Psychedelics Today Podcast

In today’s Solidarity Fridays episode, Kyle, Joe, and Michelle discuss Norway's plan to decriminalize personal drug use, lucid dreaming, therapists embracing the mystical, and Tim Ferriss’ plea for more ethical drug exploration.    www.psychedelicstoday.com

In today’s Solidarity Fridays episode, Kyle interviews clinical psychologist and author of The Psychedelics Integration Handbook, Dr. Ryan Westrum, about intuition, trust, and self-work in today's Covid climate of solitude.    www.psychedelicstoday.com

In today’s Solidarity Fridays episode, Kyle and Joe are joined by author, Michelle Janikian. They discuss covid, ketamine, DMT for stroke patients, a psilocybin lab in Jamaica, and question if drug laws violate human rights.     www.psychedelicstoday.com

In this episode, Kyle interviews Thoracic surgeon and author of The Art of Human Care, Dr. Hassan Tetteh, about his near-death experience, transcendental meditation, Death Over Dinner, finding purpose, and the power of listening.    www.psychedelicstoday.com

In today’s Solidarity Fridays episode, Kyle and Joe discuss the drug war, psychedelic exceptionalism, and patent law in relation to Compass Pathways trying to patent commonalities in psilocybin-assisted therapy like holding hands.   www.psychedelicstoday.com

In this episode, Joe interviews Vancouver-based serial entrepreneur and founder and CEO of NeonMind Biosciences, Penny White. She talks about taking NeonMind public and their current project: using psilocybin to combat obesity.     www.psychedelicstoday.com

In today’s Solidarity Fridays episode, Kyle and Joe cover recent news, talk about several upcoming PT classes and events, and discuss the ethics of ayahuasca centers continuing to hold large group sessions during the pandemic.   www.psychedelicstoday.com

In this episode, Kyle and Joe interview researcher and professor at Johns Hopkins, Dr. Matthew Johnson. They talk about the definition of consciousness and the use of religious/spiritual frameworks in psychedelic sessions.      www.psychedelicstoday.com

In today’s Solidarity Fridays episode, Joe interviews Vermont-based filmmaker Colin Thompson about his newest "'Superbad' on mushrooms" movie, “Light Years:” a tribute to a fallen friend in which he played nearly every part.     www.psychedelicstoday.com

In this episode, Joe interviews Director of ecological think tank The Institute of Ecotechnics, and publisher and CEO of Synergetic Press, Deborah Snyder. They discuss agriculture, Richard Evans Schultes, and Ralph Metzner.     www.psychedelicstoday.com

In today’s Solidarity Fridays episode, Kyle and Joe discuss Eternal September, what happens when cannabis gets legalized, the term “plant medicine,” and what could happen to you if you inject psilocybin tea into your blood.    www.psychedelicstoday.com

In this episode, Joe interviews Dr. Anne Wagner: Toronto-based clinical psychologist, founder of Remedy, and lead investigator on MAPS' trial of cognitive processing therapy + MDMA for PTSD.    www.psychedelicstoday.com

In today’s Solidarity Fridays episode, Kyle and Joe discuss the protest at The US Capitol, how psychedelics can lead to an openness to conspiracy theories, and where we’re headed in the realms of technology, knowledge, and truth.    www.psychedelicstoday.com

In this episode, Kyle interviews Veronika Gold and Harvey Schwartz, co-therapists, trainers, and founders of Polaris Insight Center. They also work as investigators in MAPS’ Phase 3 MDMA-assisted psychotherapy clinical trials.     www.psychedelicstoday.com

In today’s Solidarity Fridays episode, Joe interviews founder and CEO of Wavepaths, Mendel Kaelen, about the psychedelic power of musical experiences, and what Wavepaths is creating with sensory-immersive psychedelic environments.   www.psychedelicstoday.com

In today’s Solidarity Fridays episode, Joe interviews founder and CEO of Wavepaths, Mendel Kaelen, about the psychedelic power of musical experiences, and what Wavepaths is creating with sensory-immersive psychedelic environments.   www.psychedelicstoday.com

In today’s Solidarity Fridays episode, Kyle and Joe talk about spirituality and spiritual development, intention-setting, religion, hypnosis and false memories, therapists imposing their own frameworks on clients, and shamanism.    www.psychedelicstoday.com

In this episode, Joe interviews Medical Director of the Kuya Institute for Transformational Medicine, consultant to Onnit Labs, consultant to several international treatment centers, and author of one of Joe's most referenced books, The Concussion Repair Manual, Dr. Dan Engle.

