
Psychedelic Therapy Frontiers
The psychedelic renaissance is here! Join Dr. Steve Thayer, Dr. Reid Robison, and special guests as they explore the frontiers of psychedelic medicine and what it takes to cultivate a healthy mind, body, and spirit. Our hosts draw from their extensive knowledge and experience with psychedelic therapy research and treatment to discuss the science, practice, and art of psychedelic healing. If you are a helping professional, therapist, clinician, guide, healer, psychedelic enthusiast, or simply curious about mental, physical, and spiritual health, this is the podcast for you!
Latest episodes

Mar 14, 2023 • 51min
Paradoxes, cognitive dissonance, and the smile of unbearable compassion
Send us a textOn this episode of the Psychedelic Therapy Frontiers podcast, Dr. Steve Thayer and Dr. Reid Robison try to cope with the paradoxes of life. They give a trip report on a recent breathwork session, discuss why people struggle with paradoxes, explain how the drive to reduce cognitive dissonance can lead to dysfunction, explore how mindful acceptance of all that we are helps us cope with paradoxes, and much more. (1:35) Breathwork trip report(8:03) What are chakras?(11:04) 7 Sacred Spaces breathwork(11:15) What are paradoxes?(12:08) What is cognitive dissonance?(14:12) Shadow sides and shadow work(16:05) OCD vs OCPD(18:19) Never meet your heroes (22:14) Wave/Particle duality of nature (24:13) Being more of who you really are and finding your purpose (26:38) PTF Podcast Episode: Finding your purpose in life(29:50) Embrace the shadow aspects of yourself (34:50) Ram Dass and the smile of unbearable compassion(38:48) Learning to feel your emotions(41:00) Methods for coping with paradoxes (43:00) How psychedelics help us with paradoxes Learn more about our podcast at https://numinusnetwork.com/learn/podcast/Learn more about psychedelic therapy training opportunities at https://numinusnetwork.com/training/Learn more about our clinical trials at https://www.numinusnetwork.com/researchLearn more about Numinus at https://numinusnetwork.com/Email us at ptfpodcast@numinus.com Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drstevethayer/https://www.instagram.com/innerspacedoctor/https://www.instagram.com/numinushealth/

Mar 7, 2023 • 50min
Non-therapy uses for psychedelics with Hannah Cross, LCSW
Send us a textOn this episode of the Psychedelic Therapy Frontiers podcast, Dr. Steve Thayer and Dr. Reid Robison are joined Hannah Cross, LCSW to discuss the non-therapy, non-medical uses of psychedelics. Hannah is a licensed clinical social worker, therapist, reiki master, yoga teacher, and all-around awesome person. (1:40) Intro to the topic and to Hannah(3:41) What does "processing" mean?(5:29) Discoveries and insights attributable to psychedelics(6:56) Timothy Leary's first LSD trip and cautionary tales(11:08) Psychedelics and psychological flexibility and creativity(14:38) Psychedelics for art and music(17:04) Microdosing, presence, and yoga(19:56) Psychedelics as a way-shower to a skill(21:38) Can psychedelics kill ambition?(24:18) Psychedelics for self-awareness and position in society(25:12) Turn on. Tune in. Drop out. (32:22) Psychedelic experiences can by destabilizing(36:52) What is equanimity?(44:42) Transpersonal psychology Learn more about our podcast at https://numinusnetwork.com/learn/podcast/Learn more about psychedelic therapy training opportunities at https://numinusnetwork.com/training/Learn more about our clinical trials at https://www.numinusnetwork.com/researchLearn more about Numinus at https://numinusnetwork.com/Email us at ptfpodcast@numinus.com Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drstevethayer/https://www.instagram.com/innerspacedoctor/https://www.instagram.com/numinushealth/

