Matt Kay, Co-Founder of the East Coast Float Spa, joins Kyle on this episode of Psychedelics Today. This is another experiential episode where Kyle gets to float and report on his experience. Kyle and Matt also talk about the benefits of floating, the history, and how Matt got involved in the float business. We hope you enjoy this episode! Let us know what you think below in the comment section.
Mission of East Coast Float Spa
Nothing too complicated: At East Coast Float Spa, our mission is to help as many people as possible by providing Floatation Therapy in a modern, comfortable setting, and being welcoming to everyone! We maintain a strong commitment to our passion for health through our core values and having the distinction of being an all organic and natural Spa; which includes buying local and sustainable products whenever possible. This includes all of our soaps, shampoos, health products, cleaning supplies, food, drink, and anything else we can think of!
Dr. Ben Sessa is a writer, psychiatrist, and researcher working in the UK to start the first ever MDMA for alcohol addiction study. We have a very exciting discussion and even get Dr. Sessa’s first reaction to the idea of DMTx. We also explore Ben’s background and his experiences with psychedelics legally – Ben is one of the few people who has ever received MDMA, LSD, DMT, ketamine, and psilocybin in a legal research setting.
We hope you enjoy this episode! Leave a comment below and let us know what you think.
Dr. Ben Sessa, M.B.B.S., M.D., B.Sc., M.R.C.Psych., is a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist working in adult addiction services and with custodial detained young people in a secure adolescent setting. He trained at UCL medical school, graduating in 1997. He is interested in the developmental trajectory from child maltreatment to adult mental health disorders. Dr Sessa is currently a senior research fellow at Bristol, Cardiff and Imperial College London Universities, where he is conducting the UK’s first clinical studies with MDMA-assisted therapy for the treatment of PTSD and alcohol dependence syndrome. In the last ten years he has worked on several UK-based human pharmacology trials as study doctor or as a healthy subject administering and receiving test doses of LSD, psilocybin, MDMA, DMT, and ketamine. He is the author of several dozen peer-reviewed articles in the mainstream medical press and has written two books exploring psychedelic medicine; The Psychedelic Renaissance (2012 and 2017) and To Fathom Hell or Soar Angelic (2015). In speaking publicly at universities and medical conferences, Dr Sessa is outspoken on lobbying for change in the current system by which drugs are classified in the UK, believing a more progressive policy of regulation would reduce the harms of recreational drug use and provide increased opportunities for clinical psychedelic research. He is a co-founder and director of the UK’s Breaking Convention conference.
In this episode, Kyle and Joe talk CBD, ketamine, terpenes, floating, psychedelic education and much more! This conversation is a little different than our normal episodes, but we wanted to share some things that are going on here at Psychedelics Today, such as exploring our recent sponsorships for the show. Please let us know your thoughts about this! Our goal is to keep this podcast sustainable, as well as help promote those who are doing great work directly or indirectly with the psychedelic community.
If you enjoy the show and want to support in another way, donating to our Patreon is a great option!
Thanks for listening!
The Pharmacology of Cannabis Cannabinoids and Terpenes by Dr. Ethan Russo
The only hemp extract company that offers full purity and potency tests on our website for every batch of our products.
All of the hemp extracted is grown using organic methods in CO using only sun, soil, and water
Legal to ship to everywhere in the US aside from SD
Sponsor: EntheoZen
About TransZen
TransZen is an all natural mood enhancement and stress support supplement designed to:
-fill in nutritional gaps that may be causing low mood
-promote neurotransmitter production such as serotonin and dopamine
-maintain a healthy inflammatory response in the brain
-promote the repair and regeneration of brain cells.
-It consists of 17 scientifically-studied ingredients including vitamins, minerals, amino acids and potent plant extracts.
-Works by providing your body with the raw materials it needs to balance the nervous system.
-It is made in a USA facility that is certified by the FDA as having Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and third-party tested.
**Can not ship outside of the U.S.
Navigating Psychedelics: Lessons on Self-Care & Integration
What is breathwork and Transpersonal Breathwork? Kyle and Joe talk about the components and mechanics of breathwork and share some personal experiences. Breathwork is a topic that is brought up often on Psychedelics Today, so here is a more in-depth discussion about what it is. The form of breathwork that Joe and Kyle are trained in is Transpersonal Breathwork. More about this practice below.
Dreamshadow Transpersonal Breathwork is an applied, practice-linked philosophy that uses the method of Stanislav Grof’s Holotropic Breathwork as a modern shamanic practice for self-discovery through cathartic re-experience of events from a person’s biographic history and the process of birth, as well as the potential apprehension of archetypes and events in the cosmos.
The experiential aspect of Dreamshadow Transpersonal Breathwork uses a combination of group process, intense breathing, evocative music, body work, and expressive drawing.
The term “transpersonal” refers to those experiences where our sense of self-identity expands beyond our personal biography and ego boundaries and transcends the usual limitations of time and space. These experiences facilitate deeper understanding of ourselves, our relation to others and our place in the universe. They help us gain increased comfort in daily life and a spiritual intelligence that fosters calm and optimism amidst the difficulties of the world.
Dreamshadow Transpersonal Breathwork draws on the work of William James, Carl Jung, Abraham Maslow, Stanislav Grof and others. Grof is a pioneering psychedelic researcher, investigator of exceptional human experiences and cofounder of the transpersonal psychology movement. Together with his wife Christina Grof, he developed Holotropic Breathwork, an inspiration of Dreamshadow Transpersonal Breathwork, Integrative Breathwork and other methods. In his book The Holotropic Mind, Grof describes Holotropic Breathwork as a seemingly simple process with “extraordinary potential for opening the way for exploring the entire spectrum of the inner world.”
5 Components of Breathwork
Intense Breathing – Deep circular breathing with a minimal pause in between the in and out breaths. There is no “right” technique, but to intensify and deepen one’s breathing.
Evocative Music– A music setlist is created to help drive the breathing session. The music is typically all instrumental with no distinguishable language. There are often times when music with foreign languages will be used because of the lack of context. The music setlist is around two to three hours long.
Focused Bodywork – Emotional energy can become stuck in the body. To help assist with stuck emotional or physical energy, bodywork is performed to help release the energy. Bodywork can also be in the form of support by offering a hand to hold.
Expressive Drawing – After the breathwork session, participants are asked to create a mandala or drawing. This helps to process the experience without language or words and can be very symbolic. This process helps to integrate the experience.
Group Process– We are social creatures. As Lenny Gibson states, “we are the descendants of successful tribes.” We need one another to survive in the world. The group helps to form a safe container for participants to dive deep into their psyche and being. The group holds the space for a healing process to occur.
Links & Notes
Dreamshadow: Holotropic Breathwork, Personal Development, and Transpersonal Education
Caitlin Thompson, the founder of EntheoZen, joins us on Psychedelics Today to share her healing story, her interests in psychedelics, and the supplement company that she started. Caitlin is also involved in the psychedelic community – she hosts events for the Aware Project San Diego and is a Kambo practitioner.
After struggling with her own depression and anxiety, Caitlin founded EntheoZen. She applied her background in neuroscience, diving deep into the scientific literature and discovered the importance of nutrition in brain and mood health. She created a scientifically-supported line of products that nourish, resource and balance the nervous system to promote a happy, healthy mind.