Engle is quite knowledgeable when it comes to concussions and traumatic brain injuries and the brain’s ability to heal. He specializes in psychiatry, neurology, peak performance methods, and healing through regenerative and plant medicines. He talks about the sadly very different stories of his siblings, the factors that affect neurological resiliency, the need for establishing neurological performance baselines for athletes, the science behind CBD being a neuro-protectant, the safety and efficacy of psilocybin, how scaling research can dilute data, the importance of dipping one’s toes into non-ordinary states of consciousness before trying psychedelics, how we seem to have hit a new phase of learning more about preparation, and how not trying to achieve transcendence is suppressing a biological need.

Engle will be opening a new center in the new year, and for now, is offering a free "Integration call" over Zoom every week at 4:30pm MST. You can learn more at fullspectrummedicine.com.

Notable Quotes

“It’s fascinating that, in the midst of this medical movement, we’re seeing both of these fields of medicine, in parallel, gain more and more traction- this being the psychedelic medical arena, which is more psychological-based in nature, and then you have the neurologic concussion repair arena [that's] more hardware, brain-tissue based. So you’ve got, now, software and hardware technologies in two parallel medical paths, both accelerating at the same time, with this intermediary bridge between those two fields, which is the psychedelics.” “There’s a lot of interest, there’s a huge demand, the data’s very good, and when done well, there can be a pretty significant profit margin. And so, it still comes down to: the primary focus has to be client care and client outcome, not a profit-driven model.”“When you prepare people well, for sure, you see this magnificent improvement in rates of response, recovery, whether you’re going for healing something like one of those epidemics I mentioned, or just optimization and fulfillment and the radical remembering of our awesomeness and what we’ve come to be a part of. At that point, the whole game has changed. The whole game of life just has changed from scarcity to abundance, from ‘what I have to’ to ‘what I get to,’ from the ‘me, mine and I,’ to the ‘us, the we, and the all.’ This is a shift in consciousness. It’s a shift at the level of the psyche, and psyche means soul, so this is a process where we reconnect with the deeper aspect of our inherent humanity, and no agent on the planet is as consistently predictive to support that process than psychedelics. Near-death experience can do that, but it’s not as easy to control that process.”“We’re always evolving, individually and collectively, and these psychedelic medicines, when done well- these are sparks. They’re ignitors. They’re catalysts of consciousness.”

Links

Drdanengle.com

Fullspectrummedicine.com

kuya.life 

thankyoulife.org

Concussionrepairmanual.com

Revivecenters.com

Spravato info

Anatomy of an Epidemic: Magic Bullets, Psychiatric Drugs, and the Astonishing Rise of Mental Illness in America, by Robert Whitaker

The Biology of Transcendence: A Blueprint of the Human Spirit, by Joseph Chilton Pearce

About Dr. Dan Engle Dr. Dan Engle is a psychiatrist with a clinical practice that combines aspects of regenerative medicine, psychedelic research, integrative spirituality, and peak performance. His medical degree is from the University of Texas at San Antonio. His psychiatry residency degree is from the University of Colorado in Denver, and his child and adolescent psychiatry fellowship degree is from Oregon Health & Science University. Dr. Engle is an international consultant to several global healing centers facilitating the use of long-standing indigenous plant medicines for healing and awakening. He is the Founder and Medical Director of Kuya Institute for Transformational Medicine in Austin, Texas; Full Spectrum Medicine, a psychedelic integration and educational platform; and Thank You Life, a non-profit funding stream supporting access to psychedelic therapies. Dr. Engle is the author of The Concussion Repair Manual: A Practical Guide to Recovering from Traumatic Brain Injuries, as well as his new book, A Dose of Hope: A Story of MDMA-Assisted Psychotherapy. Disclaimer

The information provided in this podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute the practice of medicine or other professional health care services, including the giving of medical advice. The content of this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical recommendation, diagnosis, or treatment. The use of information in this podcast is at one’s own discretion, and is not an endorsement of use given the complexity inherent in these medicines, and the current variable widespread illegality of their usage. 

