A cancer doctor said doing ayahuasca saved his marriage and relationship with his 2 young children

• Cancer doctor Paul Song told "Red Table Talk" hosts that he did a guided ayahuasca experience, and it helped his marriage.
• Song said he saw himself as a baby during his trip, which helped him process abandonment issues.

On this week's episode of "Red Table Talk," investigative journalist Lisa Ling and her husband, oncologist Paul Song, discussed how the psychedelic ayahuasca improved their marriage and relationship with their two young children.

During the episode, hosts Jada Pinkett-Smith and Adrienne "Gammy" Banfield-Norris, along with guest host Jaden Smith, talked about psychedelics' therapeutic potential. A mounting body of research suggests psychedelics like LSD, MDMA, and psilocybin have potential for treating mental health diagnoses including depression and PTSD, Insider previously reported.

As the movement to decriminalize psychedelics in the US grows and more scientific evidence suggests "magic" mushrooms have mental health benefits, an increasing number of people have become curious about the practice.

A married couples says ayahuasca saved their marriage and family

The hosts asked Song to recount his first time attending an ayahuasca ceremony, which he said he found more useful for healing than attending therapy.

Ayahuasca is a tea that contains the psychedelic DMT. People who take ayahuasca often experience hallucinations, nausea, and vomiting. Some liken it to a near-death experience, Insider previously reported.

Song said he learned about psychedelics for mental health and healing through his journalist wife Lisa Ling, who has written about the substances extensively. When Song and Ling hit their 10-year marriage anniversary, Song said he felt like he was missing something in life and noticed he became increasingly agitated by his wife and children.

That's when he decided to try a guided ayahuasca retreat Ling told him about.

"It was everything and more," Song said of his first trip, in which he saw himself as a 6-month-old baby, shivering and abandoned in a crib. He realized that vision symbolized a sense of parental abandonment he never processed and has since made more of an effort to express his emotions and ask for help, he told the "Red Table Talk" hosts.

"We don't have a perfect relationship, no one does, but it sort of unlocked this path to healing we really needed," said Ling of her husband's changed perspective after trying ayahuasca.

Song said he liked how ayahuasca helped him confront trauma without experiencing resentment towards his parents. In traditional therapy, Song felt a lot of anger while processing his childhood, but those feelings dissipated during his ayahuasca experience, he said.

The "Red Table Talk" hosts also interviewed journalist Michael Pollan about his best-selling psychedelics book "How to Change Your Mind," and GoDaddy founder and psychedelics startup investor Bob Parsons about what a trip feels like and its potential benefits.

Watch the full episode of "Red Table Talk" below: