About the Work
Narratives of Transformation: Psychedelics and the Journey of Healing came to life through a shared conviction that stories of distress and healing deserve forms that can hold complexity while remaining emotionally accessible. It emerged from a sociological research project that examines contemporary transformations in mental health practices and the so-called “psychedelic renaissance.”
The comic is grounded in a qualitative study involving 17 in-depth interviews with individuals in France reflecting on their encounters with psychedelics in therapeutic or self-directed contexts. Through rigorous qualitative analysis using grounded theory, we traced recurring emotional and experiential arcs: trauma, coping, disconnection, curiosity, confrontation and integration. But what stayed with us was not just themes, it was tone. The vulnerability. The ambiguity. The tension between escape and healing.
We chose the medium of comics as a way to preserve that emotional texture. The characters are carefully constructed composites, shaped from patterns across interviews to protect anonymity while remaining faithful to the lived experiences shared with us. Each storyline reflects authentic sentiments expressed by participants, even though no character represents a single individual.
The project initially took shape through digital experimentation (Pixton), but as the narrative matured, we recognized the need for a more nuanced visual language. Partnering with artist Mia Kitchener felt organic; her aesthetic carried the fragility and lightness that allowed heavy themes to breathe. The final comic is the result of an intertwined process of research, qualitative analysis, narrative development, character construction, and artistic interpretation.
Importantly, this work does not encourage or endorse self-medication. Many of the interviewees described long trajectories, sometimes marked by recreational use, risk-taking, or searching, before arriving at moments of insight or integration. Our sociological analysis highlights that perceived transformation rarely happens “because of” a substance alone. It involved community, language, therapy, and sustained reflection. Psychedelic experience appears here as one element within a broader psychosocial context.
At its heart, this comic asks a very human question: what do people do when conventional systems of care feel inaccessible, inadequate, or misaligned with their lived realities? How do they attempt to reclaim agency, construct meaning, and feel whole?
This project reflects our commitment to bridging academic research and art, bringing sociological insight into dialogue with visual storytelling to making complex mental health conversations more nuanced, and to honoring lived experience without romanticizing it. The comic is not an answer. It is an invitation to listen more closely, to hold ambiguity, and to consider storytelling itself as a form of care.
We hope share this work with a broad readership, contributing to more nuanced conversations about trauma, agency, stigma, and the contemporary search for healing.
About the Creators
Margot Morgiève is a sociologist at Inserm (French National Institute for Health and Medical Research, Cermes3). Her transdisciplinary research program aims to analyzes the transformations of knowledge, practices, and social structures in the expanding field of psychiatry and mental health. She studies the epistemic dynamics, social logics, and lived experiences of stakeholders in the fields of suicide prevention, e-mental health, therapeutic hypnosis, and the “psychedelic renaissance.” In this context, she coordinate the ARCHE research project. Restoring the perspective of individuals and their narratives is the common thread that runs through her research, leading her to engage in dialogue with, and even interweave, several disciplines: the humanities and social sciences, psychiatry, public health, technology, and the arts.
Riya Gupta is a mental health advocate whose work sits at the intersection of developmental psychology, cultural identity, and narrative medicine. She uses storytelling, visual art, and qualitative inquiry to make complex psychological experiences more accessible, culturally grounded, and emotionally resonant. Through her involvement with ARCHE, Riya explores how narrative forms, especially comics, can illuminate dimensions of distress, healing, and identity that traditional clinical models often overlook. In her recent project on therapeuticintended psychedelic use, she created a digital comic that adapts lived accounts into both digital and hand-drawn vignettes. This work conveys the emotional textures of psychedelic experiences while preserving their complexity, amplifying voices often marginalized in biomedical narratives, and offering a humanistic complement to clinical understandings of altered states and healing.
Mia Kitchener (Cherry Coloured Funk) is a 22-year-old self-taught fine-line pen artist from Australia. “My work focuses on cartoon style hand-drawn characters and scenes. Typically, the themes of my artwork surround girlhood with hints of humor, ensuring that each scene includes minuscule details that a viewer may not even notice from an initial look. This comic expanded my experience in depicting emotions and themes I hadn’t before.”
Relevant Links
Margot’s Email: margot.morgieve@inserm.fr
Riya’s Email: rg3724@tc.columbia.edu
ARCHE: https://arche-psychedelique.cnrs.fr/en/project/
Resources: https://graphriysource.my.canva.site
I really like you guys artwork! Is there any inspiration behind the artworks?