Caitlin uses EntheoZen as a platform to provide informative resources and tools to empower people to take their mental wellness into their own hands in a natural and sustainable way. EntheoZen provides educational media on cutting-edge wellness modalities including nutrition, herbs, meditation, psychedelics, neurofeedback training, kambo, and float tanks. Caitlin is a researcher and advocate in the psychedelic medicine movement, using EntheoZen to support research and promote awareness of psychedelic therapies as effective psychiatric interventions.
EntheoZen is a nutritional supplement company based in San Diego, CA. It was launched in 2014 by Caitlin Thompson. At EntheoZen, our goal is to contribute to the practice of using safe and natural ways to balance brain chemistry and promote brain health and a happy mood. Blending neuroscience and holistic nutrition, we believe that the mind, body, and soul need the proper resources to stay balanced and lively. Our products are based on proven scientific principles and target specific mechanisms & issues related to mood disorders based on scientific literature. When the brain has access to the raw materials it needs to repair and function optimally, it can often heal and regulate itself.
About TransZen
TransZen is an all natural mood enhancement and stress support supplement designed to:
-fill in nutritional gaps that may be causing low mood
-promote neurotransmitter production such as serotonin and dopamine
-maintain a healthy inflammatory response in the brain
-promote the repair and regeneration of brain cells.
-It consists of 17 scientifically-studied ingredients including vitamins, minerals, amino acids and potent plant extracts.
-Works by providing your body with the raw materials it needs to balance the nervous system.
-It is made in a USA facility that is certified by the FDA as having Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and third-party tested.
After struggling with her own battle with depression and anxiety, Caitlin Thompson applied her background in neurobiology and dove into the cutting edge scientific literature on mood disorders and mental illnesses. This led her down a health rabbit hole, realizing that Lyme disease, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, microbiome dysbiosis and emotional trauma were at the root of her and many others’ depression. After successfully improving her own health, Caitlin founded her nutritional supplement company, EntheoZen in 2014. Caitlin now uses EntheoZen as a platform to spread information about modalities and tools to empower others to heal and achieve optimal mental wellness. Caitlin also works in the psychedelic field advocating for psychedelic research and education around their implications in mental wellness and autoimmune conditions. Caitlin is also a certified Kambo frog medicine practitioner based in San Diego CA.
The use of heroin and abuse of opiate pain-relievers has reached an all-time high in the USA. The addictive nature of these drugs has left us scrambling for treatment options that can offer us freedom from this epidemic.
The fact is, traditional treatments don’t work for everyone, and many are starting to look for more effective alternatives. Treatment that results in long-lasting sobriety is different for each individual.
When a traditional method isn’t working, it may be time to consider something new. Ibogaine is one such treatment, and the rise in opiate addiction has led to an increased interest in this alternative treatment for opiate and heroin addiction.
Iboga and Ibogaine
Ibogaine is just one of the many alkaloids found in the Tabernanthe Iboga shrub. Raw Iboga is one of the most powerful psychedelic plants in the world and has been used for its profound spiritual effect on those who experience it.
Iboga plant and Ibogaine molecule. Photo: Samwise – via Chacruna.net
This is why, for centuries, the Bwiti religion of Africa have been using Iboga as a way to induce introspection and a higher self-awareness.
In the early 1900s Ibogaine was extracted from the Iboga root and used by athletes, in very small doses, as a stimulant. At the time, Ibogaine was used because of the way that it excites certain pathways within the brain.
But in the 1960s, all of that changed.
Ibogaine as an Addiction Treatment
Howard Lotsof was suffering from an addiction to heroin when he tried Ibogaine for the first time in 1962. He was 19 years old and experimenting with any substance he could find.
Hours after trying the Ibogaine, Lotsof had an epiphany—he had not taken opiates for almost a day, yet, he had no withdrawal symptoms.
Ibogaine had allowed Lotsof to break his heroin addiction with just one dose. He knew immediately that these implications could have a massive impact on others who were struggling with heroin and opiate addiction.
But, given the importance of this conclusion, Lotsof realized he needed to perform further testing. So, he rounded up a few of his opiate and heroin-addicted friends, gave them the Ibogaine, and the results were stunning—none of his friends went into withdrawal.
This was the beginning of Ibogaine treatment for addiction. As Lotsof introduced more and more studies on the effects of Ibogaine on withdrawal, it became a real point of interest for scientists who were looking for more effective ways to help addicts beat their dependence.
Unfortunately, this also came at a time when the US government began making psychoactive substances illegal. Ibogaine was classified as a Schedule 1 drug, putting it in the same class as the drugs that it was meant to treat. It also made it very difficult for scientists to study its positive effects on addiction.
Lotsof was forced to study Ibogaine and treat addicts in Europe, where he founded the Global Ibogaine Therapy Alliance. He worked hard to try and change the laws in the USA and other countries, but, unfortunately, lacked the resources he considered necessary to do so.
Ibogaine has a unique effect on the chemical levels in the brain.
When the addict begins using opiates, these drugs release massive quantities of chemicals that plug into the brain’s neurotransmitters.
The brain becomes addicted to these high levels of pleasure-inducing chemicals, changing the way that the brain would normally function.
Because of these addictive adaptations, when the supply of drugs is cut off, the brain goes into a frenzy. Depression, seizures, and other symptoms are often the result. This is what we call withdrawal.
Ibogaine has the ability to work on the chemical receptors in the brain. It repairs neurons in the brain that have been damaged due to opioid addiction. It also restores balance to the brain so that naturally produced chemicals can work properly to control feelings of pleasure and happiness.
This gives addicts a fresh start, and the ability to start focusing on changing their lifestyle, instead of just fighting withdrawals.
But Ibogaine doesn’t just treat the withdrawal symptoms, it also affects the brain on a psychological level.
Psychological Effects of Ibogaine
In many addicts, though not all, Ibogaine induces a dreamlike state.
Those who have experienced this state often say that Ibogaine made them face their fears, past traumas, and helped them conquer many of the underlying reasons that caused their addiction in the first place.
This kind of psychological clarity and introspection is unique to the effects of Ibogaine and psychedelic medicines.
This is also why Ibogaine has been recommended, by some, as a treatment for trauma and other mental conditions—such as depression, anxiety, and PTSD.
The psychedelic effects of Ibogaine have the ability to treat these mental issues in ways that therapy never could. Some describe it as taking a look at themselves from the outside in, finally being able to address the core of their problems and address the root cause.
Is Ibogaine Right for You?
Just like any other treatment method, Ibogaine requires close supervision from medical professionals. Because of the way Ibogaine reacts in the body, it can be dangerous. This is why it is recommended that Ibogaine treatment should be done in a medical setting.
Addiction is a deeply personal disease and one that requires a different type of treatment for every individual. Ibogaine is not for everyone. It’s important to look into all of your options and talk to your physician.
Sobriety is possible. Every individual deserves a happy and successful life. Take the time to study all of the treatment options available and make the right decision for you or your loved one.
About the Author
Aeden Smith-Ahearn was a massive heroin addict for 7 years. After trying every traditional treatment method available, he put his last hop into Ibogaine treatment. Now, he has been clean and sober for 5 years while also helping thousands of addicts find freedom through Ibogaine. He is currently the treatment coordinator for Experience Ibogaine treatment centers and works hard every day to help people find success and happiness in life.
Download Emanuel Sferios joins us to talk about his upcoming film “MDMA The Movie” along with the founding story of Dance Safe.
Emanuel has a fascinating story that includes.
