Dear Friends,
Maybe as many as thirty to forty percent of us are living with isolation, alienation, and loneliness, most of it unnamed. In six minutes I talk about why, then give you the two things I actually do about it. No course, no pitch — just what works.
Today’s Practice: Two Small Acts of Contact
A simple thing to take with you from this week’s conversation.
Call one person you’d ordinarily text, or not reach at all — no favor, no agenda, just to say hello. And once this week, introduce yourself to someone whose name you don’t know: the hardware store, the coffee counter, the seat next to you on the bus. If that’s too much to ask of yourself, a nod will do.
Pass it forward. If you make the call, write back and tell me who you reached.
One more thing, while we’re on the subject: I sat down last week with Charles Durrett on his show, This is Cohousing, to talk about exactly this.
“When you come upon a stranger on the road, be kind to them — because they’re going through what you’re going through.”
That’s Cicero, and it’s stuck with me since. What would it be like if, when we came to a four-way stop in our cars, we just took a second to wave at the other person?
Golden light,
Dr. Richard Louis Miller
My daughter Evacheska is hosting a conversation I think many of you will want to be part of.
More people are having psychedelic and plant medicine experiences, through retreats, ceremonies, and guided journeys. The experience itself gets all the attention. What almost nobody addresses is what comes after: whether it becomes part of a person’s life, or slowly becomes a story they tell at dinner.
Evacheska is a somatic and psychotherapeutic practitioner in New York. She’ll be joined by Jennifer Byxbee, founder of CAP Therapy NYC and a licensed psychotherapist with over 20 years of clinical experience. Together they’ll discuss what actually happens during these experiences, physiologically and psychologically, and what genuine integration support looks like afterward.
Live on Zoom, Tuesday August 26, 7:00 PM EST. Open to everyone, and questions are welcome. 2 CE contact hours available for NY State licensed clinicians (LCSWs, LMHCs, LPs, LCATs).
A note on working together
I offer a small number of one-on-one sessions for those who want to work with me directly.
This is not traditional therapy. You bring whatever is troubling you, and we practice the simple tools I have used with patients for six decades — ways of quieting the mind and easing anxiety that you can carry into daily life.
We go at your pace, and we work on what helps.
My New Book
The Adverse Effects and Therapeutic Potential of Psychedelic Medicines was recently reviewed by Samuel Bendeck Sotillos in the Journal of Psychedelic Studies. I was honored by it. Read the review here.
A few words from the front of the book:
Dr. Richard Louis Miller is a true elder and wisdom keeper of the psychedelic community, and his credentials come honestly, through hard-won experience. In this book, he continues his role as an educator by sharing his knowledge of both the perils and the promise of psychedelic substances. The reader will find valuable advice on how to avoid pitfalls while realizing the maximum benefits from the thoughtful and safe use of these remarkable medicines.
— Dr. Dennis McKenna, ethnopharmacologist and author of The Brotherhood of the Screaming Abyss
Putting forth the adverse effects of these substances in readable form contributes to their understanding and separates psychedelic scientists from those who would cover over, or even hide, negative effects of pharmaceuticals.
— Dr. Robin Carhart-Harris, neuroscientist at the University of California, San Francisco
It’s the fifth book in my series on psychedelic medicine. You can find it on Amazon.
My Other Books
Freeing Sexuality: Psychologists, Consent Teachers, Polyamory Experts, and Sex Workers Speak Out
Integral Psychedelic Therapy (co-edited with Jason A. Butler & Genesee Herzberg)
Psychedelic Wisdom: The Astonishing Rewards of Mind-Altering Substances
Psychedelic Medicine: The Healing Powers of LSD, MDMA, Psilocybin, and Ayahuasca
Master Your Mind: Practical Tools to Calm Anxiety, Silence Your Inner Critic and Stop Overthinking
