Norman Ohler - LSD's Secret History: From Swiss Labs to Government Control
Release Date: 03/31/2025
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info_outlineIn this episode of The Psychedelic Podcast, Paul F. Austin welcomes New York Times bestselling author Norman Ohler.
Find full show notes and links here: https://thethirdwave.co/podcast/episode-297/?ref=278
Norman shares his deep research into the hidden history of LSD, revealing the untold connections between Arthur Stoll (CEO of Sandoz), Nazi Germany, and the CIA's MKUltra program. He explains how LSD's development as a mental health medicine was derailed by intelligence agencies seeking a "truth drug" for interrogations, and how the substance traveled from Swiss laboratories to Nazi concentration camps and eventually to American universities. Norman also discusses his personal connection to psychedelics through his mother's Alzheimer's treatment with microdosing, and offers thoughtful reflections on the current psychedelic renaissance.
Norman Ohler is one of Germany's best living writers: a New York Times Bestselling author, translated into over 30 languages. His books include "Blitzed", "The Bohemians", and "Tripped". He has 2 children and lives in Berlin.
Highlights:
- Welcome & introduction
- Who is Arthur Stoll, the grandfather of psychedelics?
- The Nazi Germany and LSD connection
- Albert Hoffman's complicated relationship with LSD
- The pharmaceutical politics behind psychedelic suppression
- Reflections on the modern psychedelic renaissance
- The challenges of psychedelics in a globalized society
- From "Blitzed" to "Tripped": Norman's research journey
- Norman's personal connection: Microdosing for Alzheimer's
- The mysterious story of JFK and LSD
Episode Links:
- Website
- Instagram: @normanohler
- Norman’s book "Tripped: Nazi Germany, the CIA and the Dawn of the Psychedelic Age"
- Norman’s previous book "Blitzed: Drugs in the Third Reich"
- Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" by William Shirer
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