to mental/emotional crises and/or substance consumption. *Note: We do not encourage nor discourage the use of substances; we maintain a neutral standpoint that acknowledges psychoactive substances as a reality of life and strive to educate the public and reduce the potential harm of the use of said substances.*

Our core philosophy is to meet people where they’re at with nonjudgmental space holding for whatever they’re going through. We propose radical compassion in the face of “taboo/precarious” circumstances involving drug use and mental illness, and uphold the dignity of all people regardless of their choices. We support rather than punish, we make space for rather than try to eliminate or ignore, we accept and we love rather than judge and reject.

In practical terms that might mean active listening, holding someone’s hand, giving them a tea and a banana, or it could mean more intense measures, like de-escalating a situation with festival security when they become “aggressive” (most of the time they are just scared and defensive), or assisting the on-site medical team with someone who is convinced that they’re dying even when their vitals are perfect because they’re tripping so hard.

Most of our work is simply being there for someone as if they were our good friend, but we also face life and death situations and have to make really important calls that can (hopefully positively!) influence the outcome of dangerous situations.

This year’s Masters of Puppets was a doozy to say the least. It’s got a vibe that is different from any other music festival that I’ve experienced before. The music is fast, hard, and dark, and there aren’t “pretty” decorations, rather quite weird and creepy ones😜 but I do love the strange side of life, so I enjoy this festival.. but its tendency towards darkness also means that psycare is particularly necessary and busy 😅

Although I’ve been working at it for some years now, this year was especially challenging. I left feeling empty and needed quite a bit of time to mentally and physically recover. It was really lovely to see my Psycare friends again though- that was the most rewarding part ❤️Read more