The Psychedelic Renaissance: 6 Leaders on Integration, Ethics & Access

6 Industry Pioneers Reveal What's Really Happening in Psychedelic Therapy

Sep 16, 2025

Transcript

Dear friends,

Six leaders of the psychedelic renaissance gathered on my program for an unprecedented panel discussion about the uncomfortable truths no one wants to discuss: that psychedelics aren't magic bullets, that well-intentioned facilitators can cause profound harm, and that most people can't afford the treatments we're creating.

This panel—featuring pioneers from Ketamine Clinics LA, Beond Ibogaine Center, the Shulgin Foundation, Fireside Project, and Colorado's legal psilocybin programs—revealed a field at a crossroads between its underground roots and medical future.

Panelists & Organizations:

Matt Xavier - Author of "The Psychedelic DJ" - Integrated Psychedelics
Wendy Tucker - Board Chair, Shulgin Foundation
Sam Mandel - CEO, Ketamine Clinics Los Angeles
Tom Feegel - CEO, Beond
Dori Lewis - Co-founder, Elemental Psychedelics & Founder, Reflective Healing Center Elemental Psychedelics Reflective Healing Center
Joshua White - Founder & Executive Director, Fireside Project

The most striking moment came when Dori Lewis, herself a survivor of facilitator abuse, challenged our assumptions:

"It's dangerous to say only bad people cause harm. Really good intentioned people cause harm. The road to hell is paved with good intentions."

Joshua White of Fireside Project, which has fielded 30,000+ crisis calls, confirmed the scope:

"We get dozens and dozens of calls from people who have been on the receiving end of improper conduct—everything from outright sexual abuse to dosing without deep care."

Yet what emerged wasn't cynicism but wisdom. Tom Feegel requires all Beond staff to experience ibogaine themselves—"They lead with empathy." Sam Mandel emphasizes that after 35,000 ketamine infusions, "This isn't about giving a drug. This is about care."

The consensus was clear: integration is where the real work happens. As Dori put it,

"People can't go deeply into a mushroom journey if they don't trust their facilitator. You're spending weeks or months or years building that relationship."

But here's the challenge Joshua raised that should keep us all awake: How do we scale this careful, relationship-based model when therapy costs $200+ per hour? His solution—peer support and coaching—might be the only way psychedelic healing reaches beyond the wealthy.

This conversation revealed an industry trying to do something unprecedented: bring underground wisdom into medical systems while preventing the abuses that plague both worlds.

Golden light,

Dr. Richard L. Miller

Links & Resources:

Fireside Project Support Line: firesideproject.org
Shulgin Foundation: shulginfoundation.org
Ketamine Clinics LA: ketamineclinics.com
Beond: beond.us
Elemental Psychedelics: elementalpsychedelics.com

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