By Ksenia Prints, Food Drink Life

More people are opting to leave 5-star resorts and cruises behind and take a different kind of vacation, one that comes with a side of mind-altering drugs. But the legal and physical implications of this sort of travel can be murky.

For a moment, consider taking a slightly different kind of trip on your next vacation. You and your fellow travelers will explore unimaginable distances without moving much at all. You can’t take any luggage with you – unless your emotional baggage counts – or bring back souvenirs. In fact, you may not even be able to describe the journey to the folks at home.

Despite this strangeness, or perhaps because of it, many of the travelers who have turned to psychedelic vacations consider them to be life-changing experiences that are well worth the money. Others, however, point out that these retreats have an uneasy relationship with Indigenous communities – and they worry about the possible dangers of consuming mind-altering substances without proper guidance.

Why are so many tourists turning to psychedelic tourism, and what are some of the most popular substances offered at these wellness retreats? Should travelers be concerned about the safety, ethics or legality of these experiences? Keep reading to find out.

What does a typical psychedelic vacation involve?

Sia-Luna Estrella, a healer and Shamanic practitioner, knows exactly how she found her way into running psychedelic retreats. “It was a higher calling from the sacred mountain here in Cuzco,” she remembers. She felt called to move to Peru and later invited others to join her on retreats to South America, South Africa and other locations.

Estrella said goodbye to her car, job and ocean-view apartment, and embraced a fresh start. “It brought me back to the truth of who I was and what is my greatest purpose here on Earth.”

Over the years, Estrella has seen over a hundred retreat participants come and go. She doesn’t always weave psychedelics into her retreats – sometimes, she just works with cacao ceremonies and the energy of the land – but she’s quick to note the importance of treating these powerful substances properly.

Plant medicines

“We don’t think of these as psychedelics, we think of them as plant teachers and plant medicine. They have their own consciousness,” explains Estrella. She primarily works with the San Pedro cactus, a plant that contains the psychoactive substance locally known as wachuma, or mescaline.

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Mescaline is just one of several psychedelic substances that can be experienced during retreats. Peyote, another cactus that also contains mescaline, is a popular choice, as is ayahuasca, a psychoactive tea. Medicines gathered from toads can also be used, such as 5-MeO-DMT, which can also be derived from plants, and Kambo, a poisonous toad secretion that is applied to the skin through small burn wounds.

But perhaps the most familiar substance used in psychedelic retreats is psilocybin, also known as ‘shrooms – not to be confused with regular mushrooms. According to Thrillist, psilocybin can be experienced in vacations across the globe, from beachside ceremonies in Jamaica – where psilocybin is unregulated – to collaborative research projects in The Netherlands.

The recent emergence of wellness tourism is a brand-new phenomenon, but psychedelics have been used by Indigenous communities for thousands of years. Robyn Landau, writing for Trippin, noted that the growing demand for psychedelics can quickly become unsustainable, threatening to destroy traditional Indigenous practices.

Landau explains that in Mexico peyote has become scarce due to tourism, agriculture and mining. In light of the fact that the plant takes 15 years to grow, this is cause for concern. Landau suggests that travelers hoping to benefit from Indigenous medicines should take time to learn about the communities that are stewards of these remedies and how to respectfully engage with traditional practices.

Who will your fellow travelers be?

Why might someone be drawn to a psychedelic retreat? Some travelers are simply looking to try new experiences; others attend in hopes of working through bigger problems such as depression, anxiety, trauma or addiction.

In an interview with Travel Weekly, Justin Townsend, CEO and Head Facilitator at MycoMeditations, highlighted the diversity of attendees at their retreats. “A typical retreat normally consists of about 50% female, 50% male, and we get everything from blue-collar workers to white-collar workers from all kinds of professions, people from their mid-30s through to their 60s,” Townsend told Travel Weekly.

Psychedelics and mental health

In recent years, there’s been a growing conversation about the way in which psychedelics can address mental illness, as demonstrated by Michael Pollan’s 2018 book “How to Change Your Mind” exploring the subject. On the other hand, critics have also noted the risks associated with psychedelic use.

