Kyrsten Sinema – the former Arizona senator who was the Democrat Party's John Fetterman long before John Fetterman was their John Fetterman – is reportedly back on the scene and hoping to steer the national conversation toward the use of psychedelics to treat mental health disorders.
Sinema, who's now an Independent, didn't run for reelection in 2024, so we've gone almost an entire year without being able to enjoy her antics and her unique ability to tick off both sides of the aisle. She showed her mettle when she teamed up with with Joe Manchin (who also retired last year and switched his party affiliation from Democrat to Independent) back in 2022 to join Republicans in nuking the filibuster. That act led to years of abuse, harassment, and even stalking for Sinema.
Here's what RedState's Ward Clark wrote about Sinema last December, as she navigated through her waning days as a senator: "Senator Kyrsten Sinema is distinctly her own person and can be relied upon to produce some interesting quotes. She is one of those moderates who, like Joe Manchin, went independent after the Democratic Party dragged their Overton Window so far to the left that it would have made Leon Trotsky dizzy; she isn't easily swayed on most political matters but doesn't mind speaking out when asked a question; agree with her or not, she's always forthright."
That "interesting quote"? She didn't "give a s‑‑‑" what her colleagues thought of her.
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It might just take that kind of attitude for her to succeed in her new mission: to get the psychedelic ibogaine into state-funded clinical trials with the hopes of eventually getting the Food and Drug Administration to approve it as mental health treatment option.
Here's a bit more about ibogaine and its history:
Ibogaine is a naturally occurring compound found in the roots of the African shrub iboga, and it has been used for centuries in spiritual and healing ceremonies. More recently, it has gained interest from the medical and scientific communities for its potential to treat opioid and cocaine addiction, and research has suggested that it increases signaling of several important molecules within the brain, some of which have been linked to drug addiction and depression. Since 1970 ibogaine has been designated as a Schedule I drug, preventing its use within the U.S., but clinics in both Canada and Mexico offer legal ibogaine treatments.
Ibogaine has shown particular promise for treating military veterans who sustained traumatic brain injuries (TBI), which often lead to post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, and suicide. Research done by Stanford Medicine shows ibogaine, when paired with magnesium for heart health, is ain effective treatment for veterans suffering with the effects of their TBI.
Sinema seems to have found an ibogaine ally in Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., who has previously said the Trump administration would like to fast track the use of psychedelics to treat veterans: "This line of therapeutics has tremendous advantage if given in a clinical setting and we are working very hard to make sure that happens within 12 months."
In a recent article, Sinema revealed she and Kennedy are "close" and admitted "MAHA is amazing."
POLITICO: You’ve made the case that states should work together to seek FDA approval of ibogaine while Trump’s president. What’s the rush?
SINEMA: This is a disruptive administration. In Trump 1.0, he didn’t think he was going to win. When he did win, he gathered all the people around him and they were all normies. He hired all these normal people who’d been in government for a long time and he hated them. So they — pow, pow, pow, pow — dropped like flies.
This time, he knew he was going to win and intentionally built a cabinet of disruptors. There are lots of feelings about that all across the country. But disruption brings opportunity.
Is there an opportunity to get this done in this administration? Heck, yeah. Robert Kennedy is a disruptor and he supports psychedelic medicine. The possibility is ripe in this administration and we should strike while the iron is hot.
Sinema also revealed she traveled to Mexico earlier this year to be treated with psychedelics after experiencing trauma watching her grandmother succumb to dementia.
It’s not a fun medicine. My experience was 15 hours long. That’s a long time. There was a noise in my head for the entire 15 hours that sounded like a little machine clunking around. Clunk clunk clunk clunk clunk.
Some people say they hear a buzzing noise, I didn’t have that. It felt like there was a machine working inside my head for 15 hours. It wasn’t pleasant, but I just thought, “Well, this is what you asked for, so buckle up.”
It looks like Sinema and her fellow advocates for the use of psychedelics as a mental health treatment option are having some success. Texas Governor Greg Abbott (Republican) signed a bill in June that allocated $50 million in state funding for ibogaine research. Sinema also was successful in lobbying Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs (Democrat) to set aside $5 million in the state budget for ibogaine research.
Love her or hate her, Kyrsten Sinema clearly isn’t done shaking things up in DC. And if her push for ibogaine ends up saving American lives, maybe some of her critics might find themselves rethinking their opinion her.
