Julia is joined by genius mind P.E. Moskowitz for a conversation about their new memoir Breaking Awake, which chronicles the mental breakdown that drove them to experiment with drugs, reckon with trauma, and draw meaning from suffering. From Klonopin and SSRIs to ketamine and LSD, they consider what our reliance on substances reveals about our modern world. Are drugs soothing us, transforming us, or just reflecting our pain? Digressions include P.E.’s commandment to “go out and get weird with it,” the dark headspace where internet mantras start to feel profound, and the unfortunate but honest truth that the only way out is through.

This episode was produced by Julia Hava and edited by Livi Burdette. Research assistance from Kylie Finnigan.

Check out P.E.’s book Breaking Awake: A Reporter’s Search for a New Life, and a New World, Through Drugs and their Substack Mental Hellth.