Psychedelic Stories

Kat Draconis grew up in a religious household as one of five children. She did well in school and lived her faith, as expected by her parents. Kat and I met after she finished her sophomore year of college, just as I returned home from my church mission. We fell in love and married quickly. Several days after graduating college, Kat gave birth to our oldest child and we settled into family life. Kat describes her experience stepping away from her religion and shares the details of several psychedelic experiences in which she witnessed the awakening of an inner sexual dragon, encountered her father in a dark setting, and relived the death of our toddler son. She also shares an experience in which she died and was reborn as a phoenix.

Clint Kyles was born and raised in southwest Arkansas, where he lives to this day. Clint comes from a hard-working, blue-collar Christian family. Growing up, he attended a small congregational Baptist church every week, whether he wanted to or not.As a teenager, Clint began experimenting with alcohol and then cannabis. When Clint and his friends became interested in trying mushrooms, one of his friends ordered a mushroom identification book through an interlibrary loan to help them find some mushrooms in the area. In Clint’s first mushroom experience, he was able to step outside his ego and observe his shy and introverted nature. The experience served as a turning point in his life and Clint began working to improve his social skills.Clint’s mushroom experience also showed him the universe was far larger than he could have imagined. He found himself thirsting for a knowledge of God and he began studying the Bible with sincerity. Clint began dating his now wife the day he graduated high school and he set aside psychedelics for many years as he focused on his career and raising his family.Clint’s interest in psychedelics was renewed in recent years after beginning to listen to podcasts on the subject. Clint describes a more recent psilocybin experience in which he was transported to a void and received an important personal message from God through angels.Clint is the host of The Psychedelic Christian Podcast, where he interviews guests about their personal experiences with psychedelics, many of which have been positive and spiritual in nature, while others highlight the risks associated with the use of psychedelics.Links:The Psychedelic Christian Podcast

Avi Wijaya was born into a conservative Muslim family in Indonesia. Avi's father worked as a government official, providing economic security for their family. Avi began attending a Catholic university at the age of 16. His school had a culture of open debate about topics like the economy, social issues, and even religion. Avi became agnostic and eventually atheist.Avi and his wife married just before the lockdowns in 2020 and experienced a devastating miscarriage in 2021. Around the same time, Avi had a number of paranormal experiences that caused him concern. His Muslim friends advised him to read the Qur'an and pray. A Buddhist friend also suggested he begin a meditation practice. Avi tried both and he had a number of interesting experiences while meditating. Avi began reading about things like near-death experiences and eventually came across the ayahuasca subreddit. He then arranged to participate in an ayahuasca ceremony while visiting family in The Netherlands, despite his family's concerns.During his ayahuasca experience, Avi was transported to other realms where he embarked on a cosmic journey, interacting with entities and deceased loved ones, learning valuable lessons he took back with him to Indonesia.

One summer while Todd Hill was home from college, he answered his parent's front door to find police officers. They let Todd know he was under arrest for sexual assault. Todd was in shock, wracking his brain, trying to think of who could have accused him of sexual assault. Todd's family bailed him out of jail, but he faced an 18-month-long legal battle to prove his innocence. Todd's innocence was proven and the charges were dropped, but the experience sewed seeds of anger deep inside him. Todd married young and began drinking while he was in the military after college. In his late twenties, he began drinking heavily and by the end of his first marriage, he was an alcoholic.Todd has had a love of airplanes and flying his entire life and works as a pilot for a major airline. His current wife introduced him to psychedelics while they were dating and Todd describes one occasion where he combined mushrooms, breathwork, and ketosis, resulting in a powerful experience that caused him to reevaluate his relationship with alcohol and make positive life changes. We also discuss Todd's experiences with practices like lucid dreaming and his use of LSD, cannabis, and MDMA and their impact on his life.Episode Links:Be Here NowA book by Ram DassMiracle of LoveA book by Ram DassLucid Dreaming Made EasyA book by Charlie MorleyWim Hof YouTube ChannelWim Hof's guided breathwork videos

