Prohibited or regulated ? LSD psychotherapy and the United States Food and Drug Administration Matthew Oram History of Psychiatry, 2016, 27, (3), 290-306. Doi : 10.1177/0957154X16648822 Abstract Over the 1950s and early 1960s, the use of the hallucinogenic drug lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) to facilitate psychotherapy was a promising field of psychiatric research in the USA. However, during the 1960s, research began to decline, before coming to a complete halt in the mid-1970s. This has commonly been explained through the increase in prohibitive federal regulations during the 1960s that aimed to curb the growing recreational use of the drug. However, closely examining the Food and Drug [...]
Lire la suiteFrom experimental psychosis to resolving traumatic pasts - Psychedelic Research in Communist Czechoslovakia, 1954‑1974 De la psychose expérimentale à la guérison des traumatismes du passé : la recherche psychédélique en Tchécoslovaquie communiste, 1954‑1974 Sarah Marks Cahiers du monde russe, 2015, 56, 1, 53-75. DOI: 10.4000/monderusse.8165 The mid‑twentieth century saw an abundance of new theories of human behaviour and mental disorder, many of which were inspired by new developments in broader scientific fields, from cybernetics and genetics, to pharmaceuticals and new technologies of psychological testing1. There is a developing historical literature on the development of psychiatry in Western Europe and North America, yet we know little [...]
Lire la suiteFlashback : Psychiatric Experimentation With LSD in Historical Perspective Erika Dyck Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 2005, Vol 50, No 7, 381-388. Doi : 10.1177/070674370505000703 In the popular mind, d-lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) research in psychiatry has long been associated with the CIA-funded experiments conducted by Ewen Cameron at the Allen Memorial Institute in Montreal, Quebec. Despite this reputation, a host of medical researchers in the post–World War II era explored LSD for its potential therapeutic value. Some of the most widespread trials in the Western world occurred in Saskatchewan, under the direction of psychiatrists Humphry Osmond (in Weyburn) and Abram Hoffer (in Saskatoon). These [...]
Lire la suiteCB 2 Cannabinoid Receptors as a Therapeutic Target - What does the Future Hold ? Amey Dhopeshwarkar and Ken Mackie Molecular Pharmacology, 2014, 86, 430–437 http://dx.doi.org/10.1124/mol.114.094649 ABSTRACT The past decades have seen an exponential rise in our understanding of the endocannabinoid system, comprising CB1 and CB2 cannabinoid receptors, endogenous cannabinoids (endocannabinoids), and the enzymes that synthesize and degrade endocannabinoids. The primary focus of this review is the CB2 receptor. CB2 receptors have been the subject of considerable attention, primarily due to their promising therapeutic potential for treating various pathologies while avoiding the adverse psychotropic effects that can accompany CB1 receptor–based therapies. With the appreciation that [...]
Lire la suiteBeta-caryophyllene is a dietary cannabinoid Jürg Gertsch, Marco Leonti, Stephan Raduner, Ildiko Racz, Jian-Zhong Chen, Xiang-Qun Xie, Karl-Heinz Altmann, Meliha Karsak and Andreas Zimmer PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA), 2008, 105, (26), 9099-9104. Doi : 10.1073/pnas.0803601105 Abstract The psychoactive cannabinoids from Cannabis sativa L. and the arachidonic acid-derived endocannabinoids are nonselective natural ligands for cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1) and CB2 receptors. Although the CB1 receptor is responsible for the psychomodulatory effects, activation of the CB2 receptor is a potential therapeutic strategy for the treatment of inflammation, pain, atherosclerosis, and osteoporosis. Here, we report that the widespread plant volatile [...]
Lire la suitePsychedelic microdosing benefits and challenges : an empirical codebook Thomas Anderson, Rotem Petranker, Adam Christopher, Daniel Rosenbaum, Cory Weissman, Le-Anh Dinh-Williams, Katrina Hui, Emma Hapke Harm Reduction Journal, 2019. Doi : 10.1186/s12954-019-0308-4 Abstract Background : Microdosing psychedelics is the practice of consuming very low, sub-hallucinogenic doses of a psychedelic substance, such as lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) or psilocybin-containing mushrooms. According to media reports, microdosing has grown in popularity, yet the scientific literature contains minimal research on this practice. There has been limited reporting on adverse events associated with microdosing, and the experiences of microdosers in community samples have not been categorized. Methods : In the present study, [...]
Lire la suiteReduction in social anxiety after MDMA-assisted psychotherapy with autistic adults : a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study Alicia L. Danforth, Charles S. Grob, Christopher Struble, Allison A. Feduccia, Nick Walker, Lisa Jerome, Berra Yazar-Klosinski & Amy Emerson Psychopharmacology, 2018, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-018-5010-9 Abstract Rationale : Standard therapeutic approaches to reduce social anxiety in autistic adults have limited effectiveness. Since 3,4- methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-assisted psychotherapy shows promise as a treatment for other anxiety disorders, a blinded, placebo-controlled pilot study was conducted. Objectives : To explore feasibility and safety ofMDMA-assisted psychotherapy for reduction of social fear and avoidance that are common in the autistic population. Methods : Autistic adults with marked to [...]
Lire la suitePilot Study of Psilocybin Treatment for Anxiety in Patients With Advanced-Stage Cancer Charles S. Grob, Alicia L. Danforth, Gurpreet S. Chopra, Marycie Hagerty, Charles R. McKay, Adam L. Halberstadt, George R. Greer Archive of General Psychiatry, 2010, 68, (1), 71–78 doi: 10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2010.116 Context : Researchers conducted extensive investigations of hallucinogens in the 1950s and 1960s. By the early 1970s, however, political and cultural pressures forced the cessation of all projects. This investigation reexamines a potentially promising clinical application of hallucinogens in the treatment of anxiety reactive to advanced-stage cancer. Objective : To explore the safety and efficacy of psilocybin in patients with advanced-stage cancer and [...]
Lire la suiteHallucinogens and redemption Marlene Dobkin de Rios, Charles S Grob, John R Baker Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 2002, 34, 3, 239-248. Abstract : This article examines drug substitution with regard to hallucinogens (ayahuasca, ibogaine, peyote and LSD) set within the concept of redemption. The model examines both religious and secular approaches to the contemporary use of hallucinogens in drug substitution, both by scientists and in religious setting worlwide. The redemptive model posits that the proper use of one psychoactive substance within a spiritual or clinical context helpsto free an individual from the adverse effects of their addiction to another substance and thus restores them [...]
Lire la suiteFreudian, Jungian, Grofian — Steps Toward the Psychedelic Humanities Thomas B. Roberts, Ph.D. The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 2017, Vol. 49, No. 2, 19 p. Copyright 2017, Transpersonal Institute ABSTRACT: Stanislav Grof’s map of the mind offers transpersonalists — and further, humanists and all professions working with the human phenomenon — a new kind of intellectual effort. Just as Freudian and Jungian psychologies enriched 20th Century intellectual life, Grofian is enriching the 21st. Grof’s psychedelic-derived theory promotes cultural interpretation, psychocriticism, curricular enrichment, and new methods of humanistic research. The theory’s four-level map of the human mind has received moderate attention primarily by confirming other [...]
Lire la suite