Conversations with Dr. Wes

Dr. Weston Robins
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Conversations with Dr. Wes explores psychology, consciousness, suffering, healing, philosophy, spirituality, psychedelics, creativity, and the complexity of being human. Hosted by Dr. Wes Robins, a humanistic and transpersonal psychologist, these conversations dive into mental health, existential thought, nervous systems, addiction, family systems, and the mystery of existence itself. Less performance. More depth. More soul. Honest dialogue with clinicians, philosophers, researchers, artists, and people exploring what it means to truly heal and awaken.

  1. 4d ago

    Beyond the Breakthrough: 5-MeO-DMT, Trauma & Embodied Awakening | Stephan Kerby

    In this episode of Conversations with Dr. Wes, I sit down with Stephan Kerby, founder and director of Mindscape Institute, for a deep conversation about 5-MeO-DMT, trauma-informed psychedelic facilitation, integration, and what it actually means to embody an awakening. Stephan shares his own personal journey into psychedelic work—from experiencing anxiety and depression despite outward success, to his first encounters with ayahuasca and eventually 5-MeO-DMT. Those experiences opened profound questions about ego, identity, conditioning, and how we carry moments of expanded consciousness back into ordinary life. At the heart of our conversation is an important distinction: having a breakthrough experience is not the same as becoming transformed by it. We explore why psychedelics are tools rather than cures, and why genuine integration requires much more than understanding what happened during an experience. It involves learning to recognize our conditioned patterns, regulate the nervous system, interrupt automatic reactions, and slowly embody new ways of relating to ourselves and the world. Stephan also shares the philosophy behind Mindscape Institute and his approach to trauma-informed 5-MeO-DMT facilitation. We discuss facilitator ethics, informed consent, spiritual emergence, client sovereignty, and the importance of removing the facilitator’s ego from the process rather than imposing interpretations, beliefs, or spiritual frameworks onto another person. We also explore the subtle “guru trap” that can emerge within psychedelic and spiritual communities—the ways ego can simply trade one identity for another, including the identity of being healed, awakened, or spiritually advanced. Throughout the conversation, we return to a larger question: What happens after the ego dissolves and you have to come home? How do we move from intellectual awareness into embodiment? How do we meet decades of conditioning with compassion? And how do we allow profound experiences to influence the way we actually live, love, relate, work, and respond to the world? Stephan is the co-author, with his wife Amber Kerby, LMFT, of The Embodiment Protocol: A Practical Guide to Awakening with 5-MeO-DMT, with a foreword by Martin W. Ball, Ph.D. He is also the author of Trauma-Informed 5-MeO-DMT Facilitation: An Educational Manual, also featuring a foreword by Martin W. Ball, Ph.D. This is a conversation about psychedelics, but perhaps even more deeply, it is a conversation about sovereignty, humility, embodiment, and the lifelong practice of becoming more conscious of how we live. Conversations with Dr. Wes explores psychology, consciousness, spirituality, psychedelics, philosophy, and the many ways human beings seek healing, meaning, and transformation. This episode is for educational and informational purposes only and is not medical advice or an endorsement or recommendation of psychedelic substance use.

  2. Aug 21

    Art as Soul Work: Creativity, Suffering & Authenticity | Dustan Louque

    🎙️ Art as Soul Work: Creativity, Suffering & Authenticity | Dustan Louque In this episode of Conversations with Dr. Wes, I sit down with singer, songwriter, musician, producer, and visual artist Dustan Louque for a deeply personal conversation about creativity, authenticity, suffering, music, and the inner life of the artist. Dustan shares his journey from growing up in Louisiana and experiencing tragedy at a young age, to discovering music, studying acting in New York City, creating his landmark album So Long, entering the major-label music world, and ultimately choosing artistic integrity over fame and commercialization. We explore Carl Jung, shadow and light, vulnerability, grief, spirituality, the creative process, and the relationship between suffering and art. We also discuss the changing music industry, social media, AI-generated music, and why the deeply human act of learning, creating, and expressing ourselves may be more important now than ever. On a personal level, Dustan and I also reflect on our friendship and creative relationship, including his producing my album Friends with My Ghosts. Ultimately, this is a conversation about art as soul work—creating not for algorithms, applause, or validation, but because something within us needs to be expressed. 🌿 Get quiet. Listen inward. Trust yourself. Connect with Dustan:Website Youtube Music #DustanLouque #ConversationsWithDrWes #Creativity #Music #Art #Authenticity

