Could it soon be possible to prescribe psychedelic drugs such as LSD and
mushrooms, for patients with anxiety and depression? Studies suggest a care-
fully monitored "trip" via LSD or psilocybin, could be therapeutic.Acid & Magic Mushrooms
Your next prescription:
Head Fix: Just Get Out and Get Back In
Brain scans of psychiatric patients’ drug trips show that psychedelic substances such as LSD, psilocybin from
mushrooms and even Ecstasy can change brain activity so markedly that they make mental disorders 'disappear'.LSD ECSTASY
HYPERACTIVE BRAIN CURBS DEPRESSION
An acid trip is known to cause hallucinations, as the drug
intensifies the link between the centre of vision and the
frontal lobe, in which sensory information is processed.
But at the same time, LSD weakens the link between
the cerebral cortex and the hippocampus centre of
memory, stepping up runaway activity in major
areas of the organ. The result is the impression
that the ego is dissolved and linked with the
surroundings. The drug seems able to cure
anxiety, depression, OCD, etc.SWITCHED OFF EMOTIONS REDUCE ANXIETY
Ecstasy reduces the activity of the limbic system, which regulates
emotions and behaviour, and nerve communication
between the temporal and frontal lobes. The
activity is unusually high in patients with
anxiety, and when the level is reduced,
anxiety symptoms are curbed. Moreover,
ecstasy improves the communication
between the centre of fear (amygdala)
and the centre of memory ( hippocampus),
which is weak in people with PTSD.W
hen Tammy Burgess of
the US was diagnosed
with ovary cancer in
2010, the disease had
already spread through-
out her abdomen and to her lungs, so doctors
immediately initiated nine weeks of intensive
treatment, during which she had aggressive
chemotherapy.
The treatment was efficient, but during
the course of the disease, the uncertainty
had drained Tammy Burgess, who was
constantly imagining the scary ultrasoundscans and tumours. The fear caused another
disease: depression. Neither therapy, nor
antidepressants helped. As the last resort,
she volunteered to participate in a
controversial experiment. A doctor aimed to
treat psychiatric patients with the psilocybin
drug, which exists in magic mushrooms.
When Tammy Burgess appeared for the
experiment at the New York City University,
she was given a capsule with the psilocybin
drug, before she laid down on the doctor’s
examination couch. Shortly after, Tammy
Burgess in her thoughts flew through a pitch-black universe with beautiful, shining stars of
different colours, as a voice greeted her. She
answered: “Hi, I am Tammy from Earth.” She
flew past a doctor and asked, if a cure
against cancer would ever be deve-loped.
The doctor replied that it was irrelevant, as
we will all die one day. The answer comforted
her in a wonderful way.
The doctor behind the experiment is
psychiatrist Steven Ross, who has carried out
psilocybin experiments on psychiatric
patients and cancer patients with depres-
sion and fear of death for 10 years. He hasFRONTAL LOBECENTRE OF
VISIONTHE LIMBIC
SYSTEMTEMPORAL LOBEHIPPOCAMPUSALAMY/ALL OVER ALAMY/ALL OVERROBIN L. CARHART-HARRIS ET AL./WELLCOME TRUSTIMPERIAL COLLEGE LONDONBy Rolf Haugaard Nielsen