The New York Times warned that psychedelics “can cause psychosis or long-term mental health issues, particularly in patients with a predisposition to mental illness.” The same article also discusses the robberies, sexual assaults and even deaths that have occurred at psychedelic retreats.

Estrella is well aware of the dangers of misusing traditional medicines. “You see a lot of people in Western society go to the jungle for three weeks and say they’re a shaman who is qualified to work with the medicine, and that is incredibly dangerous,” she says firmly. But she also believes in the power of psychedelics to help people heal. “The medicine will help you work through trauma, limited beliefs and conditioning. If there are answers, the medicine will help you find those answers within yourself.”

Wait, is any of this legal?

Before grabbing your passport, should you call your lawyer? To give a classic lawyerly answer: well, it depends.

“In some countries, particularly in South America, psychedelic retreats can be legal or legal-ish, per my understanding,” says Marc Z. Goldgrub, a lawyer at Green Economy Law Professional Corporation. The firm focuses on psychedelics, green business and housing. Goldgrub also runs the website PsychedelicLaw.ca. Estrella confirms this answer.

“But in the US and Canada, psychedelic retreats are generally simply illegal,” says Goldrub. In these parts of North America, “there is no such thing as a 100% legal psilocybin, MDMA or ayahuasca retreat that’s totally open to the public. Though some retreats are marketed with an impressive veneer of professionalism which wrongly would suggest otherwise to those who don’t know better.”

On top of how the psychedelic substances themselves are regulated, Goldgrub explains, there may be civil liability concerns to be aware of as well. “If something bad happens to someone, practitioners can be sued under tort law.”

Final thoughts

So, is a psychedelic retreat your next vacation? Some travelers will undoubtedly be eager to experience these medicines for themselves. Others will be content to curl up with a copy of Aldous Huxley’s “The Doors of Perception” and a mug of regular tea.

One thing is for certain: as the demand for wellness continues to grow, it’s likely that psychedelic retreats will become ever more popular. Will this cause them to lose their cool factor, though? Only time will tell.

For her part, despite the sometimes challenging aspects of running psychedelic retreats, Estrella maintains a characteristic sense of calm and optimism about introducing new travelers to medicine ceremonies.

“It’s quite normal for people to feel a sense of excitement and nervousness,” she says. “But as long as they come with an open heart, then it’s an incredible experience.”

Ksenia Prints is a writer, blogger, photographer and recipe developer from Montreal, Canada. She blogs over At the Immigrant’s Table, a food blog showcasing healthy, beautiful international recipes for adventurous home cooks. She loves to highlight ethnic cuisines and immigrant cultures and adapt those recipes to gluten-free, vegan, vegetarian, sugar-free and other dietary restrictions.

By Doug Smith, Los Angeles Times

LOS ANGELES — The aging draft resister came early to beat the Memorial Day observance at Los Angeles National Cemetery. He angled through rows of white headstones, treading on immaculately tended grass. He stopped at the grave of the judge who had sentenced him.

He had a message for U.S. District Judge Harry Pregerson that has been in his thoughts since that day in 1970.

As an 22-year-old in 1967, Bob Zaugh had found a purpose in his life more important than school, career or even freedom. It was a recognition of the commonality of all humans that meant he could not support the Vietnam War or the system that sent young men to fight in it.

So on Dec. 4, 1967, the second national draft card turn-in day, he joined other resisters at First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles on West 8th Street in symbolically dropping their cards in a goblet.

At the height of the nation’s struggle of conscience over the Vietnam War, that decision had multiple possible consequences for a young man: ostracism by friends and family, loss of employment opportunities, and lifetime stigma as being unpatriotic or worse — a coward. Not to mention prison time.

When Case 5787, United States of America vs. Robert Paul Zaugh, went on trial on Tuesday, May 26, 1970, Zaugh came prepared to admit to the two charges — refusing to report for a preinduction physical and refusing to report for induction. The maximum sentence was five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

Pregerson, though remembered as a liberal judge, was also a Marine who was wounded in the Battle of Okinawa in World War II. He didn’t have a track record of leniency, and had already sent three of Zaugh’s roommates — Richard Profumo, Mike Swartz and Jack Whitten — to prison.

