Episode 690: The Science and Spirituality of Plant Medicine with Dr. Jeff McNairy

Make Some Noise with Andrea Owen

Andrea Owen

Education, How To, Self-improvement

4.8 • 516 Ratings

🗓️ 20 August 2025

⏱️ 73 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

What really happens in your brain during an ayahuasca ceremony? I’m talking with Dr. Jeff McNairy, Chief Medical Officer and co-founder of Rhythmia Life Advancement Center in Costa Rica, about the science, the spiritual side, and how plant medicine can support deep healing, if it’s right for you. Psychedelic therapy isn’t for everyone, and I get that. But when the soulful, spiritual side of healing meets actual neuroscience, I’m all in. At the end of the day, it’s about your health, your healing, and knowing all of the options available to you. Plant medicine is something I’ve been exploring, and it’s been profoundly helpful in my own growth. That’s why I’m bringing you this conversation with Dr. Jeff. We get into how trauma gets stored in the body, what’s really going on in your brain during ayahuasca, and why it’s not a cure-all (and not for everyone). What you’ll hear about in this episode: How untreated trauma gets stored in the amygdala and shows up as anxiety and why our “push through it” culture makes it worse (7:38) Dr. Jeff’s path from running rehab and psychiatric programs in LA to working with plant medicine in Costa Rica (16:19) Why ayahuasca isn’t for everyone, what to consider before trying it, and how to know if you feel “called” (22:14) The neurochemistry of ayahuasca: what DMT does in your brain and how it can help release trauma (27:31) Common results Dr. Jeff sees at Rhythmia: from reduced anxiety and depression to long-term emotional shifts (49:26) My own “double reaction” during ceremony and Dr. Jeff’s take on what was happening physically and spiritually (56:56) Resources from this episode:✨Interested in a future Rythmia Ayahuasca retreat with me? Drop a DM on Instagram @heyandreaowen or email support[at]andreaowen.com with the subject line “AYA Interested” to be added to the interest list! My Ketamine Therapy Journey secret podcast seriesRythmia Retreat Andrea on Instagram @heyandreaowen Book recommendations: I love a good personal development book, and you do too, right? I’ve compiled a list of book recommendations, as mentioned in past episodes. Check out these amazing book recommendations here. Happy reading! MSN is supported by: We love the sponsors that make our show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website: andreaowen.com/sponsors/ Episode link: https://andreaowen.com/podcast/690 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:29.6	You were in a safe environment, so you were connected to these really angelic, good,
0:35.0	spiritual beings. And there's a lot of healing there. And that's often what they talk
0:39.5	about saying is an ego death. Yes. I felt like I died that night. And it's not that the ego's dead.
0:46.3	It's that the ego is reorganized in a healthier way. So it's like a rebirth is what's really like.
0:52.1	That's exactly what it felt like. And you had that.
0:58.4	And so that's like amazing that you had that. It's super scary for that short period of time. Oh my God. But once you break through that, you're connected.
1:04.4	You're listening to Makeson Noise Podcast episode number 690 with guest Dr. Jeff McNary.
1:17.5	Yeah. with guest, Dr. Jeff McNary. Welcome to Make Some Noise podcast, your guide for strategies, tools, and insight to empower yourself.
1:25.2	I'm your host, Andrea Owen, global speaker, entrepreneur life coach since
1:29.5	2007, an author of three books that have been translated into 18 languages and are available in 22
1:36.2	countries. Each week I'll bring you a guest or a lesson that will help you maximize unshakable
1:42.2	confidence, master resilience, and make some noise in your
1:46.0	life. You ready? Let's go.
1:51.4	Hi, everyone. Welcome to another episode of the podcast. I am so glad that you are here.
1:56.6	Here's a thing. I know that I've been talking a lot about plant medicine, more specifically
2:03.3	psychedelic therapy. And I want you to know something, and I want to be very clear about this
	...

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