Humble beginnings
Lots of media attention
Huge amounts of fundraising for harm reduction
A film that is going to be incredible. Check out the trailers below!
MDMA was one of the last drugs that the old guard anti drug US government worked to smear with disinformation and outright lies, using outlets like Oprah and more to stain MDMA’s reputation. While Ophra’s media empire has now come around a bit, MDMA continues to hold parts of the social stigma that Oprah helped to give it. Emanuel tells the story here with on the ground details in ways that Kyle and Joe haven’t heard before.
We hope you love it!
If you enjoyed this episode you may love these other podcasts.
If you maintain a drug involved premises, you can be liable
“Massives” – Testing at massives – early raves – huge lines
Reducing harm by drug decriminalization
Cognitive liberty for adults
Gas chromatography & Mass spectrometry
Want to learn more about psychedelic harm reduction, safety, and integration? Sign up for our online course!
Find MDMA The Movie On Social Media
About Emanuel Sferios
Emanuel Sferios is an activist, educator, public speaker and harm reduction advocate. Founding DanceSafe in 1998, Emanuel was an early pioneer of MDMA harm reduction. DanceSafe has volunteer chapters in over two dozen cities across the United States and provides non-judgmental, peer-based drug education and drug checking (a.k.a., “pill testing”) services in the electronic dance music community. Emanuel also started the first public laboratory pill analysis program in 1999 which allowed ecstasy users for the first time to anonymously send tablets to a DEA-licensed laboratory for chromatography analysis. Originally publishing the results on the DanceSafe website, the program still exists today and is hosted at Ecstasydata.org.
Today Emanuel speaks at colleges and universities about MDMA, harm reduction, and drug policy. He lives in Grass Valley, California with his wife and two stepchildren.
Kyle and Joe talk with Shane LeMaster about ketamine as a therapeutic tool and also a tool for self-discovery and personal development. Shane shares some amazing stories, and we get to peel off some of the layers around ketamine. There are some amazing uses, and perhaps some therapeutic falling short of the mark in the ketamine world that we discuss. Hope you enjoy!
Shane is a past guest on the show and one of our favorites. You will really like his past episodes where we talked about peyote, treating veterans, Jiujitsu for PTSD and microdosing for athletic performance. (first – second)
Sign up for our course!
Show Topics/Discussion
Chemical effects
Lego world of the Ketamine experience
Hallucinogenic properties of Ketamine for Shane
Astral Projection
Therapeutic method. Music, Temp, Comfort, Safe setting, etc.
Not trauma work – getting to see all of reality as the machine as it is and his role in it.
Shane earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology from the University of Colorado in Boulder, CO, completed extensive coursework towards a Master of Arts Degree in Sport & Performance Psychology at the University of Denver, and earned his Master of Arts Degree in Sport & Exercise Psychology from Argosy University.
Shane is nationally certified as a Sport Psychology Consultant and a licensed mental health clinician in the state of Colorado. Having worked in community non-profit mental health since 2008, Shane has gained experience working with the entire spectrum of mental disorders and with all populations and age groups. Shane plans on attending a Ph.D program in Counseling Psychology where his interest in Resiliency, Mental Toughness, and Mindfulness Training Program Development can be explored and further developed.
He is a life-long athlete having competed at various levels in more than a dozen different sports. Because of his passion for warrior cultures of past and present, Shane has been ardently developing his own “Warriorship,” training in various forms of Martial Arts for 25 years. Shane feels that the self-discipline, the philosophy of non-violence, the innumerable mental and physical benefits, and the enjoyment that he gains from the Martial Arts is what helped drive his passion in the field of Psychology.
His personal interest in Eastern Philosophy stems from his adoption of a Buddhist lifestyle and blends well with his training in Western Psychological Science. Clients describe Shane as an out-of-the-box clinician that is easy to get along with, knowledgeable on a variety of topics, credible with lived experience, and as having the ability to make therapy fun and interesting.
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What is microdosing? Is this a growing trend in the psychedelic community? What do some people in the psychedelic community think about it? Can it really help boost creativity and productivity? While the idea that microdosing can help with depression, creativity, and productivity, these claims are usually backed by self-reported experiences. There is currently no hard science/research that highlights the risks, safety, or benefits of this concept despite the growing trend and loads of anecdotal evidence. If you want to learn more about this current trend, be sure to get your ticket to the upcoming Psymposia Microdosing event. We are sure all of these questions will be laid out on the table, and it will sure be a great night and discussion!
Brian Normand, Co-Founder of Psymposia, joins us again to talk about the Psymposia Microdosing event/Horizons afterparty. The event will be hosted by the one and only, Duncan Trussell. If you have plans to attend the Horizons: Perspectives on Psychedelics conference in NYC, be sure to check out the afterparty. It is always a great time and also a great place to “find the others.”
Save 5 dollars on your ticket with the coupon code psychedelicstoday
We also cover topics revolving around drug policy and Brian’s experience in the Amazon.
You’re invited to Psymposia’s 4th annual celebration following day 1 of the Horizons Perspectives on Psychedelics forum in New York City that examines the role of psychedelic drugs in science, healing, culture and spirituality.
This year, Comedian Duncan Trussell joins Hamilton Morris (VICELAND’s Hamilton’s Pharmacopeia), Katherine MacLean, Sophia Korb, and Paul Austin to talk about everything you wanted to know about microdosing and more, surrounded by a live audience in Brooklyn.
Co-sponsored by the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies // MAPS
Brian Normand is CoFounder, lead designer, and webmaster of Psymposia. He’s a greenthumb, social entrepreneur & occasional trouble maker, focused on changing minds and creating spaces to teach people about plants and drugs. He graduated from the University of Massachusetts Amherst with a BS in Plant, Soil, Insect Science, & Sustainable Horticulture, Magna Cum Laude.
The summer has been busy for us at Psychedelics Today. We have been working hard on launching our new online course, “Navigating Psychedelics: Lessons on Self-Care & Integration.” Beside lining interviews up for the podcast, we have been recording video interviews/master classes for the course. Since we just launched the course this week, we figured that would check in and just talk about what’s been going on.
This conversation takes off with Joe and Kyle discussing the recent DMTx event that took place last month in Boulder, Colorado. During this talk, we both speculate the risks and concerns of this research as well as the potential benefit. With the conversation revolving around DMT and extended-state DMT research, the discussion heads down the rabbit hole for a bit and we explore the global crisis, climate change, future uses of DMT, alien worlds and alternative dimensions, and more!
We also highlight the recent death of Baylee Ybarra Gatlin, who passed away at the Lightening in a Bottle festival during Memorial Day Weekend. The autopsy report suggests that Gatlin passed due to “Acute LSD Toxicity.” Many condolences to the Ms. Gatlin’s family and friends.
It is very unlikely that Gatlin died from “Acute LSD Toxicity,” but rather most likely from ingesting another substance like 25i-NBOMe. Tragic situations, like these, really stress the importance of substance testing. It seems that with the rise of research chemicals, adulterations in substances, and drugs laced with fentanyl one can never be 100% certain of what they are actually ingesting. If you have the time to ingest, you have the time to test. Get a test kit today.
Leave us a comment and let us know what you think of the show!
We have an awesome time speaking with SSDP’s Drug Education Manager, Dr. Vilmarie Narloch. Vilmarie is making a big difference with drug safety in the US and internationally with SSDP’s education program ‘Just Say Know.’
