The Spirit Molecule Returns: New Frontiers in DMT Research

Episode 284

Rick Strassman, M.D.

In this episode of The Psychedelic Podcast, Paul F. Austin welcomes Dr. Rick Strassman, pioneering psychedelic researcher and author of "DMT: The Spirit Molecule." Dr. Strassman shares insights from his groundbreaking DMT research in the 1990s, discusses recent developments in extended-state DMT studies, and explores the complex relationship between psychedelics, spirituality, and organized religion. Drawing from his new memoir "My Altered States," he offers a unique perspective on the intersection of personal experience, clinical research, and spiritual growth in the psychedelic field.

A native of Los Angeles, Rick Strassman obtained his undergraduate degree in Biological Sciences from Stanford University, medical degree from Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University, general psychiatry training at UC Davis, and a clinical psychopharmacology research fellowship training at UC San Diego. Joining the faculty at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine in 1984, his clinical research on melatonin discovered its first known function in humans.

Between 1990-1995 he performed the first new US clinical research with psychedelic drugs—DMT and psilocybin—in a generation. From 1995-2008 he practiced general psychiatry in community mental health and the private sector. He has authored or co-authored nearly 50 peer-reviewed papers, has served as guest editor and reviewer for numerous scientific journals, and consulted to various government, non-profit, and for-profit entities.

His best-selling book DMT: The Spirit Molecule (2001) has been translated into 13 languages and is the basis of a successful independent documentary that he co-produced.

In 2008, he co-authored Inner Paths to Outer Space. His interest in Hebrew biblical prophecy and psychedelia resulted in his 2014 book DMT and the Soul of prophecy. His first novel, Joseph Levy Escapes Death, was published in 2019. The Psychedelic Handbook appeared in 2022, and My Altered States, an illustrated collection of personal narratives, will appear in December 2024.