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Meet Tyler Hurst of Burning Bush Podcast

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Tyler Hurst.

Tyler, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I spent 16 of the first 18 years of my adult life on 17 different kinds of psych meds, to treat doctor-diagnosed bi-polar disorder, depression, ADHD, then generalized anxiety and depression. My entire university career, all of my 20s, and over half of my 30s was spent being medicated for mental illnesses I later found out weren’t what I thought they were.

In April 2016, after receiving 100 grams of cannabis from Willamette Week’s Cultivation Classic to judge as part of their inaugural competition, I blindly sampled one gram every four to six hours every day for a month. A few weeks later, I used some of that batch to eat only cannabis-infused foods for three days straight. That month, my therapist finally diagnosed me with a condition that explained all of my symptoms: complex PTSD.

One month after that, on June 12 2016, I took my last doctor-prescribed pill. This decision didn’t come lightly. My mental health had been deteriorating for some time, which had led to near weekend-long arguments with my wife that would only pause when she had to nap out of sheer exhaustion. I screamed at my family in such anger that I blacked out in rage over Thanksgiving and Christmas 2015.

I was in a constant state of agitation during my daily runs in downtown Portland, finding conflict with screaming people or aggressive drivers no matter the time of day, which lead to a series of self-harm incidents when I’d try to break my right hand in an attempt to pull myself out of what I know now was constant disassociation. I was miserable, and only cannabis helped.

After obtaining an Oregon MMJ card in early 2014, I’d noticed my symptoms could be managed if I stayed medicated, but even though I eventually was hired as a cannabis columnist for Willamette Week, stigma and my own stubbornness prevented me from using often enough to feel centered and calm most of the time. But after that terrible 2015 holiday season, and my shame in pushing my then-wife to the point of self-harm, I agreed on a plan that saved my life: I stayed medicated on cannabis all day, every single day.

Since that decision in February 2016, I lost 35 lbs, much of it in the first eight months. I remembered past traumatic situations I had no idea I was still subconsciously reacting to. I, thanks to Chuck Klosterman’s book “What If We’re Wrong,” questioned everything I thought I knew about myself or how the world worked, down to what kind of food I like, what kind of shoes I wear, and how I see the people around me.

This discovery period lasted most of 2016, but it wasn’t enough, as Portland alone was triggering for me. My then-wife and I decided to move back to AZ in early 2017 (I grew up in the Seattle suburbs, we’d met here in AZ, after I originally moved for grad school at ASU in 2003, then we moved to Portland in 2012), where I discovered medicated yoga, an ayahuasca group that I trusted, and micro dosing psychedelics, mostly psilocybin.

As part of my recovery, I had to quit most of my jobs as I couldn’t handle being a person, walking away from my cannabis columnist position in July 2016 and all freelance writing assignments, then working sporadically at part-time retail and writing gigs until landing a full-time role as a copywriter for a cannabis company in January 2019.
While I’m not fully healed yet, I’m well on my way to understanding how to help myself, which will involve leading psilocybin and/or cannabis-enhanced yoga classes, as well as serving as a helpful guide for my ayahuasca group after attending nearly a dozen times.

I’ve also nearly completely given up meat, sports, sarcasm, and much of who I thought I was supposed to be. I’m still trying to figure out exactly who I am, but I know I’m on the right track.

Has it been a smooth road?
No. Thanks to cannabis, I’d realized that I was unable to trust my own mind to process what was going on with me, and I was in constant somatic (physical) and emotional flashbacks that had me reacting from a place of pain or the fear of a young child.

I destroyed my marriage, though somehow not my relationship with my ex-wife, caused a massive amount of stress with my family, and had to give up nearly everything I ever thought to be true about who I was and what I liked.
People talk about a clean slate being a good thing and it usually is in the long run, but I regressed to the point where I was scared of the dark and only felt comfortable eating baby food (from packets) or smoothies made from cannabis-infused coconut oil and fruit.

I had to “grow up” again almost completely, and was able to note my progress along the way, as I’d pass milestones like my early teen and early adult years, both of which I’d had more trouble than previously understood getting through the first time.

I had to mostly give up relationships with nearly everyone I’ve ever known, save one family whose three boys I’d been good friends with at different points in my life, and each had their own important role in keeping me sane, though I’m not sure any of them knew it at the time.

I also caused irreparable damage to my ex-wife, and while we’ve been able to build a deep friendship and have been able to learn a lot, I’m not sure the pain required to get through it was worth it.

I also still struggle with how I fit in, who my friends are or should be (I don’t feel like I have many, I spent most of my time home alone), and am now unsure as to my sexuality, too.

We’d love to hear more about your business.
My work is dedicated to helping people understand the power plants have to heal us.

Whether eating them, smoking them, or using as a cleansing agent, plants have been the single greatest healer for me during my recovery. My current work involves helping a cannabis company write all kinds of product descriptions, my secondary work is sharing my healing story on my podcast and through social media channels, and my future plans are to offer classes involving movement and plants to show others how to heal themselves.

I’m most proud of having done all the work that I recommend. Yes, I research plenty, but I do not share and teach from research alone, I’m doing it from a well of personal experience. I do my best to share the bad times as well as the good, because I think sharing our pain and suffering is something a lot of people really need, as the best thing I can remember hearing when I was in a dark place was “you are not alone,” and I want to make sure everyone who needs that, hears it.

What sets me apart? My willingness to share and do most of my healing in public, I suppose. I’ve slowed recently as I don’t want to always share my struggles that involve others out of respect for their boundaries, but I hope to get back into broadcasting my story as I become more comfortable with the me I never knew I always was.

What were you like growing up?
I was a sarcastic know it all who was constantly bored, had to keep moving, and was constantly sick. I grew up (unknowingly) either celiac or gluten-intolerant (diagnosed in 2011) with a nightshade sensitivity (diagnosed in 2017), so I dealt with constant ear/sinus infections, an upset stomach, and brain fog that prevented me from understand a lot of what I do now.

I wasn’t a complete jerk ALL the time, but I certainly thought I was smarter than most everyone I knew and didn’t often hesitate to make my frustration with people who didn’t “get it” known.

I was also, unknowingly at the time, really sad nearly every day, so I stayed extremely active to help drive away the cloudy fogginess than enveloped my brain. I played basketball, baseball, and tennis somewhat seriously, but was usually game for a game of anything that we could find enough players for.

Pricing:

  • I’m available to answer complex PTSD-related questions for $100 per 60-minute Skype session.
  • My writing rates are $45 per hour, though I prefer to work on weekly/monthly rates.
  • I’ll soon be offering private $150 (total) small-group yoga classes incorporating plant medicine.

Contact Info:

Getting in touch: VoyagePhoenix is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.

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