During the show we discuss Vilmarie’s work with policy around the Good Samaritan laws and other impressive and impactful harm reduction projects. We also discuss some of the pressure from various elements in the government regressing rules, like some law enforcement offices refusing to use Narcannaloxone to help save the lives of people overdosing.
This episode is a dose of compassion and gives perspective about the different impacts from the drug war and prohibition.
If you are a student who wishes to get involved in drug policy work, please check out the work that SSDP is doing. If you do not have a chapter at your school or university, start one today!
Vilmarie also joins us in our course Navigating Psychedelics for a master class featuring harm reduction strategies and more. Be sure to sign up today to learn more from Vilmarie and many others!
About Students For Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP)
Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) is the only international network of students dedicated to ending the war on drugs. At its heart, SSDP is a grassroots organization, led by a student-run Board of Directors. We create change by bringing young people together and creating safe spaces for students of all political and ideological stripes to have honest conversations about drugs and drug policy. Founded in 1998, SSDP is comprised of thousands of members at hundreds of campuses in countries around the globe.
About Just Say Know
Just Say Know is a series of drug education modules aimed at promoting open and honest dialogue around commonly used substances. The program aims to equip young people with harm reduction tools and skills as it relates to the specific substance, but can be applied to substance use generally.
Students for Sensible Drug Policy believes that students should be an overall part of any campus and community prevention and intervention strategy. Our SSDP Peer Education program seeks to empower students in our network to analyze the relationship between drug policy and drug use by providing evidence-based drug information, teaching students to recognize and address dangerous behaviors and unhealthy attitudes, and promoting prosocial and harm reduction oriented behaviors and attitudes.
Vilmarie Narloch, PsyD., is the Drug Education Manager at Students for Sensible Drug Policy. In this role, Vilmarie oversees the development and implementation of the SSDP Peer Education program, which is a training program for SSDP Members to become certified to deliver our drug education program, Just Say Know, to their peers. Vilmarie is passionate about reforming drug education in the U.S. and abroad, and has dedicated years of study on the topic for her dissertation. Vilmarie has taken on this position because as an organization driven by students with exceptional knowledge on drug policy and other drug use related issues, SSDP is uniquely positioned and qualified to be developing a drug education program. Additionally, Vilmarie educates staff and the network on the current state of research and treatment issues with regard to substance use disorders and mental health. Vilmarie aims to aid in the connection of policy and practice by helping our network understand the impact of policy on access to treatment and care while utilizing the latest research.
Vilmarie earned her M.A. in Counseling and Psychological Services from Saint. Mary’s University of Minnesota, and a Psy.D. in Clinical Psychology. During her time at Roosevelt, she was a graduate research assistant with Roosevelt University’s Illinois Consortium on Drug Policy. Her work at ICDP included research support, report co-authorship and event planning and coordination. Vilmarie’s interests in drug education, access to treatment, and harm reduction policy and practice have led her to numerous projects, including the provision of counseling and harm reduction services to students at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and DePaul University, serving as a member of the Chicago Consortium on College Alcohol Harm Reduction, a predoctoral internship in the Adult Behavioral Services department in a local public health department, and a postdoctoral fellowship in a small prviate agency, where she provided therapy for individuals, couples, families, and groups in addition to supervising interns. Additionally, Vilmarie has been an adjunct instructor teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in psychology and substance use disorder treatment. She has dedicated her studies and clinical work to advance Harm Reduction as the standard of practice for substance use disorders. In doing so, she has sought opportunities to educate others in her field about harm reduction, including her students. Vilmarie’s dissertation, titled, “What Youth Want: Developing a Drug Education Curriculum Based on Youth Guidance and Evidence-Based Principles,” inspired her to continue to advocate for effective drug education on a professional level, which led to her current position at SSDP. Additionally, Vilmarie’s next personal career goal is to become trained to deliver psychedelic psychotherapy, which she considers to be the future of psychological practice.
This week we talk with Ashley Booth, co-founder of InnerSpace Integration and founder of the Aware Project: Rethinking Psychedelics. Ashley shares with us how she went from being an oceanographer to starting a psychedelic community in the Los Angeles area and also pursuing psychedelic research. We talk about how the formation and history of both the Aware Project and InnerSpace Integration, and the importance of building a psychedelic community.
We also talk about Ashley’s background in somatic practices such as Hakomi and how Hakomi can be used for integration as well as in the psychedelic space. Body psychotherapy seems to be a tool of the future for many psychotherapists who are interested in psychedelics and psychedelic research as normal talk therapy does not always address some of the underlying issues that are stored within the body.
Ashley Booth, M.S. is a scientist, philosopher, and psychedelic ambassador. After years of working in environmental science, she experienced a radical paradigm shift through the use of psychedelics which ignited a passion for the awakening of human consciousness. Ashley uses her scientific background to break through the “war-on-drugs” rhetoric and have an intelligent and scientifically-based conversation about the safety and use of psychedelic substances. Ashley is the founder of the Aware Project: Rethinking Psychedelics (awareproject.org), which hosts educational and community-building events in Los Angeles and San Diego, California. She is also a co-founder of the InnerSpace Integration (innerspaceintegration.com), a psychedelic integration support service and harm reduction organization in Southern California. For a year and a half, she worked as a psycho-spiritual coach at Crossroads Treatment Center, supporting people through ibogaine and 5-MeO-DMT experiences. She is a certified Kundalini yoga teacher and is currently training in a somatic psychotherapy approach known as the Hakomi Method. www.AshleyBooth.net
Download Daniel Pinchbeck, author of the new book, How Soon is Now?joins us this week to talk about the global ecological crisis, climate change, and how psychedelics may play a role in transforming human culture.
If you do believe that we are in a time of great ecological crisis, what are you doing about it? Taking action is the most important step to creating change, but are we willing to take the sacrifices and action to create change?
Daniel shares his insights about how to take action to implement change. While some of these changes may be challenging, i.e., stop traveling as much, it may be necessary to help cut carbon emissions and to slow down the global warming cycle. Or is it too late to even take action?
Our model controlled for experiences with other classes of psychoactive substances (cannabis, dissociatives, empathogens, popular legal drugs) as well as common personality traits that usually predict drug consumption and/or nature relatedness (openness to experience, conscientiousness, conservatism). Although correlational in nature, results suggest that lifetime experience with psychedelics in particular may indeed contribute to people’s pro-environmental behavior by changing their self-construal in terms of an incorporation of the natural world, regardless of core personality traits or general propensity to consume mind-altering substances. Thereby, the present research adds to the contemporary literature on the beneficial effects of psychedelic substance use on mental wellbeing, hinting at a novel area for future research investigating their potentially positive effects on a societal level.
We are on the brink of an ecological mega-crisis, threatening the future of life on earth, and our actions over the next few years may well determine the destiny of our descendants. Between a manifesto and a tactical plan of action, How Soon is Now? by radical futurist and philosopher Daniel Pinchbeck, outlines a vision for a mass social movement that will address this crisis.
Drawing on extensive research, Daniel Pinchbeck presents a compelling argument for the need for change on a global basis. The central thesis is that humanity has unconsciously self-willed ecological catastrophe to bring about a transcendence of our current condition. We are facing an initiatory ordeal on a planetary scale. We can understand that this initiation is necessary for us to evolve from one state of being – our current level of consciousness – to the next. Overcoming outmoded ideologies, we will realize ourselves as one unified being, a planetary super-organism in a symbiotic relationship with the Earth’s ecology and the entire web of life.
