From Surgeon to Psilocybin: Dr. Tracy Townsend’s Journey (featured on the With Whit Podcast)
Dr. Tracy Townsend’s journey has taken her from operating rooms to intentional plant‑medicine ceremonies—and along the way she’s discovered a new calling: guiding others through the therapeutic power of fungi. Check out Dr. Tracy Townsend With Whit Podcast
Watch the Podcast Episode below
Dr. Tracy Townsend on the popular With Whit podcast
A Global Childhood and a Surgical Start
Born to parents in U.S. government service, Tracy spent her early years moving through East Asia—South Korea, Okinawa—and finished high school in Washington, D.C. She earned her medical degree at the University of Virginia, then trained for five years in pediatric orthopedic surgery in Los Angeles. Today, she practices not with scalpels but with psilocybin in Portland, Oregon.
Recognizing the Limits of Conventional Care
While pediatric orthopedics offered the chance to set young lives on healthier paths, Dr. Townsend noticed a mismatch between acute surgical interventions and the chronic, trauma‑rooted conditions flooding emergency rooms: anxiety, depression, PTSD. She realized that modern medicine excels at lifesaving miracles—like treating car‑accident injuries—but often lacks tools for addressing deep‑seated psychological and intergenerational wounds.
A Personal Turning Point
Early in her surgical residency—grappling with 80‑hour weeks, isolation in L.A., and mounting burnout—Dr. Townsend turned to meditation for relief. Through friends she then experienced her first ayahuasca ceremony, followed by psilocybin journeys. Those sessions delivered profound, ego‑dissolving insights, a sense of universal love, and a “coming home” to a truer self. She emerged convinced that these ancient medicines could fill gaps in Western healthcare.
Diving into the Science
As she completed her orthopedic training—including a coveted Harvard fellowship dream—Dr. Townsend devoured emerging research: FDA breakthrough‑therapy status for psilocybin (2018), clinical trials at Johns Hopkins and NYU, neuroscience studies on default‑mode‑network disruption and post‑journey neuroplasticity. She attended UCLA conferences, connected with leading researchers, and realized that a new mainstream was on the horizon.
Founding Meadow Medicine
After Oregon voters passed Measure 109 in 2020 legalizing supervised psilocybin, Dr. Townsend enrolled in Tom Eckert’s six‑month facilitator‑training program. Working virtually and in monthly intensives, she discovered that guiding plant‑medicine sessions ignited her passion far more than orthopedic rounds. With coaching support, she resigned her surgical post and founded Meadow Medicine, offering “psilocybin‑assisted health coaching” through meadowmedicine.org.
Macrodose Journeys: The Core Offering
Meadow Medicine specializes exclusively in macrodose psilocybin sessions. Clients—often veterans of therapy or years on antidepressants—seek Dr. Townsend when they feel stuck. Each program includes:
Preparation Call
A video consultation to set intentions, review medical history, and plan logistics.Macrodose Ceremony
A six‑ to seven‑hour, one‑on‑one session in Meadow’s serene Portland center, where Dr. Townsend guides clients through their journey.Next‑Day Integration
An in‑person debrief the following morning to process insights and translate them into daily practices.One‑Week Check‑In
A follow‑up video call seven days later to reinforce integration and address emerging questions.One Year of Group Support
Monthly group integration meetings—up to twelve sessions over twelve months—so clients continue sharing, learning, and deepening their transformation together.
Many report significant, sustained relief from depression, anxiety, PTSD, and other chronic conditions after just one macrodose journey plus this robust integration framework.
Rethinking Antidepressants
While SSRIs and SNRIs can be lifesaving in crisis, Dr. Townsend notes they were never intended for decades‑long use—and withdrawal and tolerance issues often go unaddressed. Psilocybin, by contrast, targets different serotonin receptors associated with active coping and can catalyze deep shifts in just a single session.
A Day in Dr. Townsend’s World
No two days are the same: she records her podcast, conducts preparation and integration calls (many clients travel to Oregon), and hosts macrodose ceremonies in a purpose‑built center. After each session, clients return the next morning for a check‑in, then have a one‑week follow‑up call—and continue monthly group integration meetings for a full year.
Learn More
meadowmedicine.org — Dr. Townsend’s current psilocybin facilitation practice
Dr. Townsend’s evolution—from pediatric orthopedic surgeon to licensed psilocybin facilitator—illustrates how ancient plant medicines are reemerging to address modern healthcare’s blind spots, offering new pathways to healing and wholeness.