Season 2 Episode 3: "Depression and Psychedelic Therapy" with Charles Raison, MD.

Dr. Raison is a professor of psychiatry and human ecology at University of Wisconsin-Madison, director of Clinical and Translational Research for Usona Institute, and Director of Research on Spiritual Health for Emory Healthcare. In addition, Dr Raison founded the Center for Compassion Studies at the University of Arizona. His research has focused on novel mechanisms involved in the development and treatment of major depression and on the physical and behavioral effects of compassion training. Recently, Dr. Raison has taken a leadership role in the development of psychedelic medicine, particularly as a treatment for depression. He has received numerous awards, including the Raymond Pearl Award from the Human Biology Association, and being named one of the most influential researchers in the world by Web of Science. His most recent book is The New Mind-Body Science of Depression.

In this episode, Charles and Bruce talk about depression as a mind/body phenomenon, and as an evolutionarily adaptive response. Charles shares his thoughts on the present and future of psychedelic-assisted therapy and presents a number of different treatment models and frameworks for understanding why psychedelics are so effective at treating depression for some people.