Covering everything from energy and agriculture, to culture, politics, media and ideology, How Soon Is Now? is ultimately about the nature of the human soul and the future of our current world. Pinchbeck calls for an intentional redesign of our current systems, transforming unjust and elitist structures into participatory, democratic, and inclusive ones. His viewpoint integrates indigenous design principles and Eastern metaphysics with social ecology and radical political thought in a new synthesis.
I am the author of Breaking Open the Head (Broadway Books, 2002), 2012: The Return of Quetzalcoatl (Tarcher/Penguin, 2006), Notes from the Edge Times(Tarcher/Penguin, 2010), andHow Soon Is Now (Watkins, 2017). I co-founded the web magazine, Reality Sandwich, and Evolver.net, and edited the publishing imprint, Evolver Editions, with North Atlantic Books. I was featured in the 2010 documentary, 2012: Time for Change, directed by Joao Amorim and produced by Mangusta Films. I founded the think tank, Center for Planetary Culture, which produced the Regenerative Society Wiki. I hosted the talk show Mindshift on GaiamTV. My essays and articles have been featured in The New York Times Magazine, Esquire, Rolling Stone, ArtForum, The New York Times Book Review, The Village Voice, Dazed & Confused, and many other publications.
Check out our upcoming course, Navigating Psychedelics
Learn about harm reduction practices, self-care, and ways to integration your experience
Download Sara Gael joins us on this week’s episode. Sara is the Director of Harm Reduction at the Zendo Project. We get into some great stuff including some of Zendo’s biggest wins, how Zendo works, how to discuss harm reduction with festival organizers, and how to manage difficult experiences that arise in the Zendo. Something interesting that we learned during this talk was how law enforcement at Burning Man has really been interested in learning more about Zendo and their services, and requested Zendo to help train their staff.
Sara also shares her experience and insights working on the MAPS Phase 2 MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD trials and how she got involved in psychedelic research. We also explore how transpersonal psychology can serve as an important framework for working with psychedelic experiences.
We hope you enjoy this episode. Be sure to leave us a comment below and share this episode!
The Zendo Project
The Zendo Project is sponsored by the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS). Zendo provides harm reduction services to the community and to festivals. Zendo strives to:
Reduce the number of psychiatric hospitalizations and arrests.
Create an environment where volunteers can work alongside one another to improve their harm reduction skills and receive training and feedback.
Demonstrates that safe, productive psychedelic experiences are possible without the need for law enforcement-based prohibitionist policies.
Sara Gael, M.A., Director of Harm Reduction, Zendo Project
Sara received her Master’s degree in Transpersonal Counseling Psychology at Naropa University. She began working with MAPS in 2012, coordinating psychedelic harm reduction services at festivals and events worldwide with the Zendo Project. Sara was an Intern Therapist for the recently completed MAPS Phase 2 clinical trial of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD in Boulder, CO. She maintains a private practice as a psychotherapist specializing in trauma and non-ordinary states of consciousness. Sara believes that developing a comprehensive understanding of psychedelic medicines through research and education is essential for the health and well being of individuals, communities, and the planet.
Community is an important part of integration. One of the most difficult aspects of integration is returning to a society that doesn’t understand or support psychedelic exploration. In fact, re-entering society can feel like a stark contrast between the interconnected, transpersonal state of the psychedelic experience. Therefore, one of most important tools for successful integration is a supportive, understanding community. We encourage our Guests to connect with and build supportive communities around themselves when they return home from the event. We support them in seeking professional help if necessary.
It is the week of the 4th of July. That means the United States is celebrating the signing of the Declaration of Independence, breaking free from the British Empire, and becoming an independent nation. With the holiday underway, it seems like a great time to reflect on the concept of freedom (including cognitive liberty) and what it means to each and every one of us.
In honor of Independence Day and the Declaration of Independence, here is a quote by Terence McKenna:
In this episode, Joe and Kyle reflect on the concept of personal freedom, cognitive liberty, and the impact that the War on Drugs has on the American people. It seems to be the consensus that the War on Drugs is failing. The policy has huge negative consequences on people across the globe, and significantly marginalizes minority groups and people of color.
Cognitive Liberty
As psychedelic research continues to progress in the academic and scientific realm, many people are still subjected to arrest and imprisonment because of this failed policy. Kyle and Joe share their thoughts about the pursuit for cognitive liberty and personal freedom.
The unexamined life is not worth living – Socrates
Do you think that exploring one’s own consciousness, whether through plants or other drugs, be illegal? Why should a person have to “ask permission” to have an experience with their own body, mind, and spirit?
We are giving away a SPECIAL offer just for the 4th of July! Receive 10% off our Earl-Bird special with the coupon code “freedom” when you check out. You do not want to miss this offer!
Download Shane LeMaster joins us again to talk about his work with veterans, enhancing human performance and traditional use of peyote. If you haven’t listened to part one, check that out first here.
Show Topics
Warriorship and Shambhala
Micro-dosing as it would apply to sports performance research
Flow states
Eckhart Tolle
Microdosing at JuJitsu competitions
High or standard dose psychedelic use at NASA
The difference between microdosing and normal dosages
Shane earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology from the University of Colorado in Boulder, CO, completed extensive coursework towards a Master of Arts Degree in Sport & Performance Psychology at the University of Denver, and earned his Master of Arts Degree in Sport & Exercise Psychology from Argosy University.
Shane is nationally certified as a Sport Psychology Consultant and a licensed mental health clinician in the state of Colorado. Having worked in community non-profit mental health since 2008, Shane has gained experience working with the entire spectrum of mental disorders and with all populations and age groups. Shane plans on attending a Ph.D program in Counseling Psychology where his interest in Resiliency, Mental Toughness, and Mindfulness Training Program Development can be explored and further developed.
He is a life-long athlete having competed at various levels in more than a dozen different sports. Because of his passion for warrior cultures of past and present, Shane has been ardently developing his own “Warriorship,” training in various forms of Martial Arts for 25 years. Shane feels that the self-discipline, the philosophy of non-violence, the innumerable mental and physical benefits, and the enjoyment that he gains from the Martial Arts is what helped drive his passion in the field of Psychology.
His personal interest in Eastern Philosophy stems from his adoption of a Buddhist lifestyle and blends well with his training in Western Psychological Science. Clients describe Shane as an out-of-the-box clinician that is easy to get along with, knowledgeable on a variety of topics, credible with lived experience, and as having the ability to make therapy fun and interesting.
Interested in learning more about psychedelic self-care and integration? Check out and sign up for our new online course!
Doing work with veterans and gaining their trust for therapeutic relationships.
Traditional approaches to ayahuasca.
First hand accounts of what the Peyote world is like.
Shifting away from the predominant Newtonian Cartesian paradigm after psychedelic use and understanding that we know very little about what is really happening here in the world.
Shane earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology from the University of Colorado in Boulder, CO, completed extensive coursework towards a Master of Arts Degree in Sport & Performance Psychology at the University of Denver, and earned his Master of Arts Degree in Sport & Exercise Psychology from Argosy University.
Shane is nationally certified as a Sport Psychology Consultant and a licensed mental health clinician in the state of Colorado. Having worked in community non-profit mental health since 2008, Shane has gained experience working with the entire spectrum of mental disorders and with all populations and age groups. Shane plans on attending a Ph.D program in Counseling Psychology where his interest in Resiliency, Mental Toughness, and Mindfulness Training Program Development can be explored and further developed.
