On Drugs

With the rise of psychedelic therapy, questions arise about the ethics, effectiveness, and experiences it brings. In this episode, a visit to a psychedelic therapy clinic. Geoff also talks with Dr. Hillary McBride, host of Other People’s Problems, to explore how substances are reshaping mental health treatments – including her own experience. What might be possible when traditional therapy meets psychedelics?

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Ketamine is making headlines as a treatment for depression, but what exactly does it do? From its roots in anesthetic use to its reputation as a club drug, Geoff examines the science and history of ketamine with Dr. Bita Moghaddam. The episode also looks at its unique psychological effects, including the infamous “K-hole,” and how it’s being used today in groundbreaking therapies.

Listen to Julian Uzielli’s documentary here: lnk...

What happens to our consciousness when we're put under? This episode dives into the science and mystery of anesthesia, featuring insights from Kate Cole-Adams and Dr. George Mashour. From the physical processes to the philosophical questions, Geoff explores what happens in the in-between state, offering a glimpse into one of medicine’s most fascinating frontiers. 

Just a heads up, this episode contains graphic descriptions ...

In Vancouver’s East Hastings, the Safe Supply program challenges the conventional narrative that sobriety is the ultimate goal. Geoff visits the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users office to sit down with Garth Mullins, an advocate and organizer. This episode explores harm reduction, examining how drug addiction intersects with issues of poverty, shame, and community. Are programs like these changing lives? Why did they end? Did d...

Alcohol has been a fixture on our screens, shaping how we see and consume it. From the “bad boys” of Hollywood’s code era to the grit of film noir, have we learned to drink through the lens of our favorite characters? In this episode, Geoff unpacks these cultural cues with the hosts of Why Theory, tracing the coded messages in pop culture and his own subconscious. What have movies and TV taught us to believe about drinking — and ab...

Host Geoff Turner begins his most personal season yet by examining his own relationship with alcohol. In a time when sobriety is on the rise among younger generations, what changed? Through conversations with addiction researcher Dr. Catharine Fairbairn, this episode explores the factors behind the ways we drink, from social habits to self-reflection, and asks if the current cultural shift could lead us toward a more mindful future...

On Drugs returns for a third season, and this time, it’s really personal. This season, we're challenging the typical narratives about addiction, exploring what substances reveal not only about our bodies but also our understanding of consciousness, our motivations, and our very sense of self. Host Geoff Turner confronts his own casual relationship with alcohol, using it as a lens to question the nature of desire, drive, and wh...

Opioid drugs have claimed a shocking number of lives across North America in recent years, as people fall victim to overdose. While the intensity of crisis is new, our relationship with opiates — and opioids, as they're often referred to now — goes back millennia. This is an overdose crisis thousands of years in the making, and in this episode, Geoff Turner dives into that fascinating history to figure out how we got to this point.