After Assistant U.S. Attorney Arnold Regardie introduced Zaugh’s Selective Service file as evidence, the judge turned to Zaugh, who had waived a jury trial and was representing himself.

“You may proceed, Mr. Zaugh.”

“I will start by saying that on May 29th I did refuse to cooperate at a physical, and that on August 27th I did refuse to submit to induction,” he began.

Zaugh, at Pregerson’s grave in November, began his ritual visits after the judge, by then a senior member of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, died in 2017. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times/TNS)

His defense, he said, would be “that there is really no alternative way for me to act when I am confronted by the U.S. Military Code.”

Zaugh would later obtain a transcript of the hearing from the National Archives.

In his opening statement, he quoted at length from a Selective Service System pamphlet called “Manpower Channeling,” and argued that the very concept of the draft infringed on his and other young men’s inalienable rights expressed in the Declaration of Independence and, in his view, reserved to the citizens by the 9th Amendment.

The prosecutor could no longer bear it.

“I will object to any further opening statement along these lines on the grounds that it is irrelevant and really not properly part of an opening statement,” he broke in.

And then came the moment when Pregerson inadvertently created a bond that would live beyond him — and lead Zaugh, year after year, to the judge’s grave.

“What you say is technically true, Mr. Regardie,” Pregerson told the prosecutor. “But I will hear Mr. Zaugh.”

Zaugh would — necessarily — be convicted that day and face possible prison time. But he had unexpectedly won the only victory he hoped for — to be heard.

For anyone who didn’t live through the 1960s, it might be impossible to conceive of the moral fissures wrought in America by the Vietnam War and the life-changing and character-defining decisions faced by every man of military age.

Some would follow their sense of duty, or merely do what they were told, and join a war many found they didn’t understand. Those who didn’t die returned to a home that many found didn’t understand them.

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Hundreds of thousands would linger in school or marry to obtain deferments, or enlist in the Coast Guard or Air Force to avoid conscription into the Army. Others turned their backs on the U.S. by moving to Canada.

It was later estimated that more than 570,000 sought deferments through deception — the draft dodgers — or openly repudiated the draft — the resisters.

Some declared they wouldn’t fight for reasons of conscience. The standard-bearer of that group was world heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali, who in 1967 was sentenced to prison for refusing induction based on a mix of his Muslim faith and his country’s racial injustice.

“Why should they ask me to put on a uniform and go 10,000 miles from home and drop bombs and bullets on brown people in Vietnam while so-called Negro people in Louisville are treated like dogs?” Ali asked.

The late David Harris, former Stanford student body president and co-founder of a group called the Resistance, emerged as a leader in the growing national civil disobedience movement. He opposed the draft on broad philosophical precepts:

“We are all responsible for what our country does,” Harris wrote. “Under the worst of circumstances, we control our own behavior.”

Zaugh was in graduate school at UCLA when Harris, soon to be tried and sentenced to prison himself, spoke on campus, railing against the draft as an unjust system funneling young men into an unjust war.

The message struck so deeply that Zaugh dropped out of UCLA, joined a commune of fellow draft resisters living in a large house in central L.A., and began volunteering with a ragtag group called the Peace Press that published anti-war literature on a small offset printer.

Among resisters, Zaugh was a special case. Before he took his stand of conscience, he had reported for, and flunked, a preinduction physical due to a congenital condition called rheumatoid spondylitis, a fusing of the spinal vertebrae.

He never would have been sent to Vietnam.

When Zaugh’s day in court arrived, he wanted the Judge to know that he could have taken the easy way out.

“I hope to show that, first of all, I could have cooperated, taken the physical, and I would have flunked and received either a 1-Y or a 4-F,” he said, citing two categories for medical deferment.

But that was not his defense. He brought up his physical condition for only one reason, he said: “I would like you to be convinced of the sincerity of what my defense really is.”

With Pregerson’s license to speak, Zaugh did, for 15 minutes. He read passages from “Channeling Manpower,” which he said “really had a great effect” on him — “so much so that I printed up, myself, about 10,000 copies and distributed them.”

