Episode 33, available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube
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“What we see during a psychedelic experience is that (the) default mode network (the part of your brain that acts like the operating system) that kind of controls (the) allocation of resources...just slows down a little bit, gives up a little bit of control. There's no risk physically. Psychedelics are some of the safest drugs and have almost no 'LD 50,' which means you can't really overdose on them... But in the mind, it seems to tone down that piece where the ego resides, that piece of your consciousness that keeps your identity so crisp (and) hardly defined.”
Today’s episode of Keep Talking features Ronan Levy, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of Field Trip Health. During the conversation, Ronan talks about his journey into the psychedelic space, how currently-available ketamine therapy can help those with anxiety and depression, the possibility of the legalization of MDMA therapy in 2023, how Field Trip Health aims to provide a medically-supervised professional "set and setting" for those who choose to have a psychedelic experience, the efficacy of psychedelics on treating psychological disease, and how the legalization of medicinal psychedelic use might transform and improve our society.
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Time Stamps:
(00:00) Intro
(00:52) Get to know Ronan Levy
(04:58) Ronan’s decision to quit the legal world
(07:46) The five big personality traits and Ronan taking the road less traveled
(15:44) The past, present, and future of Field Trip Health
(23:26) Ketamine-assisted therapy's psychological benefits
(31:13) Psychedelic-assisted therapy's ability to address psychological trauma
(38:20) Reasons why people avoid psychedelic therapy
(44:06) The benefits of psychedelic-assisted therapy and its future
(50:30) Dissolving the superstition and stigma of psychosis
(58:36) Validating psychedelic-assisted therapy with facts and data
(01:04:58) Psychedelic-assisted therapy for a more healthy, cohesive society
(01:12:53) Currently-available resources for people to alleviate their mental health issues
Quotes:
“When you're on a ketamine drip, which is a very pleasant experience… there's certainly some neurogenic positive effects from it. What we do is we use intramuscular injection, which (gives you a) relaxed feeling, but you go way deeper into the experience… and you have much more of a psychedelic experience. And during that psychedelic experience, people often are able to revisit past traumas, past experiences of past moments in their lives, that may be one of the underlying driving causes of their mental, emotional and behavioral health challenges. And with that awareness, you're still getting all the benefits of ketamine as a chemical, but you're also getting this hyper-accelerated form of therapy – you're getting to the breakthroughs that people try and get throughout cognitive behavioral therapy or talk therapy. Instead of taking months or years to get there, you get there in an afternoon or two afternoons.”
“I'm a big believer that everybody should do therapy and everybody would benefit from cognitive behavioral therapy (and) talk therapy. It helps get you in touch with your emotions. It helps you process your emotions, it helps you understand some of your biases and perspectives.”
“I'm trying to get better at processing my anger on the fly instead of letting it build up. And it's these little skill sets which can be learned through therapy, but on a much more expedited, efficient basis with psychedelic-assisted therapies.”
“What we see during a psychedelic experience is that (the) default mode network (the part of your brain that acts like the operating system) that kind of controls (the) allocation of resources...just slows down a little bit, gives up a little bit of control. There's no risk physically. Psychedelics are some of the safest drugs and have almost no 'LD 50,' which means you can't really overdose on them... But in the mind, it seems to tone down that piece where the ego resides, that piece of your consciousness that keeps your identity so crisp (and) hardly defined.”
“If we can create an environment where people just start to see humanity differently, and their health and their well being differently, and set the standard and open up medicine to a softer, maybe even a slightly spiritual side of things, I think that (would) do wonders.”
Resources Mentioned:
People Mentioned (Quotes from Wikipedia and relevant websites):
- Joseph del Moral - "Joseph del Moral is the Co-Founder and CEO at Field Trip Health."
- Ryan Yermus – "Dr. Ryan Yermus is the Co-Founder and Chief Clinical Officer at Field Trip Health."
- Peter Thiel – “Peter Andreas Thiel is a German-American billionaire entrepreneur and venture capitalist. A co-founder of PayPal, Palantir Technologies, and Founders Fund, he was the first outside investor in Facebook.”
- Rick Doblin – “Richard Elliot Doblin is an American drug activist and executive who is the founder and executive director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies.”
- Michael Pollan – “Michael Kevin Pollan is an American author and journalist, who is currently the Knight Professor of Science and Environmental Journalism at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism.”
- Scott Galloway – “Scott Galloway is a professor of marketing at the New York University Stern School of Business, and a public speaker, author, podcast host, and entrepreneur.”
- Dave Asprey – “Dave Asprey is an American entrepreneur and author. He founded Bulletproof 360, Inc. in 2013, and in 2017, founded Bulletproof Nutrition Inc. He has written five books. Men's Health described Asprey as a 'lifestyle guru'.”
- Dr. Thomas Insel – “Thomas Roland Insel is an American neuroscientist and psychiatrist who led the National Institute of Mental Health from 2002 until November 2015. Prior to becoming Director of NIMH, he was the founding Director of the Center for Behavioral Neuroscience at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia.”
Connect with Ronan: