About Other Psychedelics

Want to learn more about psychedelic science?

You’ve come to the right place.

Here are some of our favorite videos, articles, research, books, and podcasts for those looking to dive deeper into self-study.

Featured Reads

Psychedelic Justice: Toward a Diverse and Equitable Psychedelic Culture

As psychedelics and psychedelic-assisted therapies explode into the popular consciousness, what does it mean to cultivate and embody a psychedelic renaissance that learns from the past and prepares for the future?

From cultural appropriation and sustainability to diversity, inclusion and venture capitalism, this collection of essays examines the history of psychedelics, celebrates its present moment and contemplates how advocates and policymakers can shape the future integration of psychedelics into general society.

How To Change Your Mind

Michael Pollan

This #1 NY Times Bestseller turned Netflix special reveals new evidence on psychedelics, confirming their power to cure mental illness, ease depression and addiction, and help people die more peacefully.

While this information is important to the psychedelic movement, it also perpetuates the notion that healing comes from the medicine itself, rather than the medicine facilitating new and deeper human connection. It also hides the atrocities committed by some of the Western psychedelic founding fathers, effectively covering up the experiences of LGBTQ+ and POC individuals in psychedelic history.

Recommended Books About Psychedelics

The Immortality Key: The Secret History of the Religion with No Name
Renegade scholars in the 1970s claimed the Greek potion was psychedelic, just like the original Christian Eucharist that replaced it. In recent years, vindication for the disgraced theory has been quietly mounting in the laboratory. The rapidly growing field of archaeological chemistry has proven the ancient use of visionary drugs. And with a single dose of psilocybin, the psycho-pharmacologists at Johns Hopkins and NYU are now turning self-proclaimed atheists into instant believers. No one has ever found hard, scientific evidence of drugs connected to Eleusis, let alone early Christianity. Until now.
The Falling Sky: Words of a Yanomami Shaman
The Falling Sky is a remarkable first-person account of the life story and cosmo-ecological thought of Davi Kopenawa, shaman and spokesman for the Yanomami of the Brazilian Amazon. In a close collaboration with anthropologist Bruce Albert, Davi Kopenawa paints an unforgettable picture of Yanomami culture, past and present, in the heart of the rainforest.
María Sabina: Selections
A shaman and visionary—not a poet in any ordinary sense—María Sabina lived out her life in the Oaxacan mountain village of Huautla de Jiménez, and yet her words, always sung or spoken, have carried far and wide, a principal instance and a powerful reminder of how poetry can arise in a context far removed from literature as such. Seeking cures through language—with the help of Psilocybe mushrooms, said to be the source of language itself—she was, as Henry Munn describes her, “a genius [who] emerges from the soil of the communal, religious-therapeutic folk poetry of a native Mexican campesino people.” She may also have been, in the words of the Mexican poet Homero Aridjis, “the greatest visionary poet in twentieth-century Latin America.” These selections include a generous presentation from Sabina’s recorded chants and a complete English translation of her oral autobiography, her vida, as written and arranged in her native language by her fellow Mazatec Alvaro Estrada. Accompanying essays and poems include an introduction to “The Life of María Sabina” by Estrada, an early description of a nighttime “mushroom velada” by the ethnomycologist R. Gordon Wasson, an essay by Henry Munn relating the language of Sabina’s chants to those of other Mazatec shamans, and more.
Drug Use for Grown Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear
As one of the world's foremost experts on the subject, Dr. Carl L. Hart illuminates how the greatest damage from drugs flows from their being illegal, and provides a hopeful reckoning with the possibility of their use as part of a responsible and happy life. Hart argues definitively that the criminalization and demonization of drug use–not drugs themselves–have been a tremendous scourge on America, not least in reinforcing this country's enduring structural racism.
Handbook of Medical Hallucinogens
This is a great textbook for anyone seeking an overview of hallucinogens; from the neuroscience to therapeutic indications and purpose, to mystical, spiritual, and philosophical considerations, this book provides the reader with a well-rounded overview of the potential of psychedelic science to heal a variety of afflictions.