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Navigating Psychedelics

In today’s Christmas episode of Solidarity Friday, Kyle and Joe take a break from the news and instead sit down with Jonas Di Gregorio and Kristina Soriano of the Psychedelic Literacy Fund, a donor-advised fund working to raise money and co-finance the translation and publication of the most important books on psychedelic therapy into a variety of different languages. 

Their first project is both volumes of Stan Grof's The Way of the Psychonaut, which they hope to have translated into German, French, and Italian by July (for Grof's 90th birthday), and they have started a list of future projects, with Christopher Bache's LSD and the Mind of The Universe likely next. They talk about early interactions with Rick Doblin, why they went with a donor-advised fund rather than a crowdfunding model, the synchronicities they saw at early steps in their path, what Grof's work has meant to them, and a possible future goal of setting up a Grof museum in Prague. Kyle and Joe also share stories of their interactions with Grof and how his work (and how little he was being discussed) led to the beginnings of Psychedelics Today 4 years ago. 

If you're feeling some holiday generosity and want to help more people gain the knowledge Grof has brought to so many, please visit Psychedelicliteracy.org and make a donation (or volunteer translation services or suggest future projects).

Lastly, if you celebrate Christmas, Merry Christmas from Psychedelics Today!

Notable Quotes

“We have an inherently global mission. We’re an Italian and a Philippino living in America, trying to translate the work of a Czech psychiatrist.” -Kristina

“For me, it’s his capacity to really connect different fields, from quantum physics to psychiatry, [to the] history of religion- it’s really remarkable. The depth of his knowledge is so wide, and I think it can speak to so many people coming from different fields. I remember as a teenager, sharing the content of the books by Grof with friends that were studying physics and friends who were studying philosophy and friends who were studying psychology, and all of them could find something they could really appreciate.” -Jonas

“A book can be a harm reduction tool. ...Just having a book at the right time can really help you integrate a difficult experience and change the course of your life. Definitely, this has been the case for me. I didn’t know anyone in my community at the time that could really guide me, and these books played that role.” -Jonas

“Especially now, there’s a lot of conversation about diversity- how to increase diversity in the psychedelic community. Maybe the way to do that is literally to speak their language.” -Jonas

“I think the mental health crisis isn’t language-specific. I think it happens everywhere.” -Kristina

Links

Psychedelicliteracy.org

Rsfsocialfinance.org

The Secret Chief Revealed Paperback, by Myron J. Stolaroff

LSD: Doorway to the Numinous: The Groundbreaking Psychedelic Research into Realms of the Human Unconscious, by Stanislav Grof

A Course in Miracles: Foundation for Inner Peace

The Six Pathways of Destiny, by Ralph Metzner

Psychedelics Today: Susan Hess Logeais

Thewayofthepsychonaut.com

Oregonlive.com: One of the architects of Oregon’s bid to legalize psychedelic mushrooms, Sheri Eckert, has died

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Navigating Psychedelics

In this episode, Joe interviews "Car Bomb"- the 9-year NHL veteran, 2-time Stanley Cup winner (as a member of the Chicago Blackhawks), founder of The Chapter Five Foundation (an organization helping athletes transition into post-sports life), and advocate for the healing power of psilocybin, Daniel Carcillo.

Carcillo tells the story of his struggles and depression brought on from post-hockey life transition, 7 diagnosed concussions, and the death of his good friend and fellow player, Steve Montador, who struggled with similar issues before his sudden death in 2015. He talks about the stress of pro sports and the cult-like, team-first attitude in hockey, the hazing athletes experience coming up, the causes and effects of yelling coaches and a "be better" attitude, and how his post-hockey work and speaking out has ostracized him from the community while many people are reaching out to him for help behind the scenes. 