Feb 28, 2023 • 55min
Legal status of psychedelic therapy: 2023 status update
Send us a textOn this episode of the Psychedelic Therapy Frontiers podcast, Dr. Steve Thayer and Dr. Reid Robison discuss the current legal status of psychedelic therapy in the US and other countries and the various challenges related to legalization and/or decriminalization of psychedelics. (1:50) Legalization vs decriminalization of psychedelics (3:30) The War on Drugs(6:37) Psychedelics Today Podcast episode with Kathryn L. Tucker, JD and the difference between federal and state legalization (8:06) Decriminalization in Denver(10:32) FDA approval and rescheduling psilocybin and MDMA(14:46) Psilocybin legalization in Oregon (18:21) Training requirements and expenses for facilitators(22:43) Fundamentals of Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy course at Numinus(23:00) The Oregon treatment structure (26:04) Psychedelic clinical trials(27:36) Arguments for state legalization ahead of FDA approval(32:29) Senate Bill 200 in Utah(45:53) Colorado Prop 122(47:41) Australia legalizes psilocybin and MDMA for therapeutic use(49:12) Heroic Hearts ProjectLearn more about our podcast at https://numinusnetwork.com/learn/podcast/Learn more about psychedelic therapy training opportunities at https://numinusnetwork.com/training/Learn more about our clinical trials at https://www.numinusnetwork.com/researchLearn more about Numinus at https://numinusnetwork.com/Email us at ptfpodcast@numinus.com Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drstevethayer/https://www.instagram.com/innerspacedoctor/https://www.instagram.com/numinushealth/

Feb 21, 2023 • 1h
Crisis of faith: How to survive religious faith deconstruction
Send us a textOn this episode of the Psychedelic Therapy Frontiers podcast, Dr. Steve Thayer and Dr. Reid Robison discuss how to navigate a crisis of religious faith.(2:30) Why it's hard to talk about religious belief (5:10) The "nones" and the secularization of the West(8:52) What's at stake with a religious faith transition(13:57) The risk of your moral character being questioned(17:30) How to support a loved one who is going through a faith deconstruction (20:55) Thriving and Building Community After a Faith Crisis TEDx Talk(22:15) Mistrust of your own instincts and intuition (26:40) The importance of finding community(28:30) PTF Podcast: Navigating spiritual emergencies with Hannah Cross(30:49) Trauma and abuse within religious organizations (34:33) Psychedelic experiences of people deconstructing their religious faith(36:50) Beware of bitterness and how to grapple with it(41:08) Calibrating your life to your values(43:30) Allow uncertainty (47:41) Faith and surrender(49:45) Psychedelic tools for religious faith deconstruction (54:50) Navigating Mormon Faith Crisis, by Thomas McConkieLearn more about our podcast at https://numinusnetwork.com/learn/podcast/Learn more about psychedelic therapy training opportunities at https://numinusnetwork.com/training/Learn more about our clinical trials at https://www.numinusnetwork.com/researchLearn more about Numinus at https://numinusnetwork.com/Email us at ptfpodcast@numinus.com Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drstevethayer/https://www.instagram.com/innerspacedoctor/https://www.instagram.com/numinushealth/

Feb 14, 2023 • 39min
Grit, resilience, and learning from failure
Send us a textOn this episode of the Psychedelic Therapy Frontiers podcast, Dr. Steve Thayer and Dr. Reid Robison discuss grit, resilience, and learning from failure. They explore the difference between growth and fixed mindsets, how attribution style affects resiliency, tips on how to reduce your fear of failure, and much more. (1:33) How Batman deals with failure(3:59) How our beliefs about failure affect how we cope with it(7:23) Explanatory/attribution styles and fixed vs growth mindsets(10:15) Mindset, by Carol Dweck(11:44) How to develop a growth mindset(16:38) How to expand your comfort zone(19:30) The dangers of comparing yourself to others(20:10) Outliers, by Malcom Gladwell(20:46) Peak, by Anders Ericsson and Robert Pool(21:42) There is power in sharing the vulnerability that is failure(24:20) Blame vs ownership and how leaders can model how to deal with failure(30:15) Tips on taking responsibility in relationships(34:26) How to manage anxiety about failing Learn more about our podcast at https://numinusnetwork.com/learn/podcast/Learn more about psychedelic therapy training opportunities at https://numinusnetwork.com/training/Learn more about our clinical trials at https://www.numinusnetwork.com/researchLearn more about Numinus at https://numinusnetwork.com/Email us at ptfpodcast@numinus.com Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drstevethayer/https://www.instagram.com/innerspacedoctor/https://www.instagram.com/numinushealth/

