This week’s Psychedelic Titan is Cory Jones, CEO of Healing Maps. Healing Maps provides education and information about psychedelic-assisted therapies related to Ketamine and beyond.
What’s this article series about? Psychedelic Titans is a get-to-know-you-style blog series interviewing some of the psychedelic industry’s most influential and impactful individuals.
When did you first become involved in the psychedelic industry and why?
My foray into the psychedelic industry began about two years ago when I consulted for PsyTech (which was acquired by Wesana Health in 2021.) Previously, I had been anecdotally aware of the industry’s emergence. But PsyTech gave me a front-row seat to the most respected researchers and advocates in the industry and I was able to see the results of their decades of work on a daily basis. I specifically remember Matt Johnson’s presentation on smoking cessation being a complete epiphany.
Do you, or have you taken, psychedelic substances?
Who hasn’t? Prior to launching Healing Maps, I was always aware that they were beneficial, but wasn’t really able to quantify or articulate exactly how until I started to dive into the literature and research as well as spend time with people who’ve been in these communities for decades.
Do your parents/family members know what you’re doing?
They do, sort of. Over the course of my career, I have worked at some non-traditional brands and in some non-traditional industries…so nothing really phases them at this point. I’m not really sure how aware they are of the industry or exactly what I am doing within it. But when I give them updates on Healing Maps’ growth, the standard response I get is something along the lines of, “Well, that’s great. Anyway, it’s probably going to snow tomorrow…”
Have you had an experience with mental health/chronic pain?
No chronic pain. But I have been a pretty avid fan of The Smiths my whole life, so I’ll let that answer the mental health part of the question. (And can someone please get Morrissey some ketamine? It seems like he can use it now more than ever. Which is really saying something.)
What’s your vision of the industry in 20 years?
My vision is pretty simple: I’d like the general population to reframe the way they think about psychedelics. And for their knee-jerk reactions to not be one of negativity, but of positivity. It’s my hope that society can have thoughtful, nuanced and apolitical conversations around their legality, benefits, limitations, and best practices. An immense amount of progress could be made if psychedelics were able to enter the collective conversation free of stigma.
Side note: Would it be the worst thing in the world if MDMArgaritas became a thing?
What are your biggest worries for the industry?
That the public’s expectations around the mental health benefits psychedelics can provide won’t be matched by the effort it takes to achieve those benefits. We (especially in North America) prefer the easiest path. We want to live forever, but we choose a giant pile of tater tots over a salad nine times out of ten. As a whole, we aren’t a society that confronts and faces its issues — we want a pill to take care of that. And these compounds — while sometimes marketed as such — are not a simple panacea. If we can make sure this message is ingrained throughout the industry, the therapeutic sector will have a much better chance of succeeding.
Who are your heroes?
Non-industry answer: The world would be a better place if there were a few more Ian MacKayes running around. (This may seem like a somewhat ironic answer in a psychedelic publication, I know, but I’m willing to die on this hill.)
Industry answer: This may be my media background bias, but I would say, Michael Pollan. There are so many important people who have built the foundation of this industry and community, but “How to Change Your Mind” accelerated the mainstream conversation and acceptance around psychedelics. You wouldn’t be reading the thousands of psychedelics-related articles across hundreds of mainstream publications today if it weren’t for his groundbreaking (and extremely brave) work.
If you could create a psychedelic to do anything you wanted, what would it do?
Anything? Well, it would be great if there was a psychedelic that could get appointed the head of both the DEA and FDA…allowing it to implement a more compassionate legal and regulatory framework around psychedelics.
We’d like to thank Cory for being a part of the Psychedelic Titans series. Stay tuned for more profiles on leaders in the psychedelic industry.
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