Come take a psychedelic tram ride into psychedelic history. The discovery of LSD is associated with Albert Hofmann’s famous April 1943 self-experiment, and his bicycle ride home and into the annals of psychedelic history. Less known, was that Hofmann’s junior lab assistant Susi Ramstein was pedaling there beside him; later that spring, Susi became the first woman to take LSD. Historian Erika Dyck and scholar, midwife, and founder of the Women’s Visionary Congress, Maria Mangini, recount Susi’s role in LSD’s birth to offer a glimpse of an extraordinary young woman whose place in this important moment will surprise and inspire.

The American Anthropologist Esther Jean Langdon helped expand Western scientific and ethnographic perspectives on South American Indigenous peoples. Rejecting flawed Western conceptions of Indigenous religiosity, especially shamanism, Langdon described how Indigenous people in Colombia and Brazil experienced shamanism as a cosmological system. Isabel de Rose traces Langdon’s decades-long contributions to the study of shamanism, which continue to help us understand the unique significance of shamanic worldviews and practices.

Following its synthesis in 1918, mescaline intrigued writers and artists as a way to challenge ordinary habits of perception. Two such examples were French philosophers John Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvior. Beauvoir’s memoirs record Sartre’s intense mescaline experience, offering a memorable early account of a psychedelic use devoid of Indigenous or even therapeutic characteristics. Patrick Farrell shows how Beauvoir’s evocative description of Sartre’s bad trip remains as vivid as ever.

Ivo Gurschler’s profile of the life and times of the physician Leni Alberts also describes a little-known moment in the history of mescaline. In Breslau (in modern-day Poland), Alberts conducted some of the first clinical experiments with synthesized mescaline in the interwar period. Gurschler shows how Alberts’ pioneering work exhibited a prescient understanding of many important features of today’s therapeutic approaches to psychedelics.

Stacy Schaefer’s portrait of Mrs. Amada Cardenas of south Texas, depicts an extraordinary woman carrying forward the legacy of her family as a peyotero—peyote dealer. Amada’s extraordinary compassion and inspiring respect for peyote and its unique healing power caused her to open her home—Peyote Gardens—to anyone seeking help from the cactus. Her legacy is lovingly captured in this homage to her contributions to the preservation and spiritual use of peyote.

Maria Nys Huxley, first wife to Aldous Huxley, holds an important place in the early annals of Western psychedelic history. Maria was a key participant and supporter in her husband’s psychedelic experiments. Andrea Ens explores Maria’s early ideas about the nature of the psychedelic experience and its relationship to mental health and illness, which influenced both Aldous and Humphry Osmond following her untimely death in 1955.

Andrea also writes about Laura Archera Huxley, Aldous’ second wife, who, like Maria, occupies a significant place in modern psychedelic history. Long before she deciphered her dying husband’s scrawled wish to be injected with LSD, Laura was his psychedelic confidant and co-experimenter. Following Aldous’ death in 1963, Andrea describes Laura’s continued prominence in the development of US psychedelic culture. Like Maria, Laura too was struck by the therapeutic and healing potential of psychedelics, which she expounded in her writings and other pursuits.

Nina Graboi was a pioneering psychedelic explorer in the post-war period who rejected the assigned role of subdued housewife. Chris Elcock’s essay recounts Graboi’s remarkable life, from her early friendship with Timothy Leary, and immersion in New York City’s fledgling psychedelic scene, to her leadership of the radical Center of the League of Spiritual Discovery. Graboi emerges as an independent thinker and actor in these psychedelic and countercultural circles.

Wilma Mahua Campos is a Shipibo ayahuasquera living in the Ucayali region of the Peruvian Amazon, where she continues in her family’s tradition as a steward of sacred plant medicine. This interview, conducted and translated by Samantha Black, offers a precious glimpse into the life and activities of a master ayahuasquera, as she confronts the drastic pressures and changes to her community’s traditions in the face of constant colonial depredations.

Dr. Mercedes de la Garza is professor emeritus at Mexico’s National Autonomous University, where she accomplished ground-breaking research into sacred plant use in South American history. In this interview by contributor Osiris González Romero, Dr. de la Garza describes her early work in pre-contact Nahuatl and Mayan religions, and her special focus on shamanism. Her candid interview offers the views of an accomplished scholar looking back, as well as advice to younger researchers entering the field.

​​Tal Davidson’s essay discusses the complicated legacy of pioneering psychedelic therapist Betty Eisner. Davidson tells the story of the death of a client in Eisner’s care, and explores some of the factors that may have contributed to the tragedy. Confronting both the light and the dark of this notable figure in Western therapeutic psychedelics disabuses us of unrealistic frameworks, as we explore some of complicated actions of prominent individuals in this history.

