The Psychedelic Podcast

Herbal Ecstasy & The Billion Dollar Smart Drug Boom
In this episode of The Psychedelic Podcast, Paul F. Austin sits down with entrepreneur Shaahin Cheyene, creator of the controversial 1990s supplement "Herbal Ecstasy," which helped launch the legal smart-drug movement.
Find full show notes and links here: https://thethirdwave.co/podcast/episode-348/?ref=278
Shaahin shares how he built a multimillion-dollar business at just fifteen by creating a legal herbal alternative to MDMA during a shortage in the rave scene.
The conversation explores 1990s rave culture, the ethics of prohibition, and how natural supplements intersect with psychedelics, entrepreneurship, and personal freedom. They also discuss his later ventures in Amazon commerce, podcast media, and YouTube.
Shaahin Cheyene is the creator of Herbal Ecstasy, a supplement that helped spark the legal smart-drug movement in the 1990s. He built the business as a teenager into a multimillion-dollar company.
Over the past three decades, Shaahin has become an award-winning entrepreneur, Amazon expert, inventor, author, and filmmaker whose ventures have generated over a billion dollars in revenue. He is the founder of PodcastCola and Viral Mirage.
Through his businesses, Shaahin continues to mentor entrepreneurs and develop health and wellness products focused on optimizing human performance.
Highlights:
Creating Herbal Ecstasy at age fifteen
The MDMA shortage that created opportunity
Rave culture and the 1990s club scene
Natural supplements as legal alternatives
Freedom, regulation, and drug policy debates
Health and wellness entrepreneurship
Building product brands in emerging markets
Podcasting and YouTube as influence platforms
Episode Links:
Shaahin's website
PodcastCola
Billion: How I Became King of the Thrill Pill Cult – Shaahin Cheyene


Episode Sponsors:
The Microdosing Practitioner Certification at Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
The Practitioner Certification Program by Third Wave's Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
Golden Rule - Get a lifetime discount of 10% with code THIRDWAVE at checkout Disclaimer: This content is for educational, informational, and entertainment purposes only. We do not promote or encourage the illegal use of any controlled substances. Nothing said here is medical or legal advice. Always consult a qualified medical or mental health professional before making decisions related to your health. The views expressed herein belong to the speaker alone, and do not reflect the views of any other person, company, or organization.
Third Wave occasionally partners with or shares information about other people, companies, and/or providers. While we work hard to only share information about ethical and responsible third parties, we can't and don't control the behavior of, products and services offered by, or the statements made by people, companies, or providers other than Third Wave. Accordingly, we encourage you to research for yourself, and consult a medical, legal, or financial professional before making decisions in those areas. Third Wave isn't responsible for the statements, conduct, services, or products of third parties. If we share a coupon code, we may receive a commission from sales arising from customers who use our coupon code. No one is required to use our coupon codes.

In this episode of The Psychedelic Podcast, Paul F. Austin speaks with Jonathan Dickinson, CEO and Co-Founder of Ambio Life Sciences, about the evolving role of ibogaine in psychedelic medicine.
Listen to the full episode: https://thethirdwave.co/podcast/episode-347/?ref=278
Jonathan shares his path from leading the Global Ibogaine Therapy Alliance to helping build one of the field's most prominent ibogaine treatment organizations. Together they explore ibogaine's expanding therapeutic potential for traumatic brain injury, addiction, and neurological conditions, along with the clinical realities of delivering this powerful medicine safely.
They also discuss the challenges of scaling ibogaine treatment, the importance of preparation and integration, and how traditional Bwiti knowledge from Gabon continues to shape ethical and culturally grounded approaches to this work.
Jonathan Dickinson is the CEO and Co-Founder of Ambio Life Sciences and a leading expert on ibogaine therapy. With more than 15 years of experience in psychedelic research, clinical care, and traditional practice, he has helped shape global safety standards for ibogaine treatment.
A Mexico-licensed psychologist and former Executive Director of the Global Ibogaine Therapy Alliance, Jonathan has published research on ibogaine's therapeutic potential for trauma, traumatic brain injury, and neurological conditions. He has also been initiated into the Bwiti traditions of Gabon and holds a Nagoya-compliant export license for Tabernanthe iboga root.
Highlights:
Jonathan Dickinson's path from the Global Ibogaine Therapy Alliance to Ambio Life Sciences
How ibogaine treatment expanded beyond opioid detox
The growing use of ibogaine for traumatic brain injury and veterans' recovery
Why ibogaine treatment requires extensive medical screening and preparation
The importance of integration and community support after treatment
What Bwiti traditions in Gabon teach about working with iboga
The challenges of scaling ibogaine treatment safely
Why ibogaine may create a longer window for lasting change

In this episode of The Psychedelic Podcast, Paul F. Austin speaks with Christopher Solomon, founder of Salvia Healings, about how Salvia divinorum can be approached as a therapeutic and introspective tool when used with preparation and somatic awareness.
Find full show notes and links here: https://thethirdwave.co/podcast/episode-346/?ref=278 
They discuss dosage, harm reduction, and the importance of building a supportive container for working with intense altered states. The conversation explores how somatic awareness, breath, and pacing can help transform the Salvia experience into an opportunity for meditation, trauma processing, and self guided healing.
Christopher Solomon is a somatic Salvia guide and educator focused on helping people approach Salvia with safety, structure, and intention. Drawing from his training in somatic psychotherapy, he teaches how to work with this powerful plant in ways that support introspection and personal growth.
Highlights:
Reframing Salvia's cultural reputation
Set and setting with Salvia
Somatic awareness during altered states
Microdosing vs threshold experiences
Harm reduction and preparation
Episode Links:
Christopher's website
Somatic Salvia Network


