Most people are pretty bad at having difficult conversations. We don't get much practice--the internet makes sure that we mostly see content from people we agree with. When we do see opposing viewpoints, it's usually in the form of hateful comments. But when Dylan Marron started receiving a deluge of online abuse in response to his viral video series, he did the opposite of what most people do. He gave his detractors a call. Photo credit: Mindy Tucker. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus...
Jan 04, 2023•48 min•Ep. 60
Jennifer felt trapped--her two sons were addicted to drugs, in and out of jail and rehab, and living on the streets. What had she done wrong as a mother? How could she save them? Was trying to save them her own addiction? Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patreon.com/knoxrobinson www.knoxrobinson.com Twitter: @amandaknox | @manunderbridge IG: @amamaknox | @emceecarbon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoic...
Dec 21, 2022•51 min•Ep. 59
When our guest today, Christian, was checked into a psych ward in the midst of a manic episode a few years ago, he had no prior history of mental illness. He'd certainly never had delusions of the kind that had come to consume him over the last few days. As it turned out, the culprit for the drastic change in Christian's mental state was not one people would normally think of. His manic episode with psychotic features had been induced by cannabis. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus cont...
Dec 07, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 58
Few people can say that they have remade themselves as completely as Lee Turnbull. He went from being a violent young man in London to being a happy, well-adjusted soccer coach in the States. Getting there required not just a change in his lifestyle, but a dramatic change in his values. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patreon.com/knoxrobinson www.knoxrobinson.com Twitter: @amandaknox | @manunderbridge IG: @amamaknox | @emceec...
Nov 23, 2022•51 min•Ep. 57
Before Adolf Hitler was a genocidal autocrat, he was a young art student who loved his mother. Before Vladimir Lenin was a Marxist revolutionary, he was the privileged son of loving parents, radicalized by his older brother. And before Joseph Stalin was a ruthless dictator, he was an abused child who was terrified of his father. Why should we know or care about these details? In the face of the crimes these men committed, their early lives seem irrelevant. But Brandon Gauthier argues that it is ...
Nov 09, 2022•54 min•Ep. 56
You may have heard Molly Bloom's name from tabloid headlines about a "poker princess" or from the 2017 movie, Molly's Game. But Molly has a deeper story to tell. Though her life has taken an unusual number of twists and turns--from poker millionaire to convicted felon to bestselling author--Molly's reflections on it all are universal. They include her thoughts on material gratification, on being represented (and misrepresented) by others, and on finding power within yourself. Get early access to...
Oct 26, 2022•41 min•Ep. 55
Chris Ballew never expected or even particularly wanted mainstream success. But when his band, the Presidents of the United States of America, hit it big, he had to reckon with what success meant to him and figure out how to say no when everyone around him wanted him to say yes. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patreon.com/knoxrobinson www.knoxrobinson.com Twitter: @amandaknox | @manunderbridge IG: @amamaknox | @emceecarbon Le...
Oct 12, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 54
Before Bobby Kumparak adopted Lucy, a French bulldog, he had never thought of a dog as a member of his family. But Lucy was different. The bond Bobby and his wife, Angela, shared with Lucy was more than owner and pet. So Bobby and Angela were utterly devastated when Lucy was stolen from their backyard one night. In the quest to find Lucy, they learned that the issue of pet theft is much bigger than most of us realize. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting La...
Sep 29, 2022•57 min•Ep. 53
Twenty years ago, Roz Savage was a management consultant living in London with her husband. From the outside, it looked like a good life, but Roz was miserable. Until she blew up that life and found a new one on the other side of the ocean. She'd just have to row for three and half months to get there. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patreon.com/knoxrobinson www.knoxrobinson.com Twitter: @amandaknox | @manunderbridge IG: @ama...
Sep 14, 2022•53 min•Ep. 52
A few months ago, we sat down to do something we'd never done before: a live Labyrinths episode! And we knew there was no better place to do it than our home, Vashon Island. Most people haven't heard of our rural island near Seattle, but we know that it's a rich community of eccentrics with a lot of stories to offer. Today, we've brought you three stories of plane crashes, lost pets, and local journalism. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on p...
Aug 31, 2022•56 min•Ep. 51
Dr. Itiel Dror is used to facing resistance to his work. It comes with the territory when you're a neuroscientist studying cognitive bias in experts: no one wants to believe they have biases they're not aware of. But the pushback to a paper he published last year was extreme even by Dr. Dror's standards. After the paper came out, the ensuing backlash even threatened his job.Check out Dr. Dror's latest paper here: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1556-4029.14697 Get early access to ad-...
