My guest this week is Matt Zemon, editor of the excellent new book Psychedelics for Everyone: A Beginner’s Guide to These Powerful Medicines for Anxiety, Depression, Addiction, PTSD, and Expanding Consciousness (affiliate link). Matt also contributed several chapters to this book. This conversation is a great introduction to the world of psychedelics, and Matt is an excellent guide. He’s knowledgeable, compassionate, and he presents a balanced view of the potential place of psychedelics in our lives.

Topics we discussed included:

• What Matt means by “psychedelics for everyone” means
• The positive effects of psychedelics on a wide range of psychiatric conditions, especially those involving repetitive mental patterns
• Breaking old patterns of brain activity and creating new ones
• How psychedelics might have their powerful and lasting positive effects
• Effects of psychedelics in the spiritual domain
• Some of my guest’s spiritual experiences with psychedelics
• Different reasons that people approach psychedelic experimentation and use, including medical, spiritual, and libertarian
• Navigating the legal restrictions on psychedelic use
• Psychedelic churches
• Possible adverse effects of taking psychedelics
• David Nutt’s study on risk of harm from different psychoactive substances (create a free account with Lancet to view the full article)
• The possible role of fear and anxiety on reactions to psychedelics
• The side effects of psychedelics vs. those of existing prescription medications
• Paying attention to source, set, and setting
• People who should definitely not take a psychedelic substance
• SpiritPharmacist.com for medical consults and to discuss potential psychedelic use

Matt Zemon, MSc, is a dedicated explorer of the inner world, and a passionate advocate for the thoughtful and responsible use of psychedelics.

With a Master of Science in Psychology and Neuroscience of Mental Health with honors from King’s College London, Matt has studied the effects of psychedelics on the mind and the potential for these experiences to serve as a catalyst for positive transformations.

His work in this field is motivated by a profound desire to help people navigate the sometimes challenging terrain of the psychedelic experience, and emerge from it with a deeper sense of purpose, connection, and understanding—to reclaim their true self.

As an entrepreneur in the wellbeing sector, Matt has co-founded various companies, including:

• HAPPŸŸ, a mental wellness company specializing in psychedelic-assisted ketamine therapy
• PSYCHABLE, an online community connecting people who would like to explore the healing power of psychedelics with a network of practitioners and psychedelic-based treatments
• TAKE2MINUTES, a nonprofit dedicated to helping individuals improve their mental health and wellbeing.

For more information visit his website, find him on LinkedIn or Instagram, or contact Matt with your questions. You can order his excellent journal for psychedelic preparation and integration here: Beyond the Trip (affiliate link).

My guest this week is Thomas Moore, a psychotherapist and author of a new book entitled The Eloquence of Silence: Surprising Wisdom in Tales of Emptiness (affiliate link). I was so pleased to have the opportunity to speak with Thomas, since I’ve appreciated his work for about 25 years, going back to Care of the Soul.

Topics we discussed included:

• The role of emptiness in religion and spirituality
• The possibilities that emerge with emptiness
• Fostering emptiness as emptiness, not as a space to fill
• Qualities of emptiness that we often recognize and appreciate in others
• Dropping the anxious additions we often bring to our interactions
• The emptiness in good acting
• Finding the narratives that support unhelpful behaviors
• Everyday examples of emptiness in our lives
• Silence in the therapy room
• Finding meaning in or through emptiness
• Nicholas of Cusa, author of Sacred Ignorance
• The value in recognizing how little we know
• Emptying our concept of what we call “God”
• Unlearning enough that one is ready to teach
• Allowing emptiness to be empty
• Finding that life empties you regularly
• The disappointments that empty us out—and prepare us for an important change in our lives
• The difficulty in leaving space in our lives, and the importance of lessening busyness
• The close association of desire and soul
• The quiet that seems to have characterized my guest’s life
• The origins of Thomas’s fear of the water
• Thomas’s appreciation for the creative individuals in his family, including his wife Joan Hanley’s paintings; daughter Siobhán Moore, also known as the musician Ajeet; and stepson and architect Abraham Bendheim

Thomas Moore is the author of The Eloquence of Silence and 24 other books about bringing soul to our personal lives and culture.

