Beyond the Trip: A Psychedelic Therapy Podcast with Dr Esme Dark

 In this episode, I’m joined by Pedram Dara, founder and director of Psychedelic Lived Experiences, a global patient-led initiative working to bring lived experience into the heart of psychedelic research, clinical practice, and policy. Drawing on his own experience as a participant in an MDMA-assisted therapy clinical trial, Pedram shares his journey from patient to advocate and discusses so...

Welcome to Part 2 of my interview series with Dr Marg Ross, clinical psychologist and Chief Principal Investigator of Australia’s first psychedelic-assisted therapy trial exploring psilocybin for end-of-life distress. Marg has trained therapists and medical professionals around the world in psychedelic-assisted therapy and palliative care, bringing a deep interest in cultural rituals, altered stat...

Beyond the Trip is delighted to be collaborating with  Kyle Buller from Psychedelics Today for this episode, where we discuss many topics, including Psychedelic policy in Australia vs the US Challenges and cost of Psychedelic-assisted Psychotherapy in both countries Psychedelics in end-of-life care Integrating somatic therapy into psychedelic sessions Adapting therapeutic frameworks for use i...

 In this episode of Beyond the Trip , we’re joined by Dr Marg Ross , clinical psychologist and Chief Principal Investigator of Australia’s first psychedelic-assisted therapy trial exploring the use of psilocybin for end-of-life distress. Marg has been at the forefront of developing psychedelic-assisted therapy in Australia, helping to train therapists and medical professionals both nationally...

William A. Richards (Bill), Senior Advisor at Sunstone Therapies and a psychologist in the Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, has been involved in psychedelic research since 1963. He also is also associated with the Program in Psychedelic Therapiesand Research at the California Institute of Integral Studies. From 1967 to 1977, he implemented...

 This mini-series explores how psychedelic-assisted therapy meets us at the edges of existence — in dying, in grief, and in the quiet question of what endures when life as we knew it changes or ends.

Simon Yugler is a depth psychotherapist, psychedelic educator, and author of Psychedelics and the Soul: A Mythic Guide to Psychedelic Healing, Depth Psychology, and Cultural Repair (North Atlantic Books, 2024). With a master’s in depth counseling psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute, he’s taught in leading psychedelic training programs including CIIS, Naropa University, and Inner Trek. Draw...

  In this episode, I interview the team of Sacred Roots. They bring together Indigenous and non-Indigenous therapists and healers to bridge Indigenous wisdom and embodied practice into the growing field of clinical Psychedelic Assisted Therapy (PAT). Through two-way learning, they hope to stimulate critical discussion, embodied practice and further research into this important field – fo...

 In this episode, I’m joined by Dr Rosalind Watts — a clinical psychologist whose work as the Clinical Lead for Imperial College London’s psilocybin trial has made her one of the most influential voices in psychedelic research. Named among the 50 Most Influential People in Psychedelics and the Top 16 Women Shaping the Future of Psychedelics , Dr Watts stands out for her focus on integration,...

In this episode, I’m joined by Campbell Townsend , Clinical Psychologist and Senior Research Consultant at Monash University’s Clinical Psychedelic Research Lab. With experience as a trial therapist on the Psilocybin for GAD study and training through MAPS, Campbell brings a grounded yet imaginative approach to psychedelic-assisted therapy. Don’t miss our upcoming “Deepening Psychedelic-Assisted T...

In this episode Im joined by Lucine Eusani, Lucine is an Embodiment Facilitator, Internal Family Systems (IFS) Therapist and Psychedelic Integration Specialist. We both draw on IFS a lot in our work and share our respective journeys with combining this approach with psychedelic work. We discuss our different pathways into this work, explore parallels between different somatic approaches such as 5...