Black Therapists Rock: A Glimpse Through the Eyes of Experts
The black community is often thought of as an ongoing saga of reliance, incredible strength, and perseverance, in spite of a brutally harsh past. However, the obvious connection between mental health and racial oppression, health disparities, cultural differences, societal factors, poverty, and reduced quality of life, often goes unspoken. Although there is no single narrative, mental health and psychosocial wellness underpin many of the challenges experienced by black people. Black Therapists Rock has become a movement that is passionate about loudly speaking varied truths to begin the healing of emotional wounds that are multiple generations deep.
Acid Test: LSD, Ecstasy, and the Power to Heal
With the F.D.A. agreeing to new trials to test MDMA (better known as Ecstasy) as a treatment for PTSD—which, if approved, could be available as a drug by 2021—Acid Test is leading the charge in an evolving conversation about psychedelic drugs. Despite their current illegality, many Americans are already familiar with their effects. Yet while LSD and MDMA have proven extraordinarily effective in treating anxiety disorders such as PTSD, they still remain off-limits to the millions who might benefit from them. Through the stories of three very different men, award-winning journalist Tom Shroder covers the drugs’ roller-coaster history from their initial reception in the 1950s to the negative stereotypes that persist today. At a moment when popular opinion is rethinking the potential benefits of some illegal drugs, and with new research coming out every day, Acid Test is a fascinating and informative must-read.
How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence
Michael Pollan chronicles the long and storied history of psychedelic drugs, from their turbulent 1960s heyday to the resulting countermovement and backlash. Through his coverage of the recent resurgence in this field of research, as well as his own personal use of psychedelics via a "mental travelogue", Pollan seeks to illuminate not only the mechanics of the drugs themselves, but also the inner workings of the human mind and consciousness.
A unique and elegant blend of science, memoir, travel writing, history, and medicine, How to Change Your Mind is a triumph of participatory journalism. It is the gripping account of a journey to an exciting and unexpected new frontier in our understanding of the mind, the self, and our place in the world. The true subject of Pollan’s “mental travelogue” is not just psychedelic drugs but also the eternal puzzle of human consciousness and how, in a world that offers us both suffering and joy, we can do our best to be fully present and find meaning in our lives.
The Psychedelic Explorer’s Guide
In this fascinating book, James Fadiman, also known as the Father of Microdosing, explores the use of psychedelics for spiritual, therapeutic, and problem-solving growth. He presents practices for safe and successful psychedelic voyages, including the benefits of having a guide and how to be a guide, reviews the value of psychedelics for healing and self-discovery as well as how LSD has facilitated scientific and technical problem-solving, and finally, Fadiman reveals how microdosing improves cognitive functioning, emotional balance, and physical stamina
The Doors of Perception
Among the most profound explorations of the effects of mind-expanding drugs ever written, here are two complete classic books—The Doors of Perception and Heaven and Hell—in which Aldous Huxley, author of the bestselling Brave New World, reveals the mind’s remote frontiers and the unmapped areas of human consciousness.
PiHKAL: A Chemical Love Story
Alexander (better known as “Sasha”) and Ann Shulgin’s PiHKAL: A Chemical Love Story has become a foundational work in the genre and was the first book to fully impart the how-to chemistry, and convey the effects, of many of the entheogenic drugs that are currently being studied and used to heal trauma and deal with death. An acronym for “Phenethylamines I Have Known and Loved”, the book spans autobiography, organic chemistry, politics, ethnobotany, and psychopharmacology, and the cultural impact is likely to be profound for decades to come, as it has already.
TiHKAL: The Continuation
TiHKAL: The Continuation is the sequel to PiHKAL: A Chemical Love Story but can stand alone to any reader. Where PiHKAL focuses on a class of compounds called phenethylamines, TiHKAL is written about a family of psychoactive drugs known as tryptamines with TiHKAL being an acronym for “Tryptamines I Have Known and Loved”.

