Mind Manifest Podcast

In today’s podcast, I spoke with Dr. Michael Winlo and Dr. Alistair Vickery, who are the respective managing and medical directors of Emyria - a drug development company that specializes in the fast-track development of novel therapies for difficult to treat conditions.

In today’s podcast, I spoke with Chris Letheby. Dr. Letheby is a philosopher working on issues related to the therapeutic and transformative potential of classic psychedelic drugs - check out his full bio below.

As an academic philosopher, Chris has epistemological and logical expertise, (as well as a keen understanding of both the philosophy of science and psychiatry), but his key areas of specialization lie in the fields of philosophy of mind and cognitive science.

In today’s podcast, I spoke with Stephen Bright. Stephen is a clinically trained psychologist with a wealth of experience in both the fields of Addictions research and psychedelic research/advocacy. Stephen has been consistently pushing for a more nuanced and comprehensive discussion pertaining to sensible drug use in Australia,

In today’s podcast We Discuss;

The TGA’s interim decision to not amend the current scheduling of MDMA,

The recent appointment of an independent expert panel to undertake a review into the potential therapeutic value of MDMA and psilocybin,

The comparison of FDA and TGA scheduling,

TGA’s Special Access Scheme

PRISM’s position on the recent move to reschedule MDMA and Psilocybin,

Stephen’s desire to have these substances available through Australia’s public health system,

How Private and Public Sector healthcare service providers might best interface in the psychedelic space,

The concept of ‘corporadelics’, and Stephen’s concern about large corporations like Atai Life Sciences and Compass Pathways potentially monopolizing the space,

Tulip mania and the potential for a the emergence of a psychedelic stock bubble,

The difference between decriminalization and the rescheduling of drugs

National Drug Strategy Household Survey Data showing an uptick in the use of psychedelics

The need to balance private venture with regulatory oversight and the U bend of regulation

Stephen’s experience at the rainbow serpent festival and dancewize

Stephen’s experience in training as an MDMA-assisted psychotherapist with MAPS, and watching Michael Mithoefer at work

The potential for a general underestimation of the profundity of experience of the MDMA assisted psychotherapy, especially if the client has unprocessed trauma,

The differences in integration patterns between psychedelic substances,

Internal Family Systems and its relationship to MDMA assisted psychotherapy

The difference between evidence-based and evidence informed practice

The concept of inner healing intelligence and different models that may support MDMA,

MDMA’s capacity to produce visceral feelings of safety

The work of Tobias Penno

The documentary, ‘Trip of Compassion’

Stephen’s definition of the concept of ‘holding space’

The need for Clinician’s to have a personal experience of MDMA in order to more deeply understand the process

The emergence of psychedelic integration circles in Australia

Dr Bright’s University course in addiction studies at Edith Cowan University

The need for project managers and those with an understanding of drug development pathways to enter the space

Stephen’s Ted Talk

How to Support the Australian Psychedelic Society, Entheogeneis Australis, and PRISM

In today’s episode, we spoke to Michelle Baker-Jones, one of the lead guides on the current Imperial College Randomised Control Trial (Psilodep 2) which is comparing the efficacy of Psilocybin with Anti-Depressants for the treatment of depressive disorder. Michelle is personable, thoughtful, and - as an integrative psychotherapist - seem to have good scope for how psychedelics can be best contextualised within the overall treatment regimen for clients suffering from depression.

In this episode, I spoke with Suresh Muthukumaraswamy - a pioneer in the field of psychedelic research in New Zealand. His research team are embarking on the first government-sanctioned LSD micro-dosing trial in the history of his home country.

In a space where many activists hide in scientists clothing, it is good to know when you are talking with the real thing - someone who seems to be in search of truth before tenure.

The perennial problem of ‘blinding’ in psychedelic research is somewhat circumnavigated at sub-perceptual doses of LSD, and what we will learn from such studies might just be the island of signal in an ocean of noise. It was a pleasure to talk to him.

Thanks for listening, check out more at mindmanifestpodcast.com

If you have any questions, queries or suggestions for people you would like to hear interviewed, please email [email protected] - we love to hear from listeners!

I recently spoke to Dr Maragaret Ross, a Senior Clinical Psychologist at St Vincent’s Hospital in Melbourne. We spoke about her upcoming trial. For a long time, there has not been an antipodean star on the psychedelic research map, but the commencement of this study (and the resounding wave of public support it has generated) bode very well for the future of psychedelic research in Australia. As you will hear, Margaret attended a lecture on psychedelics and felt a visceral sense of responsibility to use her expertise and connections to help bring the psychedelic renaissance back to Australia. She did what many do not - she turned an intention into action and actually answered the call to adventure. I hope you enjoy this conversation

Thanks for listening, check out more at mindmanifestpodcast.com

If you have any questions, queries or suggestions for people you would like to hear interviewed, please email [email protected]

We love to hear from listeners!

I recently spoke to Greg Donaldson in the Library of the Psychosynthesis Trust, located in the heart of London. Greg is a personable, balanced and thoughtful psychotherapist, and I really enjoyed talking to him. Greg is part of the team of therapists who will be working with participants in the Double-Blind, Randomised Control Trial comparing the efficacy of psilocybin with conventional SSRI treatment for depression.

The therapeutic modality of Psychosynthesis

Roberto Assagioli

Greg’s practice and philosophy of emerging purpose

‘Autonomous sub-personalities’ and how their problematic manifestation in client’s day to day life is often the reason they intially seek therapy

The inner tyrant as the ‘king of the ghetto’

How the autonomous sub-personality of ‘achiever’ can monopolise people’s behaviour

The technique of ‘Chair Work’

Greg’s belief that therapists should set up therapeutic ‘base camps’ at the foot of the client’s discomfort

How Greg deals with clients’ ‘inner Mark Corrigan’

Greg’s role-play with Bill Richards and how he got involved with the Imperial College psychedelic research team.

