Open Wide and Say Awe with Katherine MacLean

“How can we use these peak experiences to help people create community that is healthy and to be better human beings?” — Katherine MacLean

Katherine MacLean, PhD is a research scientist, teacher and meditator. In her academic research (2004-2013) at UC Davis and Johns Hopkins University, she studied how psychedelics and mindfulness meditation can promote beneficial, long-lasting changes in personality, well-being and brain function. In the fall of 2015, she co-founded and began directing the Psychedelic Education & Continuing Care Program in New York (www.psychedelicprogram.com), where she has facilitated monthly integration groups for psychedelic users and training workshops for both clinicians and the public. She currently lives on an organic farm and is preparing to be a study therapist on the upcoming Phase 3 trial of MDMA for post-traumatic stress disorder. Learn more: katherinemaclean.org

In this wide-ranging discussion, we cover the following topics:

– What happened after Katherine “died” in 2012

– Discovery oriented research vs. practical research on psychedelics

– Effects of psychedelics on “existential distress”

– Potential benefits of psychedelics on end-of-life care and terminal cancer patients

– Potential benefits of MDMA for PTSD

– The existence of “enlightened assholes”

– Skepticism about brain research on psychedelics

– The role of the default network in “ego dissolution”

– Misrepresentation of the default network in the psychedelic and meditation literatures

– Benefits of psychedelics and meditation in combination

– Psychedelics and openness to experience