The Psychedelic Podcast

African Psychoactive Plants: Dreams, Ancestors, and Healing
In this episode of The Psychedelic Podcast, Paul F. Austin speaks with Jean-Francois Sobiecki, a South African ethnobotanist, clinical nutritionist, and healer whose work challenges the assumption that Africa lacks psychoactive plant traditions.
Find full show notes and links here: https://thethirdwave.co/podcast/episode-339/?ref=278 
Drawing from over two decades of research and a 15-year apprenticeship with a Northern Sotho healer, Jean-Francois explores dream-enhancing medicines like Ubulawu, ancestral healing systems, and cross-cultural parallels with Amazonian plant traditions. The conversation also examines conservation, initiation, and the role of African psychoactive plants in global mental health.
Jean-Francois Sobiecki is a South African ethnobotanist, clinical nutritionist, and healer with over two decades of experience researching African psychoactive plant traditions. A research associate at the University of Johannesburg and founder of Phytoalchemy, he has documented more than 300 psychoactive plant species and completed a 15-year apprenticeship under Northern Sotho healer Leti Maponya. He is the author of African Psychoactive Plants: Journeys in Phytoalchemy.
Highlights:
Challenging myths about African visionary plants
Ubulawu and dream-based healing
Psychoactive vs psychedelic distinctions
African and Amazonian initiation parallels
Archaeological evidence of psilocybin in Africa
Conservation and healing gardens
Episode Links:
Jean-Francois Sobiecki's Website
Jean-Francois book, African Psychoactive Plants: Journeys in Phytoalchemy
These show links may contain affiliate links. Third Wave receives a small percentage of the product price if you purchase through the above affiliate links.
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
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 sits down with Zach Leary to explore how psychedelic culture has evolved from its countercultural roots into today's rapidly commercializing landscape.
They discuss mysticism versus medicalization, the ethics of psychedelics in capitalist systems, the rise of psychedelic churches, and why integration and responsibility matter more than peak experience alone.
Find full show notes and links here: https://thethirdwave.co/podcast/episode-338/?ref=278
Zach Leary is a psychedelic educator, integration coach, and host of the Psychedelics Then and Now Podcast. He has spent over 30 years immersed in psychedelic culture and is the author of Your Extraordinary Mind, forthcoming from Sounds True.
Highlights:
Countercultural roots of psychedelics
Medicalization vs mysticism
Psychedelics in capitalism
Set and setting
Psychedelic churches
Integration and stewardship
Episode Links:
Zach Leary Website
Zach Leary Instagram
Psychedelics Then and Now Podcast
Episode Sponsors:
The Practitioner Certification Program by Third Wave's Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
The Microdosing Practitioner Certification at Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
Golden Rule Mushrooms - Get a lifetime discount of 10% with code THIRDWAVE at checkout

In this episode of The Psychedelic Podcast, Paul F. Austin reconnects with computational neurobiologist and author Dr. Andrew Gallimore to explore the mysteries of DMT, intelligence, and extended-state psychedelic technologies.
Find full show notes and links here:
https://thethirdwave.co/podcast/episode-337/?ref=278 
They revisit themes from their earlier conversation and dive deeper into Andrew's latest book, Death by Astonishment, examining DMT as an information-gating technology, its relationship to non-human intelligences, and its emerging therapeutic and neuroprotective applications.
Andrew also shares updates on DMTx infusion research and reflects on what extended-state experiences could mean for the future of consciousness science and human evolution.
Dr. Andrew Gallimore is a computational neurobiologist, chemical pharmacologist, and writer based in Tokyo. He holds a master's degree in chemical pharmacology and a PhD in biological chemistry from the University of Cambridge, and has completed postdoctoral research fellowships in computational neuroscience at the Universities of York, Oxford, and Okinawa.
For more than two decades, Andrew has studied the neuropharmacology of psychedelics, with a particular focus on DMT and its implications for understanding consciousness. He is the author of Alien Information Theory, Reality Switch Technologies, and Death by Astonishment (St. Martin's Press, 2025). In collaboration with Dr. Rick Strassman, he helped develop the DMTx continuous intravenous infusion protocol for extended journeys in the DMT space.
Highlights:
Revisiting the brain as an information-gating system
DMT as a technology rather than a drug
"Alien intelligences" and what intelligence really means
The Intelligence Principle and post-biological minds
Why extended-state DMT (DMTx) matters
Continuous infusion as deep-sea diving vs. free-diving
Psychedelics as tools for expanding intelligence
Non-human entities and "galactic data networks"
Neuroprotective effects of DMT during stroke
The future of selective sigma-1 receptor agonists
Episode Links:
Andrew Gallimore – Building Alien Worlds
Death by Astonishment (Macmillan)
Episode 146 with Andrew: DMT, Alien Intelligence, and Transhuman Ascension
Episode Sponsors:
The Microdosing Practitioner Certification at Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
The Practitioner Certification Program at Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
Golden Rule Mushrooms - Get a lifetime discount of 10% with code THIRDWAVE at checkout
These show links may contain affiliate links. Third Wave receives a small percentage of the product price if you purchase through the above affiliate links.
Disclaimer: 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.
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.

