Overview
This book documents the pioneering underground psychedelic therapy work of Leo Zeff, Ph.D. (referred to as “Jacob” in original interviews conducted in 1981). Over 15+ years, Leo guided approximately 3,000 individuals through psychedelic experiences and trained over 150 therapists, continuing his work despite the illegalization of these substances in the 1960s.
Key Therapeutic Techniques
1. Screening and Selection
- Trust your intuition: Leo relied heavily on gut feelings and somatic responses when evaluating potential clients
- Referral screening: Only accepted clients referred by trusted previous participants who had already done preliminary screening
- Look for growth orientation: Preferred clients seeking spiritual development rather than symptom relief
- One visit screening: Eventually streamlined to just one exploratory meeting based on intuitive assessment
- Assess readiness: Evaluated how much personal growth work clients had already done
2. Structure and Agreements
Established clear boundaries before each session:
- No leaving the premises without permission
- No violence or physical harm to self, others, or property
- Strict confidentiality (security requirement)
- No sexual activity during sessions
- Agreement to follow facilitator instructions immediately when invoked under “structure”
3. Preparation Protocol
Picture Exercise (most distinctive technique):
- Collect photographs: self at ages 2, 4, 6, etc. through adolescence; parents (young and recent); siblings; grandparents; significant others; wedding photos; children; other meaningful images
- Selection process: Client reviews all photos 1-2 weeks before session, sitting with each one, experiencing whatever feelings arise
- This pre-activates emotional material and begins the therapeutic process before the medicine is taken
Other preparation:
- Fasting practices
- Spiritual reading (though Leo eventually found this less important than direct contact with him)
- Discussion of expectations and intentions
- Medical screening initially (later deemed unnecessary)
4. Set and Setting Essentials
Physical environment:
- Beautiful, secure, aesthetically pleasing space
- Flowers and spiritual symbols from multiple traditions
- Natural light/views when possible
- Comfortable mats/pads with blankets
- Eye shades and high-quality headphones
- Clean, dust-free environment
Ceremonial elements:
- Dropping ceremony with special chalice (symbolizing transformation)
- Music as primary vehicle for the journey
- Send-off hug from facilitator
- Reading of 17th-century prayer by François de Salignac Fenelon before ingestion:
Lord, I know not what I ought to ask of Thee;
Thou only knowest what I need; Thou lovest me better
than I know how to love myself. O Father, give to Thy
child that which he himself knows not how to ask.
I dare not ask either for crosses or for consolations;
I simply present myself before Thee,
I open my heart to Thee. Behold my needs
which I know not myself; see and do according to
Thy tender mercy. Smite, or heal; depress me,
or raise me up; I adore all Thy purposes without
knowing them; I am silent; I offer myself in
sacrifice; I yield myself to Thee; I would have
no other desire than to accomplish Thy will.
Teach me to pray. Pray Thyself in me. AMEN.Francois de Salignac Fenelon
Archbishop of Cambray. 1651-1715 A.D
5. Dosing Strategy
- Start with adequate dose: Leo preferred starting at effective levels rather than building up gradually
- LSD base dose typically 250 micrograms for first-timers
- Booster protocol: Check at 1 hour if turned on; give booster if not (typically 125 mcg)
- Continue boosters every 30 minutes until fully “turned on”
- Established individual base levels for each person and substance
- “More is not better” – emphasized optimal rather than maximum dosing
6. During the Session: The Art of Non-Interference
Primary approach:
- “I am an instrument” – facilitator doesn’t bring the experience, just provides opportunity
- Stay present but non-intrusive
- Let client have their own experience
- Traditional therapy techniques don’t work – “just leave them alone”
When to intervene:
- Client extends hand for support – hold hand firmly and silently
- Physical holding/embrace if requested
- If client gets frightened: “Just look at what you’re afraid of. Stay with it. Don’t try to do anything about it.”
Working with pain/discomfort:
- Have client describe the pain location
- Guide imagery: “Open your mouth, go down into your mouth, describe what you see, keep going down”
- Often transforms pain into ecstasy
The resistance technique (used in early days, later abandoned):
- Lie on top of client, hold bed edges
- Instruct: “Push harder, harder, harder!”
