Sabba Nazhand was born in Tehran, Iran in the middle of the Iran-Iraq War. His mother delivered him two months early and the family doctor advised he needed a blood transfusion. Sabba's father had to say goodbye to Sabba's mother and sister and drive Sabba across the country for the blood transfusion that saved his life.Sabba's family eventually fled from Iran to Greece, where they were able to get sponsorship from a Christian community that helped them immigrate to the United States. Sabba describes his upbringing in an immigrant family and how his interest in psychedelics developed. He shares several experiences, including one in which he took three successive hits of 5-MeO-DMT, blasting him into the universe, shattered into a billion pieces, where he watched the creation of the universe, leaving him forever changed. Sabba's psychedelic experiences motivated him to take his professional experience in the software industry to the psychedelic space, where he advises early-stage companies. Sabba is the Partner and Chief Strategy Officer at Mission Club, an education and investment platform in the psychedelic ecosystem. He is also a business advisor and founding member of Retreat-Microdose, a platform providing content, community, connection, and coaching. He's also a Go-to-Market advisor for Wavepaths, a tool that facilitates live, personalized music experiences for therapeutic and personal use. I've included links to these companies in the show notes if you're interested in learning more.The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.Links:WavepathsWavepaths is a tool that facilitates live, unique, personalized music experiences for therapeutic and personal use.​Retreat MicrodoseRetreat is a microdosing platform providing content, community, connection, and coaching to psychedelic newcomers.

Savanna Stark grew up in a devout Catholic home, where her family sat in the front row at church each week. However, her parents divorced when she was a teen, often using her and her sisters to get back at each other. When she turned 18, Savanna smoked weed, ate mushrooms, and drank alcohol all in one night. Savanna pushed the idea of God away and started drinking heavily. She eventually got sober, started doing yoga, and began studying spirituality and metaphysics.One of the metaphysics schools Savanna was using for her studies was looking for volunteers in South America. She applied with them to be a yoga teacher and let them know she would get enough hours to become certified. They let her know she didn't even need to be certified because it was in a foreign country.Before leaving for South America, Savanna learned about ayahuasca and watched a documentary about DMT. She wondered if she might meet someone she could have an ayahuasca experience with while on her trip. When she arrived at the retreat center, her journey took an unexpected twist. Savanna describes the numerous ayahuasca and San Pedro ceremonies she participated in during her time in South America, and the lessons she brought home with her.The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.

Jason Bishop began questioning his religious beliefs after his sister passed away. He eventually left religion and became a hardcore atheist for a time. Jason's curiosity about the nature of the universe, reality, and consciousness led him to consume numerous books, podcasts, and YouTube videos in his quest for answers. His research led him to seek out experiences with psychedelic substances. He's had experiences with marijuana and psilocybin mushrooms. Jason describes how under the influence of psilocybin, he experienced the oneness with the universe he learned about in his research.The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.

A Midlife Magic Mushroom Journey Filled With Aliens, Ancestors, and Egyptian Influence

After watching his father drink too much and seeing how it impacted his family, Dallas Jones didn’t want anything to do with any kind of substance. Things changed when he got to college and his friend Ryan convinced him to smoke weed for the first time. After a pleasant cannabis experience, Dallas’s perspective on substances changed, but it wasn’t until several years later that he had a deep psychedelic experience. Dallas had always felt stress about understanding the purpose of life and he had a fear of death. During a ketamine experience with a group of friends, Dallas was confronted by the Goddess of Death who helped him understand that he no longer needed to fear death. After that experience, Dallas spoke with his friends and found that elements of each of their experiences were shared among them.The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.

Danielle Heap has struggled with depression since she was young. About eight years ago she was misdiagnosed as bipolar. Six years ago, her diagnosis was changed to a borderline personality with treatment-resistant depression, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive tendencies. Even with a combination of medications including anti-depressants, mood stabilizers, and anti-psychotics, Danielle's emotions were volatile and could change in a matter of hours. On top of that, Danielle experienced postpartum depression after the birth of her son.Danielle sought out ketamine therapy to see if it could help with her depression. Initially, she used a nasal spray and then received ketamine infusions. On ketamine, Danielle stepped outside of linear time and viewed her life experiences from a different perspective. All rumination ceased and her suicidal ideations dissipated.The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.

Drea Bachman has experienced mental health challenges for most of her life. She tried different treatments for her depression, including psilocybin microdosing and electroconvulsive therapy, but didn't find relief. In addition to experiencing depression, Drea has also experienced disapproval and hurtful comments from others because she is a transgender woman.At one point, Drea spoke to her psychiatrist about the possibility of using lithium to treat her depression. Her psychiatrist recommended trying ketamine infusions first. Under the influence of ketamine, Drea experienced a beam of energy that she could feel clearing things in her head. It felt like something changed in her brain and the thoughts that used to cause her pain weren't causing pain anymore. Ketamine has given Drea relief from depression and given her space to find purpose and pursue things she’s passionate about in life. The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.

Jillian Scheel decided to write her thesis for her Human Resources degree on the cannabis legalization movement back in 2016 while attending school in Idaho. As part of the research for her thesis, she explored the business side of the cannabis industry and made her first legal purchase of cannabis, an edible cookie that resulted in a high lasting nearly 24 hours. Jillian also discusses her experience as a Human Resources professional in the cannabis industry, and how the dreamlike states of her ketamine treatments have improved her mental health.The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.

Jennifer Janvier's friend, an experienced mushroom grower, offered her some mushrooms during the pandemic. Jenny took a large dose and interacted with a younger version of herself. Jenny's inner child told her she could do whatever she wanted in life. That experience set in motion a period of shadow work for Jenny in which she navigated through a number of difficult experiences from her childhood. Eventually, Jenny tried ketamine treatments for depression and found that those experiences also surfaced childhood trauma. In one ketamine experience, Jenny time-traveled back to a difficult memory from her youth and spoke with her father, who transformed into a child himself and conversed with her. The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.

Bernard Kold has had a number of experiences with psychedelics and other substances. On his first day at college, he tried LSD and had a number of positive experiences. He also tried mushrooms, but after three successive bad trips he set aside mushrooms. He then took up heroin, resulting in addiction for several years. Years later, after healing from heart surgery, Bernard began experiencing serious depression. His wife and a physician friend suggested he try ketamine to treat his depression. Bernard shares some of his ketamin experiences, including one in which he felt as if he had died and entered something similar to the Bardo, spoken of in The Tibetan Book of the Dead. He had the feeling he was a God particle and that life is part of a simulation. The purpose of the podcast is to entertain and educate. Please consult a physician and your local laws before trying anything mentioned in this episode. Please also understand that you may not hold us liable for relying on any information contained in the podcast or on our website.Links:The Tibetan Book of the DeadBe Here NowA book by Ram Dass