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Name: A Really Good Day
Rating: 4.2 (122 reviews)
Author: Ayelet Waldman

Ayelet Waldman

How Microdosing Made a Mega Difference in My Mood, My Marriage, and My Life

4.2 (122 ratings)

23 mins

Brief summary

A Really Good Day by Ayelet Waldman is a personal memoir about her experience microdosing LSD to treat depression. She shares her insights on the benefits and risks of the practice while questioning the legality and stigma surrounding psychedelics.

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Neuroscience Mental Health Simplify Podcast

Table of Contents

A Really Good Day
Summary of 8 key ideas

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Key idea 1 of 8

What’s in it for me? Discover how taking tiny doses of LSD helped one writer tackle her mood disorder.

Lots of people struggle with their moods. Many, like Ayelet Waldman, struggle enough to seek professional help. But after years of trying – and often failing – to find solutions to her irritability, anger, frustration and depression, Waldman turned to an unexpected source: the psychedelic drug, LSD.

Placing two drops on her tongue, Waldman launched herself into an experiment to understand whether taking careful and tiny doses of the drug over just 30 days could help her toward a calmer, more accepting approach to life.

In doing so, she also began an exploration into the misunderstood substance, its history and its potential benefits. Drawing on her former legal career – in which she saw firsthand the impact of the United States’ war on drugs – she reflects on the double standards and absurdities of a nation addicted to prescription drugs but willing to incarcerate millions for possessing a substance with a great safety record.

Ultimately, Waldman was in search of the secret to having a really good day. Read these blinks, and you’ll discover whether she found it.

In these blinks, you’ll discover

how microdosing LSD works;
why Steve Jobs and Nobel Prize Winners have attributed success to taking LSD; and
how psychedelics like LSD can reduce anxiety and generate feelings of happiness, with fewer side effects than many prescription drugs.

The author always struggled with her mood, irritability and shame, but had never found an effective treatment.

Ayelet Waldman had been at the mercy of her moods for decades. On a good day, she could be sparkling company – cheerful, friendly, affectionate and productive. But on a bad day, Waldman was worn down by self-hatred, guilt and shame. She’d start arguments with her husband, feel overwhelmed by pessimism and had little sense of self-worth, despite being a successful, published author. Her erratic moods have always made her life, and the lives of her friends and family, more difficult.

Seeking help, she turned to therapy, spending many hours sitting on the leather couches of professionals – from Freudians to cognitive behavioral experts, social workers to family therapists. She tried mindfulness – spending long periods meditating and even longer telling her therapist how much she hated meditating.

One day, crossing a bridge while driving home, she found herself considering steering to the right and hurtling into the water below. Shocked at this suicidal thought, she sought medical help. Diagnosed with a form of depression – bipolar II disorder – she started taking drugs. For years, Waldman tried numerous medications: Celexa, Prozac, Zoloft, Cymbalta, Effexor, Lamictal, Adderall, Ritalin and many more. Some helped a little, for days or even months at a time. But they had unfortunate side effects, such as weight gain, irritability and a decreased interest in sex.

Eventually, she discovered her diagnosis hadn’t even been correct. She realized her moods were fluctuating in direct correlation to her menstrual cycle, and that she had a type of premenstrual syndrome – called premenstrual dysphoric disorder – that caused mood swings at certain points in her cycle.

This discovery allowed her to learn the cycle and timing of her moods and take medication only when necessary. But when Waldman entered the perimenopause, her period became irregular, and so did her mood. Things took a turn for the worse, and she became exhausted with fury, irritation and despair.

It was at this point that she happened upon the work of James Fadiman, a psychologist and former psychedelic researcher. Fadiman was popularizing the microdosing of LSD – people taking tiny doses of LSD to treat mood problems were reporting that they’d enjoyed a really good day. And a really good day was all the author had ever wanted.

Microdosing is an emerging approach to improving moods, based on taking very small amounts of LSD every three days.

Microdosing is such a new concept that Waldman had to teach her computer’s spell-checker to recognize it.

The principle of microdosing is simple: The patient takes a tiny dose of LSD on repeating three-day cycles. On day one, you take your dose and monitor your mood, physical sensations, productivity and general experience of how the day went. On days two and three, you take no LSD but continue to monitor. On day four, you take your microdose and repeat the process.

The author’s first experiences of microdosing were very positive and in-line with research on LSD’s effects.

