PT532 – Understanding Bad Trips: The Power and Potential of Adverse Psychedelic Experiences, with Erica Rex, MA

In this episode, Joe interviews Erica Rex, MA: award-winning journalist, past guest, thought leader on psychedelic medicine, and participant in one of the first clinical trials using psilocybin to treat cancer-related depression. She tells the story of her recent harrowing experience, brought on by 6 times the amount of Syrian rue that was recommended: from entities threatening her, to a sense of terror she was going to die, to finding her way out of it with time, and most importantly, context to process and a strong support system. She and Joe emphasize the reality that bad trips can happen at any time, with any dose, for any reason, and that – if you can make your way through the experience without being traumatized – you can learn a lot about yourself during those states. She discusses: Methods to help others having a bad experience Her skepticism about psychedelic therapy being in a medical context at all Her thoughts on the recent ICER recommendation against approving MDMA and the multiple topics not addressed Possible complications from MDMA use nobody talks about, from cytotoxic effects to even sudden-onset psychosis The pathologizing of anything outside the ordinary, to the point that we’re trying to suppress natural human emotions and reactions and more!  Rex's book, “The Heroine’s Journey: A Woman’s Quest for Sanity in the Psychedelic Age” will be published by She Writes Press in the spring of 2026. For links, head to the show notes page.