Curious to Serious

In this episode, I talk with Gina Gratza, who specializes in psychedelic-assisted facilitation. In our conversation, Gina tells us about the many different organizations she is involved in and the work she does with them, including psychedelic integration and coaching, being an Oregon Psilocybin Facilitator, working with the Social Neuroscience and Psychotherapy Lab, and serving as Program Coordin...

In this episode, I talk with Jonathan Robinson, the author of 14 books and a marriage and family therapist located in California. In our conversation, Jonathan tells us about his work in bringing together MDMA experiences and therapy. He discusses how his protocol is unique to other work being done with psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy by emphasizing therapeutic modalities. We also talk about Jo...

In this episode, I talk with Christi Meyers, the Founder and CEO of Flow Integrative, a ketamine infusion clinic in San Diego, California. In our conversation, Christi tells us about Flow Integrative as a form of practicing medicine that provides ketamine infusion therapy, as well as Flow Institute as an educational platform. She discusses the characteristics that make Flow Integrative unique, inc...

In this episode, I talk with Dr. Howard Lipp and Ena Vie. Dr. Howard Lipp and Ena Vie have been working as underground facilitators of plant medicine for several years. In our conversation, they speak about how they were called to plant medicine and found each other through music. We also talk about opening up about facilitating plant medicine ceremonies and the challenge and importance of it. Ena...

In this episode, I talk with Mariya Punay. Mariya is working towards becoming a licensed psychotherapist in California. In our conversation, Mariya speaks to the meticulous process of working on becoming licensed by the Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS) and the many challenges she's faced throughout the process. She also speaks to the essential need for BIPOC representation in mainstream therapy...

In this episode, I talk with Gina Giorgio. Gina wears many hats within the psychedelic space as founder of the North Carolina Psychedelic Policy Coalition, the Director of the Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) Mentorship Pipeline, a Communications and Policy Specialist for NisonCo, a contributing writer for Psychedelic Spotlight, and the Founder and CEO of the Mushroom Lifestyle brand Smush...

In this episode, I talk with Sapha. He is a practicing Cuarandero and a Recovery Consultant at Sacred Rebels Recovery, a peer-led addiction recovery program for men housed at the Nihue Rao Spiritual Center in the Peruvian Amazon. In our conversation, Sapha highlights the uniqueness of Sacred Rebels in providing alternative recovery options for people who feel unsupported by standard recovery progr...

This episode is the second in our occasional “About Us” series, where we feature members of the Psychedelic Grad team.   In this episode, Gabby sits down with Andrew Mcmillian, the Community Meetings Organizer at Psychedelic Grad.   We talk about Andrew’s experiences in research labs at the University of South Florida (USF) while earning his Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology.    ...

In this episode, I talk with Hadas Alterman.   She is the Director of Government Affairs at the American Psychedelic Practitioners Association (APPA), which is working to build accessibility in clinical psychedelic therapy by establishing standards for training therapists to do this work.   In our conversations, we talk about Hadas’ work with the Psychedelic Bar Association, which links...

This episode is the first in our occasional “About Us” series, where we feature members of the Psychedelic Grad team.   In this episode, Emma talks with me, Gabby Lehigh, Psychedelic Grad Co-founder and Curious to Serious co-host.   We talk about my recent achievement of successfully defending my doctoral dissertation and getting my Ph. D. in Anthropology.   We explore how I came to...

In this episode, I talk with Sam Banister.   He is the co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer at Psylo, a biotech company in Australia that develops different classes of pharmaceutical psychedelics to help treat patients with serious mental health disorders.   In our conversation, we talk about Sam’s journey into psychedelics by learning about Albert Hoffman and Timothy Leary in his tee...

In this episode, we talk with Kaitlin Robertson. She is the CEO of Cacti Therapeutics, a biotech company developing FDA-approved psychedelic therapies for chronic pain and sexual dysfunction. Kaitlin received her Master’s degree in Human Development and Psychology from Harvard University and has professional experience in trauma care and business finance. We discuss Kaitlin's passion for helping p...

