I wrote this book for several reasons:
To testify about my personal discovery that MDMA can be a life-enhancing experience across the adult lifespan (and here I add a little wink to my fellow boomers). And to set the record straight about how to use MDMA and how not to. And to acknowledge that it’s not for everyone.
To legitimize happiness-inducing experiences as potentially transformative and valid in their own right.
To tell the story of my life and marriage, and how, by sheer serendipity, we happened upon a nascent, vibrant cultural renaissance underway just beneath the media radar, spearheaded by Millennials. And how we got to hobnob with the local psychedelerati.
And finally, to declare myself done with hiding in the chemical closet out of fear of being shamed or stigmatized, and to help others do the same, because I know there are so many of us. Hiding — the difference between the face I show the world and who I really am — has simply become too offensive for me. I’ve heard some say, in relation to my drug use, You’re too old for that! This made me consider: Should I be concerned at this age about how others may judge me? I ‘m too old for that! This is one way ageing has freed me. In addition, while hiding certain details of my private life from my clients (1) is often appropriate, withholding potentially beneficial information from them is unethical. This especially holds when I believe this medicine can, in some cases, effectively treat their ills as individuals and couples like nothing else can.
– Charley Wininger, LP, LMHC
BOOK REVIEWS
“Stop reading reviews and buy the book already!”
This book is a love poem to MDMA and to love itself. The book is a lot like MDMA itself. It’s sold as a fun party adventure book but really it’s a gateway book into self help. It covers the themes of aging, love, mental health, scientific results, practical wisdom and political idealism. It’s a self help book, a love poem, a how-to guide, a elegy, a prayer, it’s probably a forthcoming movie! Strongly recommend for feeling warmth and love and makes a great book club read.
– Sarah Siskind
“More than meets the eye”
While many assume that this book is just a love letter to the drug MDMA, in reality it is much more. While the author doesn't use these words, his attitude toward MDMA is much like those who engage in spiritual practices to attain a higher level of consciousness. When used safely and consciously he sees it as a gateway to experiencing the love and connection that we crave both in our closest relationships and in community. This is done by sharing how MDMA has opened him and others to a way of being, that when encountered, makes manifest that this is what mankind has always aspired to and that it is fun, meaningful, and lovingly inclusive: That this points to our evolutionary biological imperative. Then we see that MDMA can serve as training wheels to strengthen that ability to connect and open in wider and wider circles.
– R. Cohen
“As much a page-turner as it is a mind-opener”
Wininger brings us into his life in a way that entertains, informs, inspires, transmits wisdom, and broadens the reader's sense of the possible. It's such a delight, every step of the way! And it does justice to its subject – MDMA – in a way that no other book does. I've read a lot of books on the topic, and none of them provide this kind of "lived in" sense of how MDMA and other psychedelics can bring joy, love, and connection into one's life.
And Wininger's lust for life is contagious. Every page of this book finds a way to remind me that life is a divine gift that we should treat accordingly. Strong words, but it's true. After reading a chapter or two in this book, I want to run out my front door and love and live more deeply ASAP. The prose consistently feels inspired and inspiring. As another reviewer said, “this book is like a love poem to love itself.”
It's also a very generous primer on how to (safely and responsibly) work your way toward experimenting with MDMA, if that's something you've never done before. All of the basics are there in a way that is very user-friendly. And even experienced rollers will probably come away from this book with an expanded sense of what they can get out of their next MDMA experience.
There's so much love in this book. Love put into the writing. Love between Wininger and his wife. Community love. And the kind of "big-L" Love for humanity and the earth that will fill your cup with hope for our collective future. I came away from reading it feeling really nourished by all of these forms of love. How often does THAT happen with a book? It's a real gift, and I trust it will find its place in the psychedelic literature as a must-read for newbies looking for a friendlier, more experience-near intro to the topic than Michael Pollan's book and old heads who want to spend some time with a wise kindred spirit on the path. Check it out!
– William Brennan