His first hero dose of psilocybin forever changed his life, but it wasn't just psilocybin- he's done a lot in the 5 years since that first ceremony, from neurofeedback, acupuncture, deprivation tanks, and using a gyrostim, to regularly microdosing, taking medicinal mushrooms like lion's mane and reishi, meditating, starting a CBD and supplements company, and growing huge crops of cannabis. He talks about how this has all helped improve his life and his relationships with his family, and what he hopes to do with his Chapter Five Foundation and beyond- researching more into what worked for him and developing a protocol/regiment to help people affected by concussions, post-concussive syndrome, TBIs, CTE, or just those struggling with what to do after sports.

Notable Quotes

“I’m an advocate for everything, for all tiers. I’m an advocate for the Decrim Nature [model] because it’s a lower-tier model to get people this medicine, and then I’m an advocate for the clinical model that people are pushing forward in Oregon, and I’m an advocate for these big pharma/biotech companies coming out and researching. ...You really have to make sure that we’re doing it the right way, and I think a lot of the companies out there are, so I think there’s such an opportunity at the ground floor right now to really get in, and if you have something that’s proven, that’s worked (like we do), then I really, really just feel so passionately about furthering that type of research, to again, get millions of people this type of treatment and this type of option.” “It’s still kind of unbelievable when I begin to talk about it, kind of what I’ve set in motion, but I believe in it so much and I’m still really in awe of what this medicine has done for me. We have one life to live. How do I help the most people that I can?”

“I just had to adjust my whole perspective and thinking and how I spoke to myself, changing the negative motivation to positive. But it’s constant work, because I’m just so used to being yelled at and then [being negative towards myself]. It’s definitely one of the biggest shifts that I’ve had, and I had that shift- that was at 2 and a half months after that big ceremony. That’s where I knew- that’s what really convinced me, and I’ll never forget this: I was driving out to my plants and they were about, I don’t know, 3 feet tall, and we were about 2 and a half months in, and I was like, ‘Wow Dan, really good job.’ I had this voice say that and I was like, ‘What the hell was that? Where did that come from?’ I’ve never done that, ever, and I was like ‘Ohhh man, something happened. Something shifted.’”

Links

Danielcarcillo.com

Chapter5foundation.com

Madeplanthealth.com (his CBD and supplement company)

Twitter

Instagram

Psymposia.com: Chicago could become largest city to Decriminalize Entheogenic Plants

Yahoo Sports: NHL pins Steve Montador's fatal brain injuries on his ‘own lack of due care’

US Patent 6630507: The US Government's Cannabis Patent

Parkinsonsnewstoday.com: Silo Pharma Plans Phase 2B Trial Testing Low-dose Psychedelics in Parkinson’s

Gyrostim.com

Del Jolly’s Psychedelics Today episode (lots of concussion and TBI talk)

About Daniel Carcillo

Daniel Carcillo is a two time Stanley Cup Champion and played 9 seasons in the National Hockey League. Daniel experienced emotional, sexual and physical trauma within hockey's culture and battled mental health and addiction issues during and post career. When he retired in 2015, after sustaining 7 concussions and due to Post Concussion Syndrome, he founded Chapter 5 Foundation, a charitable organization that helps athletes transition into life after the game. Daniel struggled with PCS symptoms like light sensitivity, slurred speech, insomnia, headaches and head pressure, impulse control issues, anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts and traditional treatments did not work. Daniel brought forth the Decriminalize Nature resolution to the city of Chicago, sits on the Decriminalize Nature National Advisory Board & the board of the Heroic Hearts Project, a registered 501(c)(3) non profit that connects military veterans struggling with mental trauma to ayahuasca therapy retreats. Daniel has recently founded Made Therapeutics, a life sciences company that is researching loading and maintenance doses of psilocybin to treat traumatic brain injury, Post Concussion Syndrome, migraines and TBI related anxiety, depression and PTSD. Daniel and Made Therapeutics will be working towards validating the first novel care option for TBI survivors through Health Canada (IMPD) and FDA (IND) clinical trials, with Pre-IMPD & Pre-IND meetings set to establish a pathway forward to fast track status for traumatic brain injury.

Support the show

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• Share us with your friends
• Join our Facebook group - Psychedelics Today group – Find the others and create community.

Navigating Psychedelics