In this episode, I talk with Sa’ed Al-Olimat. He is the founder of PsiloHealth, co-founder and Board Director of the Psychedelic Pharmacists Association, and a community pharmacy manager at CVS.  In our conversation, we talk about Sa’ed’s many roles in the psychedelic space, including founding Psilohealth, an organization dedicated to education, legislation, and integration of psilocybin-supp...

In this episode, I talk with Heather Wickman. She is the co-founder of Untethered with her husband, Colby. They offer unique integration services with horses and partner with organizations worldwide to offer plant medicine experiences for individual growth initiatives. In our conversation, we talk about Heather’s work in the corporate world as an executive coach who works with CEOs and corporate e...

In this episode, we talk with Daniel Tarockoff.   He is a partner at Vine Ventures; an early-stage venture fund focused on psychedelics.    In our conversation, we examine Daniel’s work at Vine Ventures. We also talk about venture capital funds, Vine Ventures' reciprocity pledge, and their fundraising efforts for MAPS.   We also cover Daniel’s journey from the Berkeley School o...

In this episode, we talk with Ryan “Ghenigho” Rich.  He is the Founder and Ceremony and Detox Lead at Root Healing Iboga Retreats and Detox. In our conversation, we explore Ryan’s work at Root Healing. We talk about how Root Healing is unique by centering their Iboga retreats in Bwiti tradition while also exploring the scientific efficacy of Iboga. We also discuss how Ryan’s life experiences...

In this episode, we talk to Christine Ziemer.  Dr. Christine Ziemer is a professor of psychology at Missouri Western State University, faculty advisor of the SSDP Chapter, and excellent harm reductionist. Christine became interested in psychedelics and MAPS during her time in graduate school while working for her Ph. D. in psychology. Since then it has been an interest of hers, and over time...

In this episode, we talk to Max C Wood. Max is a graduate student studying developmental neuroscience and psychopathology. Max spent last year studying at the Anna Freud Center in London, and is now currently at Yale - researching into the impact attachment styles have on a psychedelic treatment design. Broadly speaking, his passions lie in the integration of experiential and reductionist approach...

In this episode, we talk with David Drapkin. He is the Director of Operations and Strategic Growth at Psychedelics Today. In our conversation, we explore David’s work at Psychedelics Today, including his role in creating Psychedelic Today’s newest course, Vital. We discuss David’s history in economics and how a near-death experience changed his path to psychotherapy and social work. Additionally,...

In this episode, we talk with Sasha Cuff. He is a Somatic Relational Practitioner with Nectara. For the past 25 years, he has been sitting therapeutically with people with all types of trauma, tirelessly seeking to understand the roots of suffering and disease. He observed that while some people got better, many of them were not improving at all. This led him on a path to explore and study a multi...

In this episode, we talk with Jon Dean. He is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Brain Mechanisms of Pain & Health Laboratory at the University of California, San Diego. Jon obtained his Bachelor’s in Chemistry at Youngstown State University, and his Master’s and Ph. D. in Molecular & Integrative Physiology from the University of Michigan, where he studied the role of the prefrontal cortex in an...

In this episode, we talk with Brian Pilecki. He is a psychologist and researcher at Portland Psychotherapy Clinic, Research, and Training Center. Brian provides integration and harm reduction therapy for clients currently using psychedelics on their own. He is also involved in a clinical trial of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for the treatment of social anxiety disorder. In our conversation, we cove...

In this episode, we talk with Alex Kahn. He recently received his MA in Music Therapy and Counseling from Drexel University. Alex is an advocate for integrating music therapy into psychedelic therapy. In our conversation, we cover how Alex’s experiences in playing music in mommy and me classes lead him to pursue a degree in music therapy. We also discuss valuable advice for surviving graduate scho...

In this episode, we talk with Ben Hearn. Ben is a doctoral candidate in Counselor Education & Supervision at the University of Cincinnati and a student at the Center for Psychedelic Therapy and Research.  His work focuses on providing advocacy and education within the counseling profession regarding psychedelics and their potential use in therapy as well as specializing in work with the L...

In this episode, we talk with Jessica Cadoch. She is the Research and Operations Manager at Maya Public-benefit Corporation. Jessica is a liaison working to bridge the for-profit world with not-for-profit organizations while advocating for increased accessibility and knowledge on psychedelics for the general public. In our conversation, we cover how Jessica’s personal experiences got her intereste...