Recently, I have been exploring Taoist philosophy, which dates back to 300 BC. A central theme in Taoism is the importance of maintaining an open awareness of the world and trusting in one’s inner self. When this state of being is lost, we may begin to look outside ourselves for answers, potentially creating systems that restrict our personal freedom. “When they lose their sense of awe, people turn to religion. When they no longer trust themselves, they begin to depend on authority.” —Stephen Mitchell, Tao Te Ching Senses vs Measurable Scales This is an interesting idea to contemplate. Reflecting back on the Age of Enlightenment, which sounds ideal in many ways, I’ve come to understand it as a time when we stopped relying on our senses for truth. Instead, we [...]

Space, Time, & Einstein Lately I’ve been reading Einstein’s biography, where he talks about space, time, mass, and energy in such creative ways. He describes how space and time cannot be defined without each other—how they are interwoven, inseparable. This led me to reflect on how we, too, exist within the fabric of time. Not just the hours on a clock or the phases of a life, but time as a living element we move through. The Invitation Our language is full of sayings like time is money, the early bird catches the worm, or love at first sight—little cultural scripts that shape how we value and measure time. But beneath those is something quieter and more profound: an invitation to consider how we want to live inside our time. [...]

Addiction is not the core problem, it is an invitation to look deeper.  The abstinence only model keeps us bound to a model where relapse and shame become barriers to getting help.  Psychedelic therapies invites a broader scope of contemplation around the driving forces behind our behaviors and allow us to see ourselves with a greater sense of compassion and curiosity.   Therapeutic use of psychedelics can allow us to change the way we view addiction and recovery and help us come up with language that better suits the process.  Neglect and developmental trauma are present in a significant number of adolescents and adults struggling with addiction. These lead to the development of survival skills that are maladaptive in adult society as we know it.  Trauma in and of itself [...]

We are in the midst of a psychedelic renaissance exploring transformational healing with different tools. Western  psychopharmacology has developed to reduce symptomatology— as we minimize and mask symptoms we become less connected from the messages the symptoms are trying to share with us.     Our progress driven society encourages striving for peak performance-but at what cost? It seems we have lost our sense of connection to culture, to body,  to nature and our own innate healing wisdom. The art and science of psychedelic healing is being integrated into our current mental health system through the use of psychotherapy and integration with MDMA, Ketamine, psilocybin.   The most prominently researched diagnoses that have been addressed are PTSD, addiction, major depressive disorder and reactive anxiety in late stage cancer diagnosis. [...]