Joey Diaz on Freaking Out on Ketamine and Quitting Edibles

Who is Joey Diaz on Freaking Out on Ketamine and Quitting Edibles?

Taken from JRE 2089 w/Joey Diaz:

Topics and Timestamps

• 01Joey Diaz shares his experience having a bad reaction to ketamine and the intense psychological effects he experienced
• 02Discussion about Joey's decision to quit using edibles and the reasons behind stepping back from cannabis consumption
• 03Joey talks about how drug experiences have shaped his comedy and perspective on life
• 04Conversation covers the difference between various drug experiences and their mental health impacts
• 05Joey discusses his approach to sobriety and maintaining his mental clarity for his career
• 06The episode explores how performers like Joey use their past experiences as material for comedy
• ▶Joey describes his bad ketamine experience and the panic it induced0:00:00
• ▶Discussion of the dissociative effects of ketamine and how it scared him0:15:00
• ▶Joey explains why he decided to quit edibles0:30:00
• ▶Conversation about how drugs have impacted his mental clarity and comedy0:45:00
• ▶Joey talks about being intentional with substance use at this stage of his life1:00:00

The Show

In this episode of JRE 2089, Joey Diaz opens up about two significant drug-related turning points in his life: a terrifying ketamine experience and his decision to quit edibles altogether. Joey doesn't shy away from the heavy stuff, diving straight into what went wrong when he tried ketamine and how the dissociative effects sent him into a panic that he had to work through mentally.

Joey explains that the ketamine experience was different from anything he'd encountered before. Unlike other drugs that he could somewhat control or predict, ketamine threw him into a state where his mind felt completely detached from reality in a way that genuinely frightened him. He describes the psychological spiral and how it took real mental discipline to get through it without completely losing it. For someone who's done a lot of drugs and lived a wild life, this was significant enough to make him rethink his relationship with certain substances.

The conversation then shifts to why Joey decided to quit edibles despite cannabis being something he'd been using for years. Joey talks about how edibles specifically were starting to affect his mental state in ways he didn't like. He noticed they were impacting his focus, his comedy writing, and his overall clarity in a way that made him realize he needed to cut them out. It's refreshing to hear someone actually acknowledge when a substance isn't serving them anymore and make the tough call to stop.

Joe and Joey discuss how these experiences inform his comedy and his perspective on life. Joey's been through enough in his life that he has endless material, and these drug experiences are part of that story. What's interesting is Joey's ability to look back at these moments with honesty rather than glorification. He's not saying drugs are cool or that his experiences were worth it just for the story. He's examining what happened, what it taught him, and how he's adjusted his life accordingly.

The episode captures Joey at a point in his life where he's being intentional about his choices. He's not abstaining from everything, but he's also not just doing drugs because they're available or because it's part of his image. It's a nuanced conversation about substance use, mental health, and knowing yourself well enough to make decisions that actually support your life rather than undermine it.

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