On her first day of microdosing, Waldman felt a little different, as if her senses had been heightened. She was more aware than usual of the scent of jasmine in the air and how beautiful the trees in the garden looked. She realized that she felt mindful – able to notice her thoughts and the feelings of her body. Thinking of her family prompted no annoyance, only a sense of love. She had a far more productive day than usual, and for the first time in a long while, felt happy.

On her second day, a transition day when she took no LSD, she felt a little more like her usual self again, but still had the sense that it was easier than usual to ignore her bad mood.

Millions of people have used LSD to very little ill-effect, yet the drug is often misrepresented as harmful.

LSD was first synthesized by a Swiss research chemist named Dr. Albert Hofmann in 1938. He consumed the drug throughout his entire life and lived to be 102 years old.

Hofman’s longevity might surprise the many people who believe that LSD is a dangerous drug. The truth is, despite its bad reputation, LSD is extremely safe.

LSD can enable better focus, creativity and problem-solving.

If you’re reading this on an iPhone, iPad or MacBook, you might just have LSD to thank. Steve Jobs, the legendary co-founder of Apple, took LSD and said that it was one of the most important things he ever did.

While microdosing, Waldman experienced far greater flow – the experience of being immersed in, and fully concentrating on, her work. And Waldman and Steve Jobs are not the only ones to credit LSD for helping with their work.

The US war on drugs is hugely damaging – particularly to African Americans – and it’s achieving nothing.

What’s the worst possible side-effect of microdosing LSD? The risk of getting arrested.

Although Waldman only ever had a tiny quantity of LSD in her possession, it was still enough to face a sentence of up to three years from a state court.

The available evidence suggests that microdosing can be effective.

Researcher James Fadiman once believed that Sandoz Pharmaceuticals – the company that originally discovered and synthesized LSD – could’ve released a microdose version of LSD to the marketplace that could compete with the likes of Ritalin and Adderall. Unfortunately, after the drug was made illegal in the 1960s, that became an impossibility.

Nonetheless, informal research into microdosing LSD has continued, largely led by Fadiman. Already researching the use of psychedelics, he once came across a woman who told him of her experiences with microdosing. Interested, Fadiman put together a protocol based around the same three-day model that Waldman used and published it in a 2011 book. Since then, Fadiman has received around 300 requests for his protocol, and 50 reports back from people who’ve used it.

Microdosing for 30 days had a positive overall effect, although the outcome wasn’t perfect.

At the end of 30 days, and ten tiny doses of LSD, Waldman reflected on her experiences.

The only days when she had felt any abnormal sensations – mental or physical – were the days she’d taken a dose. She occasionally felt dizzy or nauseous on the day of a dose, and sometimes felt more likely to become irritable on a microdose day. On the following days, she simply felt happy, optimistic and relaxed – far better than she usually felt before her microdosing experiment.

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What is A Really Good Day about?

A Really Good Day (2018) is the true story of one writer’s attempt to tackle her struggles with depression and mood disorder through a novel – and illegal – remedy: microdoses of LSD. Charting her experiment with the drug over 30 days, Ayelet Waldman explores her reactions and discovers a newfound sense of serenity in her everyday life. At the same time, A Really Good Day is a broader exploration of the history of LSD, the myths that surround it and society’s attitudes toward legal and illegal drugs.

A Really Good Day Review

A Really Good Day (2017) by Ayelet Waldman provides an intimate and informative account of her experience using microdoses of LSD to treat her mood disorder. Here's why this book is worth reading:

With candor and humor, Waldman shares her personal journey of self-discovery and growth, offering invaluable insights into mental health and alternative treatments.
The book explores the fascinating history and scientific research behind psychedelics, shedding light on their potential therapeutic uses.
Waldman's engaging storytelling and vivid descriptions create an immersive reading experience that, despite its serious subject matter, is never boring.

Best quote from A Really Good Day

I took the drug, and went on to have a really good day.

—Ayelet Waldman

Who should read A Really Good Day?

People interested in new ways to treat depression and mood-disorder
Readers skeptical about traditional medication for depression
Those interested in drug policy and legalization

About the Author

Ayelet Waldman was a federal public defender and taught a class on drug policy at the University of California’s School of Law, before turning to a career in writing. Her published works include seven novels in the series Mommy-Track Mysteries, and the non-fiction Bad Mother (2009) – a collection of personal essays about her experience as an imperfect mother.

Categories with A Really Good Day

Personal Development Health & Nutrition Psychology

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