In late 2021, I was contacted by a publisher at North Atlantic Books. They asked if I would consider writing a book about psychedelic justice and ethics, expressing the importance of providing this kind of resource as public interest and access to psychedelics are increasing every day. I was surprised and humbled by the opportunity. You see, this is not the way book deals usually come to be. Normally, a writer incubates an idea, an outline, and a manuscript for many months or even years with the hopes that they’ll eventually be able to find an agent and a publisher who will take on the project and help them bring it into the world.

I hesitated, understanding the potential weight of a book like this. I consulted with mentors. Ultimately, I agreed on one condition: the text would be heavily weighted with the voices of trusted elders and peers who have taught me so much about psychedelic ethics.

I spent a year weaving together the rich wisdom buried in piles of voice notes, interview recordings, and rambling chapters drafted during long flights and quiet nights alone in my office. I invited my brilliant colleague Juliette Mohr to co-create the chapters on History and Reciprocity. The resulting manuscript was given the name Whole Medicine: A Guide to Ethics and Harm Reduction for Psychedelic and Plant Medicine Communities.

This is exciting on many levels. Beyond bringing this book into the world, my publishers are an incredible, values-driven group. Some aspects of North Atlantic Books that set them apart, other than being a nonprofit institutionally: they seed money into justice movements with small grants, including recent grants to the Roots Community Health Clinic, the Anti Police-Terror Project, Red Canary Song, and Lead to Life. They sponsor transformative conferences and events like Bioneers, the Black Love Convergence, and the Permaculture Convergence. They have no stakeholders or bank covenants and can therefore let the bottom line be the storyline. They pay a Shuumi Land Tax for living and working on occupied land. 

In addition to all this, North Atlantic is donating 100% of net profits from the sale of Whole Medicine for its first three years in print to a healing-focused nonprofit. I’m grateful to those who urged me to take the leap and write this book, and I hope it brings value to the lives of psychedelic facilitators, guides, participants, and seekers. Whole Medicine is now available in stores, online, and as an audiobook! I’d love to hear how it lands for you. You can help me by leaving a review on GoodReads or Amazon. Thank you for reading, sharing, and engaging with this heartfelt work.

Note: X Razma’s Guide for Guides is another exceptional resource for psychedelic spaceholding. Please check it out and support their work!