The prominent psychiatrist Lauretta Bender carried out significant and little-known work with LSD in the 1950s and 60s. Chris Elcock traces Bender’s accomplished career, and describes her pioneering and still-controversial use of graduated doses of LSD and psilocybin to treat children. While the growing stigma surrounding psychedelics caused her to distance herself from this early work, Bender’s full psychedelic contributions remain to be uncovered.

The first of James Penner’s two-part series on Rosemary Woodruff, describes her transition from stifled young housewife in an abusive marriage to muse and loving companion to Timothy Leary at the peak of his psychedelic guruism. In a relationship characterized by intensity and motion, their early years were rife with conflict and legal troubles, up to the point that Rosemary decided to break her husband out of jail, which is recounted in part two.

The scope of Rosemary Woodruff’s role in Leary’s famous prison escape in 1970 was little known or referred to in accounts of the famous incident. James reveals Rosemary to have been a key participant, working behind the scenes to raise money and help organize. In the years of exile that followed for the fleeing couple, Rosemary’s hope for a quiet life were in conflict with the constant hijinks that surrounded America’s self-proclaimed “High Priest of LSD.” 

Erika Dyck’s profile of Jane Osmond casts a little light on her life, and shows how psychedelic history would be much different without these often nameless, voiceless supporting figures—often women—in the background. Husband to psychedelic psychiatrist Humphry Osmond, Jane was very comfortable in this emerging psychedelic community in 1950s North America. The Osmonds represent an important aspect to pre-1960s Western psychedelia, one that while not counterculture, was nonetheless radical in its own patient and supportive way.

Andrew Jones offers a surprising and eye-opening account of Canadian psychiatrist and Christian missionary, Dr. Florence Nichols. Influenced by pioneering LSD therapist Ronald Sandison, Nichols practiced a form of “clinical theology,” which sought to marry clinical techniques with approaches to psychological well-being found in church practices. Nichols remained a vocal defender of psychedelics and mental health care deserves  recognition among Canada’s pioneering psychedelic forebearers.

Kay Parley is an incredible and understated figure in the history of psychedelics. Genvieve Paiment thoughtfully explains why we should pay attention to Kay’s story. Institutionalized after a psychotic break, Kay learned first hand what it was like to experience psychotic symptoms. Over time, she made peace with her psychosis and re-entered the psychiatric institution in the 1950s as a nurse, working alongside Humphry Osmond. Kay’s own LSD experience gave her insight into her psychosis and the therapeutic value of psychedelics in an effort to confront discrimination levelled at people with major mental illnesses.

Eileen Garrett is better known as an internationally renowned psychic than a supporter of psychedelics. But, Patrick Barber explores how one of the most famous mediums of the 20th century became a treasured member of mid-century psychedelic literary circles. A close personal friend of both Aldous Huxley and Humphry Osmond, Garrett’s participation in psychedelic theorizing reminds us of some of the radical and unorthodox influences that nourished psychedelic experimentation in the 1950s.

When Life magazine published the story about Robert Gordon Wasson meeting María Sabina, they downplayed one small detail: Valentina Pavlova Wasson, Gordon’s wife, was a critical participant in this encounter. Valentina was a physician and ethnomycologist who wrote a definitive book on the study of mushrooms in her native home, Russia. Amy Bartlett and Monnica Williams recentre this story on Valentina, highlighting her contributions to this historic moment.

María Sabina is probably the most famous woman associated with psilocybin mushrooms, owing to her famous encounter with American banker Gordon Wasson. Their meeting was published in Life magazine in 1957, drawing international attention to the Mazatec people and their use of sacred mushrooms. Osiris González Romero links her to a longer legacy of Aztec traditions, revealing her place at an intersection of plants, people, and colonialism. This article explores the circumstances that led to their famous meeting, which launched sacred mushrooms into the American consciousness, with life-changing consequences for María.

Treated carefully, and respectfully, psychedelics offer hope. Kathleen Harrison has dedicated her life to exploring how psychedelics have been understood, remembered, cultivated and used around the world. With long-standing relationships especially in Mexico, Kathleen is a tireless advocate for studying psychedelic ecologies. Arguably overshadowed by her husband Terence MacKenna in the 1980s and 1990s, Kathleen reminds us in this candid interview that she was an integral player in her own right. She suggests that psychedelics offer precious opportunities to learn from one another, embrace diversity, and challenge conventions, particularly when we balance respect for plants with respect for people.