Sarah Maxfield grew up in the 1970s and had some psychedelic experiences as a teenager that were recreational in nature. Her parents were loving but married young and dealt with their own challenges, making it difficult for them to be emotionally available for her as a child. Sarah spent decades in therapy but continued to experience anxiety and depression. She began learning about trauma where she gained an interest in the therapeutic potential of psychedelics. Sarah began ketamine-assisted therapy where she recognized how much fear had been a limiting force in her life. Recently, Sarah also participated in a psilocybin-assisted therapy session where she felt a connection to her ancestors and experienced a spiritual rebirth. Psychedelics haven't been a magic bullet for Sarah but they have allowed her to make positive life changes, releasing her from the depression and fear that held her back for so long.Links:The Body Keeps the ScoreA book by Bessel van der KolkComplex PTSDA book by Pete WalkerNo Bad PartsA book by Richard Schwartz

In my first solo episode, I describe a recent five-gram golden teacher mushroom trip of mine prior to undergoing spine fusion surgery. I felt both intense anger and intense love during the experience. I also discuss some of my bad experiences with Ambien, both in my past and during my recent post-surgery hospital stay.

Robert Stark is an author and lifelong Alaskan. As a boy, his mother became friends with a group of psychics and healers. Robert and his brother attended psychic workshops with their mother, where his brother displayed natural psychic abilities, until one reading predicted a tragic event, upsetting his mother, and ending their relationship with the psychic community.As a teenager, Robert moved to a small town where he struggled with addictions he developed. Immediately after high school, he joined the United States Army and parachuted into Iraq in March of 2003, during the U.S. invasion. Robert discusses the realities of war he documented in his book Warflower, including the recurring nightmares he had long after returning from Iraq. He shares how different psychedelic substances have affected him, whether it be in the form of addiction, tapping into creative abilities, or connecting with loved ones.Robert and his wife Savanna live off-grid on a homestead in Happy Valley, Alaska, where they own a farm and are raising their family.The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.Links:Secret Garden AlaskaSecret Garden Alaska is Robert and his wife Savanna's website where you can purchase Robert's book Warflower, Savanna's handmade jewelry, products from their farm, and follow their blog.The Stark family loves handwritten letters. You can send Robert a letter or contact him on one of his social media accounts listed below:Robert StarkPO BOX 986Anchor Point, AK 99556Robert's FacebookRobert's Instagram

Sabba Nazhand was born in Tehran, Iran in the middle of the Iran-Iraq War. His mother delivered him two months early and the family doctor advised he needed a blood transfusion. Sabba's father had to say goodbye to Sabba's mother and sister and drive Sabba across the country for the blood transfusion that saved his life.Sabba's family eventually fled from Iran to Greece, where they were able to get sponsorship from a Christian community that helped them immigrate to the United States. Sabba describes his upbringing in an immigrant family and how his interest in psychedelics developed. He shares several experiences, including one in which he took three successive hits of 5-MeO-DMT, blasting him into the universe, shattered into a billion pieces, where he watched the creation of the universe, leaving him forever changed. Sabba's psychedelic experiences motivated him to take his professional experience in the software industry to the psychedelic space, where he advises early-stage companies. Sabba is the Partner and Chief Strategy Officer at Mission Club, an education and investment platform in the psychedelic ecosystem. He is also a business advisor and founding member of Retreat-Microdose, a platform providing content, community, connection, and coaching. He's also a Go-to-Market advisor for Wavepaths, a tool that facilitates live, personalized music experiences for therapeutic and personal use. I've included links to these companies in the show notes if you're interested in learning more.The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.Links:WavepathsWavepaths is a tool that facilitates live, unique, personalized music experiences for therapeutic and personal use.​Retreat MicrodoseRetreat is a microdosing platform providing content, community, connection, and coaching to psychedelic newcomers.

