Happy New Year! Psychedelic News Recap plus DMT Extraction Video now hosted on Patreon

First of all, I want to thank everyone that used any of my Amazon affiliate links for their holiday shopping, you guys are the best, and this really helped out, so please keep me in mind, whenever you are about to make a purchase of anything from amazon, if you click one of my links (doesn't matter which one) first before putting the item in your cart, I get a small commission, it can really add up when lots of people do it! 🙏😇 https://amzn.to/4gZeCun

When I first started with patreon they did not do video hosting, and because YouTube kept deleting my content, I had to use 3rd party sites to host videos. Now that Patreon is able to host video natively, I'm going to start putting my old videos on this platform directly as a form of preservation. The only way I can see of doing that is via new posts since it is currently not possible to insert a video into an old post by editing it. So forgive the randomness at times but I feel better knowing the content is preserved on multiple platforms. The vid attached to this post was actually my very first GordoTEK video, which showed a simple, clean, safe method of DMT extraction that I still recommend to this day and find to be superior to other methods out there in safety and purity. The written instructions and links from the vid are here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/written-out-of-21369133
Also note: I previously mentioned a new bark source, these guys are one of the few vendors still shipping from within the US who are able to accept cards, but the best thing about this is that their latest shipment is the highest quality bark I've ever seen, patrons have been contacting me, ecstatic about their results, we are talking over 3% alkaloids and very high purity (low oils), the vendor has gone so far as go guarantee 2% yields which I've never seen any vendor do. In short, this is the highest quality bark out there right now, it also has unlimited shelf life if stored in a mason jar (literally can last decades), so if you have any interest in DMT or think you might one day, this is still the time to secure bark. They created a coupon code "Gordo" that gives $10 off, link: https://mimosajungle.com/organic-dye-powdered-premium-quality/?ref=gordotek
Actual results from a patron using this vendor's bark:

Also wanted to mention again for European readers only, there is a vendor in the Netherlands called Mycotrop who is now selling liquid cultures of my genetics, isolates that they obtained directly from me, they only sell to countries in Europe. They also have pan cyan grow kits that use my recipes: https://mycotrop.com/en/home/1628-1592-gordotek-all-in-one-kit-mycotek-version.html?affp=10366#/strains-natalensis (you can also use coupon code "GORDOTEK" to get a discount).

I endeavor to maintain a positive perspective in my life, as I believe it enriches the human experience. Nonetheless, the year 2024 presented a mixed landscape of news concerning psychedelics. The following developments are particularly noteworthy:

The culmination of decades of work, MAPS' FDA request for approval to use MDMA for PTSD was rejected:

Following a nine-hour meeting (June 4, 2024) FDA advisors voted 9-2 that the available data didn’t show MDMA was effective in treating PTSD, and 10-1 that the benefits of MDMA-assisted therapy did not outweigh the risks. Several key concerns included:

• Safety Concerns: The FDA cited concerns about the potential for serious adverse reactions, including cardiovascular risks and the possibility of long-term neurological effects.

• Functional Unblinding: The FDA raised concerns about the difficulty in maintaining blinding in the clinical trials. Blinding is crucial in drug studies to ensure unbiased results, and it can be challenging to maintain with MDMA-assisted therapy due to the subjective nature of the experience.

• Data Integrity: The FDA expressed concerns about the validity and reliability of some of the data presented in the clinical trials, including potential issues with how adverse events were reported. An ICER report cited by the FDA said "we have substantial concerns about the validity of the results. Because of the effects of MDMA, the trials were, essentially, unblinded with nearly all patients who received MDMA correctly identifying that they were in the MDMA arm of the trials. This would always raise concerns about bias, but these concerns are particularly heightened as we heard from multiple experts about the very strong prior beliefs of those involved in the trials (as investigators, therapists, and patients) about the benefits of MDMA-AP. Concerns have been raised by some that therapists encouraged favorable reports by patients and discouraged negative reports by patients including discouraging reports of substantial harms, potentially biasing the recording of benefits and harms." One Phase 3 trial participant, wrote in a letter to the advisory panel that during her treatment she was encouraged to view her “worsening symptoms as evidence of healing and spiritual awakening.” She says she was repeatedly told she was “helping make history” and was “part of a movement,” and that her responses “during and after the trial could jeopardize legalization.”
  

• A citizen petition which raised concerns about the MAPS trials, and led to an extension of the public comment session during the hearing, also cited allegations of “entrapment, sexual abuse, and coercive control” connected to the “organizational culture and psycho-spiritual beliefs around ‘healing’ that are encoded in the MAPS/Lykos protocol.”

  One of the authors of the petition, Neşe Devenot PhD, a lecturer at Johns Hopkins University who is involved in psychedelic research, referred to Lykos’ research practices as a “therapy cult,” which she expands on in a 17-page document submitted as supporting evidence to the panel.

It's important to note:

• This rejection does not necessarily mean that MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD is ineffective.

• MAPS may continue to work with the FDA to address their concerns and potentially re-submit their application in the future.

