Mental health is a huge and growing problem, and psychedelic medicine is suddenly on a fast track toward legalization. Ayahuasca is a traditional medicine used in the Amazon for hundreds of years as part of healing ceremonies. Its use has been largely confined to retreat settings, but as mental health professionals seek new options for treating depression, anxiety, and PTSD among other conditions, many are looking to the past to inform the future of psychiatric medicine. My guest on this week's podcast is at the forefront of the movement.

Listen and learn:

• About the curious combination of plants that create this drug
• Set and setting considerations for traditional use
• Legal and safety concerns
• Ceremonial vs. clinical use
• The "pill for an ill" risk vs. the reality of potential benefits

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Dr. Simon Ruffell is a psychiatrist known for his research on ayahuasca and study of curanderismo. Since 2016, he has collaborated with Indigenous communities in the Amazon basin to investigate the traditional use of ayahuasca and its effects on mental health.

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