Aug 17, 2022•50 min•Ep. 50
Journalist Andrew Gold explores the extreme in his podcast On the Edge, where he’s interviewed controversial people, including a former white supremacist, an ex-crime boss, and a self-professed psychopath. He joins Amanda and Chris to talk about the most taboo topic he's delved into yet: non-offending pedophiles. Forewarning: this episode grapples with the subject of child sex abuse. Listener discretion is advised. You can find Andrew Gold's podcast On the Edge here: https://podfollow.com/on-the...
Aug 03, 2022•38 min•Ep. 49
Last year, we brought you through the labyrinths of infertility and pregnancy, but what happens after birth? What happens when you find yourself utterly alone in that 4th trimester, a shadow hanging over you and your child? Amy Kuber brings us through her post-partum darkness and how she found the light again. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patreon.com/knoxrobinson www.knoxrobinson.com Twitter: @amandaknox | @manunderbridge ...
Jul 18, 2022•52 min•Ep. 48
Is it possible to succeed when you fail? Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton did just that, and so has modern adventurer and mountaineer Alison Levine, leader of the First American Women's Everest expedition. Levine has survived subzero temperatures, hurricane force winds, and sudden avalanches. She's had plenty of triumphs, but she's learned just as much, if not more, from her failures. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patre...
Jun 01, 2022•53 min•Ep. 47
Amanda and Chris get lost in the wide world of puzzles with AJ Jacobs, author of the The Puzzler: One Man's quest to solve the most baffling puzzles ever, from crosswords to jigsaws to the meaning of life. And pay close attention, because this episode has a puzzle embedded within it! Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patreon.com/knoxrobinson www.knoxrobinson.com Twitter: @amandaknox | @manunderbridge IG: @amamaknox | @emceecarb...
May 04, 2022•46 min•Ep. 46
When we first met Jens, he was still serving a life sentence for a double homicide he didn't commit. We devoted a whole season of our prior podcast, The Truth About True Crime, to his case (link below). Now, after 33 years in prison, he's free, and rebuilding his life in his native Germany. We flew to Hamburg to meet him in person for the first time and to learn how he's been navigating the labyrinth of freedom.https://art19.com/shows/the-truth-about-true-crime/episodes/e42542d4-58fb-42bf-a08e-a...
Apr 13, 2022•55 min•Ep. 45
Emily Wilson traveled the world over the course of her modeling career. But one photoshoot always...haunted her. She was accustomed to be valued for her beauty, but that fateful day, she was used as a weapon. Find Emily on Instagram @emilykatwilson Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patreon.com/knoxrobinson www.knoxrobinson.com Twitter: @amandaknox | @manunderbridge IG: @amamaknox | @emceecarbon Learn more about your ad choices....
Mar 08, 2022•49 min•Ep. 44
As a young teen, Maya Shankar was on a path to becoming a professional, world-class violinist, until an accident changed the course of her life, leading her to become a behavioral scientist. Amanda, Chris, and Maya nerd out about cognitive biases and how they affected Amanda's wrongful conviction, what shapes our behaviors and identities, and why it's so hard to change minds. Check out Maya Shankar's podcast, A Slight Change of Plans. Read Amanda's essay about the cognitive biases that affected ...
Feb 28, 2022•55 min•Ep. 43
In the final installment of our miniseries, Chris takes an ego-obliterating dose of mushrooms, and Amanda pokes her head through the looking glass for the first time. But first, we get advice from Michael Pollan, Robin Carhart-Harris, Paul Stamets, and Sam Harris. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patreon.com/knoxrobinson www.knoxrobinson.com Twitter: @amandaknox | @manunderbridge IG: @amamaknox | @emceecarbon Learn more about ...
Jan 31, 2022•54 min•Ep. 42
Psilocybin isn't just a psychedelic compound, it's the product of a mushroom. In Part 6 of our miniseries, renowned mycologist Paul Stamets takes us through the wide world of fungi, our mutual evolution, the latest research on microdosing, and gives us a mycelium’s eye view of our place in the universe. (Photo credit @brokenbanjotrav) Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patreon.com/knoxrobinson www.knoxrobinson.com Twitter: @aman...