  3. Aug 16

    KAMBO: The Amazonian Frog Medicine Changing Lives | Jason Fellows of Tribal Detox

    In this episode of Conversations with Dr. Wes, I sit down with Jason Fellows, founder of Tribal Detox, for a wide-ranging conversation about Kambo, indigenous healing traditions, practitioner safety, holistic medicine, and the growing movement toward alternative approaches to mental health and healing.Jason shares his deeply personal journey from struggling with depression, anxiety, insomnia, and suicidal thoughts to traveling into the Amazon, working with ayahuasca, and eventually encountering Kambo—the secretion of the Amazonian tree frog Phyllomedusa bicolor. He describes how that experience profoundly altered the direction of his life and ultimately led to the creation of Tribal Detox.We explore:🐸 What Kambo is—and what it isn't🌿 Jason's first encounter with Kambo in the Amazon🧬 The bioactive peptides found within Kambo secretion⚕️ Contraindications, screening, safety protocols, and emergency preparedness🎓 The creation of Tribal Detox and the importance of practitioner training⚠️ Problems created by poorly trained or irresponsible facilitators🧠 The psychedelic renaissance and the tension between grassroots healing traditions and commercialization🌎 Indigenous wisdom and reconnecting healing with nature🪖 Veteran mental health, suicide prevention, and the work of the Grunt Style Foundation🧘 Integration and holistic modalities including breathwork, cold exposure, equine work, ayahuasca, Kambo, and other approaches❤️ The importance of informed consent, ethical practice, and giving people meaningful options in their healing journeysJason also discusses the growth of Tribal Detox, which has trained hundreds of practitioners across the United States and internationally, and why he believes maintaining strong standards, transparent screening, and responsible practice is essential to protecting both participants and the future of Kambo.*A quick note about the recording: Jason and I experienced some pretty spotty internet connectivity during this conversation. There are several moments where the video/audio glitches, freezes, or briefly cuts out. Rather than scrap what I felt was an important conversation, we kept going and made it through. Thank you for your patience with the technical imperfections—I believe the substance of this dialogue is well worth it.*As always, Conversations with Dr. Wes is about creating space for thoughtful, open dialogue across psychology, consciousness, healing, spirituality, science, and the many ways human beings seek greater wholeness.IMPORTANT: This conversation is educational and informational in nature and should not be interpreted as medical advice or as a recommendation to use Kambo or any other substance or modality. Kambo can carry serious medical risks and is not appropriate for everyone. Proper screening, informed consent, contraindication assessment, and qualified professional guidance matter.Learn more about Jason Fellows & Tribal Detox:Tribal Detox Grunt StyleTopics: Kambo | Tribal Detox | Jason Fellows | Phyllomedusa bicolor | Amazonian medicine | Indigenous healing | Psychedelic medicine | Holistic health | Mental health | Veteran mental health | Integration | Consciousness | Alternative medicine#Kambo #TribalDetox #JasonFellows #ConversationsWithDrWes #PlantMedicine #IndigenousWisdom #HolisticHealth #MentalHealth #Veterans #PsychedelicMedicine #Consciousness #AlternativeHealing

  4. Aug 12

    The Myth of Mental Illness: Beyond Diagnosis with Dr. Lucy Johnstone | Conversations with Dr. Wes

