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12 of Our Great Reads from 2021

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12 of Our Great Reads from 2021

As pandemic restrictions waned for the better part of 2021, the psychedelic renaissance expanded further. Drug policy reforms continued to sweep the nation, researchers investigated pressing questions in their field, and psychedelic businesses have attracted even more investment and attention, sparking questions about how to ethically navigate the industry’s maturation. Meanwhile, a rising tide of celebrities opened up about their psychedelic experiences, including the President’s son. 

With the year winding down, we’d like to offer some great reads (and a video) we published in 2021 that you may have missed the first time around. In light of renewed Covid-19 concerns, we wish you safety and good health.

1. Researchers Debate the Role of Mysticism in Psychedelic Science by Don Lattin 

As psychedelic-assisted therapies enter the medical and pharmaceutical mainstream, some scientists are pushing back against a mystical mindset that permeates much of this growing movement.

2. How Freaks of Color Shaped Psychedelia by Erik Davis

BIPOC artists, from Jimi Hendrix to Parliament-Funkadelic, shaped the 60s and 70s psychedelic subculture. 

3. Rick Doblin Explains MAPS’ New $70 Million Investment Fund With Vine Ventures by Ann Harrison and Ken Jordan

In an exclusive interview, Doblin discusses MAPS’s goal to raise $150 over the next three years, and their $70 million investment fund with Vine Ventures to help meet that funding goal.

4. Mystical Experience Defines Psychedelics by Chris Kilham

With true psychedelics, the one essential bedrock factor is that they can and often do generate a mystical experience that is life changing.

5. Women On Psychedelic Leadership: A Roundtable Discussion by Hadas Alterman

Three women changing the landscape of psychedelics – Charlotte Blocker, Julie Holland, and Melissa Lavasani – discuss being bossy, psychedelic policies, SSRIs, and the power of storytelling.

6. Is There a Dependable Way to Induce an Ego Death Experience with Psychedelics? By Your Psuchedelic Auntie

This month Auntie considers if there is a dependable way to create an ego death experience with psychedelics, if mushrooms can permanently damage your eyesight or your brain, and if mixing GHB and alcohol can lead to life threatening respiratory depression. 

7. New York City Opens First U.S. Overdose Prevention Centers by Allan Steiner and Ann Harrison

Amid record overdose deaths, New York City has opened the first overdose prevention centers despite mixed signals from the Biden Administration.

8. Grandparents of Psychedelics Ann and Sasha Shulgin Honored by Friends and Fellow Researchers by Katie Stone

Psychedelic pioneers gather to reflect on the enduring legacy of Ann and Sasha Shulgin and on psychedelic science, policy, and culture.

9. Michael Pollan’s Adventures with Opium, Caffeine and Mescaline by James Penner

Pollan’s new book, “This Is Your Mind On Plants,” reintroduces the Huxleyan tradition of cultivating spiritual and aesthetic experiences with psychedelics.

10. What Nine Perfect Strangers Can Teach Us About Psychedelic Therapy by Nicki Adams

Psychedelic therapists weigh in on Hulu’s Nine Perfect Strangers, and offer advice for those seeking safe and ethical treatment. 

11. The Faux Shamanism of Jake “Angeli” Chansley by Mitch Mignano

The “QAnon Shaman,” who offered to testify against Trump at this week’s impeachment hearings, fancies himself a shamanic trickster. But shamanic authorities and practitioners like Dennis McKenna see him as a huckster and a clown.

12. Hunter Biden’s Admission Of Toad Venom Use Signals A Sea Change For Addiction Treatments by David Carpenter

His desperate search for sobriety led him to Mexico for treatment using 5-MeO-DMT, reflecting a growing interest in psychedelic-assisted therapies for addiction.

Video: How LSD Helped Me Stop Hating the World and Start Loving Myself by Mareesa Stertz

In this episode of Adventures of the Psyche, Yarelix Estrada recounts how her first trip with LSD turned into an adventure that taught her how to stop hating the world and start loving herself.

Main Image: Nicki Adams

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