Episode Sponsors:
The Microdosing Practitioner Certification at Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
The Practitioner Certification Program by Third Wave's Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
Golden Rule - Get a lifetime discount of 10% with code THIRDWAVE at checkout
Third Wave occasionally partners with or shares information about other people, companies, and/or providers. While we work hard to only share information about ethical and responsible third parties, we can't and don't control the behavior of, products and services offered by, or the statements made by people, companies, or providers other than Third Wave. Accordingly, we encourage you to research for yourself, and consult a medical, legal, or financial professional before making decisions in those areas. Third Wave isn't responsible for the statements, conduct, services, or products of third parties. If we share a coupon code, we may receive a commission from sales arising from customers who use our coupon code. No one is required to use our coupon codes."

In this episode of The Psychedelic Podcast, Paul F. Austin speaks with Jodi Lomask, an artist, choreographer, and creative guide whose work bridges art, science, embodiment, and psychedelic experience.
Find full show notes and links here: https://thethirdwave.co/podcast/episode-345/?ref=278 
They explore how psychedelic experiences can be approached as acts of creative design shaped by context and environment. Jodi shares insights from decades of immersive performance work and discusses flow, embodied intelligence, psychological safety in groups, and the differences between microdosing and vision quests.
Jodi Lomask is an artist and founder of Capacitor, a performance company exploring the intersection of dance, science, and consciousness. Through Creative Journey, she supports individuals and teams in cultivating creative flow and embodied insight.
Highlights:
Designing psychedelic experiences intentionally
Embodiment and integration
Flow states and healing
Psychological safety in group work
Microdosing versus vision quests
Episode Links:
Creative Journey
Jodi's website
 
Episode Sponsors:
The Practitioner Certification Program by Third Wave's Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
The Microdosing Practitioner Certification at Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
Golden Rule - Get a lifetime discount of 10% with code THIRDWAVE at checkout
Disclaimer: This content is for educational, informational, and entertainment purposes only. We do not promote or encourage the illegal use of any controlled substances. Nothing said here is medical or legal advice. Always consult a qualified medical or mental health professional before making decisions related to your health. The views expressed herein belong to the speaker alone, and do not reflect the views of any other person, company, or organization.
Third Wave occasionally partners with or shares information about other people, companies, and/or providers. While we work hard to only share information about ethical and responsible third parties, we can't and don't control the behavior of, products and services offered by, or the statements made by people, companies, or providers other than Third Wave. Accordingly, we encourage you to research for yourself, and consult a medical, legal, or financial professional before making decisions in those areas. Third Wave isn't responsible for the statements, conduct, services, or products of third parties. If we share a coupon code, we may receive a commission from sales arising from customers who use our coupon code. No one is required to use our coupon codes.

In this episode of The Psychedelic Podcast, Paul F. Austin speaks with Hunt Priest, founder of Ligare, about Christianity, mysticism, and the ethical integration of psychedelic experience within spiritual life.
Find full show notes and links here: https://thethirdwave.co/podcast/episode-344/?ref=278 
They discuss Hunt's participation in a 2016 Johns Hopkins psilocybin study for clergy, Christianity's long history of mystical experience, and how non-ordinary states can be held within ethical and communal containers. The conversation also explores legality versus ethics, justice and institutional risk, and how psychedelics relate to prayer, meditation, and service within a broader spiritual life.
Hunt Priest is a Christian minister and founder of Ligare, a nonprofit exploring the relationship between Christianity and psychedelics. Formerly an Episcopal priest, he works at the intersection of spiritual formation, ethics, and community-based integration of mystical experience.
Highlights:
Johns Hopkins clergy study
Christian mysticism and non-ordinary states
Psychedelics as catalysts for spiritual practice
Legal versus ethical tensions
Institutional risk and grace
Episode Links:
Ligare
Hunt on Substack
Episode Sponsors:
The Practitioner Certification Program by Third Wave's Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
The Microdosing Practitioner Certification at Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
Golden Rule - Get a lifetime discount of 10% with code THIRDWAVE at checkout
Disclaimer: This content is for educational, informational, and entertainment purposes only. We do not promote or encourage the illegal use of any controlled substances. Nothing said here is medical or legal advice. Always consult a qualified medical or mental health professional before making decisions related to your health. The views expressed herein belong to the speaker alone, and do not reflect the views of any other person, company, or organization.
Third Wave occasionally partners with or shares information about other people, companies, and/or providers. While we work hard to only share information about ethical and responsible third parties, we can't and don't control the behavior of, products and services offered by, or the statements made by people, companies, or providers other than Third Wave. Accordingly, we encourage you to research for yourself, and consult a medical, legal, or financial professional before making decisions in those areas. Third Wave isn't responsible for the statements, conduct, services, or products of third parties. If we share a coupon code, we may receive a commission from sales arising from customers who use our coupon code. No one is required to use our coupon codes.