"I want to feel what pure love is" - Aaron Rodgers recalls psychedelic trip to Peru with Danica Patrick

Back on the eve of the pandemic, Aaron Rodgers and Danica Patrick were dating. Like many couples, Rodgers and Patrick took a trip abroad. Speaking on the Marcus Aubrey Podcast via the New York Post, the quarterback reminisced about his time in Peru.

One of the highlights was when he told the story of how he ended up having a psychedelic trip with a drug called Ayahuasca. The drug comes in the form of a tea and gives an effect similar to mushrooms. It is unclear whether the couple had the tea together. Here's how he put it and his professionally-grounded reasons:

“My intention the first night going in was I want to feel what pure love is. That was my intention and I did. I really did. 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. I came back and the pandemic hit.”

He also explained how the drug taught him to be his own biggest cheerleader:

“To me, one of the core tenets of your mental health is that self-love. That’s what Ayahuasca did for me, was help me see how to unconditionally love myself.”

In other words, with less doubt comes more wins and less self-sabotage. Looking at his two 13-win seasons and back-to-back MVPs in the seasons since, many fans find it tough to question their quarterback.

Aaron Rodgers in recent years

Green Bay Packers v Cincinnati Bengals

The quarterback was as good as ever in 2019, emerging from a 6-9-1 season in 2018 to lead a 13-3 run the following season. According to Pro Football Reference, he threw for 26 touchdowns and four interceptions and took the team to the NFC Championship game.

However, in 2020, Aaron Rodgers hit a new peak, throwing for 48 touchdowns and five interceptions. Once again, he reached the NFC Championship game after going 13-3. In 2021, he threw for 37 touchdowns and four interceptions after going 13-4.

Basically, he won 13 games in three straight seasons and made the NFC Championship game in two of the three. In 2021, the team instead lost in the Divisional round. The loss triggered a rise in the sentiment that the quarterback is just not postseason material. His last positive postseason record came back in 2016 and remains just one of two such records in his entire career.