• Research into psychedelic-assisted therapies is ongoing, and further studies may help to clarify the risks and benefits of MDMA for PTSD.

• Sadly there were ethical violations among some of the therapists in the clinical trial, including sexual misconduct and inappropriate patient care. If this nonsense happens even in an important clinical trail where the facilitators know how much scrutiny they will face, it does make me wonder how abuse will be prevented if psychedelic therapy ever gets approved. Hopefully bad facilitators face consequences and problems like this are no more common than they are with non-psychedelic therapists.
  
  Massachusetts, a state known for its liberal policies, legalized recreational cannabis in 2016. However, a ballot initiative to legalize psychedelics in November 2024 faced a significant defeat. This initiative proposed a controlled framework, allowing licensed facilities to administer psychedelics to adults and permitting personal use and cultivation for those 21 and older.

  This outcome suggests a significant gap in public understanding of psychedelics. While frustrating, addressing this knowledge deficit presents a considerable challenge. Decades of anti-psychedelic propaganda, including harmful myths about brain damage, psychosis, and self-harm, continue to influence public perception.

  Overcoming these deeply ingrained beliefs requires a multifaceted approach to educate the public about the potential therapeutic benefits and responsible use of psychedelics.
   
  Since numerous organizations have campaigned against the legalization of psychedelics, I thought it would be illuminating to reach out to one such group and try to figure out why they were opposed. The response I received indicated that they were concerned about these substances causing psychosis:

  While it is indeed true that psychedelics can trigger psychosis, the bigger question to me is "OK, but compared to WHAT?" we already have legal alcohol, and now legal cannabis in much of the country, BOTH can and do ALSO trigger psychosis (according to one published paper there is a 0.4% lifetime prevalence in the general population for alcohol induced psychosis and a 4% prevalence in patients with alcohol dependence). In addition to that, alcohol is associated with countless people doing stupid things pretty much on a constant basis and is linked to millions of DEATHS every YEAR! There is absolutely no comparison, psychedelics are FAR safer than alcohol despite legitimate risk of rare adverse reactions.
  One nice benefit of Oregon's legal administration of psychedelics program is that we now have useful statistics about adverse reactions to psychedelics. It turns out that according to Oregon's Health Authority, after 16,000 people were administered psilocybin in legal facilities, only FIVE people experienced an adverse event that was serious enough to result in hospitalization or a 911 call. That is a 0.03% incident rate. I fail to see how anyone can be perfectly fine with legal alcohol but opposed to psilocybin, that makes no sense at all.
  In addition to the Massachusetts vote failure, 20 communities in Oregon where psilocybin is already legalized, voted to ban psilocybin from their specific communities, again emphasizing a failure of education or common sense unless these communities have also banned alcohol, then maybe it would be justifiable.
  

   

  On a positive note, publicly traded company MindMed received FDA Breakthrough Therapy designation for their LSD formulation (called MM120) after very positive results in a Phase 2 clinical trial to treat anxiety. I LOVE that these guys basically just said "screw it, we don't need any psychotherapy like everyone else is doing, just give people with anxiety LSD in a safe setting and see what happens!" and if you can believe their reported results, IT WORKS 😂🙏. They saw statistically significant reductions in measured anxiety compared to placebo at 12 weeks with a 65% clinical response rate and 48% clinical remission rate. Still, you have to wonder if the FDA will ultimately note the same problems previously mentioned with the MDMA studies, with blinding being essentially impossible and study participants and facilitators dominated by LSD enthusiasts who want to "help the cause" 😎:

  But regardless, I will be keeping a close watch on MindMed, as they just started the phase 3 trial last month. “Today marks a pivotal moment in our journey towards advancing a novel treatment option for the 20 million people in the U.S. living with Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)." It would actually be pretty humorous to me if LSD ends up "winning the race" to FDA approval before all others, and with no requirement for therapy sessions to go along with it 😂. I'm not even a fan of LSD (for the reasons mentioned in my FAQ), and I seriously wonder if they were to run the same exact study using psilocybin if they would end up with just as good results? I guess only time will tell...
  
  
  

  I'll end with this, and I don't want to get political here at all, but thought it worth mentioning that regardless of what you think about RFK Jr., he is nominated as the new Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) and he has pledged to expand access to psychedelics. As far as I'm concerned, that is a positive. You can hear him talk about psychedelics in his own words in this video starting at the 40 minute mark. He wants to decriminalize psychedelics at the federal level! Only time will tell how much influence he could really even have in this regard, but I like the fact that we have more politicians who understand the value and potential for psychedelics.
  
  HERE'S TO AN AMAZING 2025!

   

LOVE YOU,

______________________________________

Links to all of my TEKs, Videos, Trip music, and frequently asked questions with answers can be found here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/22774475 (everything is made available for FREE, I do not use pay walls, support the work only if you feel like you've benefited from it and you are able to do so). People have told me my work has helped them overcome depression, addictions, PTSD, relationship issues, direction in life, and to have important, meaningful, sometimes life changing mystical experiences. I feel honored and blessed to play a small role in this. That is my reward.