    What if the most important question in mental health isn’t “What’s wrong with you?” but “What happened to you?”In this episode of Conversations with Dr. Wes, I sit down with Dr. Lucy Johnstone, clinical psychologist, author, and co-creator of the groundbreaking Power Threat Meaning Framework (PTMF).Lucy has spent decades challenging some of the foundational assumptions of conventional psychiatry—particularly the idea that human suffering is best understood through psychiatric diagnoses, medical labels, and presumed disorders located within individuals.Our conversation explores what becomes possible when we begin to understand distress through power, relationships, adversity, culture, meaning, and the ways human beings learn to survive.Lucy takes us into the origins and development of the Power Threat Meaning Framework and its four central questions:What has happened to you?How did it affect you?What sense did you make of it?What did you have to do to survive?We also discuss the importance of recognizing a person's strengths and resources and weaving these elements together into a meaningful life narrative rather than reducing someone to a diagnostic category.Throughout our conversation, we explore:• Why Lucy believes mental health needs a genuine paradigm shift• The limitations and unintended consequences of psychiatric diagnosis• How diagnostic labels can become intertwined with identity• The rise of self-diagnosis and psychiatric language among young people• The “brain or blame” dilemma and the possibility of a third way• Psychological formulation as an alternative to diagnosis• How power operates across families, institutions, culture, economics, and society• Why PTMF connects personal suffering to larger social and political realities• The history and development of the Power Threat Meaning Framework• The chemical-imbalance narrative and our discussion of Joanna Moncrieff's work• The limitations of conventional psychology and psychiatry education• Why Lucy questions even the language of “mental health” itself• Neoliberalism and the commodification of human suffering• Why meaningful change may ultimately emerge from grassroots movements rather than established institutions• Human connection, presence, community, and what healing might mean beyond simply “fixing” peopleAt its heart, this conversation asks a radical but profoundly human question:What if many of the experiences we call “symptoms” make sense when we understand the life, relationships, culture, and systems surrounding the person?This is a conversation about moving beyond diagnosis, beyond reductionism, and toward context, meaning, relationship, and humanity.RESOURCES & LINKS FROM DR. LUCY JOHNSTONEThe Power Threat Meaning Framework (PTMF)A Straight Talking Introduction to the Power Threat Meaning FrameworkAn accessible book describing the PTMF and how to use it for yourself or collaboratively with others, including clients:A Straight Talking Introduction to Psychiatric Diagnosis — Second EditionA Disorder for Everyone (AD4E)Join this campaigning community to access resources, workshops, events, and key speakers exploring alternatives to the diagnostic model of distress:Video Introduction to the Power Threat Meaning Framework Psychopathology and Mental Distress: Contrasting PerspectivesA psychology textbook that includes the Power Threat Meaning Framework as one of its core models:

  5. Aug 5

    Dr. James Fadiman: The Truth About Microdosing, Psychedelics & The Future of Consciousness

