What does it mean to lose your sense of self—and why might it be the medicine we need most right now? In this episode, April Pride explores the phenomenon of the ego death experience. More than a buzzword in the psychedelic world, ego death refers to the temporary loss of identity that allows us to reset our internal operating system. With vivid storytelling and clear science, April explains how psychedelics interrupt negative thought loops by quieting the Default Mode Network (DMN). This DMN “brain reset” can catalyze healing from addiction, anxiety, and trauma by shifting how we relate to ourselves—and the world around us. If you’ve ever wondered why surrendering the ego is central to psychedelic therapy, or how non-ordinary states unlock spiritual insight, this is your invitation to go deeper.
🔵 Key Takeaways
Ego death is a temporary dissolution of self that often occurs in psychedelic states, offering feelings of unity and clarity.
The ego’s primary function is survival—but it can become overly protective, fueling anxiety and negative self-talk.
Psychedelics quiet the Default Mode Network (DMN), disrupting harmful mental loops and expanding consciousness.
The DMN reset helps us distinguish our true self from ego-driven narratives and reactions.
While powerful, the search for ego death should be approached with respect—too much detachment can become destabilizing.
🔵 Timestamps
[00:50] Word of the week: ego death and its alternate names
[01:25] Jungian roots: Ego death as psychological transformation
[02:00] How the ego protects us—and when it becomes a problem
[02:30] Psychedelics and the DMN reset explained
[03:00] The self without ego: what you might feel in expanded consciousness
[03:30] Why ego death helps heal addiction and mental illness
[04:07] Pop culture references: Vice, Ty Dolla $ign, and Russell Brand
[05:10] Eckhart Tolle on ego and awareness
🔵 Additional Resources
SetSet Blog: “Psychedelic Integration for Women”
🎙️SetSet Podcast: “Navigating a Psychedelic Comedown”
🎙️SetSet Podcast: “Prepare for a Psychedelic Journey (Part 2)”
Substack: “What does it mean to be “prepared” for a medicine journey?”
How have you experienced ego dissolution—through psychedelics or other states? What changed for you afterward? 👇 Let’s talk about it in the comments after the transcript below.
🔵 Transcript
[00:00] April Pride:
Hey, welcome to the High Guide. I'm your host, April Pride, and I have a confession. Today's episode isn't about an entheogen, but by definition, a couple that we've covered in this series haven’t been either... No, today isn’t about a specific medicine, but rather the desired effect [ego death experience] and [non-ordinary states of consciousness] have on our psyche by way of our brain. Before we get into the word of the week, I have a favor to ask. Think about the episodes you’ve listened to of the High Guide recently. My guess is you have at least two friends who may appreciate what we’re sharing. In fact, I bet you have at least one friend who’s gonna be tripping soon and would really appreciate one of our original audio journeys that aired in November, December, and January—something to listen to as they drift into a [non-ordinary state of consciousness]. Think of the gift this will be—seriously. Now, with these friends in mind, please scroll through the High Guide feed and find one to share with each of them. Definitely an easy request to satisfy and certainly a win-win. Okay, that was business in the front—onto the party. Today’s word of the week: Ego death. The temporary loss of attachment to the sense of oneself—also known as [ego dissolution], [ego loss], and [ego death experience].
[01:25] April Pride:
[Ego death experience] is a Jungian psychology term, fundamental in the transformation of the psyche. It is a phase of self-surrender, transition, and a loss of self-identity—a feeling of being part of something larger than oneself, a feeling of wholeness and enlightenment. We are born with processing tools within the mind that filter through our sensory inputs, absorbing the information it deems necessary to our survival. This is the main purpose of the ego: to protect our body. In fact, fight-or-flight is born out of this purpose. It is not a question of whether [ego death experience] is good or bad, but more a curiosity about what we can learn about ourselves when we remove the ego—even just temporarily. Although it is possible to enter this [state of altered consciousness] through meditation or spending time in nature, [psychedelic substances] such as LSD, psilocybin, ketamine, and DMT disable the default mode network, or the [DMN brain reset], as I’ll refer to it moving forward. With psychedelics, an overactive DMN is quieted. Most significantly, looped tapes of negative self-talk are disrupted [chuckle], so we can separate our true self from the stories we’ve embodied as our mind’s coping and reactionary center. The DMN is where we surrender to our ego—or surrender our ego altogether.
[02:57] April Pride:
The temporary suppression of our ego that occurs when we meet our mind with psychedelics effectively allows us to reboot our mainframe. Free from clutter and glitches, we are more readily available to tap into [expanded consciousness]and increase our capacity to see and appreciate the truth of reality—regardless of our conditioned perception. [Ego death experience] helps us understand why [psychedelic therapy benefits] have such a profound ability to help individuals heal and overcome addiction and other mental illnesses. If you want to learn a little bit more about ego death, we have some resources for you to check out—and you can find these in our show notes for this episode. Is ego death good or bad? Well, while psychedelics can support our quest to lose our ego and find ourselves, there is such a thing as too much fun. So, before strapping yourself in for a super psyched life, you should check out an article from Vice that we’ve linked to in the show notes—about people that really take ego death way too far, or I should say, searching for ego death too far.
[04:07] April Pride:
There’s a song called “Ego Death” by Ty Dolla $ign featuring Kanye West, FK Twigs, and Skrillex. That’s not so bad—I think you should check that out too. I like the video. You can check it out on YouTube. Again, it’s called “Ego Death.” And I thought, this was like, I don’t know, 2014, Russell Brand came out with a documentary called Brand: A Second Coming. This was when his marriage to Katy Perry was falling apart because he had become sober and more spiritual, and definitely, his ego had subsided quite a bit. He was just over all the fame stuff, and it was really interesting to watch how he reacted to his own wife and the life that they had chosen together at one point—as his ego, again, was diminishing, and the focus was less on himself and more on the collective and the well-being of the collective. And I think it very clearly presents the revolution that occurs in one’s life with the devolution of one’s ego. A quote that I found—and I think it just says it all—from Eckhart Tolle is, “Ego implies unawareness. Awareness and ego cannot co-exist.”
[05:29] April Pride:
Thank you for listening to this episode of the High Guide. I’m your host, April Pride. Please tune in next week as we air the trailer for Season Three, starting on March 18th. Check out our show notes for more information on this episode and where to find us on social. Check out our website, thehigh.guide, for more information on cannabis, psychedelics, and of course, the [ego death experience]. Remember to rate and review the show wherever you listen to podcasts—it really does help more people find us.
[05:57] April Pride:
Have a great weekend.
