When psilocybin became legal in Oregon, many people were surprised. For me, it felt like destiny. My own journey with psilocybin mushrooms had given me my life back after decades of treatment-resistant depression. That healing lit a fire in me: if mushrooms could transform my life, maybe I could help others find the same relief from depression, anxiety, PTSD, and the crushing weight of hopelessness.
A Personal Breakthrough
I’ll never forget the day it happened. I had taken a heroic 8-gram dose of mushrooms, and as the medicine activated my body from toes to head, I felt waves of electricity and sensation. “Oh my God, what have I done?” was all I could say. I lay back, surrendered to the visuals, and then the laughter began. For two hours I laughed uncontrollably, unable to stop.
It wasn’t my first journey. I had tried smaller doses and different settings, but nothing had broken through the heavy fog of antidepressants and years of struggle. This time, it was different. My depression finally lifted. I remember looking at a Douglas-Fir tree outside—it transformed into a storm of energy, pulsing with life. Was I seeing its essence? I don’t know. But I knew that mushrooms had given me something I had thought I’d lost forever: joy.
That day marked the beginning of my true relationship with psilocybin. And it set us on the path to creating Vital Reset.
Measure 109: A Surprise for Oregon
When Oregon voters passed Measure 109 in 2020, it shocked even the lawyers and funders who had proposed it. They had placed it on the ballot mostly to test public opinion, expecting to learn what obstacles lay ahead. Instead, Oregon became the first state in the U.S. to legalize psilocybin services under a regulated framework.
My partner, John Nelson, and I began attending Oregon Health Authority meetings to follow the rule-making process. I even served on the Rules Advisory Committee in 2022. At that point, I thought I would just become a facilitator. But things changed quickly.
The “Why Us?” Moment
John and I went to the first Hood River County Commissioners meeting about psilocybin. I wasn’t going for myself—I went because I wanted other people to have the same chance I’d had. I’d gotten my life back, and it was priceless. I wanted my friends and neighbors here in Hood River to have access to psilocybin, too.
We expected to meet other people who were planning to open a service center. But no one else came. As we left the meeting, right there in the hallway, John and I looked at each other and knew: if psilocybin was going to be available in Hood River, we would have to be the ones to make it happen.
It was an exciting realization—but terrifying, too. We understood the risk and the responsibility. Creating a legal psilocybin service center meant following every law to the letter, investing time and money we might never recover, and building something that would truly serve people in need.
Finding Our Home
We spent months searching for a location. Measure 109 required service centers to be more than 1,000 feet from schools, and options were scarce in a rural town with seven schools. We made maps, worked with realtors, and drove through town, over and over. Finally, in October 2022, we drove past an office at 1020 Wasco Street and saw the sign: FOR LEASE. It felt like the sign we had been waiting for.
From March to June 2023, we completely renovated the space. The office was in poor shape: walls full of pinholes, internet and phone wiring from the 1980s, harsh fluorescent lights, and no usable bathroom. John, a retired remodeling contractor, led the work. Together we built new walls, installed an ADA accessible bathroom, painted every surface, laid new flooring, and created a warm, welcoming environment for clients and facilitators.
We wanted Vital Reset to feel both safe and alive—with natural live-edge wood shelving, soft lighting, sound-dampened rooms, and even hand-painted psychedelic tables. We wanted facilitators to feel resourced and clients to feel cared for. It was messy, exhausting, and often overwhelming, but also full of laughter and joy. By June 2023, we were ready.
Becoming One of the First in the Nation
On June 16, 2023, Vital Reset was officially licensed by the Oregon Health Authority. In July, we opened our doors—becoming the fourth legal psilocybin service center in the United States.
Since then, we’ve welcomed clients seeking relief from depression, PTSD, anxiety, and the emptiness of disconnection. We’ve collaborated with other service centers to solve challenges no one had anticipated. And we’ve worked to attract and support some of the best facilitators in Oregon.
Why We Exist
Vital Reset was born out of personal healing, community need, and the belief that psilocybin should be accessible to those who are suffering. What began as one person’s search for relief has grown into a space where many have found hope, healing, and meaning.
We look forward to continuing this work—walking alongside our clients, supporting facilitators, and being part of the growing movement to bring legal psilocybin services to those who need them most.
