💧 How AI is accelerating the psychedelic renaissance

Happy Thursday! Welcome back to The Drop In, your go-to source for psychedelics news, culture, research, and events brought to you by DoubleBlind. Today is November 14, which is National Pickle Day in the US. The first observance of National Pickle Day dates back to 1949 and was created to honor the world’s most beloved fermented food. According to the New York Food Museum, the art of fermenting food traces back to ancient Mesopotamia, where as early as 2400 BCE, people were fermenting cucumbers into pickles. Even Cleopatra, Egypt’s iconic queen, loved pickles so much she credited them for her legendary beauty in 50 BCE, according to History. 

Our featured story today has absolutely nothing to do with pickles. It’s about how AI is rapidly changing the landscape of psychedelic medicine. It’s changing how researchers study and invent new compounds. It’s also influencing ethics in psychedelic science — as absurd as that sounds. We wrote about it this week, you can find that story below!

If you keep scrolling, you’ll find a dispatch from Amsterdam’s last ‘shroom shop, a story about the VA funding an MDMA study, and a mushroom cultivation cheat sheet for people who live in the city. 

If you’re not doing anything this Sunday, DoubleBlind and the Microdosing Facilitator Training are hosting a FREE webinar featuring the legendary Jim Fadiman, Dr. Conor Murray, Ph.D., Danielle Nova, Adam Bramlage, Monica Cadena, and me! We have a packed schedule and hope you can make it. You can sign up and learn more here!

Enjoy the brainfood in the meantime 🧠🥑

See you this weekend,

Mary Carreón
Senior Editor

Together With…

Try This For Enhanced Meditation and Deeper Psychedelic Journeys

Zoroastrianism is the oldest living religion in the world—and it has secrets. Ancient Persian texts are filled with praise for a mysterious magical elixir called“Haoma” that brings spiritual illumination.

For centuries, nobody knew what it was. Researchers at Magi cracked the code and discovered the active ingredient was a powerful ayahuasca-like plant.

It is packed with “beta-carbolines”, compounds that create a dream-like trance state known as hypnagogia. It has a pleasant anti-anxiety effect on its own, but it really shines when you combine it with practices like breathwork, yoga, meditation,  or other psychedelics. 

If you want a potent meditation aid or deepen your psychedelic journeys, we highly recommend Magi’s Meditation supplement and Revelation aid.

They are all exceptional quality, with finely tuned formulations for meditation, sleep, lucid dreaming, and psychedelic work. 

Just click the link below and use DB10Magi for a 10% Discount.

>>Go deeper with the gift of the Magi<<

Our Latest

After the disappointing rejection of MDMA as a treatment for PTSD, veterans everywhere were staring down the barrel of more of the same: poor treatment options and worse outcomes. Now the VA is picking up the slack and funding its first psychedelic research study since the 60s. Get the full story here.

Trippy, dark psychedelic art can be utterly captivating. The shadowy, ambiguous, surreal visuals mirror a psychedelic journey. It’s a multi-colored impressionist Rorschach test evoking the unseen corners of your soul. Check out some of our favorites here

Forget the rabbit hole. These mind-bending cinematic gems will warp your perception with twisted narratives, mind-melting visuals, and cacophonous soundtracks that will leave you questioning reality. Here’s our curated list of trippy movies on Netflix.

& More Must-Reads

• The last 5 years have been marked by incredible loss. From the pandemic to ecological disasters to wars to the fracturing of communities and families, there has been so much pain. Instead of numbing or distracting ourselves, this piece by Mercedes Grant shows us how engaging our grief through ritual can help us not just cope with the pain, but reconnect to the beauty and wonder of the world. 

• For decades, Amsterdam was an edgy social experiment at the bleeding edge of progressive drug policy. But times and politics are changing and now Amsterdam’s reputation as a haven for psychedelic experimentation is fading. DoubleBlind’s dispatch from Amsterdam’s last Shroom Lounge.

• In the world of ayahuasca, The Shipibo people are perhaps the most renowned Indigenous practitioners. But two decades ago Shipibo youth considered curanderismo a thing of the past. Now the growth of ayahuasca tourism is reviving their culture. Read DoubleBlind co-founder Shelby’s’ journey into the heart of Shipibo ceremony work.
  
  

Join Us

THIS SUNDAY: The Evolution of Microdosing with Jim Fadiman, Godfather of Microdosing

Jim Fadiman is a legendary elder of the psychedelic community. He is one of the few original researchers from the 60s era still actively researching. The global phenomenon of microdosing is all thanks to his work published in The Psychedelic Explorer’s Guide 

But a LOT has changed since 2011. 

Massive amounts of new data, research, and tens of thousands of case studies later, he’s updated his thoughts on using microdosing for health, healing, and enhanced performance. 

Join us for an incredible free training with Jim Fadiman, Dr. Conor Murray, Ph.D. founders of the Microdosing Facilitator Training, Danielle Nova and Adam Bramlage, DoubleBlind’s Senior Editor Mary Carreón, and host Monica Cadena.

It starts Sunday, November 17 at 6 PM PST. 

Best of all? It’s FREE.

Register to join the webinar here.

Learn with Us

😵‍💫 Turns out, you may not actually need psychedelics to have a psychedelic experience. Here are 5 ways to trip without the substances (Just between us, let’s just call it 4. We both know neither of us is ever going to sit in an anechoic chamber).

🍄 Growing mushrooms in the city presents a unique set of challenges for would-be fungi cultivators. If you’re looking to start your own grow this winter, be sure to take a look at our mushroom Cultivation Cheat Sheet for City Dwellers.

💊 Despite the non-existence of any real research on the benefits and risks of combining drugs, it is very, very common.  Here’s what you need to know about combining psychedelics.

🎲 The cold winter weather is here, so those of us in the northern latitudes are all spending a LOT more time indoors. Next time you’re looking for something to do on a rainy day, try some of our favorite games to play with friends while “elevated”.

DoubleBlind Digs

Here are today’s recommendations* to help you live more psychedelically… 

1. Want to take a winter vacation that actually makes a difference in your regular life? Consider a psilocybin retreat in Jamaica with Beckley retreats. Learn more here.
   

2. In Mesoamerican cultures, Cacao was the drink of royalty. It was so revered by the Aztecs it was even used as currency. And at higher doses, it’s a beautiful medicine that activates the heart. Make your own private cacao ceremony with Keith’s Cacao.
   

3. Want to deepen the sensuality of your love life? Try these CBD-infused “arousal oils” from Foria.
   
   

Together With…

Botanical Support for Psychedelics

Whether for ceremony or celebration, Allies Botanicals' organic tinctures are your trusted companions in the psychedelic space. Support your body and mind before, during, and after your journey. Use code FollowPlants to save 15% on your first order.

Watch Now

Do I have to stop taking antidepressants to eat magic mushrooms? 👈 This is one of THE most common questions people ask about trying psychedelics. 

First of all, please do NOT trust your mental and emotional health to random, anonymous people on Reddit. Second, watch this video to get the full story on psychedelics and SSRIs.