As cannabis based medicines have become a mainstream treatment option for a host of ailments, the public is starting to realize that the time has come for a re-evaluation of the benefits and dangers of plant-based medicines. With pharmaceutical companies pushing synthetic opioid and opiate-based painkillers on a public which was ignorant of the massive risks and minimal benefits these substances offered, society’s trust in the rules and institutions that defined the difference between narcotics and medicines has eroded to the point where we are ready to look with fresh eyes at what constitutes effective medical treatment. And our investigations have unearthed a wealth of evidence that substances like ibogaine, ayahuasca, and psilocybin can help cure humanity’s ills. Today we’ll take a detailed look at why psilocybin is elbowing its way into mainstream medical discourse.
Legalization Picks Up Steam
The American cities of Denver, Santa Cruz, and Oakland have all moved to decriminalize psilocybin, and ballot initiatives are poised to go before the public in the states of Oregon and California, as well as Washington, D.C. and 100 other cities around the USA. The D.C. vote was accompanied by legislation created by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to allow researchers to easily study the effects and benefits of psilocybin, as well as other psychoactive substances such as ibogaine and ayahuasca. Meanwhile, in Canada, activists and psychotherapists have launched a case which will soon go to federal court, which argues that terminally ill cancer patients should have a right to treating their depression and anxiety with the substance. Meanwhile, the American FDA has fast-tracked a study on the use of psilocybin for depression that has proved resistant to treatment, which could legalize medical use within a year. In a number of other countries, including Brazil, the Netherlands, Portugal, Jamaica, and Peru, psilocybin is either legal or its use has been decriminalized to some degree.
One of the factors driving these changing attitudes is a public movement based on experimentation and reporting which honestly examines the relationships between mental health, trauma, addiction, and psychedelics. Whether in the best-selling reportage of Michael Pollan and Johann Hari, the groundbreaking research of Dr. Gabor Mate, the life-hacks offered by Tim Ferriss, or the compelling new documentary “Dosed” which focuses on a woman’s life-saving quest to end her addiction, popular culture is opening the eyes of the masses to a new way of treating stubborn problems.
Why Psilocybin?
In the past few years, increasing numbers of studies have confirmed the substance’s efficacy in treating a host of ailments. Johns Hopkins University, America’s oldest research university and home to a renowned medical school, recently opened a center devoted exclusively to psychedelic studies. This initiative puts a sheen of respectability on the claims which less prestigious researchers and scientists have been making for years: psychoactive substances have incredible, untapped potential to treat mental ailments.
The early results have been promising, with studies on Alzheimer’s patients, anorexics, and those looking to stop smoking showing real, tangible benefits. Roland Griffiths, the director of the institute, notes that “one of the remarkably interesting features of working with psychedelics is that they’re likely to have transdiagnostic applicability” allowing researchers to “peer into the basic neuroscience of how these drugs affect brain activity and worldview in a way that is ultimately very healthy.”
Griffiths was instrumental in conducting the 2016 double-blind study on psilocybin treatment for patients with terminal cancer who were suffering from depression, a study which led many researchers to sit up and take notice. As described by the Scientific American magazine: “Each participant underwent two sessions (a high-dose one and a low-dose one) five weeks apart. Six months afterward, about 80 percent of the patients were still less clinically depressed and anxious than before the treatment. Some even said they had lost their fear of death.” Another study on severe, treatment-resistant depression conducted in the UK reported similar levels of success from the treatment.
Psilocybin And Addiction
The Johns Hopkins researchers then moved on to tobacco addiction, conducting a study which combined preparatory Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and 2-3 doses of psilocybin. Eighty percent of participants abstained from smoking for 6 months after the therapy, and 67% hadn’t relapsed after a year. Compared to a 35% success rate after six months for standard therapies, this was a remarkable success rate. What’s more, 85% of participants rated the experience as one of the 5 most meaningful and spiritual experiences of their lives.
This evidence echoes what another study, conducted by researchers at the University of New Mexico discovered in studying psilocybin’s efficacy in treating alcohol addiction. Participants were given four weeks of preparatory treatment, and during this period their behaviour and alcohol consumption showed little evidence of change. As the NCBI reports, “The intensity of effects in the first psilocybin session (at week 4) strongly predicted change in drinking during weeks 5-8 and also predicted decreases in craving and increases in abstinence self-efficacy during week 5.” Follow-up studies 36 weeks later found that most patients had maintained the changes in their behavior.
The exact mechanisms of how the substance helps alleviate symptoms of depression and addiction are unclear, but the scientists at Johns Hopkins are starting to develop theories. Researcher Matthew Johnson notes that there is evidence that the feelings of unity and mystical significance commonly experienced with psilocybin use is connected to higher success rates in ceasing substance abuse. Those who use the substance also seem to be better able to deal with cravings, a benefit which is also associated with the use of ibogaine and ayahuasca.
Johnson adds that on the biological level, “scientists have hypothesized that psilocybin may alter communication in brain networks, possibly providing more top-down control over the organ’s reward system.” Another study being led by cognitive neuroscientist Frederick Barrett is attempting to use functional magnetic resonance imaging to track the precise changes in the brain both before and after participants experience the therapy.
A Bright Future
As society gains a better understanding of ancient plant-based medicines such as psilocybin, ayahuasca, and ibogaine, we expect to see waves of evidence overwhelm the outdated notion that these substances are drugs of abuse. As we come to understand the risks that come with opioid painkillers, synthetic antidepressants, and other toxic concoctions touted as safe by the pharmaceutical industry, we are realizing that the time for unlocking and unleashing the potential of these treatments has come. At Tabula Rasa Retreat, we’re committed to the cause of healing the addicted by the most effective means available. If you’d like to know more, don’t hesitate to get in touch today!
For further information visit www.tabularasaretreat.com or call PT +351 965 751 649 UK +44 7961 355 530