Betsy Gordon is not a household name, not even in psychedelic circles. But, archivist Stephanie Schmitz suggests that without Betsy’s foresight much of the psychedelic history we have come to enjoy would not be possible. An ardent collector, Betsy is fundamentally important for initiating the psychoactive substances archive at Purdue University, with records from many notable early researchers. Schmitz explains that Besty’s vision for capturing this legacy has been vital to the preservation of psychedelic history.

A child of post-war America, Yvonne Negrin came of age as psychedelic America blossomed. Raised by Brazilian immigrants in New York, Yvonne was in the right place at the right time to have a front seat to a burgeoning psychedelic movement in the 1960s. Her daughter Diana shares a candid and intimate portrayal of her mother’s life, which intersected with music, drugs, politics. Her American upbringing gave her a bedrock of understanding, which ultimately led her to seek out experiences in Mexico where she has focused her energy working with Wixarika, bringing together plants and culture.

Marlene Dobkin de Rios was a pioneer in many respects, and a complicated feminist. A white American, de Rios (née Dobkin) was drawn to anthropology and became enchanted with Peruvian approaches to ayahuasca. As a woman in a male-dominated field she experienced sexism in her research, and as a white woman working in Indigenous communities she carried racial privileges. Her identity, including her marriage to a Peruvian artist, made her both marginalized and privileged at the same time, contributing to her position as a complicated figure in psychedelic history. Taylor Dysart confronts this complexity as she explores how de Rios navigated this territory in the 1960s.

As ayahuasca tourism became more popular, allegations of sexual violence emerged in news stories, culminating in shocking reports that a Brazilian religious leader, Prem Baba, had been responsible for attacks on women. The story opened a proverbial pandora’s box about the ethics of consent in ayahuasca ceremonies and the safety of women in these intimate settings. In this article Pietro Benedito and Gretel Echazú explore this case in Brazil, contextualizing it within a larger patriarchal culture and offer insight into how to work to restore core concepts of dignity and safety in this space.

Women’s gossip has often been disregarded as insignificant, or worse, dangerous. Alexis Turner confronts this idea by exploring the inner world of Anaïs Nin, who for a time was at the epi-center of psychedelic America in California. Combing through Nin’s published diary, Turner sheds new light on psychedelic guru Timothy Leary and his love life, or rather sex life. In this article we are encouraged to think carefully about who we trust when it comes to safeguarding the reputations of early psychedelic enthusiasts.

Sainte Daime, like many religions that incorporate psychedelics, maintain a heteronormative outlook on gender relations. Despite this tradition that is anchored in religious, political, and social beliefs, Ligia Platero and Klarissa Platero decided to challenge this conceptualization by getting married. This article is a candid exposé of their experience finding an officiant and organizing appropriate elements within the Sainte Daime religion as they sought inclusion in this community, while pushing boundaries for others in their wake.

Particular plants have been revered for their capacity to create mind-altering experiences. Fabiana Maizza shows us that it is artificial to extract the plant from its larger ecosystem, and that by paying close attention to forests and gardens we gain a deeper appreciation of a larger system of plant-based healing. Moreover, the stewards of these gardens are often women who tend, nurture, carry or transport the plant materials and whose labor is instrumental in supporting these practices. Maizza combines anthropological and linguistic precision to show how women have been integral to these practices, such that their roles are codified in the very language.

As psychedelics move around the globe and enter mainstream conversations, there is a greater need than ever to be clear about appropriate guidelines for use. In this article, experienced scholars and activists have collected information from different sites to produce a comprehensive starting point for sexual abuse guidelines. The report offers best-practice advice and aims to raise awareness on this important topic as we strive to promote safe use and safe spaces for psychedelic experiences.

In the 1940s, she was Mexico’s public enemy number one. Lola, aka La Chata, aka Shorty, was considered the most notorious drug dealer in Mexico. Her notoriety started with heroin, but her story connects her with an underground world of vice, arrests, and addiction, leading police to describe her as the “drug empress” of Mexico. Despite assumptions that the drug underground was a man’s world, Lola defied gendered expectations and became one of the most famous women in Mexico during this period.

Music and psychedelics go hand in hand, whether it is music inspired by mind-altering experiences, or music that accompanies an experience. In this article Steve Lett explains how music therapists developed theories explaining the influence of music on psychedelic therapy sessions. He focuses on pioneering figures Helen Bonny and Hermione Browne, who broke from tradition and carved out space in music therapy to specifically consider the relationship between music and psychedelics.