- When they succeed in pushing you off, they break through to the other side
7. Music Protocol
- Music plays continuously through headphones
- Carefully curated selection appropriate to journey phase
- Client can request: “Play it again” or “Change the music” or silence
- Facilitator monitors and adjusts
- Turn-on music, deeper journey music, coming-down music
8. Key Therapeutic Principles
“When you’ve come to the end of your rope, just let go” – Leo’s most important intervention, encouraging surrender rather than resistance
Face the fear:
- Difficult experiences often produce the most valuable long-term results
- “I always felt best after experiences in which I had confronted fear”
The moment is everything:
- Anxiety comes from thinking about past or future
- Return attention to present moment through sensory awareness
Death and rebirth:
- Many profound experiences involve ego death
- Symbolic death leads to transformation/rebirth
9. Picture Trip Protocol
When client is functional but still altered (5-8 hours in):
- Review photos one by one
- Hand photo to client: “Just look at it and see what you experience”
- No pressure to speak, but record anything said
- Age 6 photos often most significant (loss of naturalness)
- Typically produces crying, remembering, processing
- Client receives tape recording of this session
10. Integration and Aftercare
- Client writes up experience for themselves and therapist
- Babysitter/trusted person stays through evening after session
- Serve food mindfully (Leo’s chicken liver dish)
- No discussion of trip same day
- Three-week rule: No major life decisions for at least three weeks post-session
- Return visit for integration discussion
11. Group Format Innovations
Friday evening:
- Talking circle: everyone shares current life situation
- Review structure/agreements
- Build community and normalize struggles
Saturday:
- Early morning, quiet and reflective
- Individual consultations on substance/dose selection
- Dropping ceremony together
- Individual journeys with music
- No talking or interaction during peak (except MDMA groups which allowed more contact)
- Coming down together in afternoon
- Champagne ceremony
- Dinner and social time
Sunday morning:
- Sharing circle: each person describes their journey
- Witness multiple perspectives and experiences
- Learn from others’ processes
- Deepen community bonds
12. Substance-Specific Approaches
LSD: Always used for first individual session to establish baseline
Psilocybin: More spiritual, often preferred
MDMA:
- Most popular for repeat experiences
- Facilitates heart-opening and relationship healing
- More lenient structure for communication
- Watch for “talking people” who need boundaries
Ibogaine (“Mr. Ibogaine”):
- Produces answers to questions
- “Won’t let you go until redeemed”
- Deeper, heavier, longer trip
- Best after experience with other substances
- Often difficult but profoundly transformative
Harmaline (yagé):
- Combined with LSD or psilocybin
- Accesses primitive/primal aspects
- Men find masculinity, women find femininity
- Can be nauseating – sometimes taken rectally
MDA:
- Clarifies life, answers questions
- Teaches presence in the moment
- Good for seeing behavior patterns
13. Handling Difficult Experiences
Paranoia:
- Stay calm and present
- Don’t argue or try to convince
- Eventually passes
- Often indicates breakthrough is imminent
Nausea/purging:
- Bucket and tissues always available
- Often signals turning on or releasing
- Part of the process, not to be prevented
“Bad trips”:
- Usually most valuable in long term
- Result from resistance to material emerging
- Encourage staying with experience rather than escaping
- “All you have to do is not get in its way”
14. Therapist Training Approach
- Therapists must experience substances themselves first
- Multiple experiences required before guiding others
- Apprenticeship model
- Emphasis on personal integrity and ongoing growth
- “Coming from context rather than content”
15. Contraindications and Safety
Who not to work with:
- “Bear-trappers” (borderline personalities who manipulate rather than heal)
- Those with purely recreational intent
- People who can’t make basic safety agreements
- Those referred without adequate pre-screening
- Anyone who creates persistent stomach/anxiety response in facilitator
Safety measures:
- Medical screening initially (later found unnecessary for most)
- Secure, private setting
- Sober facilitators always present
- Clear agreements about behavior
- Emergency medications available but rarely used
Long-Term Outcomes Reported
Based on interviews with participants:
- Spiritual awakening: Direct experience of divine/God
- Relationship healing: Improved connections with family, partners, friends
- Reduced fear: Especially fear of death
- Increased presence: More “in the moment”
- Enhanced creativity: In work and life
- Career changes: Often toward more meaningful work
- Dropped addictions: Smoking, alcohol, codeine
- Reduced depression/anxiety: Lasting improvements
- Greater self-acceptance: Less self-criticism
- Sensory enhancement: Lasting appreciation of beauty
- Community building: Deep bonds with fellow participants
Leo’s Core Philosophy
“I am an instrument. I do not bring this experience to anybody. I provide them with the opportunity; they have the experience. They bring their own experience to themselves, and I have the privilege of sitting with them while it’s going on.”
“Nobody has ever been able to achieve transformation by their own unaided efforts. It requires some sort of medium.”
“If I wasn’t supposed to be doing this, I wouldn’t be doing it. If God didn’t want me to do it He would have stopped me a long time ago.”
This represents one of the most comprehensive documented accounts of underground psychedelic therapy practice during the prohibition era, offering invaluable insights for contemporary practitioners as research returns to legitimacy.