Episode

#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
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1:38:58
Published: Thu Mar 21 2019
Description

Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics | Brought to you by 99designs and Athletic Greens."An overactive ego is a tyrant." - Michael PollanMichael Pollan (@michaelpollan) is the author of seven previous books, including Cooked, Food Rules, In Defense of Food, The Omnivore's Dilemma, and The Botany of Desire, all of which were New York Times bestsellers. A longtime contributor to The New York Times Magazine, he also teaches writing at Harvard and the University of California, Berkeley where he is the John S. and James L. Knight Professor of Science Journalism. In 2010, TIME magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world.His newest book is How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence, which will be available as a paperback in May.And if you haven't yet, check out "Trip of Compassion", which is the most compelling movie I've seen in the last year. It documents one unusual approach to healing trauma that might astonish you, an innovative treatment involving the psychoactive drug MDMA (commonly known as “ecstasy”). As you will see firsthand, if the therapy is well designed, true rebirth and transformation can happen in a matter of weeks and not years. Find out more by clicking here. Click here for the show notes for this episode.This podcast is brought to you by Athletic Greens. I get asked all the time, "If you could only use one supplement, what would it be?" My answer is, inevitably, Athletic Greens. It is my all-in-one nutritional insurance. I recommended it in The 4-Hour Body and did not get paid to do so.As a listener of The Tim Ferriss Show, you'll get a free 20-count travel pack (valued at $79) with your first order at athleticgreens.com/tim.This podcast is also brought to you by 99designs, the global creative platform that makes it easy for designers and clients to work together to create designs they love. Its creative process has become the go-to solution for businesses, agencies, and individuals, and I have used it for years to help with display advertising and illustrations and to rapid prototype the cover for The Tao of Seneca. Whether your business needs a logo, website design, business card, or anything you can imagine, check out 99designs.You can work with multiple designers at once to get a bunch of different ideas, or hire the perfect designer for your project based based on their style and industry specialization. It's simple to review concepts and leave feedback so you'll end up with a design that you're happy with. Click this link and get a free $99 upgrade.***If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts/iTunes? It takes less than 60 seconds, and it really makes a difference in helping to convince hard-to-get guests. I also love reading the reviews!For show notes and past guests, please visit tim.blog/podcast.Sign up for Tim’s email newsletter (“5-Bullet Friday”) at tim.blog/friday.For transcripts of episodes, go to tim.blog/transcripts.Interested in sponsoring the podcast? Please fill out the form at tim.blog/sponsor.Discover Tim’s books: tim.blog/books.Follow Tim:Twitter: twitter.com/tferriss Instagram: instagram.com/timferrissFacebook: facebook.com/timferriss YouTube: youtube.com/timferrissPast guests on The Tim Ferriss Show include Jerry Seinfeld, Hugh Jackman, Dr. Jane Goodall, LeBron James, Kevin Hart, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Jamie Foxx, Matthew McConaughey, Esther Perel, Elizabeth Gilbert, Terry Crews, Sia, Yuval Noah Harari, Malcolm Gladwell, Madeleine Albright, Cheryl Strayed, Jim Collins, Mary Karr, Maria Popova, Sam Harris, Michael Phelps, Bob Iger, Edward Norton, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Neil Strauss, Ken Burns, Maria Sharapova, Marc Andreessen, Neil Gaiman, Neil de Grasse Tyson, Jocko Willink, Daniel Ek, Kelly Slater, Dr. Peter Attia, Seth Godin, Howard Marks, Dr. Brené Brown, Eric Schmidt, Michael Lewis, Joe Gebbia, Michael Pollan, Dr. Jordan Peterson, Vince Vaughn, Brian Koppelman, Ramit Sethi, Dax Shepard, Tony Robbins, Jim Dethmer, Dan Harris, Ray Dalio, Naval Ravikant, Vitalik Buterin, Elizabeth Lesser, Amanda Palmer, Katie Haun, Sir Richard Branson, Chuck Palahniuk, Arianna Huffington, Reid Hoffman, Bill Burr, Whitney Cummings, Rick Rubin, Dr. Vivek Murthy, Darren Aronofsky, and many more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Chapters
Tim Ferriss deconstructs world-class performers on his podcast, where he interviews people who excel in their field.
00:00 - 04:08 (04:08)
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Podcast
Summary

Tim Ferriss deconstructs world-class performers on his podcast, where he interviews people who excel in their field. The episode also includes advertisements for 99Designs and Athletic Greens.

Episode
#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
Podcast
The Tim Ferriss Show
Hear about the true meaning of the word psychedelic and its origins from the 1950s, as well as its familiar association with the 1960s counterculture.
04:08 - 11:21 (07:12)
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Psychedelics
Summary

Hear about the true meaning of the word psychedelic and its origins from the 1950s, as well as its familiar association with the 1960s counterculture.

Episode
#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
Podcast
The Tim Ferriss Show
The duration of effect of psychedelic compounds has been questioned by scientists, but many professionals in the underground have described their positive properties in facilitating behavior change in patients suffering from disorders such as addiction, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and eating disorders.
11:21 - 24:00 (12:39)
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Psychedelics
Summary

The duration of effect of psychedelic compounds has been questioned by scientists, but many professionals in the underground have described their positive properties in facilitating behavior change in patients suffering from disorders such as addiction, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and eating disorders.