In this episode of The Psychedelic Podcast, Paul F. Austin speaks with Giovanni Bartolomeo, founder of Elemental Rhythm Breathwork, about how breathwork can support meaningful personal change and deepen integration after psychedelic experiences.
Find full show notes and links here:
https://thethirdwave.co/podcast/episode-336/?ref=278 
Gio shares his journey from high-pressure entrepreneurship into a more grounded, heart-led approach to life and business. He reflects on how Elemental Rhythm emerged through years of breathwork practice, somatic exploration, and deep work with plant medicine, eventually evolving into a system that blends breath, music, movement, meditation, and guided inquiry.
Together, Paul and Gio explore why accessible practices like breathwork can cultivate real agency rather than dependency, how preparation and integration shape long-term change, and what it means to take responsibility for one's own growth in both spiritual and entrepreneurial contexts.
Giovanni Bartolomeo is the founder of Elemental Rhythm Breathwork, where he shares breathwork resources and trains others to facilitate breathwork-based transformational coaching. A lifelong entrepreneur, Gio's own journey through self-discovery led him to create a grounded, embodied approach to personal and professional transformation. Today, he teaches workshops, trainings, and retreats internationally.
Highlights:
From serial entrepreneur to inner-led leadership
Growing beyond inherited belief systems
How Elemental Rhythm emerged through plant medicine work
Breathwork as a tool for agency and clarity
Preparation and integration in psychedelic work
Empowerment versus dependency in facilitation
Responsibility as a cornerstone of transformation
Ethical questions in entrepreneurship and healing spaces
Insights from the Microdosing Practitioner Certification beta
Daily breathwork and nervous system resilience
Episode Links:
Elemental Rhythm Breathwork
Psychedelic Coaching Institute – Microdosing Practitioner Certification
Episode Sponsors:
The Microdosing Practitioner Certification at Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
The Practitioner Certification Program at Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
Golden Rule Mushrooms - Get a lifetime discount of 10% with code THIRDWAVE at checkout
These show links may contain affiliate links. Third Wave receives a small percentage of the product price if you purchase through the above affiliate links.
Disclaimer: 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.
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.

In this episode of The Psychedelic Podcast, Paul F. Austin speaks with human connection specialist and Create The Love founder Mark Groves about how psychedelics reveal the hidden patterns shaping our relationships.
Find full show notes and links here:
https://thethirdwave.co/podcast/episode-335/?ref=278 
Mark shares how heartbreak, honesty, and plant medicine helped him move from external validation to inner truth. Together, they explore emotional safety, attachment wounds, technology's influence on agency, and the growing overlap between relational healing and psychedelic integration.
Mark Groves is a human connection specialist, author, speaker, coach, podcast host, and founder of Create The Love. For over a decade, he has helped individuals and organizations transform relationships through emotional intelligence, self-awareness, and radical honesty.
Highlights:
Psychedelics and relationship patterns
Attachment wounds and emotional safety
Honesty as integration practice
Technology, agency, and attention
Personal sovereignty in partnership
Episode Links:
Mark Groves Website
Create The Love
Episode Sponsors:
The Microdosing Practitioner Certification at Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
The Practitioner Certification Program at Psychedelic Coaching Institute.
Golden Rule Mushrooms - Get a lifetime discount of 10% with code THIRDWAVE at checkout
These show links may contain affiliate links. Third Wave receives a small percentage of the product price if you purchase through the above affiliate links.
Disclaimer: 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.
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.