Hacking the Afterlife with Jennifer Shaffer, Elvis, Janis, Aretha, Junior, Anthony and Luana

One of the most unusual podcast I can remember.

Jennifer and I decided to meet up today at the last minute, and had no idea or clue what might be the topic of discussion.

This one is about addiction in all of it's forms.  Jennifer first talked about her own experience with the use of drugs, or cigarettes or alcohol - and then a number of people came forward to talk about the subject.

Elvis came forward to talk about his own issues in this area.  Then Janis Joplin came forward - we had interviewed her in the book BACKSTAGE PASS TO THE FLIPSIDE and it's also in TUNING INTO THE AFTERLIFE.  She talked eloquently about the idea that people are trying to "escape from the illusion they have onstage."  Mind bending to put it that way - but we are all in a play, and people in the play use drugs and alcohol to escape the play they're in, thinking they're escaping reality when they're escaping the play.

Aretha Franklin stopped by - as she knew a number of people who left the stage early, and I asked her about our interaction with her niece who is the executor of her estate. She offered that she and her niece are "speaking regularly now." 

Then Junior Seau stopped by - Junior was interviewed in the documentary TALKING TO PAUL ALLEN, JUNIOR SEAU AND DAVE DUERSON on Youtube.  In that documentary, Junior said that he showed up when Paul crossed over to thank him for starting the brain institute.

But he also wanted to tell us (along with Dave Duerson, who both suffered from CTE) that "Joe Namath has cured his CTE using oxygen therapy."

That's in the documentary.

But today he stopped by to say that addiction was like CTE - in that the repeated abuse of the brain had the same effect of many hits on the brain.  He also suggested the oxygen therapy could treat addiction.

No way of knowing if that's accurate, but it certainly is worth looking into.

Finally, Anthony Bourdain came forward, as he had mentioned in his previous interview that his drug use in his youth contributed to his inability to "feel joy."  He repeated the concept that people should learn to meditate - and when I asked him to use his interview skills with our class, he asked them all for "one concept that would help people with addiction."

And then he said that they responded with the word "love."  As in love yourself, love those who you chose to incarnate with, love the idea of love, love what love is - and that will help keep a person on the planet.

Interesting to contemplate, mind bending to see live.

Enjoy.