Feb 7, 2023 • 47min
Who am I? Authenticity, honesty, and living your truth
Send us a textOn this episode of the Psychedelic Therapy Frontiers podcast, Dr. Steve Thayer and Dr. Reid Robison discuss authenticity. They talk about what it means to live one’s truth, the relationship between values and authenticity, what congruence has to do with it, why being authentic can be risky, and much more. (1:34) Les Miserables (4:28) What does it mean to be authentic?(6:46) Authenticity vs transparency, prosocial lies vs antisocial lies(9:58) Are Reid and Steve authentic on the podcast?(13:22) The components of authenticity (14:48) The fluidity of who you "really are"(16:00) Ram Dass and the channels of authenticity (22:30) Masking and being a tackless jerk(27:23) The potential perils of authenticity (32:56) Vulnerability is connecting and contagious(33:24) Authenticity exercise(39:43) Why don't we talk about religion and politics (42:08) Integrity(44:00) Psychedelics might help you be more flexibleLearn more about our podcast at https://numinusnetwork.com/learn/podcast/Learn more about psychedelic therapy training opportunities at https://numinusnetwork.com/training/Learn more about our clinical trials at https://www.numinusnetwork.com/researchLearn more about Numinus at https://numinusnetwork.com/Email us at ptfpodcast@numinus.com Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drstevethayer/https://www.instagram.com/innerspacedoctor/https://www.instagram.com/numinushealth/

Jan 31, 2023 • 56min
Parenting, attachment, and not screwing up our kids
Send us a textOn this episode of the Psychedelic Therapy Frontiers podcast, Dr. Steve Thayer and Dr. Reid Robison discuss parenting. They talk about how difficult parenting is, how parenting styles affect childhood and later adult attachment styles, being an emotion coach as a parent, how to raise resilient kids, genetics, and much more.(1:33) Parenting is hard(6:20) Spanking (7:00) Good Inside, by Dr. Becky Kennedy and being "home base" for your child(10:03) The value of consistency(11:55) Generational differences and improving on the parenting you received (14:02) Repairs and apologies (16:13) The Whole-Brain Child, by Dr. Dan Sielgel (16:52) How to help your kids feel seen(17:15) Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child, by Dr. John Gottman(19:45) How to help your kids with their feelings(22:30) How to manage behavior and set boundaries (26:45) Helicopter parenting(27:15) Duct Tape Parenting, by Vicki Hoefle(33:50) Genetic: parents matter, but they don't make a difference (40:30) Unconditional positive regard (43:32) Re-parenting your inner child(49:03) Divorce, separation, and co-parenting Learn more about our podcast at https://numinusnetwork.com/learn/podcast/Learn more about psychedelic therapy training opportunities at https://numinusnetwork.com/training/Learn more about our clinical trials at https://www.numinusnetwork.com/researchLearn more about Numinus at https://numinusnetwork.com/Email us at ptfpodcast@numinus.com Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drstevethayer/https://www.instagram.com/innerspacedoctor/https://www.instagram.com/numinushealth/

Jan 25, 2023 • 34min
What's love got to do with it?
Send us a textOn this episode of the Psychedelic Therapy Frontiers podcast, Dr. Steve Thayer and Dr. Reid Robison discuss the many facets of love. They explore what love is, how it’s extended and received, the concept of unconditional positive regard, why it’s so important to feel seen and understood, the role feelings of love play in psychedelic medicine…and much more.(1:22) The core need of being seen(3:29) Unconditional positive regard and Carl Rogers(4:58) The first duty of love is to listen(7:11) Love in parenting(9:31) Validate before reassuring or fixing(10:48) Love means a lot of different things(11:45) Self-love and why it's hard to do(15:29) A Return to Love, by Marianne Williamson(16:33) The 5 love languages(17:40) Enlightenment and love(20:28) How to Change Your Mind, by Michael Pollan(22:37) Experiences of love on psychedelics(24:05) Sit Around The Fire, by Jon Hopkins with Ram Dass, East Forest(27:10) Oneness, connectedness, and common humanity Learn more about our podcast at https://numinusnetwork.com/learn/podcast/Learn more about psychedelic therapy training opportunities at https://numinusnetwork.com/training/Learn more about our clinical trials at https://www.numinusnetwork.com/researchLearn more about Numinus at https://numinusnetwork.com/Email us at ptfpodcast@numinus.com Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drstevethayer/https://www.instagram.com/innerspacedoctor/https://www.instagram.com/numinushealth/

