Melinda Ferguson is an independent voice, a creative artist and self-styled advocate for meaning and purpose. She has courageously shared her incredible (and transformative) journey that saw her screeching for a fix on the streets of Hillbrow to becoming one of SA’s poignant and honest literary voices.
Her first memoir, Smacked, exposed her struggles with addiction to how she found the glimmer that kick-started her recovery.
In her fourth memoir, ” Bamboozled: In search of Joy In A World Gone Mad“, she describes a new journey. This was one I did not expect or anticipate – using psychedelics to heal? Odd! Perhaps even dangerous given that she is an addict in recovery.
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In our recent interview she told me that this time around she felt more exposed because she was talking about her emotions; her inner hurts and celebrations. She was also concerned that the recovery community may not understand her choice. That was my concern too given my own experience with addiction. My deceased wife was an addict too and as her big support I am very familiar with recovery and the trials of such a journey. It is not easy. Lots of love and patience is required! When Melinda described her anxiety around psilocybin therapy, I could fully appreciate it.
Melinda Ferguson talks candidly about these watcher groups that use psilocybin to uncover past traumas, and hurts to begin a process of self discovery and forgiveness. Incredibly, she says that following ‘the trip’ one does not feel a craving for the fungi!
I have heard anecdotally about these watcher circles and was certainly intrigued hearing Melinda share how it helps her. In fact, the person who started the 12 Step Programme which, for decades since, has helped countless persons find a life of sobriety and meaning, himself has also used psychedelics as a way to heal and self-discover. Needless to say that did stoke quite a bit of reaction and reprisals for Bill W.
Melinda started writing Bamboozled in 2017. She reflects on the pandemic and SA’s response to it including some of the nonsensical regulations. She admits that she, alongside other entities, took the government to Court wanting the ban against the sale of cigarettes to be overturned. They were successful in their challenge.
I am not convinced however that the world has gone mad. Life has always been tough, unjust and unequal. For me, Covid has removed the blinkers; and there is not turning back. Has the world gone mad?
‘Bamboozled: In search of Joy in a world gone mad’ may help you answer that question.
