Audiobooks by Rick Strassman

My Altered States: A Doctor's Extraordinary Account of Trauma, Psychedelics, and Spiritual Growth

"“Every reader will find this account fascinating. A lively and intensely personal addition to the drugs-memoir genre.”—Kirkus Reviews “You're such an important part of the psychedelic history.”—Joe Rogan Experience, episode #1854 • Recounts several dozen of the author’s experiences of drug and non-drug altered states of consciousness from birth to early adulthood • Applies the lenses of four explanatory models—psychoanalysis, psychopharmacology, Zen Buddhism, and medieval Jewish metaphysics—in understanding how and why they occurred • Demonstrates the importance of careful unflinching recollection and documentation of both heavenly and hellish altered states in one’s psychological, emotional, and spiritual life Why do we seek out altered states of consciousness, or why, in some cases, do they happen unbidden? What do we see and hear, and what happens emotionally, physically, and psychologically? How and why are these experiences different from or similar to one another? Are they meaningful? And what do we do with them after they have passed? Addressing these questions, renowned psychedelic researcher Rick Strassman, M.D., draws upon his journals and analyses of dozens of episodes of altered consciousness that occurred during, or are intimately tied to, his life between birth and young adulthood. Just as significant as the ecstatic blissful experiences are the uncensored and, at times, painfully unvarnished narratives of less elevated ones. Visually augmenting all these accounts are the striking images of artist Merrilee Challiss. Understanding and applying the meaning and message of any altered state—its integration—first requires a clear-eyed recollection of the actual experience in all its aspects, neither pushing away the ugly nor grasping after the beautiful. This book provides a profound example of how one might go about accomplishing this daunting task."

Rick Strassman (Author), Rick Strassman (Narrator)

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DMT and the Soul of Prophecy: A New Science of Spiritual Revelation in the Hebrew Bible

"Naturally occurring DMT may produce prophecy-like states of consciousness and thus represent a bridge between biology and religious experience • Reveals the striking similarities between the visions of the Hebrew prophets and the DMT state described by Strassman’s research volunteers • Explains how prophetic and psychedelic states may share biological mechanisms • Presents a new top-down “theoneurological” model of spiritual experience After completing his groundbreaking research chronicled in DMT: The Spirit Molecule, Rick Strassman was left with one fundamental question: What does it mean that DMT, a simple chemical naturally found in all of our bodies, instantaneously opens us to an interactive spirit world that feels more real than our own world? When his decades of clinical psychiatric research and Buddhist practice were unable to provide answers to this question, Strassman began searching for a more resonant spiritual model. He found that the visions of the Hebrew prophets--such as Ezekiel, Moses, Adam, and Daniel--were strikingly similar to those of the volunteers in his DMT studies. Carefully examining the concept of prophecy in the Hebrew Bible, he characterizes a “prophetic state of consciousness” and explains how it may share biological and metaphysical mechanisms with the DMT effect. Examining medieval commentaries on the Hebrew Bible, Strassman reveals how Jewish metaphysics provides a top-down model for both the prophetic and DMT states, a model he calls “theoneurology.” Theoneurology bridges biology and spirituality by proposing that the Divine communicates with us using the brain, and DMT--whether naturally produced or ingested--is a critical factor in such visionary experience. This model provides a counterpoint to “neurotheology,” which proposes that altered brain function simply generates the impression of a Divine-human encounter. Theoneurology addresses issues critical to the full flowering of the psychedelic drug experience. Perhaps even more important, it points the way to a renewal of classical prophetic consciousness, the soul of Hebrew Bible prophecy, as well as unexpected directions for the evolution of contemporary spiritual practice."

Rick Strassman (Author), Ross Douglas (Narrator)

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[Spanish] - DMT: La molécula del espíritu: Las revolucionarias investigaciones de un medico sobre la biologia de las experiencias misticas y cercanas a la muerte

"Un psiquiatra clínico explora los efectos de la DMT, una de las drogas psicodélicas más potentes que se conocen • Una mirada tras bambalinas a los proyectos más avanzados de investigación sobre sustancias psicodélicas • Proporciona una singular explicación científica sobre el fenómeno de las experiencias de raptos por extraterrestres De 1990 a 1995, el Dr. Rick Strassman realizó en la Universidad de Nuevo México estudios clínicos aprobados y financiados por el gobierno de los Estados Unidos, en los que inyectó a 60 voluntarios con dimetiltriptamina (DMT), uno de los psicodélicos más potentes que se conocen. Su recuento pormenorizado de esas sesiones constituye una interesantísima indagación sobre la naturaleza de la mente humana y el potencial terapéutico de los psicodélicos. La DMT, una sustancia química derivada de las plantas que se encuentra en la ayahuasca, una infusión psicodélica del Amazonas, también es producida por el cerebro humano. Esta sustancia, liberada naturalmente por la glándula pineal, facilita al alma su entrada y salida del cuerpo y es una parte integrante de las experiencias del nacimiento y la muerte, así como de los estados superiores de meditación e incluso de la trascendencia sexual. Si se utiliza sabiamente, la DMT podría dar paso a un período de extraordinario progreso en la exploración científica de las regiones más místicas de la mente y el alma humanas."

Rick Strassman (Author), Jaime Collepardo (Narrator)

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DMT: The Spirit Molecule: A Doctor's Revolutionary Research into the Biology of Near-Death and Mystical Experiences

"A clinical psychiatrist explores the effects of DMT, one of the most powerful psychedelics known. • A behind-the-scenes look at the cutting edge of psychedelic research. • Provides a unique scientific explanation for the phenomenon of alien abduction experiences. From 1990 to 1995 Dr. Rick Strassman conducted U.S. Government-approved and funded clinical research at the University of New Mexico in which he injected sixty volunteers with DMT, one of the most powerful psychedelics known. His detailed account of those sessions is an extraordinarily riveting inquiry into the nature of the human mind and the therapeutic potential of psychedelics. DMT, a plant-derived chemical found in the psychedelic Amazon brew, ayahuasca, is also manufactured by the human brain. In Strassman's volunteers, it consistently produced near-death and mystical experiences. Many reported convincing encounters with intelligent nonhuman presences, aliens, angels, and spirits. Nearly all felt that the sessions were among the most profound experiences of their lives. Strassman's research connects DMT with the pineal gland, considered by Hindus to be the site of the seventh chakra and by Rene Descartes to be the seat of the soul. DMT: The Spirit Molecule makes the bold case that DMT, naturally released by the pineal gland, facilitates the soul's movement in and out of the body and is an integral part of the birth and death experiences, as well as the highest states of meditation and even sexual transcendence. Strassman also believes that 'alien abduction experiences' are brought on by accidental releases of DMT. If used wisely, DMT could trigger a period of remarkable progress in the scientific exploration of the most mystical regions of the human mind and soul."

Rick Strassman (Author), Drew Graham (Narrator)

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