Savanna Stark grew up in a devout Catholic home, where her family sat in the front row at church each week. However, her parents divorced when she was a teen, often using her and her sisters to get back at each other. When she turned 18, Savanna smoked weed, ate mushrooms, and drank alcohol all in one night. Savanna pushed the idea of God away and started drinking heavily. She eventually got sober, started doing yoga, and began studying spirituality and metaphysics.One of the metaphysics schools Savanna was using for her studies was looking for volunteers in South America. She applied with them to be a yoga teacher and let them know she would get enough hours to become certified. They let her know she didn't even need to be certified because it was in a foreign country.Before leaving for South America, Savanna learned about ayahuasca and watched a documentary about DMT. She wondered if she might meet someone she could have an ayahuasca experience with while on her trip. When she arrived at the retreat center, her journey took an unexpected twist. Savanna describes the numerous ayahuasca and San Pedro ceremonies she participated in during her time in South America, and the lessons she brought home with her.Savanna and her husband Robert live off-grid on a homestead in Happy Valley, Alaska, where they own a farm and are raising their family.The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.Links:Secret Garden AlaskaSecret Garden Alaska is Savanna and her husband Robert's website where you can purchase Savanna's handmade jewelry, products from their farm, and follow their blog.The Stark family loves handwritten letters. You can send Savanna a letter at the address listed below:Savanna StarkPO BOX 986Anchor Point, AK 99556

Jason Bishop began questioning his religious beliefs after his sister passed away. He eventually left religion and became a hardcore atheist for a time. Jason's curiosity about the nature of the universe, reality, and consciousness led him to consume numerous books, podcasts, and YouTube videos in his quest for answers. His research led him to seek out experiences with psychedelic substances. He's had experiences with marijuana and psilocybin mushrooms. Jason describes how under the influence of psilocybin, he experienced the oneness with the universe he learned about in his research.The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.

Tanya Forest had never used psychedelics but her daughter urged her to try after she had a meaningful experience with a mushroom guide. Before long, Tanya found herself driving down a dirt road on a farm property in the forest to meet the same guide her daughter worked with. That evening, Tanya began her own life-changing psilocybin journey.As the mushrooms took effect, Tanya found herself experiencing things she had never contemplated before. Her experience included aliens, Egyptian hieroglyphs, celestial beings, and connections with her indigenous ancestors. Tanya's experience has had a lasting impact in her life and she is pursuing a career as a psychedelic guide herself.The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.

After watching his father drink too much and seeing how it impacted his family, Dallas Jones didn’t want anything to do with any kind of substance. Things changed when he got to college and his friend Ryan convinced him to smoke weed for the first time. After a pleasant cannabis experience, Dallas’s perspective on substances changed, but it wasn’t until several years later that he had a deep psychedelic experience. Dallas had always felt stress about understanding the purpose of life and he had a fear of death. During a ketamine experience with a group of friends, Dallas was confronted by the Goddess of Death who helped him understand that he no longer needed to fear death. After that experience, Dallas spoke with his friends and found that elements of each of their experiences were shared among them.The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.

Danielle Heap has struggled with depression since she was young. About eight years ago she was misdiagnosed as bipolar. Six years ago, her diagnosis was changed to a borderline personality with treatment-resistant depression, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive tendencies. Even with a combination of medications including anti-depressants, mood stabilizers, and anti-psychotics, Danielle's emotions were volatile and could change in a matter of hours. On top of that, Danielle experienced postpartum depression after the birth of her son.Danielle sought out ketamine therapy to see if it could help with her depression. Initially, she used a nasal spray and then received ketamine infusions. On ketamine, Danielle stepped outside of linear time and viewed her life experiences from a different perspective. All rumination ceased and her suicidal ideations dissipated.The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.

Drea Bachman has experienced mental health challenges for most of her life. She tried different treatments for her depression, including psilocybin microdosing and electroconvulsive therapy, but didn't find relief. In addition to experiencing depression, Drea has also experienced disapproval and hurtful comments from others because she is a transgender woman.At one point, Drea spoke to her psychiatrist about the possibility of using lithium to treat her depression. Her psychiatrist recommended trying ketamine infusions first. Under the influence of ketamine, Drea experienced a beam of energy that she could feel clearing things in her head. It felt like something changed in her brain and the thoughts that used to cause her pain weren't causing pain anymore. Ketamine has given Drea relief from depression and given her space to find purpose and pursue things she’s passionate about in life. The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.

