The Healthy Advisor: Carolyn Armitage on Childhood Trauma and Psilocybin Therapy

Carolyn Armitage spent decades building a career in wealth management while privately carrying the emotional effects of childhood trauma. For years, she compartmentalized those experiences, believing she could simply push through them while focusing on work, achievement and daily life. After an emotional breaking point following her mother’s funeral, Carolyn began exploring deeper forms of healing, including somatic therapy and psilocybin, a natural psychedelic compound found in over 200 species of mushrooms. That process helped her better understand how unresolved trauma had shaped her nervous system, relationships and sense of self over the course of her life. In this episode of The Healthy Advisor, host Diana Britton speaks with Carolyn Armitage, founder and CEO of Wealth Management Consulting and RIA Circle, about her experience with trauma recovery, emotional healing, and psychedelic-assisted therapy. Her experience led her to produce a recent documentary, “Journeys,” a two-hour film addressing the ethics behind the use of psilocybin to navigate trauma. She discusses: How childhood trauma shaped Carolyn’s nervous system, relationships and emotional responses for years Why somatic therapy helped her understand the physical effects of unresolved childhood trauma What she experienced during her guided psilocybin journey and emotional healing process How forgiveness, emotional safety and self-worth became possible after years of internal struggle The creation of the documentary “Journeys” and her mission to increase awareness around psychedelic-assisted healing Resources: Listen to The Healthy Advisor on Wealth Management Subscribe and listen to The Healthy Advisor on Apple Podcasts Subscribe and listen to The Healthy Advisor on Spotify Website: Journeys’ Film Connect With Carolyn Armitage: LinkedIn: Carolyn Armitage LinkedIn: Wealth Management Consulting LinkedIn: RIA Circle Website: Wealth Management Consulting Website: RIA Circle Email: [email protected] Connect with Wealth Management: Wealth Management LinkedIn: Diana Britton [email protected] LinkedIn: Informa LinkedIn: Wealth Management About Our Guest: Carolyn Armitage is a longtime leader in the wealth management industry with experience spanning advisory work, executive leadership, consulting, and investment banking. Having built and led multiple wealth management firms throughout her career, she brings a broad perspective shaped by her work as an advisor, operator, and consultant. Her background includes building high-performing teams, guiding firm growth, and helping organizations create long-term value through strategic leadership and integration. After beginning her career as a financial advisor, Carolyn developed a strong understanding of the challenges advisors face firsthand. Over the years, she expanded her expertise through leadership roles across both large and boutique firms, helping organizations improve operational structure, advisor engagement, and enterprise value. Her experience has made her a trusted consultant to RIA leaders and wealth management executives navigating growth, succession, compensation design, and strategic planning decisions. Carolyn has held leadership positions with several major firms and organizations, including HD Vest, now Avantax, ING Advisors Network, now part of Voya and Cetera Group, and Thrivent Advisor Network. She also led the Large Enterprise Business Management Consulting Team at LPL Financial. Prior to leading Thrivent’s independent RIA platform, TAN, Carolyn worked with ECHELON Partners, where she provided investment banking and consulting services to some of the industry’s largest and most established firms. Her experience across advisory services, consulting, investment banking, and firm leadership gives her a deep understanding of the wealth management value chain and the complex business, family, and legacy decisions firm leaders often face.