Former governor of Texas Rick Perry explained the untold benefits of a “miracle drug” that can reportedly treat opioid addiction, cure PTSD, and more.

A renewed interest in a powerful drug known as ibogaine has turned attention to its potential ability to treat addiction and depression. In a discussion on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast, Perry and W. Bryan Hubbard, the former Chairman and Executive Director of the Kentucky Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission, discussed the uses of the drug in helping military veterans, among others.

Despite studies that have shown its benefits, ibogaine is classified as a Schedule 1 substance in the United States, putting it in the same category as heroin and other substances that, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration, have  “no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.”

“Schedule one says that there is no medical purpose for this compound, whatever it might be, and that it’s addictive and ibogaine is neither of those,” Perry told host Joe Rogan.

(Video Credit: Joe Rogan)

“If there was a definition of a compound that was not Schedule 1, ibogaine would be the top of the list most likely,” Perry added.

He noted how compounds like ibogaine were classified this way and used as a “vehicle” for President Richard Nixon to go after political enemies in the 1970s.

Rogan also pointed out how people’s sympathies with the struggles faced by military veterans have made discussion and acceptance of plant medicine or psychedelics as treatment possible.

Ibogaine is derived from the iboga tree, which is native to Central Africa. The drug “comes from the bark of the root, which is crushed and consumed as a powder or given in an extracted form,” the New York Times explained in a 2024 article.

“Iboga has long been used for medicinal and ritual purposes in Gabon, Cameroon, and the Republic of Congo. After its discovery by French and Belgian explorers in the 19th century, it was sold as a stimulant in France,” the report noted. “In recent decades, ibogaine has shown promise for treating opioid addiction, with several small studies suggesting that a third to two-thirds of patients who undergo treatment achieve sobriety after a single session. Some researchers have been studying ibogaine’s potential to treat traumatic brain injuries and PTSD.”

This “miracle drug” that you’ve never heard of could be the cure for PTSD, opioid addiction, TBI, and more.

But the government doesn’t want you to know about it because its use threatens multi-billion-dollar markets for antidepressants, opioids, and other therapies.

The drug is… pic.twitter.com/T9tmImGqgb

— The Vigilant Fox (@VigilantFox) January 2, 2025

Perry expressed his frustration with ibogaine’s potential not being tapped because of its classification.

“There’s a host of countries around the world that allow for ibogaine to be used for, you know, clinical trials and for medical purposes. Yet we’re sitting here with 20-plus veterans a day killing themselves,” he said, adding that “this compound appropriately used and appropriately overseen can absolutely change lives and save lives.”

“And for me, to be able to know that and then still see government say ‘No, we’re not interested,’ is really frustrating,” Perry continued, adding that he is “excited” over President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to run the Department of Health and Human Services.

A study by Stanford Medicine researchers published last January 2024 shared data on 30 veterans of U.S. special forces, showing how “the plant-based psychoactive drug ibogaine, when combined with magnesium to protect the heart, safely and effectively reduces PTSD, anxiety, and depression and improves functioning in veterans with TBI.”

Back in 2022, Rogan spoke with veteran Dakota Meyer on his use of Ibogaine therapy for PTSD.

(Video Credit: Joe Rogan)

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Frieda Powers

Senior Staff Writer
Frieda@bizpacreview.com

Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida where she has been writing for the BizPacReview team since 2015.

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