PT 634 - Brad Adams - LAMPS

Psychedelics Today

Brad Adams — LAMPS (Los Angeles Psychedelic Society) joins Kyle to trace his path from PhD researcher to community builder. Brad shares how early work in AIDS, Alzheimer's, gerontology, and cancer research primed him to notice Harbor-UCLA's psilocybin pilot for stage-4 cancer patients with death anxiety—where the strongest mystical experiences correlated with profound death acceptance. Teaming with Dennis McKenna, he ran an ayahuasca pilot in Peru and presented findings at Psychedelic Science 2017.

From there, Brad founded LAMPS: first as research meetups at UCLA, then as a thriving hub hosting speakers and, ultimately, an L.A. psychedelic conference. He previews the November 1 event at Above the Block in West L.A.: daytime panels on cannabis, preparation/integration, and music & psychedelics; a vendor hall; and a "Healing Lounge" with bodywork, astrology, human design, and more—closing with a late-night dance party featuring David Starfire.

Brad offers grounded advice for starting local communities (begin small, meet regularly, curate safe dialogue, and moderate firmly), and reflects on platform friction around psychedelics. The conversation widens to DMTx (extended-state DMT), entity encounters, and what humble, relational curiosity can reveal—then to Wetiko, IFS, and the hero's journey as frames for keeping hope alive in turbulent times. A candid and practical tour of research, resilience, and real-world community building.