The Personal Pizza Podcast

In the premiere episode of the Personal Pizza Podcast, host Simcha Levenberg sits down with psychedelic therapist Uri Kugel for a powerful, mind-expanding conversation on how psychedelics are transforming mental health treatment.

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2G2mZruJg4k

🔥 From cannabis to ketamine, MDMA to mushroom therapy—Uri breaks down the myths, the science, and the soul of psychedelic medicine. He shares raw personal stories and clinical insights on treating depression, anxiety, and trauma—while exploring the crucial differences between "drugs" and true medicine.

💨 Learn how breath work, meditation, and touch become essential tools in healing journeys.
 🌱 Understand the careful conditions under which psychedelic use can become a path to deep, lasting change.
🧘‍♂️ Discover how spiritual practice meets modern therapy in this unforgettable first episode.

Whether you're a skeptic, a seeker, or simply curious—this conversation will challenge your perspective and ignite your curiosity.

Purchase Uri's book: Deep Work: Navigating the Psycho-Spiritual Journey at https://a.co/d/hhLxwZM 

Simcha Levenberg (https://slevenberg.com/)  is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in the state of California. He uses a unique blend of humor, authenticity and real world knowledge. Simcha helps individuals clarify their personal values and live a present and more meaningful life. He helps couples transform their relationships to be more open and emotionally flexible. 

This show is Produced by Rainbow Creative with Matthew Jones and Executive Producer, Editor Jeremiah Shultz. This episode also had the support of Producer Evy Bjorn. To learn more about how to make a podcast for you and your business, visit rainbowcreative.co https://www.rainbowcreative.co/

00:00 Introduction to Psychedelics in Therapy

02:27 Defining Medicine and Drugs

05:16 Exploring Spirituality in Therapy

11:53 Organic vs. Synthetic Compounds

21:32 Intimacy in Therapy

27:59 Ego and Its Formation

38:23 Understanding Physical Reactions to Psychedelics

39:50 Psychotherapy and Narrative Resistance

40:43 The Process of Undoing Resistance

41:28 Preparing for Psychedelic Work

41:43 The Role of Meditation and Breathwork

43:35 Assessing Readiness for Psychedelics

47:31 The Impact of Psychedelics on Mental Health

49:25 Cannabis as a Therapeutic Tool

56:12 MDMA and Emotional Healing

59:01 Ketamine and Dissociative Therapy

01:03:53 Somatic Work in Therapy

01:12:51 The Metaphor of Doors in Psychedelic Experiences

01:14:29 Closing Remarks and Personal Reflections

The Personal Pizza Podcast is a deliciously different podcast that merges clinical psychology, comedy, and pizza. Simcha Levenberg, a unique therapist with a love for baking pizza, invites guests to his home for a slice of pizza and a slice of life.

Each episode dives into a variety of topics that affect our mental health: cooking and emotional well-being, loneliness, psychedelics and metabolizing trauma (or not), large group awareness trainings, complicated bereavement, spiritual traps, and the complicated relationships we have with others (and ourselves) - while simultaneously crafting and sharing some fantastic homemade pizza.

This show is more than just food for thought – we are breaking bread to build connections. Mental health professionals, comedians, writers, and chefs sit around the table, making sense of confusing relationships, finding humor in unexpected places, and discovering the wisdom in our shared human experiences.

Come for the pizza, stay for the insights. Therapy is better with pizza, trust me.

Coming in 2025.

This show is Produced by Rainbow Creative by Executive Producers Evy Bjorn, Matthew Jones, Director of Photography Patrick Edwards, Editor Jeremiah Schultz and Graphic Designer Mohamed Naser