Anyone who read the document, he said, “would clearly see that the young people are dispossessed of their lives in this country, and that as a result we are being deprived of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

“I maintain that I have the right to choose my own happiness; not to have it imposed upon me from the outside.”

Pregerson cut in.

“Don’t you think all of us live under certain restrictions, Mr. Zaugh? Really, are any of us completely free to do what we want to do and to pursue our own happiness in the way we want to pursue it?”

But without waiting for an answer, he changed his tone.

“What are you doing now? Are you in school?”

“No,” Zaugh replied. “I have been working with blind children for four years, and I do printing on a subsistence wage, and I pack eggs for the father of a friend of mine who was sent to jail for refusing induction.”

“Go ahead,” Pregerson said. “I am glad you are doing that kind of work.”

Zaugh described a recent realization: “All the decisions that I have made relate to various social problems, such as ecology, the draft, racism and war.”

Complying with the induction law “means that I am violating the rights of others, because the result of the Selective Service System is really slavery. I think when you are forced to go in the Army because of fear of five years in prison, you are being enslaved.”

His testimony continued in this vein until Pregerson, in effect, mounted the defense that Zaugh was unwilling to make. The judge pressed Zaugh’s advisory counsel to argue that the government had made procedural errors in his case — a defense that worked for more than 100,000 defendants.

Contrary to Zaugh’s wish not to base his defense on technicalities, Pregerson found him not guilty of refusing induction.

Almost apologetically, he said he had to find Zaugh guilty of refusing his physical. He set sentencing for June 17.

American attitudes toward the Vietnam War were changing in 1970, as images of the dead — Vietnamese and American — on nightly television drummed home the brutality of the war; the enemy’s massive Tet Offensive of 1968 had undermined the U.S. government’s assurances of ultimate victory. Ali, initially condemned as unpatriotic by much of America, became a powerful symbol for the growing anti-war movement. The Supreme Court overturned his conviction in 1971.

That trend was reflected in the justice system. Prosecutions, convictions and prison sentences for draft resisters declined sharply in the late 1960s and early 1970s, President Ford’s postwar clemency board concluded in an exhaustive study of the Vietnam War era.

In “Chance and Circumstance: The Draft, the War and the Vietnam Generation,” Lawrence M. Baskir and William A. Strauss attributed the change to the successful strategy of resistance leaders to overwhelm the court system, and to growing doubts about the war among prosecutors and judges.

In a chart modeled on a family tree, the authors documented the cases of 209,517 men accused of draft violations: 25,279 indictments, 8,750 convictions and only 3,250 prison terms.

Zaugh might have had reason to think Pregerson too was having a change of heart.

Two other members of the commune earlier sentenced by Pregerson — Swartz and Profumo — had obtained early releases and attended Zaugh’s trial to show their support.

Though he has no proof, Zaugh believes Pregerson was responsible for their release. The judge had learned they were in solitary confinement for continuing their civil disobedience in prison. Pregerson went to the prison to see for himself, and then either filed a habeas corpus petition or persuaded a lawyer to do so, Zaugh said.

At sentencing Pregerson gave no inkling of his motivation, but said simply that Zaugh “does not now need confinement.” He sentenced him to two years of probation on the condition that he “perform civilian work of national importance contributing to the maintenance of the national health, safety and interest.”

U.S. District Judge Dean Pregerson, who followed his father to the bench, believes the reasons for his decision were complex.

“I think like so much of the country, my dad had nothing but respect for men and women in uniform, but at the same time he began having doubts about whether this war made sense,” he said.

But he also thought Zaugh’s sincerity had influenced the decision.

“The other thing that is a reflection of my dad’s character is that he appreciated people who were genuine, who lacked guile and were acting on principle,” the son said. “The fact that people like Bob were willing to go to prison rather than do what less principled people would do, which is try to avoid the draft through some other means, is something that spoke to those qualities.”

Zaugh informed the Probation Board that he intended to serve the national interest by continuing to work for the Peace Press.

