I remember the day my dad called me to tell me that I should come home. My mom was not getting better. There is something to be said about the mental state one goes into upon receiving a potentially terminal diagnosis. Everything changes in this one instance, when the end of life turns from an if, a possibility far off in the future, to a when with a ticking clock. It goes way beyond the physical symptoms that go along with a disease and has more to do with the feelings and emotions, the worry and isolation one might feel at this point in life.

Unfortunately traditional medicine pays little to no regard to the mental state of a patient, while all efforts focus on the physical needs.

But in recent years scientific studies have turned their attention to a humble little mushroom in search of a solution. I am talking about Magic Mushrooms. Their active component, Psilocybin, might be the answer to alleviating emotional distress and depression at the end of life.

I cannot even explain how exciting this subject is to me. When my mom was in hospital with cancer, I wish we had had that option. It might have made everything a lot easier – for her, for me and my dad. Who knows.

What I do know is that mental health problems are rising worldwide – not only at the end of life - and we must realize that our current traditional Mental Health models continue to fail our most vulnerable populations. Alternative approaches such as psychedelic psychotherapy with psychedelics such as psilocybin, MDMA or Ketamine have a huge potential and often alleviate symptoms with a single dose in a controlled environment.

In this episode I am speaking to Dr. Paul Thambi. As a medical oncologist for over 20 years, Paul witnessed the emotional distress his patients suffered upon diagnosis and during treatment, which led him to explore the benefits of psychedelic therapies to address the emotional and mental health of his patients fighting cancer. He is also the Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer of Sunstone Therapies. Sunstone is focused on developing psychedelic therapies and building modern centers of healing, treating mind and heart along with the physical body.

Oftentimes it is deep emotional turmoil that gives birth to some of the most impressive pieces of art because some people work through their grief by writing, painting or singing about it.

It is those songs born out of pure emotions that give me all the feels. Those are the songs that make me cry, give me goosebumps or just allow me to travel down memory lane. It really got me curious about the creative process that goes into writing and performing from a place of grief.

Gina Harris is a singer/songwriter and actor who has performed in theaters and jazz clubs in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. She has done just that – she wrote a solo musical called “The Magic of Ordinary Things,” where she addresses her thoughts and emotions of dealing with her own grief after the loss of her parents and her singing teacher Lilian. Her music, grown from her jazz and blues roots, is magical and dreamy. Her lyrics are haunting, nostalgic and deep.

I was curious to have a look behind the scenes and find out more about her creative process and how she was able to blend love, grief and hope into music.

This is going to be what feels like the most important episode of LTSG to date.

While my previous and future episodes are meant to open a discussion around the end of life, a reality we will all face sooner or later, THIS episode actually has the potential to save lives.

So, if you are listening to this today and if you happen to work in marketing, PR, for a newspaper, radio or in a school or university and would like to help to get this message out, please do get in touch with me. You can email me at podcast@learningtosaygoodbye.com

Today I am sitting down with Dr. Ruby Javed, who is the Chief Forensic Toxicologist at the County of Los Angeles Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner. Dr. Ruby has a stellar career with over 17 years of experience in drug-related science in both the private and public sectors.

Not only is she a powerhouse at a job that most people would find hard to stomach, but she lives with an incredible passion and zest for life. We are both mothers and in that capacity, today’s subject is very close to our hearts.

I have seen a few mediums in my time. Some were ok, one was downright awful, and I walked out after 10 minutes. But then there are those that just leave you amazed. One of them is Jen Shaffer. Jen is a world-renowned Psychic Medium. She has been on serval TV shows and movies on Gaia. She works with law enforcement on criminal cases and often hosts small group readings called Wine and Spirits.

Maybe it was the name that drew me, but I did not know much about Jen, when I attended one of her Wine and Spirits group readings a few months back. What came out during that reading blew my mind and I just knew that I had to have her on the podcast.

But I did not want to have the regular “reading on a podcast kinda thing” – I wanted a look behind the curtain to find out how this whole medium thing works.

In recent years I have had quite a few strange things happen to me as well, messages, visions … stuff like that. Crazy stuff, that I am still in the process of wrapping my head around. Maybe it is because of my work as an End-of-life Doula - I am not sure.

I was never scared when I knew or saw something – just confused and scared that I might go nuts. And it is a process to recognize messages for what they are and to get the courage to talk about them. So, I am super excited to hear what an expert like Jen has to say about that. Maybe I am not going crazy after all.

Feelings are funny things. We think we experience them mostly on a mental level. Our brain makes sense of the things we feel, and we label them – as in “I feel happy” or “I feel sad, or anxious, or angry.” But it is in our body that most of these feelings settle in the end. How do we get rid of those tight muscles caused by anger, or the weight on our shoulders, where grief holds us down? This is what we will tackle in today’s episode. 

I had a chat with Paul Denniston, the founder of grief yoga and author of the book “Healing through Yoga: Transform Loss into Empowerment.” Paul and I met at a workshop years ago and his teachings touched something inside of me that I really wanted to share with you all here.  

Not only will we talk about how what we label as “negative” feelings settle in our bodies but we will also get a few hands-on tips on how to get things moving, releasing grief, pain, anxiety, fear, and anger that might have settled in our bodies for a long time.

If I would ask you, “where does your consciousness reside?” your first instinct might be to say “well, the brain of course,” right? After all, isn’t that the part of our body that does all the thinking? Where our thoughts are turned to words, where we debate with others and most of the time with ourselves, where we define who we are? But is that true? What relationship do the brain and consciousness have? And what can we do to go beyond the brain and access deeper levels of awareness? Hear from Dr. Eben Alexander and Karen Newell about the mind-brain-relationship and how binaural beats help us to go deeper.

Neurosurgeon and bestselling author Dr Eben Alexander never believed in life after death until he got a look behind the curtain when he experienced a Near-Death-Experience and came back to tell his story. When I came across his book, while working through my own grief, I was blown away by the hope it instilled in me. Let his journey inspire you to look at death and what comes after from a new perspective.

Everyone has a story. And there is magic in sharing those experiences. Hear from Ernst van Eeghen about his personal story of love and loss and what it took to him to start healing his heart and ultimately finding the way to his happy ending.

Holidays and grief - those two do not mix very well. Learn a few tips and tricks on how to get through the holidays while honoring your loved one’s memory and being patient with your own feelings.

Meet Neale Donald Walsch, best-selling author and modern-day spiritual messenger and hear what God would say about death and life and what comes after.

Are we hard-wired to grieve a certain way? Find out how what role your nervous system plays in grief and how to understand this complex emotion better.

Before jumping into the podcast, lets meet Alexandra Dionisio, the host of Learning to Say Goodbye and find out what motivated her to start a conversation about life and death.