After the triumph of the Psychedelic Science 2023 conference this past summer in Denver, it felt more important than ever to continue to find ways to be in community among other psychedelically minded folks. So it was an utter delight to be able to show up and share Synergetic Press’s books at the Illinois Psychedelic Society’s first-ever symposium in Chicago on Saturday, September 30.
The day was packed with incredible speakers and presenters, but just as importantly, it was attended by so many beautiful people eager to engage in conversation. From newbies to seasoned practitioners, the crowd was instantly willing to go deep within the safe container of the day that was established by IPS’s powerhouse founder and executive director Jean Lacy and her incredible network of colleagues and volunteers.
A good handful of attendees had also been present at PS23 and immediately recognized Synergetic Press as the team that had been running the bookstore there–a gratifying recognition! Other new friends were wide-eyed as they browsed our selection of titles for sale. Many had heard of Sasha and Ann Shulgin’s classics PIHKAL and TIHKAL but were excited to thumb through them for the first time. The glorious Donna Torres illustrations on the covers of both volumes of Sasha’s The Nature of Drugs were instant conversation-starters. Chacruna Institute’s essay collections Queering Psychedelics and Psychedelic Justice seemed tailor-made for keeping the trenchant discussions on best practices around the use of psychedelic medicine going. And copies of Saga Briggs’s How to Change Your Body sold out almost instantly–her warm and approachable writing style serving as a welcoming open door for getting us all to consider how we can take effective next steps into more holistic ways of healing.
We at Synergetic Press are so grateful for the opportunity to share the cutting-edge work of our authors with seekers wherever we find them–online, of course, but also increasingly again in person as we come together in the shared space of community.