He is a life-long athlete having competed at various levels in more than a dozen different sports. Because of his passion for warrior cultures of past and present, Shane has been ardently developing his own “Warriorship,” training in various forms of Martial Arts for 25 years. Shane feels that the self-discipline, the philosophy of non-violence, the innumerable mental and physical benefits, and the enjoyment that he gains from the Martial Arts is what helped drive his passion in the field of Psychology.
His personal interest in Eastern Philosophy stems from his adoption of a Buddhist lifestyle and blends well with his training in Western Psychological Science. Clients describe Shane as an out-of-the-box clinician that is easy to get along with, knowledgeable on a variety of topics, credible with lived experience, and as having the ability to make therapy fun and interesting.
Interested in learning more about psychedelic self-care and integration? Check out and sign up for our new online course!
Download In this episode, Kyle talks with Leia Friedman, co-founder of the Boston Entheogenic Network (BEN) and also known as “The Psychedologist.” Kyle recently was invited to facilitate an “Introduction to Transpersonal Breathwork” workshop for BEN. Joe also was in town for the weekend and presented a talk about “Breathwork, Psychedelics, and Ecological Collapse.” It was a great psychedelic weekend in Massachusetts.
After the workshop, Kyle had the opportunity to sit down and talk with Leia about her interests in the psychedelic field, feminism and eco-feminism, and how she got involved with starting a psychedelic group in Boston. She provides some helpful tips and advice for creating/starting your own local group.
Tips for starting your own psychedelic group:
First, what is the point of the group?
What is the purpose or mission?
Learn about your local laws and the legal risks
Do not condone or facilitate illegal activity
Go slow
Find the others to help you out
Check in with yourself and the other members of the group
Protect your members
Start online to gain awareness and then start an in-person meet up
Sign up below to get your FREE download “How to Create Your Own Psychedelic Group”
We hope you enjoy this episode and let us know what you think!
Kyle and Leia holding space for the breathwork circle
Breathwork on the river.
Joe and Kyle presenting, “Breathwork, Psychedelics, and Ecological Collapse” in Lowell, MA, USA
Leia Friedman is a professor, clinician, writer and the cofounder of Boston Entheogenic Network. Her present focus is an amalgamation of psychology, ecology, and experiences of altered consciousness as tools for deeper self-understanding. She is also involved in local social and climate justice activism, alphabet soup, and body positivity.
Download In this episode, Kyle talks with Allison Pelissier, of The Traveling Light Machine, about the Lucia N°03 Hypnagogic Light Machine. It turns out it is very powerful and induces powerful visions in some.
During Kyle’s recent trip to Vermont, he met a fellow fan of the podcast, Grant, at the recent Dreamshadow Holotropic Breathwork retreat. While meeting Grant felt like a synchronicity, it led Kyle to experience the Lucia N°03 with Allison. Kyle shares his experience with the hypnagogic light machine in this episode while Allison discusses the background and development of this this fascinating piece of technology. Be sure to continue below to learn more about the Lucia N°03, get show notes/links, and to find out more about Allison’s work.
Consider leaving us a comment to let us know what you think about the episode.
About The Lucia N°03 Hypnagogic Light Machine
The Lucia N°03 was developed in Austria by clinical psychologist Dr. EngelbertWinkler and medical neurologist Dr. Dirk Proeckl.
It is important to note that the Lucia N°03 is not a medical device. Rather it is a therapeutic light meditation. That is, it helps light travelers achieve a state of effortless meditation. It is not in competition with, nor a replacement for pharmaceutical drugs, clinical therapy, or any other medical intervention. It is a journey into consciousness.
The Lucia N°03 gently entrains the brain, stimulates the pineal gland and opens up a beautiful space for visionary exploration.
The Lucia N°03 helps clear the mind and allow even beginning meditators to reach a space of peace quickly. It is not a replacement for a meditation practice but quite the opposite – it encourages people to meditate by realizing how powerful the practice can be and gives them the confidence (and roadmap) to get there on their own. As the Lucia is both a stimulation (through light), and a relaxation (through brain entrainment), it helps the individual learn to let go in stressful situations, rather than resist and make things even more difficult. The Lucia N°03 also uses a wide spectrum of light which has been reported to have a great impact for people with both seasonal affective disorder and other types of depression.
The Lucia light experience is different for each person, as it works with each person’s individual system and has a balancing effect. Everyone feels more clear and centered after an experience, while some people feel more energized or deeply relaxed.
Dedicated to assisting in the expansion of consciousness of humanity, Allison is a lightworker that is both a clairvoyant and ambassador for the Lucia N°03 light experience. Allison has a MA in International Education and Development and a BA in Political Economics. She also holds a 200 hr Yoga Teaching Certification, a Children’s Yoga Teaching Certification and has worked across the world in many different capacities as an academic teacher, textbook author, meditation and yoga teacher, project manager and developer and light ambassador.
The Lucia N°03 light experience peaked Allison’s interest after her first experience at Light Eye Mind Gallery in London, UK. She traveled deeply into her own mind and memories and emerged from the experience feeling like she had come back to herself in a way she would never have suspected could be possible. Her experience helped her shift from a state of depression and PTSD to an ability to sleep through the night and wake up with a sense of joy again.
Feeling a strong calling to work with the Lucia N°03, Allison purchased her own lamp and started touring around the US with Traveling Light Machine project, aiming to bring the experience to wherever the light was called. The most moving part of the experience for Allison is that as a light ambassador she holds space for people to have their own experiences. She strongly believes that we cannot help anyone, but rather hold space for them to see and love themselves.
Currently Allison travels around the US and the world with her partner in business and love, Zachary Noel, sharing the Lucia N°03 light experience.
The MAPS Psychedelic Science 2017 conference was the largest psychedelic conference in history to date. It is an exciting time to be part of the movement and to get involved in the field. There is a push to legalize psychedelics for therapy and to recognize these substances as medicine. While the field needs the science and research to legitimize psychedelics as medicines to treat various disorders, but the change in status does not mean access for everyone. This is not to discourage the research or science, we acknowledge that it is important, but rather it is to help educate the public that the change in status does not mean psychedelics will be legal for recreational use.
There may be a misconception floating around that once MDMA or psilocybin becomes medicine there will be greater access. This is not entirely true according to Jag Davies. The criminalization of psychedelic substances will continue despite the health and clinical applications. Jag and the DPA strive to help move drug policy away from a criminalization approach and help to move it towards a more health-based approach.
In this episode, we talk with Jag Davies, Communication Strategy Director of the Drug Policy Alliance (DPA). Jag provides us with his insights about the current state of psychedelics, psychedelic research, and other drug laws. Jag also talks about his work with the DPA and what the DPA’s mission is. We discuss drug policy, advocacy, harm reduction, scheduling vs penalty, racism, and so much more.
One of the best things to do to get involved is to help spread the word about the healing potential of psychedelic medicines and substances. The policy around these substances are constantly changing and new issues are always arising. We talk a lot about privilege in this episode, and how being in a privileged position makes it easier to speak about experiences with psychedelics or other substances.
Another great way to get involved is connecting with the Drug Policy Alliance. There is a wonderful drug reform conference coming up and that is also a great way to get your foot in the door with this work. The Reform Conference is happening in Atlanta, Georgia, from October 11th-14th. If you do not think you can attend, try applying for the scholarship, which ends June 9th.
