Episode Two: “In the Morning, he’s Superdad.”

What happens when we substitute psychedelics for alcohol? 

Even at a time when Cali Sober is trending, many parents experience a significant mental hurdle to using psychedelics: their legal status. Procuring them for recreational use is across-the-board illegal; for therapeutic use, only ketamine is legal, and for ceremonial use, you must be a member of an approved religious group. But as many Plant Parents have experienced, using psychedelics in lieu of alcohol for a fun night out can yield enormously different results. As the parents in this video describe, the last time mom asked dad to drink instead of take LSD, she regretted it. “I was no good,” he said.  

Many Plant Parents have shared similar stories about what happens the day following a psychedelic experience. In the “afterglow”, they describe deep connection with their children and a renewed sense of love and appreciation. The mom in this video described her husband as “Superdad” the morning after he takes LSD. Compare this to how you feel when the kids wake you up before sunrise after a big night of drinking… 

By now, we know that legality does not equate to morality. Nor does it equate to safety, since of course so many legal substances are far from safe and easy to misuse. But legality does create a framework by which people are judged for their parenting, and parents who use psychedelics certainly are judged more harshly for their behavior than parents who drink. Something to consider as we move into a period of expanding decriminalization and an expansion of therapeutic use of psychedelics.