Divergent States
Divergent States
Podcast Description
The Divergent States Podcast, hosted by "3L1T3"—founder of the Psychonaut subreddit with nearly 500k members—and co-hosted by Bryan, a USMC veteran passionate about psychedelics for therapeutic healing, explores the intersection of psychedelics, science, spirituality, and culture. Featuring guests like Hamilton Morris, Dr. Rick Strassman, and Dr. Rick Doblin, we blend cutting-edge research with personal stories to showcase how psychedelics transform mental health, creativity, and culture. Join us as we navigate the frontier of consciousness.
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
The podcast focuses on psychedelics, mental health, spirituality, and cultural implications, with episodes detailing topics such as the therapeutic use of MDMA for veterans, the legacy of the Shulgin family, and the evolution of the r/Psychonaut subreddit. Specific focus areas include community support, harm reduction in psychedelic use, and the intersection of science and spirituality in therapeutic contexts.
Divergent States cuts through psychedelic hype with grounded, curious conversations about what these substances actually do.
Hosted by 3L1T3, founder of r/Psychonaut, the world’s largest psychedelic harm-reduction community, and co-hosted by Bryan, a USMC veteran and advocate for psychedelic healing, the show brings together lived experience, science, and culture without losing its sense of humor.
This isn’t a spiritual podcast.
This isn’t a marketing platform.
No mysticism. No sales pitch. Just real conversations, harm reduction, and honest questions.
We explore how psychedelics shape mental health, creativity, and society, from underground use and peer-support communities to clinical trials, therapy rooms, and shifting public attitudes. Some episodes get serious. Some get weird. All of them are grounded in respect for the people actually taking these substances and living with the outcomes.
Guests include Rick Doblin, Reggie Watts, Leonard Pickard, Anne Wagner, Hamilton Morris, and Rick Strassman.
Divergent States is built on the same principles that made r/Psychonaut work at scale: curiosity without gullibility, openness without losing your footing, and safety without killing the joy.
If you’re looking for guru worship, this isn’t your show.
If you’re looking for thoughtful, funny, and grounded conversations about psychedelics and the lives they touch, welcome to Divergent States.
New episodes every two weeks.
Season Two of Divergent States is about something simple and surprisingly rare: exploring altered states without losing touch with reality.
In this preview episode, 3L1T3 and Bryan share two short moments from upcoming conversations that define the tone of the season ahead.
In the first, Shane Mauss reflects on how psychedelics open people to awe—but also to certainty, conspiracies, and belief systems that can replace reality if no one pushes back. In the second, Cesar Marin explains why presence and human connection are the real work of integration, not endless chasing of peak experiences.
Together, these moments capture what Divergent States has always tried to do: hold space for wonder without drifting into delusion, depth without losing grounding, and exploration rooted in real human connection.
Patreon supporters get extended versions of these conversations, including sections that don’t survive algorithm-friendly edits. But this preview is here for everyone—because harm reduction, presence, and honest conversation shouldn’t be paywalled.
Welcome to Season Two.
Chapters
00:00 – Welcome back & season context
Introducing Season Two and why this year matters.
00:28 – What Divergent States actually is
What the show is: harm reduction, not hype or spiritual theater.
01:05 – Shane Mauss: Awe, science, and belief systems
The “ghost crocodile” and microscope analogy.
04:49 – Why psychedelics create both insight and delusion
Reflections on pattern-seeking and certainty in psychedelic spaces.
05:20 – Cesar Marin: Presence as integration
Connection, mushrooms, and staying grounded in real life.
07:17 – The power of daily human connection
Kids, texts, meditation, and showing up.
08:55 – What Divergent States is really about
Awe without delusion; depth without losing touch.
09:15 – Patreon & how to support the show
Extended cuts, deeper conversations, and why it matters.
10:10 – Harm reduction & Zendo Project
Why we partner with them and what the code supports.
10:50 – Closing & Season Two welcome
Personal sign-off and transition into the new season.
Download the app or text/call 62-FIRESIDE
Zendo Project
Our listeners get 10% off the Zendo Project SIT Program with the code DIVERGENTS10
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Special Thanks to our Macrodosers, Super D, Mike, and Mycocosm on Patreon!
Disclaimer
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