Musings on life, the conscious and unconscious, addiction, human behavior, mental health, modern culture — and what it actually takes to be well. I write to think out loud, and I sit down often with others to do the same.
The writing wanders, but it circles the same questions. Start wherever you feel the pull.
The throughline of everything I write — what it actually takes to live well, connect, and find meaning in a complicated world.
Read on Substack →On compulsion, escape, and what I call the "Sophistication of Illness" — how addiction adapts, and how people find their way back.
Read on Substack →The hidden architecture of the mind — why we feel what we feel, and the stories running beneath the surface.
Read on Substack →Treating mood through the whole system — biology, metabolism, nutrition, and the body's role in mental health.
Read on Substack →Notes from the frontier of psychedelic science and what expanded states reveal about healing and the self.
Read on Substack →Reflections on the world we've built — technology, performance, belonging, and the search for something real.
Read on Substack →I've been a guest on dozens of podcasts and stages — on mental health, psychedelics, addiction, consciousness, and what it means to be well. A few to start with.
Why connection and belonging may be the most underused medicine we have for mental health.
Listen ↗ MUD\WTR · Trends with BenefitsHow therapy, psychedelics, and a holistic web of care can work together — with psychedelic researcher Dorna Pourang.
Listen ↗ Be Here Now Network · MindshiftCoping skills, presence, and the quiet power of opting out — on Ram Dass's Be Here Now Network.
Listen ↗ Inside Mental Health · Psych CentralA physician's perspective on when, whether, and how we medicate children — and teaching the language of emotion.
Listen ↗ Attachment Theory in ActionHow culture, community, and attachment shape our mental health across the whole of a life.
Listen ↗ This Is CandorBreaking stigma and building everyday mental hygiene — bridging Eastern and Western practice.
Listen ↗ It's Fine I'm FineA psychiatrist's own journey, and caring for our minds through the hardest seasons.
Listen ↗ Apollo NeuroBuilding a daily toolkit for resilience — in conversation with neuroscientist Dr. Dave Rabin.
Watch ↗ iamtheCODE · Diary of a Do-GooderOn treating mental wellbeing as our greatest asset — with Lady Mariéme Jamme.
Listen ↗A selection — available across Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.
Longer-form conversations on bridging Eastern and Western medicine, psychedelics, and the future of mental health.

I grew up at the intersection of Eastern and Western worlds, and I've spent my career trying to hold them together — in psychiatry, in addiction medicine, in the study of consciousness. Writing is how I metabolize what I see in the room, and how I stay honest about what being human really asks of us.
New essays land in your inbox — no noise, just the thinking. Join hundreds of readers on Dr. Raghu's Substack.