Jillian Scheel decided to write her thesis for her Human Resources degree on the cannabis legalization movement back in 2016 while attending school in Idaho. As part of the research for her thesis, she explored the business side of the cannabis industry and made her first legal purchase of cannabis, an edible cookie that resulted in a high lasting nearly 24 hours. Jillian also discusses her experience as a Human Resources professional in the cannabis industry, and how the dreamlike states of her ketamine treatments have improved her mental health.The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.

Jennifer Janvier's friend, an experienced mushroom grower, offered her some mushrooms during the pandemic. Jenny took a large dose and interacted with a younger version of herself. Jenny's inner child told her she could do whatever she wanted in life. That experience set in motion a period of shadow work for Jenny in which she navigated through a number of difficult experiences from her childhood. Eventually, Jenny tried ketamine treatments for depression and found that those experiences also surfaced childhood trauma. In one ketamine experience, Jenny time-traveled back to a difficult memory from her youth and spoke with her father, who transformed into a child himself and conversed with her. The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.

Bernard Kold has had a number of experiences with psychedelics and other substances. On his first day at college, he tried LSD and had a number of positive experiences. He also tried mushrooms, but after three successive bad trips he set aside mushrooms. He then took up heroin, resulting in addiction for several years. Years later, after healing from heart surgery, Bernard began experiencing serious depression. His wife and a physician friend suggested he try ketamine to treat his depression. Bernard shares some of his ketamine experiences, including one in which he felt as if he had died and entered something similar to the Bardo, spoken of in The Tibetan Book of the Dead. He had the feeling he was a God particle and that life is part of a simulation. The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.Links:The Tibetan Book of the DeadBe Here NowA book by Ram Dass

Rob High's first psychedelic experience was with a friend in high school. He had a great time with his friend but realized the experience had some added benefits. LSD had helped him work through his parent's divorce that had occurred a few years before. Later in life, Rob became addicted to pain pills and had an unintentional overdose that caused him to flatline. His son found him and fortunately he was revived by emergency responders. Rob also describes a recent psychedelic experience in which he and a friend used ecstasy, LSD, and ketamine in one day. After that experience, he decided he was probably done with psychedelics but left the door cracked a little and said he may reconsider down the road.The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.

Ed Prideaux became interested in psychedelics as a teen when he came across news about a Johns Hopkins study indicating psychedelic experiences were among the most meaningful experiences of study participants' lives. Ed also became interested in the music, culture, imagery, and use of psychedelics during the 1960s.Ed's story serves as a cautionary tale for anyone interested in psychedelics. As he started using psychedelics, he began experiencing anxiety and Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder or HPPD. Ed describes some of his trips and subsequent experiences with HPPD, including one in which the hiring manager at a job he interviewed for was saturated with psychedelic visuals and coated in a bright blue aura. Ed's experiences highlight the fact that, like most decisions in life, choosing to use psychedelics has risks that should be studied and understood. The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website. Links:Ed's Emaileddie.prideaux@gmail.comPerception FoundationA non-profit focused on ending the stigma, low awareness, poor treatments, and ill-understanding associated with Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder

Caroline Rabelo experienced feelings of depression and suicidal thoughts since she was a child. At the age of 13, Caroline convinced her parents to let her try medication for depression. Despite trying different medications, none of the prescriptions had lasting positive results and at age 16, Caroline attempted suicide. In 2017, Caroline signed up for a research study about familial depression. Her father also experienced depression and ended his life. The study gave Caroline access to different treatments and she chose to participate in ketamine therapy. Caroline discusses her experience with ketamine and describes how the treatments have given her breathing room from the constant negative self-talk she regularly experienced. While it hasn't cured her of depression, it has allowed her to experience feelings of happiness and accomplishment in life. The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.