How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence Audiobook

“Pollan keeps you turning the pages . . . cleareyed and assured.” —New York Times A #1 New York Times Bestseller, New York Times Book Review 10 Best Books of 2018, and New York Times Notable Book  A brilliant and brave investigation into the medical and scientific revolution taking place around psychedelic drugs--and the spellbinding story of his own life-changing psychedelic experiences When Michael Pollan set out to research how LSD and psilocybin (the active ingredient in magic mushrooms) are being used to provide relief to people suffering from difficult-to-treat conditions such as depression, addiction and anxiety, he did not intend to write what is undoubtedly his most personal book. But upon discovering how these remarkable substances are improving the lives not only of the mentally ill but also of healthy people coming to grips with the challenges of everyday life, he decided to explore the landscape of the mind in the first person as well as the third. Thus began a singular adventure into various altered states of consciousness, along with a dive deep into both the latest brain science and the thriving underground community of psychedelic therapists. Pollan sifts the historical record to separate the truth about these mysterious drugs from the myths that have surrounded them since the 1960s, when a handful of psychedelic evangelists inadvertently catalyzed a powerful backlash against what was then a promising field of research. A unique and elegant blend of science, memoir, travel writing, history, and medicine, How to Change Your Mind is a triumph of participatory journalism. By turns dazzling and edifying, it is the gripping account of a journey to an exciting and unexpected new frontier in our understanding of the mind, the self, and our place in the world. The true subject of Pollan's "mental travelogue" is not just psychedelic drugs but also the eternal puzzle of human consciousness and how, in a world that offers us both suffering and joy, we can do our best to be fully present and find meaning in our lives.

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"Michael Pollan has a remarkable discipline of being very open minded and curious, yet also skeptical and grounded. He writes with clarity and balance about a topic that provokes both histrionic fear and messianic evangelism in many. He embraces the psychedelic experience and its transformative potential, but does not fall into the new age fanaticism that is so often present in the West's psychedelic subcultures. As someone who has had an interest in psychedelics for many years, I found this book profoundly illuminating. Yet it also the first book I would give someone who knows nothing about psychedelics. The book combines many angles in a seamless tapestry of ideas and narratives. There is history, both personal and cultural. There is science and philosophy. There is deep introspection and journalistic investigation. The focus of the book is really on consciousness itself, psychedelics being one path of investigating and healing it. Pollan has a beautiful writing style and a beautiful voice and diction for this audiobook, which he narrates himself. He is as much a poet as he is a journalist. I consider it an honor to have a writer of his talents lend his thoughts, experiences and erudition on the subject. I highly recommend this book both to seasoned psychonaughts and to those who have only begun to kindle their interest in this fascinating topic. "

— Nikolai A (5 out of 5 stars)