About the Drug Policy Alliance
The Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) is the nation’s leading organization promoting drug policies that are grounded in science, compassion, health and human rights.
Our supporters are individuals who believe the war on drugs is doing more harm than good. Together we advance policies that reduce the harms of both drug use and drug prohibition, and seek solutions that promote safety while upholding the sovereignty of individuals over their own minds and bodies. We work to ensure that our nation’s drug policies no longer arrest, incarcerate, disenfranchise and otherwise harm millions – particularly young people and people of color who are disproportionately affected by the war on drugs.
Mission and Vision of the Drug Policy Alliance
The Drug Policy Allianceenvisions a just society in which the use and regulation of drugs are grounded in science, compassion, health and human rights, in which people are no longer punished for what they put into their own bodies but only for crimes committed against others, and in which the fears, prejudices and punitive prohibitions of today are no more.
Our mission is to advance those policies and attitudes that best reduce the harms of both drug use and drug prohibition, and to promote the sovereignty of individuals over their minds and bodies.
As director of communications strategy, Jag Davies works with communications, program, development and senior management staff to oversee production of all DPA publications and to facilitate best practices in the implementation of the organization’s messaging and brand identity. Davies manages a team that includes DPA’s research coordinator and communications coordinator, as well as external consultant relationships with writers, designers, and multimedia content producers.
Davies also plays a key role in DPA’s media work. He is regularly quoted in a wide range of media outlets and his writings have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, BBC.com, CNN.com, and dozens of regional and online publications.
Davies has more than a decade of professional experience working to establish drug policies grounded in science, compassion, health and human rights. Before joining the organization, he served as director of communications for MAPS, a nonprofit pharmaceutical company conducting clinical trials aimed at developing marijuana and certain psychedelic drugs into federally-approved prescription medicines. Davies also previously served as policy researcher for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Drug Law Reform Project (now known as the Criminal Law Reform Project), where he coordinated local, state, federal, and international efforts to end punitive drug policies that cause the widespread violation of constitutional and human rights.
In this episode, Kyle and Joe talk with Julie Megler from Entheogenic Research, Integration, and Education (ERIE) about psychedelics and integration. We learn about the work and mission of ERIE, and how Julie got involved/interested in psychedelics. Integration is a growing concern in the psychedelic world. We continue the conversation by having Julie on the show to learn more about her work. Leave us a comment below and let us know what you think!
ERIE is a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to the sharing of entheogenic and transpersonal knowledge in a non-hierarchical, community based format, located in the San Francisco Bay Area.
We offer a platform for entheogenic research, integration and education. ERIE is not only a hub of integration information for entheogenic and transpersonal experiences, we also host peer integration circles to facilitate meaning-making and community building. We host monthly educational events including symposiums, forums, and conferences on varied topics surrounding entheogenic research and activism.
We are dedicated to supporting cognitive liberty by offering a learning environment to support grassroots education and outreach on the topics of integration and entheogenic potentials.
Mission
The Entheogenic Research, Integration, and Education (ERIE) mission:
1) Review and conduct research on the use of traditional plant medicines, and their modern analogs, for creativity, healing, personal growth, and spiritual exploration
2) Develop integration methods that combine new research with existing, tested practices to help people incorporate extraordinary experiences into their lives
3) Articulate a new educational paradigm that honors and draws upon the vast Indigenous knowledge of plant and fungi kingdoms, then envisions new applications of it within contemporary Western contexts
4) Create a forum for the responsible discussion of these topics.
*Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner * Trained in Somatic Experiencing * Shipibo/Vegetalista Dieta Experience*
Julie is a board certified nurse practitioner in psychiatry and family medicine. She received her Master’s of Science in Nursing from the University of Miami, Florida and post master’s certificate in psychiatry at the University of California-San Francisco. Julie maintains licenses in family medicine and psychiatry in an effort to close the gap between medical and psychiatric care, incorporating the mind/body connection for most effective treatment. She currently is in private practice in the San Francisco/Bay Area.
Her practice focuses on integrative mental health services for emotional and physical well being, as well as integration of non-ordinary states of consciousness. In addition to her clinical work, Julie is on the board of directors of ERIE (Entheogenic Research, Integration, and Education). She has presented on the topics of psychedelic risk reduction, integration, and therapeutic applications of ayahuasca at the Psychedelic Science Conference 2013 & 2017, The Women’s Visionary Congress, Detroit’s First Entheogenic Conference, and the Visionary Convergence 2015.
She has also co-authored chapters in the books Manifesting Minds and The Therapeutic Uses of Ayahuasca. As an experienced clinician, and activist for the psychedelic movement, Julie is dedicated to educating the community about safety and the therapeutic benefits of entheogens. Her particular emphasis on integration assists individuals to develop practices that bring insights from entheogenic work to daily life. You can learn more about Julie’s work at erievision.org & mindfulnp.com.
Julie has done many ayahuasca sessions and other plant work as well. This along with her medical provider practice as a nurse practitioner in the San Francisco Bay Area. She is able to speak about psychedelic integration from a unique perspective with her background. We think you will really enjoy this episode and please let us know what you think.
Kyle and Joe recently chatted with a second therapist who works underground. Trained as a traditional therapist, this therapist integrates MDMA work into her practice with selective clients. She has been mentored by a teacher who has done this work for a very long period of time. She has a community of therapists around her providing support.
MDMA is not a typical psychedelic drug but it is the focus of most of MAPS’s efforts in the Psychedelic Psychotherapy world. Psychedelic therapy is THE frontier of psychology. Therapists like Selina are on the vanguard of these therapies. By working underground they have great risks (legal) and advantages (huge amounts of healing for their patients).
Why are we waiting? We are in a mental health crisis, far too many people are suffering and committing suicide. If one compares this to any recent “outbreak” the numbers certainly make sense to fast track MDMA as a viable therapy for PTSD and other disorders.
We want to keep interviewing people doing underground work, so please send them our way for interviews. We are going to be able to provide anonymity for those that want it, so feel free to ask about this if you want it.
Enjoy!!
MDMA Therapist – Show Notes
Dosage for sessions
135-140 mg starting dose
80 mg booster (optional)
Psilocybin dosing – Depends on what type of experience a person is looking for
We will not provide any information about this therapist. Please do not email/contact us about therapy sessions or gaining information about the therapist. These interviews are anonymous and private. We can provide general advice. We will not provide any information about this or other anonymous guests of the show. Thanks for understanding!
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Psymposia’s MC and Host, Lex Pelger, joins us again on Psychedelics Today to talk about Psymposia’s upcoming Blue Dot Tour. Lex also talks about his graphic novel about cannabis, the endocannabinoid system, and the War on Weed.
Our goal is to hit blue cities in red states that serve as such pressure cookers of activism, education, and art. But also blue cities in blue states, red towns in red states, purple villages in green states, and anywhere we can find a host from Mexico to Canada.
Lex is Host of Psymposia. He’s also a drug writer and scientist based in Brooklyn.
