I’m alone on the edge of a forest clearing. A strong wind is blowing, chilling me to the core; I feel empty, exhausted, unsure of where I am. Then a sob rises in me as the trees wail and rustle. Only I’m not lost and the forest isn’t real. I’m in a cocoon of blankets on the floor of a recreation room, an hour outside Amsterdam.

This was my first psychedelic session at Kiyumi, a company that specialises in legal, psychedelic-assisted programmes and retreats in the Netherlands. The one I’m on spans six days and has, according to the organisers, the power to open the doors of “perception, connection and growth”. A full-price ticket costs €2,900, although a tiered payment system and payment plans are available.

Interest in psychedelics has soared in recent years. The weekend I sit down to write this story (13 months later; there was some processing to do), headlines on the topic range from the bizarre to the intriguing. Hair samples show bronze-age people in Menorca were using hallucinogenic drugs in ritualistic ceremonies. Walkers in the Lake District are rescued after taking a few too many magic mushrooms. Authorised psychiatrists in Austrialia will soon be permitted to prescribe psilocybin to patients with depression.

Hallucinogenic healing: what really happens on a psychedelic retreat?