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Tag: Psychedelics

  • Colorado legalizes medicinal psychedelics

    Colorado legalizes medicinal psychedelics

    Olivia Goldhill writes for Stat NewsStat News on Colorado’s legalization of psychedelics, otherwise known as “magic mushrooms,” in a ballot measure that passed last week with more than 52 percent support. Adults 21 and older will have legal access to a healing center that supervises people taking magic mushrooms.

    Oregon passed similar legislation in 2020 through a ballot measure. Legalization of medicinal psychedelics is a big deal. More experts find that psychedelics, psilocybin in particular, can be effective at treating people who are depressed and anxious, suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD, or otherwise faced with mental health challenges.

    A recent study of psilocybin found that it works for some patients at reducing depression when other treatments fail. But, there remain a lot of unknown risks.

    Natural Medicine Colorado, a business seeking to promote psilocybin in Colorado, spent $4.5 million to support the ballot measure. Other companies, such as Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soap, also supported the initiative. Whether psilocybin is good for you, it’s good for them.

    While psilocybin will be legal in Colorado, you will not be able to buy it at a shop, as you can with cannabis. You will need to go to a venue where you will be supervised after you take the drug. Access to psilocybin at these venues is still likely more than a year away.

    The Colorado regulatory agency in charge of overseeing the use of psychedelics in licensed settings has until January 1, 2024 to establish the standards for how and where psilocybin is dispensed.

    In addition to permitting people to use psilocybin at healing centers, the Colorado law permits people to legally grow and share psilocybin with their friends and family.

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  • The value of psychedelics

    The value of psychedelics

    More people have been turning to psychedelics to treat post traumatic stress disorder, depression and addiction. Mattha Busby reports for The Guardian on the value of psychedelics, including magic mushrooms and MDMA.

    Under the supervision of a psychiatrist, psychedelics have been found to help people cope with nightmarish memories. Psychedelics sometimes can lead to behavioral adaptations. One trial showed that people who took MDMA under the care of a psychiatrist were more than twice as likely to treat their PTSD as people who took a placebo.

    Today, there is no medicinal treatment for PTSD that works, so the value of MDMA could be huge. The FDA might approve it to treat PTSD in 2023 or sooner. It might also approve psilocybin, which is in magic mushrooms. One tiny study found psilocybin to work four times better than standard antidepressants.

    There was a time when lawmakers dismissed psychedelic drugs as having no medical benefits, even though there was no evidence behind their thinking. In their view, psychedelics were dangerous, so they kept research on these drugs to a minimum.

    Even former Texas governor Rick Perry now believes that psychedelics can help veterans who suffer from PTSD. Recently, Texas passed a state law to research the value of psychedelics. Oregon lawmakers have already approved legalization of the possession of drugs for personal use. Oregon has also licensed psilocybin therapy. Now, the state is licensing magic-mushroom companies. In Colorado, emergency first responders are being trained in psychedelic harm reduction.

    People at risk of psychological issues seem to see great benefits from psychedelics in clinical trials. One study published in Lancet showed that people who received a high dose of psilocybin saw their depression abate and their anxiety improve for a substantial amount of time. Psilocybin apparently lets the brain be rewired, helping people let go of old beliefs and memories and allowing them to better handle their emotions.

    One other benefit of psychedelics is that it ties people to nature, changing people’s attitudes and behaviors in ways that show greater concern for nature. They might eat differently. They might garden more. They might engage in environmental activism.

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