Psychedelics for Self-evolution

Tools for personal growth

Self-evolution is the idea that we can use our inherent power of consciousness to direct our own growth. Many writers, from Deepak Chopra to adrienne maree brown have addressed the topic by many names - brown calls it “intentional adaptation” in her book Emergent Strategy. While psychedelic medicines are often thought of as either recreational (party drugs) or pharmaceutical (medical treatments for mental health issues), these medicines can also be powerful tools for personal growth, or as Bob Jesse often says, tools “for the betterment of well people”.

Self-evolution is, by definition, an inside out adventure. It requires the courage to go deeply within, to those places only you can go with yourself. In order to benefit from going to these deep places, we must be radically honest with ourselves about what we encounter there, what is there to be excavated and explored. It is not for those who want an easy or superficial fix for temporary problems, or a feel-good pep talk.

Self-evolution is for people who want to delve deeply into the fundamental questions of our lives, are ready to question everything, and are not afraid of the truth. To self-evolve, we must be ready to give up the assumptions we do not even realize we are carrying in order to make room for a whole new way of seeing ourselves and our lives. 

The idea of self-evolution aligns with everything I’ve learned from my life’s work with transgender and gender expansive people, people that embody the rewards and challenges of living authentically, and from my own many paths - personal, professional, and spiritual. This framework can provide a lens through which one can see more clearly the current blocks to one’s own authentic expression, as well as the opportunities and doorways. It is not a panacea to all of life’s challenges, indeed, these are necessary for us to face in order to truly find ourselves, live full lives, and be of service to others.

Self-evolution is not a step-by-step linear solution to life’s problems, although it can be engaged in a linear way for descriptive and exploration purposes. It is meant to be a deep dive into one’s own psyche for those of us who wish to transform the world by transforming ourselves.

In my personal writing, which I will continue to o share here, I’ve been working with this conceptual framework of self-evolution:

• Self-discovery

• Self-definition

• Self-acceptance

• Self-expression

I’m looking forward to using this platform as a way of engaging with others about these ideas, tools, and pathways, like-minded self-explorers who aren’t afraid to discover and express the hard things, the taboo things, the things that make us real, and perhaps just a little bit strange – in the best of ways. <3