Our concerns around the culture of psychedelics as cure-alls

Greg’s terrible grasp of the phrase ‘shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted’

The Double-blind, Randomised Control Trial - Psilocybin for Major Depression…

…and the therapeutic protocol for the study

The implicit ‘hug’ of a therapy session

Our preference for ‘free’ over ‘safe’ spaces

The pervasive issue of publication bias in psychology, and how the ongoing direction of optimal integration of psychedelics should not be wholly directed by current paradigms of ‘best practice’

Psilocybin nasal sprays

Peter Attia, Debra Kimless and Steve Goldner discussing THC and CBD

This ‘Pollanic’ (a.k.a. - polemic written by Michael Pollan)

Charles Raison’s work into the relative importance of ‘access’ vs ‘phenomenal’ consciousness in the psychedelic experience

Greg’s clinical practice

Psychosynthesis

Thanks for listening, check out more at mindmanifestpodcast.com

If you have any questions, queries or suggestions for people you would like to hear interviewed, please email [email protected] We love to hear from listeners!

In this episode, I sat down with David Luke. David is Senior Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Greenwich. Dave is co-founder and current chair of Breaking Convention, Europe’s largest interdisciplinary conference exploring psychedelic science and culture.

David straddles two very different worlds – he operates within the conventional academy of the social sciences, whilst also maintaining a deep interest in esoterica and parapsychology. Dr Luke directs the Ecology, Cosmos and Consciousness salon, as well as conducting field experiments with DMT and clinical research with LSD.

I would still describe myself as a philosophical materialist but I find hyper materialist - like any other extremist thinkers – both intellectually tedious and ideologically dangerous. It was in this spirit I wanted to talk to David – I want to have good-faith conversations, in-person, with nice people (who I might disagree with). The goal is to see if they can teach me something and maybe vice versa.

We didn’t really get into the weeds of parapsychology for several reasons.

I had very limited time with David as I had to rush off from London to Bristol to attend another event. Think of this as an introductory chat - I’m sure we will sit down again.

I need to be a bit more knowledgable on the actual claims within the field of parapsychology

I’m not a sociopath – I always seek to find common ground with people before reflexively disagreeing with them. And the good news is I feel we did this…

Having consumed a good deal of David’s content, I think we share a similar frustration with a scientific tendency in psychological research to not just dismiss outlier findings but to go too far - to repudiate them. This leads to a regression to the mean of both scientific innovations and applied outcomes Furthermore it is just plain lazy - it abdicates the responsibility to explain findings which simply do not fit inside your neat little paradigm.

So let’s all keep an open mind, without letting our brains fall out. I think it is healthy for David and researchers like him to make extraordinary claims, and I feel it is appropriate for interlocutors like me to demand extraordinary evidence. This back and forth should proceed with mirth, goodwill and a fundamental sensibility for the fact that the person you are talking likely knows something you don’t!

I really enjoyed Davids company, I get the feeling he takes what he does very seriously, whilst not taking himself too seriously at all. That is as it should be.

In this Podcast we discuss:

Anechoic Chambers,

The concept of Dark Retreats,

David’s Collaboration with Haroon Mirza,

The role of Art as a legitimate arm of the scientific vanguard

The problem of expectancy bias and priming effects in psychological research

Absorption as a potential correlate to psychedelic states

Temporal lobe lability

The relevance of epilepsy to psychedelic science

The potential similarity between the ominous experience of ‘sensed presence’ between sufferers of sleep paralysis and those who reported an ‘ominous presence’ within the anechoic chamber

David’s agnosticism around the concept trans-cerebral Consciousness

Parapsychology

We introduce the concept of, ‘antirithm’ - consuming content that is antithetical to the bubbles the algorithms are pushing us all into.

David’s DMT research

Bundle of content related to David’s more conventional work

Bundle of content related to parapsychology

The value of non-drug altered states as psychedelic experiences...

Thanks for listening, check out more at mindmanifestpodcast.com

If you have any questions, queries or suggestions for people you would like to hear interviewed, please email [email protected] . We love to hear from listeners!

The phenomena of cognitive biases are as pernicious as they are profound. The intractable presence of bias is an issue in every field of experimental science, and psychedelic research is by no means immune.

Developing a sound understanding of how they are caused and how to control for them is a great way to prevent them from running roughshod over your inner world of thought, and will help the psychedelic community prevent against the development of a prevailing culture of ideologically (as opposed to empirically) motivated research.

Thanks for listening, check out more at mindmanifestpodcast.com

If you have any questions, queries or suggestions for people you would like to hear interviewed, please email [email protected] . We love to hear from listeners!

Today we spoke with Torsten Passie MD, PhD. Torsten is Professor of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy at Hannover Medical School (Germany) and currently Visiting Scientist at Goethe University in Frankfurt/Main (Germany).

He studied philosophy, sociology (MA) at Leibniz-University, Hannover and medicine at Hannover Medical School.

From 1998 to 2010 he was a scientist and psychiatrist at Hannover Medical school (Germany) where he researched the addictions and the psychophysiology of altered states of consciousness and their healing potential, including clinical research with hallucinogenic drugs (cannabis, ketamine, nitrous oxide, psilocybin). In 2012-2015 he was Visiting Professor at Harvard Medical School (Boston, USA).

He is the author of the science of microdosing psychedelics, available through Psychedelic Press.

We discussed

-Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder

-MDMA assisted psychotherapy

-The future of psychedelic training for health professionals

Thanks for listening, check out more at mindmanifestpodcast.com

If you have any questions, queries or suggestions for people you would like to hear interviewed, please email [email protected] . We love to hear from listeners!