Episode
#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
Podcast
The Tim Ferriss Show
Psychedelics have shown the potential to create right-angled turns in the mind and provide a new perspective on traumatic experiences, allowing individuals to break free from destructive narratives enforced by the ego and find positive paths forward.
24:00 - 33:26 (09:25)
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Psychedelics
Summary

Psychedelics have shown the potential to create right-angled turns in the mind and provide a new perspective on traumatic experiences, allowing individuals to break free from destructive narratives enforced by the ego and find positive paths forward. Despite the practical and political challenges of researching LSD, it remains an important tool for social history and could be a valuable resource for those seeking therapeutic benefits.

Episode
#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
Podcast
The Tim Ferriss Show
The speaker shares their personal experiences with psychedelics while writing a book about the topic, including a high dose psilocybin experience guided by someone they trusted.
33:26 - 40:23 (06:57)
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Psychedelics
Summary

The speaker shares their personal experiences with psychedelics while writing a book about the topic, including a high dose psilocybin experience guided by someone they trusted.

Episode
#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
Podcast
The Tim Ferriss Show
The speaker shares their experience with a consciousness-altering substance and how it led to their understanding of the ego and its relation to the self.
40:23 - 48:26 (08:02)
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Psychedelics
Summary

The speaker shares their experience with a consciousness-altering substance and how it led to their understanding of the ego and its relation to the self.

Episode
#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
Podcast
The Tim Ferriss Show
Ali Rezai discusses the progress being made in psychiatric and neuroscientific research and emphasizes the need for both fields to collaborate in order to understand and treat mental health disorders more effectively.
48:26 - 52:54 (04:28)
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Psychiatry, Neuroscience
Summary

Ali Rezai discusses the progress being made in psychiatric and neuroscientific research and emphasizes the need for both fields to collaborate in order to understand and treat mental health disorders more effectively.

Episode
#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
Podcast
The Tim Ferriss Show
The default mode network is a brain network that connects the cortex to older, deeper areas of memory and emotion, and its activity is suppressed during certain activities.
52:54 - 58:38 (05:43)
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brain
Summary

The default mode network is a brain network that connects the cortex to older, deeper areas of memory and emotion, and its activity is suppressed during certain activities. Recent studies have shown that the brain communicates through both chemistry and wave action to organize brain activity.

Episode
#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
Podcast
The Tim Ferriss Show
The demand for psychedelic therapy is increasing, but there is a risk of unqualified people claiming to be therapists.
58:38 - 1:07:44 (09:05)
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Psychedelic Therapy
Summary

The demand for psychedelic therapy is increasing, but there is a risk of unqualified people claiming to be therapists. The underground nature of psychedelics also makes it difficult to regulate, and research may face opposition from some individuals.

Episode
#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
Podcast
The Tim Ferriss Show
This podcast explores the dangers of dosing people with drugs, the LD50 lethal dose, and the high percentage of people who seek psychiatric help after using psilocybin in non-clinical settings.
1:07:44 - 1:11:30 (03:46)
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Drugs
Summary

This podcast explores the dangers of dosing people with drugs, the LD50 lethal dose, and the high percentage of people who seek psychiatric help after using psilocybin in non-clinical settings.

Episode
#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
Podcast
The Tim Ferriss Show
The use of psychedelic therapy to treat mental disorders is explored in this podcast episode, with reference to the work of famous psychedelic psychiatrist Stanislav Groff and his influence on Robin Carhart-Harris and others.
1:11:30 - 1:18:05 (06:34)
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Psychedelic therapy
Summary

The use of psychedelic therapy to treat mental disorders is explored in this podcast episode, with reference to the work of famous psychedelic psychiatrist Stanislav Groff and his influence on Robin Carhart-Harris and others. The forms of mental disorders that show positive responses to psychedelic therapy are discussed, alongside the potential risks involved.

Episode
#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
Podcast
The Tim Ferriss Show
The most productive scientists working with psychedelics devote a lot of their time to writing grants for non-psychedelic research.
1:18:05 - 1:24:20 (06:14)
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Psychedelic Research
Summary

The most productive scientists working with psychedelics devote a lot of their time to writing grants for non-psychedelic research. However, investing money in research labs such as Roland Griffiths or UCSF can be a highly leveraged and effective way to facilitate research on the compounds and better understand the human mind.

Episode
#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
Podcast
The Tim Ferriss Show
The podcast host suggests obtaining James Fadiman's book, The Psychedelic Explorer's Guide, as it offers good advice for those seeking or shopping for a guide.
1:24:20 - 1:30:49 (06:29)
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Psychedelics
Summary

The podcast host suggests obtaining James Fadiman's book, The Psychedelic Explorer's Guide, as it offers good advice for those seeking or shopping for a guide. Additionally, reading books published by maps.org and watching documentaries can help individuals understand what a good guide looks like and the transformative power of psychedelics on people's lives.

Episode
#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
Podcast
The Tim Ferriss Show
Ketamine therapy has become a potential last hope for people suffering from depression, addiction, or trauma.
1:30:49 - 1:35:46 (04:56)
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Ketamine Therapy
Summary

Ketamine therapy has become a potential last hope for people suffering from depression, addiction, or trauma. Legal ketamine clinics across the US often make referrals if patients are not considered suitable for ketamine therapy.

Episode
#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
Podcast
The Tim Ferriss Show
99designs is an online platform connecting businesses with professional designers, where users can get their design needs met, whether for a book cover, website or logos.
1:35:46 - 1:38:45 (02:59)
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99designs
Summary

99designs is an online platform connecting businesses with professional designers, where users can get their design needs met, whether for a book cover, website or logos.

Episode
#365: Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics
Podcast
The Tim Ferriss Show