That could have been a tidy end to the story, but fate was still at play.

Three decades later, the elder Pregerson came back into Zaugh’s life by chance. It happened, of all places, at a UCLA football game where Zaugh, by then a Bruin fan, saw UCLA alum Pregerson honored at halftime.

Zaugh’s sense of destiny was reinforced when he attended a screening of Oscar-winner Terry Sanders’ 1998 documentary “Return with Honor,” about U.S. pilots who’d been prisoners of war. It was a fundraiser for an Inglewood veterans shelter, one of several Pregerson had helped found.

“So, after intending to write you since the 70’s, the signs were clear it was time to do so,” Zaugh said in an undated letter to Pregerson, by then on the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

He reminded the judge of the details of his case and concluded:

“What was crucial for me was that though you probably disagreed with my position, you probably set that aside and allowed me to present my defense.”

He mentioned that he had done his work in the national interest at the Peace Press.

“Though it may seem a stretch as work in the national interest, it was respected by many and studied as a model worker-owned business by the [Small Business Administration] and California.

“My conviction has never been a burden in any way and the fact that you chose not to jail me has probably been a blessing.”

By then Pregerson, who famously testified at his 1979 appeals court confirmation hearing that he would follow his conscience if it conflicted with the law, had established himself as an activist, both on and off the bench, on behalf of homeless people and veterans. He stirred the federal bureaucracy to provide land for the Salvation Army’s shelter in Bell, and his oversight of litigation over the Century Freeway led to the construction of close to 1,000 permanent housing units for veterans at Century Villages at Cabrillo.

On Feb. 16, 1999, Pregerson wrote back:

“It meant a lot to receive your letter. … I remember your case well. I also remember Mike Swartz and another young man whose last name name was Whitten. I’ve often wondered what became of you and the others.

“I am happy to know that my disposition of your case turned out so well for you and for our country.”

Zaugh had long wanted to thank Pregerson in person, but couldn’t get court staff to make an appointment. He finally succeeded in 2016, when he offered to introduce the judge to his friend Gary Tyler. A Black man who had served 40 years in an Alabama prison on a murder charge that was widely discredited as racially motivated, Tyler was released that year in a manslaughter plea deal. Zaugh had supported the campaign to free him and facilitated Tyler’s move to Los Angeles.

The 2½-hour meeting in the judge’s chambers provided a link that bore fruit upon Pregerson’s death on Nov. 25, 2017.

Sanders, the filmmaker, wanted to film the judge’s memorial service at the Shrine Auditorium. Zaugh made the introduction to the family through Pregerson’s staff. That footage became the foundation for “9th Circuit Cowboy,” Sanders’ feature-length documentary on the judge.

Zaugh, Sanders and Dean Pregerson have since appeared at colleges and high schools for showings and discussions of the film.

Today Zaugh, 79, a divorced father of three, lives alone in a guesthouse in south Santa Monica. He spent about two decades at the Peace Press, then another 20 years printing for Matt Groening’s Bongo Comics Group. He used his severance from the company to form a nonprofit, Actions Speak Louder Inc.

His nonprofit produces dramatic readings of the play “Our Town” and speaks with law school students at UCLA and Loyola Marymount about the Resistance. Its history is as relevant as ever today, he thinks, as he sees protesters for the Palestinian cause hiding their identities and shunning the news media instead of openly proclaiming their commitment to the cause.

His current project is preparing a yearlong exhibition of talks and artwork on depression for El Camino College in Torrance.

He also prays out loud every day for some 200 people, living and dead.

“I ask that I am able to represent, carry forth, the best trait of their life in my own life to honor their soul.”

After Pregerson’s death, Zaugh began a ritual that is partly spiritual and partly his continued service to the national interest. On Veterans Day and Memorial Day, he visits L.A.’s National Cemetery for veterans.

It’s a simple observance. He walks to Pregerson’s grave site, sits with him and prays.

His message: “Thank you.”

©2024 Los Angeles Times. Visit at latimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Julie Baxter just faced the most agonizing decision a person with pets can face: whether to euthanize an ailing animal in the face of the overwhelming desire to keep a beloved companion alive.

