Can Psychedelics Cure Addiction? Ayahuasca Hell, Demons, Ketamine, Ibogaine & Dr. Reef Karim

This week on Dopey! We kick things off with the aftermath of the first-ever Dopey Short Recovery Film Festival—Dave’s post-event crash, gratitude, Knicks withdrawal, listener emails, Dean Moda Patreon comments, meth-sex insanity, Monkey Man research, and a wild voicemail about shooting someone up for the first time.

Then Dr. Reef Karim comes on! They explore why Dopey works as an underdog podcast, creativity in recovery, building an addiction treatment center that blended psychiatry with spirituality, and why storytelling may be one of the most powerful recovery tools available.

Reef opens up about walking away from a successful career in medicine after severe burnout, chronic pain, and anxiety led him to question everything. That journey eventually took him into the Amazon with Gabor Maté for an unforgettable ayahuasca retreat, where he experienced terrifying visions, confronted years of accumulated trauma, and ultimately found a new direction for his life.

Dave and Reef also dive into ketamine, ibogaine, psychedelics in addiction treatment, authenticity versus attachment, cognitive flexibility, recovery as a lifelong process, and whether there’s ever such a thing as being “fully recovered.”

Plus Dave closes the show with updates on the family road trip, DopeyCon planning, Safe Spot overdose prevention, and more.

ALL THAT AND MORE! On this less than completely dopey new episode of the good old dopey show! Excelsior!