Beyond the Trip: A Psychedelic Therapy Podcast Season 2 – Launching May 2025 We’re back with monthly episodes featuring new guests and returning voices to deepen the conversation around the emerging field of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. This season includes: Discussions on psychotherapy  techniques Therapy Demos Conversations on systemic and  ethical issues in psychedelic therapy...

Welcome to Beyond the Trip  Podcast. In this episode I am joined by IPAT (indigenous psychedelic-assisted therapies). IPAT is dedicated to supporting the accessibility and therapeutic use of plant medicines for Indigenous peoples. Their vision is to create a culturally safe model of psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT) that honors the Indigenous wisdom which has guided the use of plant medicine...

In this episode, I talk with Dr Paul Liknaitzky, Head of the Clinical Psychedelic Lab at Monash University. 🌱 We explore Paul’s journey into psychedelic science and therapy, challenges & opportunities in psychedelic rescheduling in Australia, The critical skills needed for psychedelic therapists, future directions for psychedelic research, and why collaboration is key in this space Paul is He...

In this episode I’ll be talking with Irene Ais, an Integrative Physiotherapist. Irene brings a truly unique perspective to healing, focusing on a holistic pathway to well-being that integrates both physical and mental health. Although we come from different fields, our work intersects in powerful ways, and today, we’ll dive deep into those connections. We’ll explore a range of topics, including me...

In this episode I talk with Sean O'Carroll about the very important topic of bad trips. We get into some detail about what this actually means, we talk about Sean's journey into the psychedelic space and what defines a trip as bad versus challenging. We discuss the importance of seeking support for psychedelic experiences that have been traumatic, and explore the barriers to doing that. We discuss...

In this episode I’m joined by Marg Ryan, a colleague and fellow psychedelic-assisted psychotherapist. We explore the important and, at times, complex topic of non-verbal support in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. We talk about our practice as somatic therapists, our respective journeys into this work, somatic psychotherapy and psychedelic therapy, non-verbal support in psychedelic therapy, the...

 In this episode I’m going to be zooming out from thinking about psychedelics from an individual therapeutic perspective and taking a more systemic lens. As a part of this I’m joined by Natalie Ginsberg who has worked at MAPS since 2014. We talk about the beginnings of her work in the social justice space, her work in drug policy reform and her role as global impact officer at MAPS. We discus...

In this episode I talk with Marcella OT’Alora and Bruce Poulter, two people who have been instrumental in sharing knowledge of MDMA assisted Psychotherapy with 100’s of trainees all over the globe. They have also supported many participants through the process of MDMA Assisted Therapy as part of their work on trials in the USA and continue to provide supervision and consultation to many people eng...

In this episode, I’m going to be speaking with Dr Simon Ruffell. He is a friend and a close collaborator. I’m working alongside Simon as one of the teachers on the psychedelic mentorship training organised by Onaya Health. In this conversation, we discuss Simon’s journey into his work researching Ayahuasca, our shared history in refugee mental health, the importance of including indigenous perspec...

In this episode, I talk with Dr David Spektor , who worked alongside me as my dyad partner on a two year clinical trial looking at Psilocybin assisted Psychotherapy to treat generalised anxiety disorder. We discuss the challenges with the medical model of human distress, psychedelic research,  the importance of the dyad model in psychedelic assisted therapy, the self experience study we were...

In this episode I will be talking to Sarah Pant,  a fellow psychedelic-assisted psychotherapist.  We discuss - The importance of psychotherapy techniques in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, the sacredness of therapy, how vital human connection is for healing, therapeutic approaches used in preparation, dosing and integration, the wider cultural context of psychedelics and Indigenous p...

Listen to find out more about Beyond the Trip, A Psychedelic Therapy Podcast with Dr Esme Dark

In this episode I interview Dr Bill Richards, who is a true pioneer in the psychedelic research space and has been involved in this work from the original research that took place in the 60s up until the present day.  He is someone who I deeply respect and whose work has been very influential on me. His combination of rigorous research skills and deep reverence for the sacredness of these med...