In an age of a mental health crisis, misinformation, and loneliness, In The Arms of Morpheus is the only newsletter researching every scientific and spiritual field to teach young people worldwide what drives humans them and others because only then can they attempt to love themselves, others, and the world.
Why we exist
We commit to providing quality education and improving people's lives. We give people the knowledge they need to have healthier minds, bodies, and relationships.
Much of this knowledge already exists but is unavailable to most of the world. Most people from the Global South—Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Oceania—can't afford a $100 scientific book or $10,000 in-person program and aren't part of institutions funding top scientific databases. As a result, many people capable of expanding human knowledge don't have the chance to try it.
Some young academics from elite universities have tried to address this issue. They've launched independent publications to teach what they learned at college in simpler terms. But while what they teach has less jargon, the only people reading are from the most wealthy economies or elite universities. So while the intention is there, the execution isn't.
I, Nicolás, the author of this newsletter, don't blame them.
I don't expect them to empathize with the limitations of the Global South. In the US, the country I have worked with for the last four years, you can afford these expensive books after five hours of work at a fast-food joint. In Colombia, you would have to work for 15 days, likely for 9 hours a day.
I also understand how little these writers can genuinely do. Most of them have no skin in the game. The knowledge they teach doesn't materialize into tangible change because they don't know how to do it. Through my strategy consultancy, I have connected millions of people to products and services that solve their needs. I research human conduct, like other young intellectuals. But I can also apply what I learn to improve the world in a tangible way, which these intellectuals can't do.
Finally, I get the comfort of trying to attract people who validate you. I initially wrote for an intellectual and academic audience. I craved having intelligent people tell me I was smart. But, after realizing how close some of these people were to ideas outside of their field, I stopped focusing on them. Ironically, those seeking truth can be the most likely to shut down ideas they disagree with.
There are many reasons I want to help the most amount of people.
Studying palliative care, doctors, nurses, and psychologists taught me most people regret what they did and didn't do in their lives. I constantly remember this "fact," even more so after my mom, 52, encouraged their friends not to wait till they got older to do what they wanted finally — this was one of my mom's last words before passing away on April 17th, 2023.
I also want to alleviate the mental illness crisis. I have experienced and interacted with people with clinical mental illnesses and know how much meaning the world can lose. In those circumstances, learning about the condition I or somebody else had presented me with the tools to solve it, or at least try to.
"Try" is the keyword. I want people to be at least able to try to improve their lives by making the tools to do so available to every race, gender, and nation. Currently, this isn't the case.
What we stand for
I was unable to see life's beauty before. I didn't know who humans were, what we did, and the forces driving us. I was operating under uncertainty, or at least more than the one I have now. So I was always between how the world is and how it should be. It wasn't until I began to understand why we are the way we are that I've become better at accepting the world for what it is.
I believe you can't love yourself without loving others. If you love yourself but are unhappy with how people are, you will lose stillness as soon as you interact with the world. If you are happy with people but not with yourself, you'll dread time alone. I aim to help people feel in control of both worlds.
In The Arms of Morpheus is, in many ways, a diary of findings that have improved my life. Every essay is a theory or experience fueled by any field or realm that can or has helped me grasp who we are.
Support our dream
Our dream is to have readers in 100 countries by 2025. Each with different beliefs, backgrounds, and values. But with the shared trait of being willing to engage in respectful and honest debate over what best explains our behavior.
