Set the Setting: April 2026
Meme drop, "The quality of your life ultimately depends on the quality of your relationships," Microdose Facilitator Training, MAPS Collectible Merch, Catch me IRL in Dallas (April 3-6), Photo drop
Meme drop
It was so nice of my bestie, Esther Perel, to join the panel on psychedelic-assisted therapy at the Transform Conference this year!
Alllright who fell for it? Did I get ya?! I promise I don’t use AI to write my substack, but I had to make an exception for April Fools.
Unfortunately, Esther Perel is not (yet) my bestie. However, that is one of her actual quotes and it’s the subject of this month’s post. And, I did indeed get to be on a panel about psychedelic-assisted therapy at Transform with Erica and Sherry:
We discussed the opportunity for organizations to address the growing mental health crisis by providing psychedelic-assisted therapy as an employer-sponsored benefit. This movement is not a niche offering; we’re seeing more organizations recognize the economic benefit of providing innovative health benefits. In fact, the campaign for marriage equality found strong allyship in corporate America (shifting public sentiment, providing economic rationale, and being early adopters in domestic partnerships). I believe that the path to broad psychedelic acceptance will happen as corporations adopt this standard of care.
Multiple individuals have come up to me at conferences to tell me that my past presentations inspired them to try psychedelics; that there lives have been transformed. It’s such an honor and a privilege to be able to spread awareness and education. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to do what I do.
“The quality of your life ultimately depends on the quality of your relationships” - Esther Perel
It’s the truth. The past month was an incredible reminder of the beautiful relationships in my life. My friends, my family, my professional network, my rave squad, my tennis team, my dog park crew; and it continues to grow!
My birthday hike
I wanted something simple for my birthday this year. I proposed an urban hike through various parks around my house and I couldn’t have asked for better weather. Watching my various friend groups mix and mingle brought me such joy! A special shoutout to Addison for recognizing that hosting a catered dinner in my small apartment wasn’t going to work and offering up his home.
The Taco Bell 5k
Bringing people together and building community… it’s something that runs in my family. And I can tell it runs in Adam’s family too since his siblings turned out in force to help organize the massive Taco Bell 5k that started as a simple idea and went viral! Around 300 people showed up, corporate sponsorship came in, and we got news coverage from KRON 4 and SF Standard. No permit, no problem! (Thankfully…)
An ode to Tawny
Another pinch me moment this month was getting to celebrate Tawny’s birthday in Napa! One fateful EDC, 12 years ago, the Raveguards collided with Mario Crew and the rest is history.
It’s hard to describe the magic of Tawny. You have to go to a rave with Tawny in your squad to witness it. People just LIGHT UP when they see her. She’s always in the best/craziest outfit and is radiating PLUR princess energy. She spends half of the rave accepting compliments and posing for pictures - and she does it with grace and glamor.
The relationships I’ve built at EDC - through people like Tawny - are the reason I go back every year. I can’t wait to make even more friends at EDC 2026 next month!
Transform
Yeah, I know already talked about Transform. It’s an HR Conference… but so much more?! We spend most of our adult lives working, so it’s only natural for me to foster deep friendships through work. I look forward to it every year - it’s the main way I spend time with the dozens of people that I’ve worked with throughout my career.
Microdose Facilitator Training
We’re doing it again! This is the 3rd year I’ve served on the faculty of the Microdose Facilitator Training, led by Danielle Nova and Jim Fadiman. What an honor to be a part of this team.
There are reportedly over 10 million people that are microdosing in the US; the need for skilled facilitators to guide the process safely, ethically and effectively has never been greater. This 3-month program starts on May 17. Please inquire if you feel called to support the microdosing movement as a facilitator!
MAPS Collectible Merch
One of my growth edges at MAPS is leading the various aspects of the Community team/function. I do have a little bit of career-ADHD in that I tend to SQUIRREL! at the new projects that are going to challenge me and grow my skill set. For 2026… I have been handed the keys to the MAPS online store and I’m already having way too much fun with it.
I’ve borne witness to Deb building her online store Chromatic Flow, from product innovation and feedback all the way to her incredibly popular merch drops. Taking a page out of her playbook, the MAPS team coordinated on the first merch drop of our new series, “the dose,” where we release new items each quarter. It’s a huge effort across the team (Rudy, Devon, Vinny, Merete, Hena, Zane, Kevin) and the early signs are positive; we had over $5,000 in sales on our first day of launch.
I’m especially proud of our first Limited Edition MAPS collectible item. Rudy designed and produced our “Keeper of the Flame” Leather Lighter Cases, laser-engraved with Rick’s signature and each one labeled 1 through 500. (Shout out to Megan for the idea to do a lighter case!). Become a MAPS member today to get 40% of all merch through April.
Check out our “not safe for instagram” release video featuring Rick and his famous green bong:
Catch me IRL in Dallas (April 3-6)
Twenty years ago, I was a babysitter and live-in nanny for a little girl, Caitlyn. Fast forward to today… she’s GETTING MARRIED! She was dress shopping the last time I was in Dallas (for the Ubbi Dubbi Festival) and I was shook at how she’d grown into a strong, independent woman. She was telling her fiancé about all of our silly memories… all of the school projects we worked on together… how we learned the dances in High School Musical. Life is made of small moments like these.
Photo drop