    Dr. James Fadiman has spent more than 60 years at the forefront of psychedelic science. In this rare and wide-ranging conversation, we explore where the psychedelic movement has been, where it's headed, and why true healing can never be reduced to chemistry alone.Known around the world as the pioneer of modern microdosing research, Dr. James Fadiman https://www.jamesfadiman.com/ is the author of The Psychedelic Explorer's Guide and Microdosing for Health, Healing, and Enhanced Performance alongside Jordan Gruber https://jordangruber.com/ His work has influenced researchers, therapists, physicians, and countless individuals seeking a deeper understanding of consciousness and human flourishing.Together we explore the science, philosophy, and future of psychedelic medicine—from the early research of the 1960s through today's psychedelic renaissance.In this conversation we discuss:• The true history of psychedelic research before prohibition• Why Dr. Fadiman no longer believes "sub-perceptual" accurately describes microdosing• How psychedelics affect the entire body—not just the brain• The limitations of reductionist neuroscience and modern psychiatry• Why integration may be more important than the medicine itself• The role of preparation, therapeutic relationship, and sacred context• The commercialization of psychedelics and Big Pharma's growing interest• Why double-blind clinical trials often fail to capture real-world outcomes• Psychedelics, inflammation, autoimmune conditions, and whole-body healing• Microdosing for depression, creativity, addiction, migraines, and overall well-being• Emerging discussions around autism spectrum conditions and individualized dosing• Tourette's syndrome case studies and personalized microdosing protocols• The importance of treating the person—not the diagnosis• Why the best therapists transcend rigid schools of thought• The future of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy and guide training• Consciousness, healing, and reconnecting with what Dr. Wes calls our "unbreakable" natureThis is more than a conversation about psychedelics.It's a dialogue about what it means to be human, how we define healing, and why the future of psychology may require a fundamental shift from fixing broken brains to remembering our deeper interconnectedness.If you enjoy conversations exploring consciousness, psychology, philosophy, culture, and the future of mental health, subscribe and join us each week on Conversations with Dr. Wes.Connect with Dr. James FadimanWebsite: https://www.jamesfadiman.com/Books:• The Psychedelic Explorer's Guidehttps://www.psychedelicexplorersguide.com/ • Microdosing for Health, Healing, and Enhanced Performancehttps://www.microdosingbook.com/• Your Symphony of Selveshttps://a.co/d/02yKr3nXAbout Dr. Weshttps://www.docwes.com/Dr. Weston Robins is a critical psychologist, author, speaker, and host of Conversations with Dr. Wes, where he sits down with leading psychologists, philosophers, scientists, artists, and cultural visionaries to explore consciousness, mental health, family, culture, spirituality, and what it means to live fully human.#JamesFadiman #Microdosing #Psychedelics #MentalHealth #Consciousness #Psychology #PsychedelicTherapy #PsychedelicScience #Integration #TraumaHealing #Autism #HumanPotential #CriticalPsychology #DrWes #ConversationsWithDrWes

  6. Jul 31

    The Future of Addiction Recovery | Dean Andersen on Montana Society, Service & Human Transformation

    In this episode of Conversations with Dr. Wes, I sit down with Dean Andersen, the visionary behind ‪@montanasociety‬ working alongside ‪@TheMostHighShow‬ to explore addiction, recovery, service, purpose, leadership, and the universal process of human transformation.What began as the restoration of an underground fallout shelter in the mountains of Montana evolved into something far greater: a seven-year documentary project that became a living classroom exploring responsibility, forgiveness, craftsmanship, community, and the enduring capacity for change. As Dean says, "The documentary became the curriculum."But Dean's work extends far beyond ‪@montanasociety‬.We dive into his remarkable effort to preserve one of the most important landmarks in recovery history: the former general store connected to Bill Wilson, co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous. After discovering the historic property in Vermont that Bill Wilson visited as a child, Dean personally restored the building from the ground up, transforming it into a beautiful space before ultimately gifting it to the Wilson House to help preserve this sacred piece of recovery history for future generations. We also discuss Dean's recent 12 States / 12 Steps journey—a cross-country pilgrimage aboard a 40-foot bus visiting historic recovery sites across America. Along the way, Dean was joined virtually by ‪@RussellBrand‬ who helped bring renewed attention to the spiritual foundations of the Twelve Steps and the universal journey of recovery. Together they explored themes of addiction, transformation, purpose, and service, culminating in the auction of the bus to help raise funds supporting the preservation of recovery history and future educational initiatives.Throughout our conversation, Dean shares his own recovery journey—from addiction and surrender to decades of service—and introduces the vision behind Montana Society and AUREL, a free educational platform designed to transform authentic human stories into educational experiences for individuals, families, treatment centers, recovery organizations, and communities around the world.Together we explore why stories often teach us more deeply than theories, how meaningful work becomes medicine, and why authentic transformation requires congruence between our thoughts, words, feelings, and actions. We discuss the spiritual roots of recovery, the legacy of Bill Wilson and the Twelve Steps, the importance of service, stillness, meditation, humility, and why today's culture often pulls us toward external achievement while leaving us disconnected from ourselves, one another, and spirit.In this conversation we explore:• Dean's remarkable recovery journey and the power of surrender• The origins of ‪@montanasociety‬ and how an underground shelter became a living classroom• Why "The documentary became the curriculum"• Restoring Bill Wilson's historic childhood property and gifting it to the Wilson House• The 12 States / 12 Steps journey across America• Being joined virtually by ‪@RussellBrand‬ to explore the deeper spiritual foundations of recovery• The history and philosophy behind the Twelve Steps• Recovery through service, craftsmanship, responsibility, and meaningful work• Why stories often teach us more powerfully than theories• The importance of preserving recovery history for future generations• Meditation, stillness, humility, and the spiritual foundations of healing• The difference between "disease culture" and authentic human flourishing• Agricultural recovery communities and self-sustaining models of care• Congruence—aligning thoughts, words, feelings, and actions to live in what Bill Wilson called "the sunlight of the spirit"If this conversation resonates with you, please consider liking, subscribing, and sharing this episode. Connect with Dean AndersenMost High Media:https://mosthighmedia.org/Montana Society:‪@montanasociety‬ AUREL:https://aureleducation.com/

