The Telepathy Tapes

As global interest in ibogaine accelerates, the consequences are already being felt in Gabon.
Wild Iboga is disappearing, prices are rising, and traditional practitioners are losing access to a plant that has shaped spiritual and communal life for generations. And beyond the forest, inexperienced providers are beginning to offer powerful ceremonies without the training, accountability, or relationships that Bwiti leaders believe the work requires.
In the final episode of The Ibogaine Inquiries, we examine what can happen when a sacred medicine spreads faster than the wisdom surrounding it. Conservationist Yann Guignon, Bwiti master Simon Pierre, and Indigenous scholar Dr. Christine Dindisi explore the dangers of commodification, and the possibility of a different path forward.
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A note to listeners: This series is intended to inform, not encourage the use of ibogaine. Ibogaine is a powerful psychoactive substance with serious medical risks and should never be used without thorough medical evaluation and appropriate supervision. As you'll hear throughout this series, increasing global demand has also had profound consequences for the Indigenous communities in Gabon who have safeguarded Iboga and its traditions for generations. We encourage you to listen to the full series before drawing conclusions or seeking out treatment.
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To support the indigenous peoples of Gabon, Africa and help protect the sacred Iboga plant, please visit https://blessingsoftheforest.org/ where you can learn about those who use this medicine ceremoniously, have for thousands of years, and whose access is in grave danger.
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Join The Telepathy Tapes Backstage Pass to get ad-free episodes, never-before-heard interviews, behind-the-scenes documentary footage, and access to our private Discord community.This is your invitation to come closer. To help shape what’s next. To be more than a listener… to be a co-creator of this paradigm shift. So if you’ve felt moved, if you’ve felt seen, if you’ve felt the call, subscribe today and join us: thetelepathytapes.com.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

For centuries, the people of Gabon protected iboga as a sacred medicine. Then a gift intended to help others changed everything.
In this episode, we trace Iboga's remarkable journey from colonial France to New York City, where a young man named Howard Lotsof discovered its potential to interrupt addiction and dedicated his life to bringing ibogaine into modern medicine. But as scientific interest grew, so did difficult questions about patents, ownership, and who should benefit from knowledge that had been safeguarded by Indigenous communities for generations.
Featuring conservationist Yann Guignon, filmmaker Lucy Walker, and Indigenous scholar Dr. Christine Dindisi, this episode explores the history that shaped today's iboga renaissance, and asks whether scientific progress and Indigenous stewardship can move forward together.
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A note to listeners: This series is intended to inform, not encourage the use of ibogaine. Ibogaine is a powerful psychoactive substance with serious medical risks and should never be used without thorough medical evaluation and appropriate supervision. As you'll hear throughout this series, increasing global demand has also had profound consequences for the Indigenous communities in Gabon who have safeguarded Iboga and its traditions for generations. We encourage you to listen to the full series before drawing conclusions or seeking out treatment.
_______
To support the indigenous peoples of Gabon, Africa and help protect the sacred Iboga plant, please visit https://blessingsoftheforest.org/ where you can learn about those who use this medicine ceremoniously, have for thousands of years, and whose access is in grave danger.
_______
Join The Telepathy Tapes Backstage Pass to get ad-free episodes, never-before-heard interviews, behind-the-scenes documentary footage, and access to our private Discord community.This is your invitation to come closer. To help shape what’s next. To be more than a listener… to be a co-creator of this paradigm shift. So if you’ve felt moved, if you’ve felt seen, if you’ve felt the call, subscribe today and join us: thetelepathytapes.com.
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Thank you to our sponsors!
Ka'Chava - Go to kachava.com and use code TAPES for 15% off your first order.
BiOptimizers - Make this the year you finally get your sleep, your energy, and yourself back. Get 15% off at bioptimizers.com/tapes when you use my code, TAPES.
Shopify - Start your business today with the industry’s best business partner, Shopify. Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial today at Shopify.com/tapes.
Zenni - If your glasses are overdue for a refresh, go to Zenni.com/podcast and use code PODCAST15 for 15% off your first order.
Alloy - Try the original estrogen-powered M4 skincare from Alloy. Visit myalloy.com and use code TAPES for $20 off your first order!
Luminara - If you’re curious about energy healing and ready to experience it for yourself, Luminara is offering 20% off your first session for listeners of The Telepathy Tapes. Just go to luminara.care and use code TAPES20.
Quince - Elevate your summer wardrobe. Go to Quince.com/tapes for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Long before ibogaine entered Western clinics and laboratories, the plant it comes from held a sacred place in Gabonese life. In Part III of Ibogaine Inquiries, we travel to Gabon to explore Bwiti, the spiritual tradition in which iboga is understood as a teacher, guide, and living presence.
Gabonese practitioners and Bwiti initiates describe the preparation, community, music, mentorship, and lifelong practice that surround the medicine. They explain why Iboga cannot be separated from the larger body of knowledge developed around it. As Western interest continues to grow, this episode asks what may be lost when a sacred plant and its active compound are removed from the people, traditions, and relationships that have safeguarded them for generations.