He wrote the #1 New York Times bestseller Care of the Soul (affiliate link).

Thomas has been a Catholic monk and university professor and is also a psychotherapist influenced mainly by C. G. Jung and James Hillman.

His work brings together spirituality, mythology, depth psychology, and the arts, emphasizing the importance of images and imagination.

For more information visit his website.

My guest this week is psychologist Dr. Noam Shpancer, author of the novel The Good Psychologist (affiliate link). We explored the ongoing crisis in mental health among young people, and discussed possible ways to address it. I really enjoyed talking with Noam and hearing his insights and nuanced perspective on these issues.

My guest this week is Dr. Steve Hayes, one of the most influential psychologists of our time. The first time I had Steve on the podcast back in 2020 we discussed the fundamentals of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). This time you’ll see what those ideas look like in action. The second half of our discussion is Steve leading me through a series of invitations and explorations. It was a pretty incredible experience that I can’t really capture by trying to describe it, so I’m glad I can share it with you in this episode.

My guest this week is Dr. Mark Karris, author of the new book, The Diabolical Trinity: Healing Religious Trauma From a Wrathful God, Tormenting Hell, and a Sinful Self. Mark shared about the damaging effects this trio of doctrines can have on people, himself included, and how to heal.

Topics we discussed included:

• How certain religious beliefs themselves can be traumatic, apart from abusive, authoritarian leaders
• Differing effects of indoctrination in these beliefs early in life vs. later
• My guest’s own traumatic religious experiences
• Anxiety related to the belief in hell and “eternal conscious torment”
• The question of why some people have trauma reactions to these beliefs and other don’t
• Possible effects of the family or church environment in which diabolical beliefs were taught
• The similarities between some depictions of God and abusive partners
• A wrathful god as a possible vengeful projection of believers
• Seeing through persistent gut-level beliefs from harmful religious doctrines
• The practices Mark offers for healing from religious trauma
• The opportunity cost of not learning about a loving divine presence
• People who don’t want anything to do with even a benevolent deity
• The doctrine of universalism, that “love wins in the end”
• Different ways of understanding hell within the Christian tradition
• What my guest believes about God now

My guest this week is Thomas Sterner, whose latest book is It’s Just a Thought (affiliate link). As you know, your thoughts aren’t always helpful or true. In this conversation Tom and I talked about how to change your relationship with thoughts, which I think about a lot as CBT therapist. Just knowing that we’re thinking is a huge part of what’s helpful, but awareness alone is usually not enough. We need specific ways to practice new thinking. Tom shares some really interesting techniques for developing more helpful thought patterns.

My guest this week is Dr. John Astin, author of the excellent book, This Extraordinary Moment (affiliate link). John has a really mind-blowing way of seeing all of reality, as you’ll hear in this great conversation. We talked about familiar concepts from meditation and mindfulness—for example, awareness of reality and finding equanimity—but John expands the frame in a way that’s truly liberating. He shows again and again how the reality we usually take for granted is way more stunning than we can even imagine. The upshot of seeing with new eyes is that our happiness is no longer tied to the ups and downs of whatever is happening. I know you’ll take a lot from the wisdom and insights John shares.

My guest this week is Colin Campbell. He wrote an amazing book called Finding the Words: Working Through Profound Loss with Hope and Purpose (affiliate link), about his experience of incredible grief and loss. I really enjoyed talking with Colin—as you'll hear, he's frank, down-to-earth, compassionate. I know you'll get a lot out of this conversation.

My guest this week is Dr. Mitch Greene. Mitch is a sport psychologist and this is his third time on the podcast. This time we talked about his great new book, which I enjoyed reading, called Courage Over Confidence: Managing Mind Chatter and Winning the Mental Game (affiliate link). This is a great conversation for any competitive athlete, at any level—from doing weekend 5Ks to Olympic competition.

My guest this week is Dr. Brie Turns-Coe, an associate professor of marriage and family therapy and author of the excellent new book, Parent the Child You Have, Not the Child You Were (affiliate link).