  7. Jul 23

    Original Sin Is a Lie? Bob Peck on Jesus, A Course in Miracles & Our True Nature

    What if one of the most influential doctrines in Western Christianity was never actually taught by Jesus?In this thought-provoking episode of Conversations with Dr. Wes, I sit down with filmmaker, meditation teacher, and author Bob Peck, ‪@iambobpeck‬ to explore his groundbreaking book, Original Sin Is a Lie: How Spirituality Defies Dogma and Reveals Our True Self. Together we examine the historical origins of the doctrine of original sin, the forgotten story of Pelagius and Augustine, and what changes when we begin from the assumption that human beings are inherently whole rather than fundamentally broken.Rather than rejecting religion, Bob invites us to rediscover the mystical heart that lies beneath institutional dogma. Drawing from Jesus, the Bhagavad Gita, Ramana Maharshi, Paramahansa Yogananda, Carl Jung, Ram Dass, Zen Buddhism, the Gospel of Thomas, and A Course in Miracles, this conversation explores the shared wisdom running through many of the world's spiritual traditions.In this conversation we explore:• Why the doctrine of Original Sin emerged centuries after Jesus• Augustine, Pelagius, and the theological battle that shaped Western Christianity• The mystical teachings of Jesus and the Kingdom of God within• The relationship between Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, and non-duality• A Course in Miracles as a practical path for undoing the ego• Forgiveness beyond guilt, shame, and condemnation• Ramana Maharshi, Paramahansa Yogananda, Ram Dass, Carl Jung, and Ram Dass' influence on spiritual awakening• The difference between religion and direct spiritual experience• Psychedelics as glimpses versus embodied awakening• Why Bob describes spirituality as "embodied non-duality"• The importance of integrating mystical insight into everyday life• The deeper meaning of Christ consciousness and our True Nature• How love, presence, and relationship can transform the way we see ourselves and othersWhether you're interested in psychology, consciousness, contemplative spirituality, non-duality, religious history, or human transformation, this conversation offers a rich exploration of what it means to awaken beyond fear and separation.📖 Learn more about Bob PeckOriginal Sin Is a Lie (link below) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BCD1YBG8?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback 📱 Follow Bobhttps://linktr.ee/bobpeck🌿 Learn more about Dr. WesWebsite: https://www.docwes.com🎙️ Subscribe for more conversations exploring:• Consciousness• Psychology• Psychedelics & Integration• Conscious Parenting• Spirituality• Systems Thinking• Addiction & Recovery• Human TransformationIf this conversation resonates with you, please Like, Subscribe, and Share. It helps bring these important conversations to more people.#ConversationsWithDrWes #BobPeck #OriginalSinIsALie #ACourseInMiracles #NonDuality #Spirituality #Jesus #Mysticism #Consciousness #RamanaMaharshi #CarlJung #Yogananda #RamDass #Psychology #Meditation #TrueNature #Healing #ConsciousLiving #HumanTransformation