Jan 17, 2023 • 1h 42min
The shadow side of psychedelic therapy with Dr. Chantelle Thomas
Send us a textIn this episode of the Psychedelic Therapy Frontiers podcast, Dr. Steve Thayer, Dr. Reid Robison, and Dr. Joe Flanders welcome clinical psychologist, clinical trial researcher, and psychedelic therapist, Dr. Chantelle Thomas to the show for an important conversation about the shadow side of psychedelic therapy. They discuss how therapists harm their clients, the high bar of competence and self-awareness that psychedelic therapists need to clear in order to do this work, the limitations and potential pitfalls of psychedelic therapy training programs, the importance of good supervision and being open to feedback, the dangers of seeking psychedelic sessions in the unregulated underground, and much more. (1:45) Introduction to the topic(3:53) Chantelle introduces herself(8:13) Grappling with how our imperfections affect our clients(11:18) Honoring the boundary-dissolving effects of psychedelics (14:50) Examples of how people are harmed in psychedelic work(18:55) Regulated vs underground psychedelic medicine spaces (20:42) When deep connection puts people at risk(22:46) The importance of good supervision, experience, and training(31:55) Informed consent in psychedelic therapy(36:05) Barriers to clients asking for what they need (42:10) How to manage the heavy weight of influence (45:23) Process-based dialogue, following intuition, and how to train these skills (58:05) You don't have to be perfect(01:03:05) MAPS Code of Ethics(01:06:10) The utility of having a co-therapist(01:17:06) The inner directed approach and the inner healer(01:20:30) Low dose psychedelic work and meeting people where they are(01:24:50) Follow your gut when selecting a psychedelic practitioner(01:27:55) Not all medicines are right for all people(01:30:20) How to select a psychedelic training program(01:33:44) Understand your intentions for entering this field Learn more about our podcast at https://numinusnetwork.com/learn/podcast/Learn more about psychedelic therapy training opportunities at https://numinusnetwork.com/training/Learn more about our clinical trials at https://www.numinusnetwork.com/researchLearn more about Numinus at https://numinusnetwork.com/Email us at ptfpodcast@numinus.com Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drstevethayer/https://www.instagram.com/innerspacedoctor/https://www.instagram.com/numinushealth/

Jan 10, 2023 • 47min
New Year's intentions, discipline, self-compassion, and the middle way
Send us a textOn this episode of the Psychedelic Therapy Frontiers podcast, Dr. Steve Thayer and Dr. Reid Robison discuss setting intentions for the new year. They explore how to set values-based intentions vs goals, the struggle of walking the middle path between ambition and contentment, the value of journaling, and much more. (2:00) New Year's resolutions and how our values change(3:41) Essentialism by Greg McKeown and setting an essential intent for the year(4:57) The backlash against "hustle culture" and balancing on the middle way(9:12) Discipline, self-compassion, and play(12:00) Giving yourself "permission" to relax(14:30) Being flexible with your goals and calibrating them to your values(19:10) Embracing making mistakes(24:18) Visualizing failure and dealing with worry(26:43) The three "E's" of goal-setting(29:30) Connect your goals to your deep "why", be clear, be focussed(33:10) The utility of writing and journaling for goal-setting(40:05) Development, embarrassment, self-compassion, and being vs doingLearn more about our podcast at https://numinusnetwork.com/learn/podcast/Learn more about psychedelic therapy training opportunities at https://numinusnetwork.com/training/Learn more about our clinical trials at https://www.numinusnetwork.com/researchLearn more about Numinus at https://numinusnetwork.com/Email us at ptfpodcast@numinus.com Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drstevethayer/https://www.instagram.com/innerspacedoctor/https://www.instagram.com/numinushealth/