A note to listeners: This series is intended to inform, not encourage the use of ibogaine. Ibogaine is a powerful psychoactive substance with serious medical risks and should never be used without thorough medical evaluation and appropriate supervision. As you'll hear throughout this series, increasing global demand has also had profound consequences for the Indigenous communities in Gabon who have safeguarded Iboga and its traditions for generations. We encourage you to listen to the full series before drawing conclusions or seeking out treatment.
_______
To support the indigenous peoples of Gabon, Africa and help protect the sacred Iboga plant, please visit https://blessingsoftheforest.org/ where you can learn about those who use this medicine ceremoniously, have for thousands of years, and whose access is in grave danger.
_______
Join The Telepathy Tapes Backstage Pass to get ad-free episodes, never-before-heard interviews, behind-the-scenes documentary footage, and access to our private Discord community.This is your invitation to come closer. To help shape what’s next. To be more than a listener… to be a co-creator of this paradigm shift. So if you’ve felt moved, if you’ve felt seen, if you’ve felt the call, subscribe today and join us: thetelepathytapes.com.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

People around the world describe remarkably similar experiences with ibogaine: encounters with ancestors, shared dreams, telepathic abilities, and moments that seem to transcend ordinary consciousness.
Are these a coincidence, a hallucination, or something science has yet to explain?
In this episode, psychologists, neuroscientists, chemists, physicians, and former patients explore why ibogaine appears unlike any other psychedelic they've studied. From blindfolded perception and shared visions to groundbreaking brain research and the search for safer treatments, we examine the growing evidence and the enduring mystery surrounding one of the world's most extraordinary medicines.
A note to listeners: This series is intended to inform, not encourage the use of ibogaine. Ibogaine is a powerful psychoactive substance with serious medical risks and should never be used without thorough medical evaluation and appropriate supervision. As you'll hear throughout this series, increasing global demand has also had profound consequences for the Indigenous communities in Gabon who have safeguarded Iboga and its traditions for generations. We encourage you to listen to the full series before drawing conclusions or seeking out treatment.
_______
To support the indigenous peoples of Gabon, Africa and help protect the sacred Iboga plant, please visit https://blessingsoftheforest.org/ where you can learn about those who use this medicine ceremoniously, have for thousands of years, and whose access is in grave danger.
_______
Join The Telepathy Tapes Backstage Pass to get ad-free episodes, never-before-heard interviews, behind-the-scenes documentary footage, and access to our private Discord community.This is your invitation to come closer. To help shape what’s next. To be more than a listener… to be a co-creator of this paradigm shift. So if you’ve felt moved, if you’ve felt seen, if you’ve felt the call, subscribe today and join us: thetelepathytapes.com.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Why is everyone suddenly talking about ibogaine?
After President Trump signed an executive order fast-tracking psychedelic research, a little-known plant medicine from Central Africa found itself at the center of a national conversation. Advocates call it a breakthrough for addiction, PTSD, and traumatic brain injury. Critics urge caution. But how did we get here?
In the first episode of The Ibogaine Inquiries, Ky Dickens and Katherine Ellis trace ibogaine's unlikely path from sacred ceremonies in Gabon to veterans seeking healing in Mexico, and ultimately to the halls of American politics. Along the way, former Texas Governor Rick Perry, Admiral Jim Hancock, and physician Dr. Martín Polanco share the personal experiences that transformed them from skeptics into advocates.

A note to listeners: This series is intended to inform, not encourage the use of ibogaine. Ibogaine is a powerful psychoactive substance with serious medical risks and should never be used without thorough medical evaluation and appropriate supervision. As you'll hear throughout this series, increasing global demand has also had profound consequences for the Indigenous communities in Gabon who have safeguarded Iboga and its traditions for generations. We encourage you to listen to the full series before drawing conclusions or seeking out treatment.
_______
To support the indigenous peoples of Gabon, Africa and help protect the sacred Iboga plant, please visit https://blessingsoftheforest.org/ where you can learn about those who use this medicine ceremoniously, have for thousands of years, and whose access is in grave danger.
_______
Join The Telepathy Tapes Backstage Pass to get ad-free episodes, never-before-heard interviews, behind-the-scenes documentary footage, and access to our private Discord community.This is your invitation to come closer. To help shape what’s next. To be more than a listener… to be a co-creator of this paradigm shift. So if you’ve felt moved, if you’ve felt seen, if you’ve felt the call, subscribe today and join us: thetelepathytapes.com.
_______
Thank you to our sponsors!

Ka'Chava - Go to kachava.com and use code TAPES for 15% off your first order.
BiOptimizers - Make this the year you finally get your sleep, your energy, and yourself back. Get 15% off at bioptimizers.com/tapes when you use my code, TAPES.
Shopify - Start your business today with the industry’s best business partner, Shopify. Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial today at Shopify.com/tapes.
Zenni - If your glasses are overdue for a refresh, go to Zenni.com/podcast and use code PODCAST15 for 15% off your first order.
Alloy - Try the original estrogen-powered M4 skincare from Alloy. Visit myalloy.com and use code TAPES for $20 off your first order!
Luminara - If you’re curious about energy healing and ready to experience it for yourself, Luminara is offering 20% off your first session for listeners of The Telepathy Tapes. Just go to luminara.care and use code TAPES20.
Quince - Elevate your summer wardrobe. Go to Quince.com/tapes for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.
Dose - Ready to give your liver the support it deserves? Head to dosedaily.co/TAPES or enter TAPES to get 35% off your first subscription.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.