Psychedelic Conference 2023: Aaron Rodgers bats for ayahuasca use in NFL as 'hundreds' of players reach out to Jets QB

New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers is the NFL's most prominent advocate for psychedelics today, and through said advocacy, his influence within the league is slowly expanding.

Speaking with podcaster Aubrey Marcus at Psychedelic Science 2023 in Denver Colorado, the four-time MVP shared his thoughts on how his love of psychedelics has inspired his peers:

“I’ve been fortunate enough in the last few years to be able to sit in ceremony with teammates. I’m telling you, it is radically life-changing and it’s wild to be in a locker room and look over and just know, like, I’ve been in the maloca [an indigenous South American dwelling] with you, guy. It’s pretty special. It changes the dynamic, for sure."

He also revealed how many NFL players have wanted to emulate him:

“And in this process, like I said, there’s been hundreds of NFL guys who have reached out. … It’s been really fun to be able to connect with these guys who’ve done this work or was fascinated by it and want to learn more about it."

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What else did Aaron Rodgers say about psychedelics at Psychedelic Science 2023?

Many people are still skeptical about the benefits of psychedelics, but according to Aaron Rodgers, they do not have to be. In the same conversation with Aubrey Marcus, he said:

“We have the opportunity to change the conversation by dispelling these archaic myths about the dangers of them or the negative side effects or whatever might be and start to share the actual wisdom and truth about it.”

He also opined about his desire for a ”movement” to normalize psychedelics:

“It’s a permission slip for other people to stand up and talk about their own experiences, to join in and to dive in and to learn about it. And I think that’s how we move this conversation forward, is more people to be out there comfortable talking about their own journeys. Their spiritual journey, their medicine journey, their ceremonies. So we can bring this to people who need it.”

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A history of Aaron Rodgers and psychedelics

When it comes to alternative medicines, especially psychedelics, Aaron Rodgers has an indisputable track record with them. When speaking to Aubrey Marcus in August last year, he attributed his unprecedented resurgence in 2020 and 2021 that was highlighted by consecutive MVP awards to consuming ayahuasca in South America:

"I had a magical experience with the sensation of feeling 100 different hands on my body imparting a blessing of love and forgiveness for myself and gratitude for this life from what seemed to be my ancestors... That’s what ayahuasca did for me, was help me see how to unconditionally love myself. It’s only in that unconditional self-love, that then I’m able to truly, unconditionally love others. And what better way to work on my mental health than to have an experience like that?”

Rodgers also claimed that during the same trip, he ate mushrooms and "felt myself merging with the ocean".

Four months later, he also revealed that ayahuasca and mushrooms helped him overcome his fear of death:

"I definitely had a fear of death, and ayahuasca and psilocybin actually really helped me with that and [alleviated] a lot of the stress around the idea of needing to accomplish things before I actually die, and taking away some of that fear."