The idea of set and setting has long been established in the context of psychedelics, recognizing the importance of non-pharmacological influences on these experiences. Historically the concept has been associated with male investigators, but in this article Zoë Dubus challenges that idea by showing how a network of women in the 1950s experimented with setting to optimize therapeutic results. Tracking the work of women like Joyce Martin who was active in the 1950s as a Freudian psychoanalyst, Dubus shows how these women’s practices have been overshadowed by the likes of Timothy Leary who coined the phrase “set and setting.” His powerful association with the concept has overshadowed the influence of women who worked closely with patients and who contributed much in the early days of psychedelic research.

Teacher plants have been associated with shamanistic knowledge and insights. Edward MacRae explains how plants and religion became intertwined in Brazil, giving rise to new expressions of expertise and healing through a syncretic blend of Christian and Indigenous principles and the role of ayahuasca as a sacrament. Carefully choreographed features, including singing, clothing, and preparations help to harness the powers of ayahuasca as it became part of the Sainte Daime religion and spread beyond the Amazon, gradually challenging ideas of acceptable psychoactive consumption in Brazil.

Women are assumed to play subordinate roles in the world of ayahuasca, but Raizza Marins shows us that the picture is more complicated. Not only have women crossed these boundaries, but the music, especially hymns, sung during ayahuasca ceremonies bring a particular feminine quality to the experience. Tracing songs and symbols, Marins discovers the significance of femininity as it is woven into the preparation and integration of ayahuasca rituals. 

Women shamans are rare. Despite women participating in healing practices, their recognition as shamans has more to do with politics than expertise. Laura Perez Gil examines this history through her careful study of yaminawa women in Peru, who are beginning to challenge assumptions about women’s place in an ayahuasca centered cosmology. Passing on techniques and wisdom through generations of women, Perez Gil explains how this legacy of honoring and sharing this knowledge places women in a special position within this ayahuasca universe.

This is the remarkable story of Madrinha Rita, a woman whose life tells a story of religion, colonialism, and the healing salve of ayahuasca in a Brazilian setting. Rita emerges in this article as a courageous yet modest leader, one who has protected knowledge and who has incorporated her experiences into her own spiritual work. Revered for her calm and tolerant nature, Rita has become a world leader in espousing the values of the Sainte Daime religion, emphasizing community, family and diversity. Glauber Loures de Assis and Jacqueline Rodrigues bring the story of this ayahuasca matriarch to life.

Western medicine is often described as being in tension with Indigenous healing approaches. Ibrah Gabriell interviews Anja Loizaga-Velder, suggesting that there might be another way to interpret this relationship. Anja straddles these different approaches in her own life and practice, revealing a more pluralistic and less antagonistic relationship that can exist by combining Western methods with Indigenous theories, especially as she has experienced in her work with ayahuasca. In this interview Anja is innovative and inspiring as she reflects on the hybrid nature of her practice.

Psychedelics have been associated with stimulating change and transition, and in this article Jasmine Virdi explores their use by death doulas in preparation for dying. Death doulas and death midwives have invested energy into helping to theorize and care for people anticipating death. Their work goes beyond physical care, with a focus on spiritual and psychological transformations that confront fear and anxiety associated with dying. As several jurisdictions explore right-to-die legislation and changing expectations for palliative care, end-of-life care helps to promote a humanitarian intervention that treats death holistically.

Consuming ayahuasca during pregnancy follows customs laid out by the Sainte Daime religion and adheres to advice from midwives who have carefully combined elements of maternal health and psychedelic healing. This relationship, while seemingly controversial outside of the Sainte Daime religion, represents an act of resistance to patriarchy and colonialism. In this essay, Jacqueline Rodrigues and Glauber Loures de Assis explore the history of these rituals and how they have come to symbolize women’s power, drawing from traditional customs alongside a desire to modernize childbirth in Brazil.

Women’s access to fertility control has a long history. Even the US landmark case, Roe v Wade, has not ensured that women have universal, safe access to abortions. The uneven access to reproductive health services has led women to carefully protect information about fertility, whether that is plant-based knowledge or medical referrals. Naomi Rendina explores these whispered networks that women have developed, including those involving psychedelic plants that have historically been used to produce miscarriages or to regulate menstruation. Her article reminds us that women’s health has long been a politicized issue.

Midwives have long explained childbirth as requiring an altered state of consciousness, yet the connection between psychedelics and childbirth is typically confined to a few specific rituals. In this article Lana Cook takes us on a personal voyage through a description of childbirth and an intertwined history of midwifery, pain relief, and psychedelics to reveal a compelling symmetry between theories of natural childbirth and psychedelic experiences. Cook describes her embodied experience as itself psychedelic, imploring us to revisit this altered state of consciousness as a generative space for thinking about women and psychedelics.