  8. Jul 17

    Bayo Akomolafe | Selah, Decolonizing Psychology & Learning to Notice the Cracks

    There are some conversations that feel less like interviews and more like entering a new landscape.This was one of them.I've known of Bayo Akomolafe's work, https://www.bayoakomolafe.net/ for several years. In 2023, while attending a Warm Data training in London, his name kept surfacing in conversations. Participant after participant spoke about the profound impact of his writing and the way he seemed to open entirely new ways of seeing the world. When I returned home, I immersed myself in These Wilds Beyond Our Fences, and more recently, Selah. They weren't simply books to read—they became invitations to loosen my grip on certainty and to enter into relationship with mystery, complexity, and emergence.Having Bayo join Conversations with Dr. Wes felt like one of those rare moments where years of reading, wondering, and listening quietly converged.Together we wandered through the worlds of Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari, discussing rhizomes instead of hierarchies, multiplicity instead of reductionism, and why genuine transformation rarely moves in straight lines. Like the rhizome itself, healing spreads beneath the surface, making unexpected connections long before anything visible appears.Much of our conversation circled around the questions that animate Selah.What if our obsession with solving problems is itself part of the problem?What if the search for certainty prevents us from encountering life?What if psychology, medicine, and even our ideas of "health" have been shaped by colonial assumptions about what counts as a normal, productive, and acceptable human being?Bayo invites us to consider that decolonization is not merely political—it is perceptual. It asks us to notice how deeply we have inherited habits of categorizing, controlling, diagnosing, and separating ourselves from the living world.Together we explored...• Why the "door" out of oppressive systems is often built into the architecture itself—and why the real invitation is to notice the cracks.• How decolonizing psychology requires questioning the very assumptions that define normality, pathology, and health.• Why healing may be less about fixing ourselves and more about cultivating new relationships with uncertainty, grief, and emergence.• Paramorphology—learning to look beside things rather than directly at them, discovering possibilities that dominant systems cannot perceive.• Why focusing exclusively on the "enemy" often strengthens the very field that produced it.• The difference between morality and ethics, where ethics becomes a living ecology of relationship instead of rigid certainty.• Consciousness as something far greater than isolated brains—an unfolding field that continually shapes and is shaped by relationship.• Why slowing down is not about moving more slowly, but about becoming more available to the ecologies already speaking through us.• How institutional psychology can become a "policeman of forgetfulness," disciplining bodies toward productivity while overlooking the richness of difference.• Why Bayo describes his work as parapolitics—an artistic and relational practice that moves beyond ideological binaries into new possibilities for being together.One idea from our conversation continues to echo in me:Don't keep searching for the door. Learn to notice the cracks.As someone whose own work has been deeply influenced by humanistic psychology, systems thinking, existential philosophy, and the ongoing exploration of consciousness, this conversation felt like coming home to many of the questions I've been living with for years. There were moments where I completely forgot I was hosting a podcast and simply became a student again.Bayo doesn't ask us to believe something new.He invites us to perceive differently.Learn more about Bayo Akomolafe's Bayo's Writings #bayoakomolafe #selah #psychology #consciousness

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About

Conversations with Dr. Wes explores psychology, consciousness, suffering, healing, philosophy, spirituality, psychedelics, creativity, and the complexity of being human. Hosted by Dr. Wes Robins, a humanistic and transpersonal psychologist, these conversations dive into mental health, existential thought, nervous systems, addiction, family systems, and the mystery of existence itself. Less performance. More depth. More soul. Honest dialogue with clinicians, philosophers, researchers, artists, and people exploring what it means to truly heal and awaken.

Information

  • Creator
    Dr. Weston Robins
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    18
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Dr. Weston Robins
  • Show Website
    Conversations with Dr. Wes

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