Jan 19, 2022•38 min•Ep. 41
What is the self? How can we find tranquility without reaching past the present moment? And what does all this have to do with psychedelics? Sam Harris--philosopher, neuroscientist, author, host of the Making Sense podcast, and creator of the Waking Up meditation app--helps us see the landscapes of mind that psychedelics reveal, and how mindfulness and ethics are crucial to achieving the furthest reaches of human wellbeing. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by support...
Jan 12, 2022•50 min•Ep. 40
In 1955, a Mazatec shaman introduced a westerner to sacred mushrooms. That event has had tremendous ripple effects. In part 4 of our miniseries, we speak with Dr. Bia Labate about the deep indigenous roots of the psychedelic renaissance and what is missing from the western biomedical narrative around these powerful substances. (Artwork by Karina Muscarina for Chacruna Institute). Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patreon.com/kn...
Jan 05, 2022•50 min•Ep. 39
In 2020, Oregon didn't just decriminalize drugs, it legalized a framework for safe and equitable psilocybin therapy. In part three of our miniseries, we look at the politics of psychedelics and the activists who, in the midst of celebrating this unexpected political triumph, were met with personal tragedy. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patreon.com/knoxrobinson www.knoxrobinson.com Twitter: @amandaknox | @manunderbridge IG: ...
Dec 29, 2021•54 min•Ep. 38
There's growing evidence that psychedelics can be useful tools for mental health and wellbeing. In part 2 of our miniseries, neuroscientist Robin Carhart-Harris takes us on a tour of the pioneering research into how psychedelics affect the brain, and what it may mean for society if more of us are able to shake up our snow globes. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patreon.com/knoxrobinson www.knoxrobinson.com Twitter: @amandakno...
Dec 22, 2021•51 min•Ep. 37
The psychedelic renaissance is here, but will it last? In this 7-part series, Amanda and Chris deep dive into the history, neuroscience, politics, and power of psilocybin mushrooms, along with their relationship with mindfulness and the fabric of life on earth. Michael Pollan, author of How to Change Your Mind, and This is Your Mind on Plants, gives us the lay of the land, from the dangers of therapy abuse to the potential for personal and societal transformation. Get early access to ad-free epi...
Dec 15, 2021•58 min•Ep. 36
Every other week, Amanda and Chris debate an ethical question, from suicide and abortion to whether it's okay to trap your cat in the laundry hamper! These Who's Right? debates are usually only available to Patreon subscribers but this episode is free for all Labyrinths listeners! Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patreon.com/knoxrobinson www.knoxrobinson.com Twitter: @amandaknox | @manunderbridge IG: @amamaknox | @emceecarbon ...
Nov 30, 2021•25 min
Hang onto your hats! Third trimester is a wild ride with an early rush to the hospital and fears of dying in childbirth. Emily Oster, author of the Family Firm, helps Amanda and Chris through their anxieties about the physical trauma of birth and its mental aftermath. If you haven't been in a delivery room since the day you were born, you're in a for an intimate experience. This is part 3 of 3. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www...
Oct 22, 2021•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 35
As Amanda and Chris enter their second trimester, they face anxieties about the genetic testing of their fetus, and Amanda is feeling less like a Goddess and more like "The Incubator." As before, Dr. Emily Oster, author of Crib Sheet, helps them sift through these worries and emotions. This is Part 2 of 3. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patreon.com/knoxrobinson www.knoxrobinson.com Twitter: @amandaknox | @manunderbridge IG: ...
Oct 19, 2021•42 min•Ep. 34
After an early miscarriage, Amanda and Chris began their journey into parenthood anxious to understand the data about their actual risks so they could make informed choices. Dr. Emily Oster, author of Expecting Better, helps them sift through all the conflicting pregnancy advice, while Amanda and Chris offer an intimate view into their unexpected emotional reality. This is Part 1 of 3. Get early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, and more by supporting Labyrinths on patreon. www.patreon....
Oct 18, 2021•50 min•Ep. 33
Brent Spiner is not the android Data from Star Trek: The Next Generation, but so many seem to want him to be that fictional character. Contending with a doppelganger version of yourself is something Amanda knows well, and if you have any online existence, you too will be implicated by the questions Brent Spiner explores in his new book, Fan Fiction, a mem-noir thriller about the nature of identity, celebrity, and how we form our sense of self in relation to the avatars that represent us and that...
Oct 14, 2021•48 min•Ep. 32
