Dr. Rachel Harris - Listening to Ayahuasca

Aired Wednesday, 7 June 2017, 8:00 PM ET

Dr. Rachel Harris - Listening to Ayahuasca

People on the seeker’s path from time immemorial have sought answers to the mysteries of life, life afterlife, our world and the universe. The mystic’s goal has been that ultimate awakening, understanding and connection….being one with everything. Many tools and methods have been used for attaining this goal including meditation, ceremonial magic and the natural pharmacopoeia that grows from our earth. Western experiments with psychedelic substances began in the 1940’s and by the time the late 60’s arrived, they were outlawed and classified as dangerous drugs. Yet evidence suggests that many of these substances, when used properly and in combination with traditional therapies can help to allay and sometimes cure depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and even addictions.

My guest this week on Destination Unlimited, Psychotherapist Dr. Rachel Harris, has done extensive scientific and personal research into ayahuasca, a psychedelic tea used in ceremonies by indigenous peoples in the Amazon rain forest. Dr. Harris has been in private practice for 35 years. She received a National Institutes of Health New Investigator’s Award, has published more than forty scientific studies in peer-reviewed journals, and has worked as a psychological consultant to Fortune 500 companies and the United Nations. She shares her findings and personal experience with ayahuasca in the fascinating new book, Listening to Ayahuasca: New Hope for Depression, Addiction, PTSD and Anxiety.