Episode 65 – Rick Strassman M.D. – DMT: The Spirit Molecule

RICK STRASSMAN M.D. holds degrees from Stanford University and Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University. He took his internship and general psychiatry residency at the University of California, Davis, Medical Center in Sacramento and he spent ten years as a tenured professor at the University of Mexico he performed the first new human studies with psychedelic drugs in the US in over 20 years. His research involved the powerful naturally-occurring compound, DMT – N,N-dimethyltryptamine. This Led to this substance through his earlier study of the pineal gland as a potential biological locus for spiritual experiences, he administered several hundred doses of DMT to approximately 60 volunteers between 1990 and 1995. He wrote about this research in the popular book, DMT: The Spirit Molecule, which has sold over 100,000 copies, has been translated into 12 languages, and is now available as an audio-book. It also inspired an independent documentary by the same name, picked up by Warner Bros distributing in Fall, 2011. With three distinguished collaborators, he co-authored Inner Paths to Outer Space, which looks more carefully at the common "other worlds" experience that volunteers frequently reported during his research. In this episode we spoke to Dr. Strassman in detail about his work on the ever mysterious molecule, DMT and it's role in human consciousness and evolution.