Baxter’s pain was made all the more acute as she and her partner wrestled with wanting to do all they could for their dog Roscoe, while realizing there was a limit to how much they could spend on tests and hospital stays. The 50-pound mixed breed lived with them for eight years after his rescue off the streets as a puppy.

“My partner and I had a kind of rule that $1,000 is where we’re going to stop on vet bills,” said Baxter, who lives in Broomfield, Colorado. “It was really trying to take that pragmatic approach to how much can we spend. It stinks.”

They ended up paying $2,400 for medications, tests and trips to the emergency room, but decided against further treatment that could have been as much as $8,000. Roscoe, diagnosed with pneumonia, died in early June.

Baxter wonders if she should have bought pet insurance at some point.

“I don’t know that it would have changed the outcome, but it certainly would have saved me at least part of the $2,400 in vet bills,” Baxter said. “It’s something I wish I would’ve looked into because I feel like I wouldn’t have been quite so backed into a corner.”

Rising costs of veterinary care are helping drive an increase in the number of people who are opting for pet insurance, according to the personal finance company NerdWallet. The company reported that more than 5.6 million U.S. dogs and cats were covered by pet insurance in 2023, up 17% from the year before, according to the North American Pet Health Insurance Association.

However, the number of insured animals is just a small fraction of pets nationwide. The 2023-2024 American Pet Products Association National Pet Owners Survey said there are an estimated 65 million households with dogs and nearly 47 million households with cats.

An incentive for buying insurance is increasing pet-care expenses. The cost of veterinarian services rose 7.6% from May 2023 to May 2024, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. A 10% jump in 2022 was the largest dating back two decades, The Associated Press reported.

Higher worker pay and higher costs for medical supplies, lab tests and pharmaceuticals are among the reasons for increases. Some veterinarians also blame the purchase of clinics and hospitals by large corporations for boosting prices.

Nearly half of the respondents to a survey by pet food and supplies online retailer Chewy said the primary reason they have wellness or insurance plans is to be able to take care of their animals if something happens to them. Katy Nelson, senior veterinarian at Chewy, said in an email that the average monthly cost for pet insurance is around $30 for cats and $50 for dogs

“Doing your own research is important. There are many options out there and sometimes selecting the right plan can feel overwhelming,” Nelson said.

A number of online sites provide comparisons of different policies, including NerdWallet and PawLicy Advisor. Pre-existing conditions typically aren’t covered. Some breeds of dogs, such as English and French bulldogs, are more expensive to cover because they are prone to certain health issues.

Cynthia Sweet, a vet at the Belcaro Animal Hospital in Denver, has insurance for her dogs. She said pet owners will marvel that things like dental care costs more for their animals than for them.

Veterinarian Dr. Cynthia Sweet, DVM, left, poses for a portrait after doing a senior wellness check on Maddie, a 14 year old boxer, right, at Belcaro Animal Hospital at 5023 Leetsdale Drive in Denver on June 18, 2024. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)

“It comes down to insurance. You don’t realize how much medical and dental and medications cost on the human side because the majority of people have insurance. That’s just not the case in the veterinary field,” Sweet said.

Bethany Hsia, a California veterinarian and co-founder of CodaPet, an in-home pet euthanasia service, said the trend of pet insurance has been on the rise in recent years. She recommended that people look at a plan’s exclusions, the premium costs, the percentage of expenses that are reimbursed and an insurer’s reviews and reputation.

Something to keep in mind, Hsia said, is that a majority of pet insurance companies don’t directly contract with vets.

“So the pet parents pay out of pocket at the time of the services to the vet and submit the itemized invoices to the insurer for reimbursement,” Hsia said. “Can I afford to buy groceries next week if I pay for this right now?”

The best time to consider pet insurance is when the animal is young and healthy, Hsia said. In any case, she suggested reviewing different options.

“It’s good to have that peace of mind where you have the ability to do something in an emergency situation and you know that those finances are going to be reimbursed,” Hsia said. “It means the world when you’re sitting there looking into the eyes of your beloved pet.”