Greatest Hits Vol. 7 - Psychedelics and Spiritual Practice

<p><i>Hey hey, wild and whacky humans! It’s my birthday week, and I’m up at the yurt relaxing and celebrating with my family and dear friends. This means I’ve got something else for you - and it’s juicy.</i></p><p> </p><p><i>If you haven’t seen it yet, Netflix just released a new series “How to Change Your Mind,” exploring psychedelics and their effects on the mind. For those of you who have been around for a bit (or who follow me on social), you know this subject is very important to me and my specialty.</i></p><p> </p><p><i>I’ve been talking about it for year, but especially with the release of Michael Pollan’s series. So, I had to revisit this topic on the podcast with one of my greatest hits: “Psychedelics & Spiritual Practice.”</i></p><p> </p><p><i>To a lot of people, the words psychedelic and spiritual are paradoxical. But the use of psychoactive substances in shamanic, religious, and spiritual practices is found throughout history, with evidence from thousands of years ago. In this episode, we will be talking about psychedelics and spiritual practice and if there is a helpful role for them…and the potential harm. </i></p><p> </p><p>Let’s start with some definitions: </p><p> </p><p>Psychedelics are a class of psychoactive substances that produce changes in perception, mood and cognitive processes. They affect all the senses, altering a person’s thinking, sense of time and emotions.  </p><p> </p><p>There are also entheogens, which are typically of plant origin, that are ingested to produce a non-ordinary state of consciousness for religious or spiritual purposes.</p><p> </p><p>Some examples of both are psilocybin mushrooms, ayahuasca, ketamine, 5-MeO-DMT, cannabis,, LSD, MDMA… and many more.  </p><p> </p><p>I’ve used psychedelics in clinical settings and have found them to have a unique place in the treatment of mental health disorders. But I’m personally very interested in their use for spiritual purposes. Especially because, in my own clinical experience, many mental health issues have a strong root in spi