His current project, Anandamide or: the Cannabinoid a graphic novel about cannabis (based on Moby Dick), illustrates the beauties of the endocannabinoid system (the Whale), the brutalities of the racist War on Weed (Ahab), and the staggering benefits of medical marijuana to ease the aging of our grandparents
He graduated from Boston University with a BS in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Kyle and Joe speak with, Paul Austin, psychedelic educator, founder of The Third Wave and Psychedelia. Paul is a super fun guy to talk to. He tours both in the US and internationally to speak about microdosing. Microdosing is becoming incredibly popular and seems to be making psychedelics more popular in the mainstream. Microdosing can help with creativity, therapy and many other things without any of the burden of a “full” dose.
What is the psychedelic Third Wave? Paul describes it as:
A new era of psychedelic use. It is an era of psychedelic use defined by practical, measured use for specific purposes. It is an era, not for ‘dropping-out’ of society, but for integrating psychedelics into the mainstream. It is an era, not to fear psychedelics for their possible negative repercussions, but to embrace psychedelics for their tremendous upside.
Some insight from DR. JAMES FADIMAN
“For some people, it is helpful to identify your goals. Your goals may be spiritual: to have direct experience with aspects of your tradition or another tradition, to transcend prior beliefs, even to transcend belief itself. You may hope to have what is called a “unity experience,” in which there is no separation between your identity and all else. Your goals may be social: to improve relationships with your spouse, children, siblings, parents, colleagues, friends, and spiritual and secular institutions. Your goals may be psychological: to find insight into neurotic patterns, phobias, or unresolved anger or grief.”
We get into some great psychedelic topics such as:
As an entrepreneur and avid psychedelic explorer, Paul believes in the power of rational dialogue and community engagement in stripping away the stigma around psychedelic use.
He understands the power of responsible psychedelic use in aiding psycho-spiritual development, and believes in sharing this message with others.
When not ruminating on his next psychedelic project, Paul enjoys traveling, reading, and spending time outside.
Kyle and Joe talk to an anonymous MDMA therapist and relationship coach. He has been working with people while they use MDMA beginning in the early days while it was still legal and continues to facilitate work with people while it is prohibited.
For his safety, his identity is kept anonymous. The insights here are wonderful and worth learning. Hopefully you will learn something here and it can be applied to future therapies once we hit the 2021 MAPS target date.
Some interesting thoughts from the interview:
Transcending the parent-child relationship.
We are human beings that can be in good relationship with one another.
Do I feel safe? What does it mean to feel safe?
Appropriate dosages.
Intuitive approaches for engaging with the client patient.
It is the start of a New Year. People are saying 2016 has been pretty horrible, but 2016 has been pretty decent in regards to psychedelic science and research. We are hoping that 2017 will be a fruitful year as well.
Faan was a great guest. He is currently working on a cannabis startup in Montréal, Québec, Canada named Indeeva Biomedical. Joe previously interviewed Faan for his permaulture podcast Permaculture Salad to talk about how shamanism, ayahuasca and permaculture go together in a complementary way (link). At the time of that interview Faan was living on a permaculture/ayahuasca retreat center in Peru named the Paititi Institute.Continue reading “Faan Rossouw – Indeeva Biomedical”
Bio via Psymposia – Katherine MacLean is an academically trained research scientist and meditation practitioner with a long-standing interest in the brain, consciousness and the science of well-being. As a graduate student at the University of California, Davis, Katherine was supported by a prestigious National Science Foundation research fellowship to study the effects of intensive meditation training on concentration, emotional well-being and brain function.
As a postdoctoral fellow and faculty member at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, she was one of the only scientists in the world studying psilocybin — a psychedelic chemical found naturally in certain types of mushrooms. Her groundbreaking research on psilocybin and personality change suggests that psychedelic medicines may be the key to enhancing mental health and promoting openness and creativity throughout the lifespan.
Download This episode features Joe Moore, co-host of Psychedelics today. Joe was a student at Plymouth State University in New Hampshire and is now working in the software industry as well as hosting a few podcasts and coordinating Transpersonal Breathwork workshops mostly in Breckenridge, Colorado.
Download Kyle and Joe speak with Raven Renee Ray about the Aftercare project. Here is a short description of the project from it’s facebook site.
The Aftercare Project is dedicated to the psychological and spiritual well-being of people reintegrating after challenging psychedelic experiences.
The conversation is fun and wide ranging. We hope it is helpful and informative to academics, therapists, counselors and psychiatrists who are interacting with people coming back from difficult experiences.
Here is a slightly longer description of the ACP.
Given the fact that ayahuasca has shown promise in research studies, we feel we not only have the humane duty to help those in need, but also the responsibility to ensure the reputation of ayahuasca and her traditional stewards among decision-makers in our own culture. This will allow us to continue holding space for research to continue, while protecting traditional practices. Because of the colossal challenges inherent in navigating multicultural spaces and the lack of understanding outside of the anthropological community regarding conflicting paradigms of urban capitalism and jungle reciprocity, we must do our best as North Americans to prepare those in our own communities who are called to this experience prior to their trip. This preparation will include full, informed consent, education on safety, cultural expectations and differences, and what to do in the case that further care is required upon return.
Raven is also fundraising for the Aftercare Project. You can find a page for the fundraising effort here.
Download Kyle and Joe get to talk with Elizabeth regarding her experience with MDMA assisted psychotherapy, Holotropic Breathwork, and her work with Stan and Christina Grof in the Grof Transpersonal Training program. Elizabeth also discusses the importance of bodywork such as working with people who “aren’t back” from their experience, doing breathwork/bodywork with other experienced facilitators, observation of bodywork, and the lack of bodywork in psychedelic psychotherapy. Elizabeth will be facilitating some Dream Work at her next Holotropic Breathwork workshop.
Download Philosophy and psychedelics brought Lenny to Holotropic Breathwork. Since then he has co-facilitated countless sessions with even more people mainly in Vermont, but also in Massachusetts and Maine. Lenny and Elizabeth (his wife) have helped foster Kyle and Joe’s interest in Holotropic states and facilitating breathwork sessions. We are thankful and happy to share this two part interview with Lenny Gibson.
Dr. Ben Sessa, M.B.B.S., M.D., B.Sc., M.R.C.Psych., is a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist working in adult addiction services and with custodial detained young people in a secure adolescent setting. He trained at UCL medical school, graduating in 1997. He is interested in the developmental trajectory from child maltreatment to adult mental health disorders. Dr Sessa is currently a senior research fellow at Bristol, Cardiff and Imperial College London Universities, where he is conducting the UK’s first clinical st
Vilmarie Narloch, PsyD., is the Drug Education Manager at Students for Sensible Drug Policy. In this role, Vilmarie oversees the development and implementation of the SSDP Peer Education program, which is a training program for SSDP Members to become certified to deliver our drug education program, Just Say Know, to their peers. Vilmarie is passionate about reforming drug education in the U.S. and abroad, and has dedicated years of study on the topic for her dissertation. Vilmarie has taken on this position because as an organization driven by students with exceptional knowledge on drug policy and other drug use related issues, SSDP is uniquely positioned and qualified to be developing a drug education program. Additionally, Vilmarie educates staff and the network on the current state of research and treatment issues with regard to substance use disorders and mental health. Vilmarie aims to aid in the connection of policy and practice by helping our network understand the impact of policy on access to treatment and care while utilizing the latest research.
She received her Master’s of Science in Nursing from the University of Miami, Florida and post master’s certificate in psychiatry at the University of California-San Francisco. Julie maintains licenses in family medicine and psychiatry in an effort to close the gap between medical and psychiatric care, incorporating the mind/body connection for most effective treatment. She currently is in private practice in the San Francisco/Bay Area.