Videos About Psychedelics

Robin has been conducting pioneering brain imaging studies of psychedelic drugs. Most recently, he has completed the first phase of a clinical trial looking at the potential of psilocybin to treat depression, and his talk looks at how these drugs can be used in treatment.

Explore Lectures

UC Berkeley students have developed a class called Introduction to Psychedelic Science, in which experts give guest lectures to students on a variety of psychedelic-related topics. Dr.Grant has given lectures about Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy and Internal Family Systems several semesters in a row.

Browse the recordings of these lectures on their Youtube channel below.

Selected Research on Psychedelics

The Promise of Psychedelic Research
“The use of psychedelics as medicines and for overall better brain health is potentially one of the most transformative developments given their immediate and long-lasting therapeutic effects across a plethora of neuropsychiatric disorders and, more recently, some neurodegenerative diseases. The US psychedelic drugs market is forecasted to grow by 16.3% by 2027 due to the increasing prevalence of treatment-resistant depression and mental health disorders. This review [features] the incredible depth of research underway revealing how psychedelics impact brain structure and function to treat mental health and other neurological disorders.”
The Therapeutic Potential of Psychedelic Drugs: Past, Present, and Future
In this circumspective piece, RLC-H and GMG share their opinions on the promises and pitfalls of renewed psychedelic research, with a focus on the development of psilocybin as a treatment for depression.
The Psychedelic Renaissance and the Limitations of a White-Dominant Medical Framework: A Call for Indigenous and Ethnic Minority Inclusion
In recent years, the study of psychedelic science has resurfaced as scientists and therapists are again exploring its potential to treat an array of psychiatric conditions, such as depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and addiction. The scientific progress and clinical promise of this movement owes much of its success to the history of indigenous healing practices; yet the work of indigenous people, ethnic and racial minorities, women, and other disenfranchised groups is often not supported or highlighted in the mainstream narrative of psychedelic medicine. This review addresses this issue directly: first, by highlighting the traditional role of psychedelic plants and briefly summarizing the history of psychedelic medicine; second, through exploring the historical and sociocultural factors that have contributed to unequal research participation and treatment, thereby limiting the opportunities for minorities who ought to be acknowledged for their contributions. Finally, this review provides recommendations for broadening the Western medical framework of healing to include a cultural focus and additional considerations for an inclusive approach to treatment development and dissemination for future studies.
Survey of subjective “God encounter experiences”: Comparisons among naturally occurring experiences and those occasioned by the classic psychedelics psilocybin, LSD, ayahuasca, or DMT
Naturally occurring and psychedelic drug–occasioned experiences interpreted as personal encounters with God are well described but have not been systematically compared. In this study, five groups of individuals participated in an online survey with detailed questions characterizing the subjective phenomena, interpretation, and persisting changes attributed to their single most memorable God encounter experience (n = 809 Non-Drug, 1184 psilocybin, 1251 lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), 435 ayahuasca, and 606 N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT)). Analyses of differences in experiences were adjusted statistically for demographic differences between groups. The Non-Drug Group was most likely to choose "God" as the best descriptor of that which was encountered while the psychedelic groups were most likely to choose "Ultimate Reality." Although there were some other differences between non-drug and the combined psychedelic group, as well as between the four psychedelic groups, the similarities among these groups were most striking. Most participants reported vivid memories of the encounter experience, which frequently involved communication with something having the attributes of being conscious, benevolent, intelligent, sacred, eternal, and all-knowing. The encounter experience fulfilled a priori criteria for being a complete mystical experience in approximately half of the participants. More than two-thirds of those who identified as atheist before the experience no longer identified as atheist afterwards. These experiences were rated as among the most personally meaningful and spiritually significant lifetime experiences, with moderate to strong persisting positive changes in life satisfaction, purpose, and meaning attributed to these experiences. Among the four groups of psychedelic users, the psilocybin and LSD groups were most similar and the ayahuasca group tended to have the highest rates of endorsing positive features and enduring consequences of the experience. Future exploration of predisposing factors and phenomenological and neural correlates of such experiences may provide new insights into religious and spiritual beliefs that have been integral to shaping human culture since time immemorial.
Inclusion of People of Color in Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy: A Review of the Literature
In 1993, the United States National Institutes of Health issued a mandate that funded research must include participants of color and proposals must include methods for achieving diverse samples. A methodological search of psychedelic studies from 1993 to 2017 was conducted to evaluate ethnoracial differences in inclusion and effective methods of recruiting peopple of color.
Race As a Component of Set and Setting: How Experiences of Race Can Influence Psychedelic Experiences
Set and setting function both as a concept that guides research and practice with psychedelic drugs and as a meme aimed at reducing harm among psychedelic users. Referring to non-pharmacological factors that shape drug experiences, the concept of set and setting was popularized in the West during the mid-20th century. However, little theoretical development has occurred regarding what falls under the umbrella of set and setting since its conception. This paper argues that psychosocial factors influencing racial differences in mental health also constitute meaningful differences in set. Furthermore, it suggests that the character of race relations in the United States provides a distinct cultural setting for racialized psychedelic users, both in therapeutic and naturalistic contexts. In turn, racial identification may contribute to the variation in framing and interpretation of psychedelic experiences.
Diversity, equity, and access in psychedelic medicine
Although it is exciting to witness the culmination of decades of drug policy advocacy and clinical research, the psychedelic science movement struggles with many of the same social issues that plague healthcare in general. The healing properties of plant medicines and their derivatives were originally brought to Western consciousness by indigenous cultures from all over the world. These practices are now being adapted to Western models of healthcare, in part, to achieve governmental approval as medical treatments. The current models of psychedelic psychotherapy being utilized in clinical trials are resource-intensive and therefore likely to remain out of reach for the socioeconomically disadvantaged if approved as medical treatments. Moreover, people of color and women are uncommon in leadership positions in the psychedelic research community, and few people of color are included as research participants in psychedelic studies. This piece introduces a special issue with a focus on issues of diversity, equity, and accessibility in psychedelic medicine.
Culture and psychedelic psychotherapy: Ethnic and racial themes from three Black women therapists
African Americans have been absent from psychedelic research as both participants and researchers, and little attention has been paid to the potential of psychedelics to address traumas caused by racialization. This paper examines cultural themes and clinical applications from the one-time use of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) as part of an US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved clinical trial and training exercise for three African American female therapists. The primary themes that emerged across the varied experiences centered on strength, safety, connection, and managing oppression/racialization. The participants' experiences were found to be personally meaningful and instructive for how Western models of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy could be more effective and accessible to the Black community.