Drugs Unveiled
Being a psychology major, most of my classes are focused on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) as a useful and significant form of treatment. Of course, meds like SSRIs, MAO and other drug agonists and antagonists are studied as main line biological forms of therapy. It seems, more radical types of drugs- like schedule 1 drugs- can be used to treat psychopathologies. Schedule 1 drugs are known as dangerous substances with no medical benefit such as LSD, other hallucinogens and cannabis. In contrast, heroin — an addictive and far more dangerous drug — was classified as a less restricted schedule 2 drug because of its known pain-killing effects. However, current fields of research have set out to prove that schedule 1 drugs aren’t as lethal as they’ve been made out to be.
Swiss chemist Dr. Albert Hoffman created LSD in 1938 from a substance in ergot fungus and discovered its hallucinogenic properties in 1943. At the time, it was used as a tool for modelling schizophrenia in healthy volunteers to gain insight into mental illness. However, since its discovery, the mechanisms of LSD are still poorly understood. LSD seems to mimic some actions of the brain’s chemical serotonin, which is involved in memory formation, mood and reward but, how it triggers such powerful altering effects is unclear. The common theory is that psychedelics can give rise to distinctive, insightful experiences that can produce enduring positive changes in attitude, mood and behaviour. Basically, if used in treatment, psychedelic drugs can “reset” abnormal functioning of the brain if given in a safe, controlled way as part of therapy.
Although interest in psychedelic drugs began in the 1960s and continues today, most efforts to discover the link between the drugs and treatment are halted by negative social stigma. Leading researcher David Nutt says the justification for banning LSD and hallucinogens was based a “concoction of lies” about their health impacts which led people to believe these drugs were more harmful than they were.
“They are not trivial drugs, but in comparison with drugs that kill thousands of people a year, like alcohol, tobacco and heroin, they have a very safe track record and, as far as we know, no one has died.”- David Nutt, psychiatrist and neuropsychopharmacologist
In order to compile research conducted in the 1960s, a 2012 meta-analysis of LSD-alcoholism trials was conducted. Separately, the trials were too small to produce statistically viable data yet in conjunction, they showed consistent, positive results. Six months after leaving treatment, those who took LSD were 15% more likely to be sober. The feelings of openness and well-being brought on by the drug seem to help people see themselves — and their problems — in a different light. In this way, LSD could act as a kind of chemical catalyst for the “moment of clarity” described by many addicts as a turning point in their treatment.
Conducted studies on the effects of psychedelic drugs and mental health require the use of The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) which provides national and state-level estimates of the use of tobacco products, alcohol, illicit drugs (including non-medical use of prescription drugs) and mental health. The NSDUH is taken as follows: a scientific random sample of households is selected, and a professional interviewer makes a personal visit to each selected household. Participants then answer the interview questions in a private manner and enter their responses directly into the computer so that the interviewer remains blind to the participant’s response. The confidential and standardized set up of the interview ensures participants don’t “fake good.” Faking good is when participants underreport the presence of a psychopathology and would therefore cause confounding results by underestimating the prevalence of psychopathologies. However, the NSDUH fails to collect data from the homeless who don’t stay in shelters, the active military personnel and persons housed in jails or hospitals. The NSDUH therefore fails to obtain a representative sample by neglecting the population most at risk for developing a mental health disorder.
Recently, research into the use of Psychedelic drugs in treatment has become increasingly popular as various studies are currently looking at their effects on depression. For example, a UK laboratory is in the midst of conducting research on the use of psilocybin — the psychedelic ingredient found in magic mushrooms- to combat depression. Participants will experience a four to five hour dream-like euphoria as colours, smells and sounds become more intense, perception of time distorts and their sense of self dissolves. Some may feel a surge of electricity through their bodies, sudden clarity of thought or hilarity. Others may experience anxiety, confusion or paranoia. These hallucinogenic effects will be short-lived, but the impact of the drug on the volunteers could be long lasting. In this disorganised dream-like state, the brain is open to new leaps of creativity as the brain becomes less organised and more chaotic as parts of the brain that would not normally communicate with each other link up. The common perception is that hallucinogens may temporally “loosen” the rigid structures of the brain, which have developed as we age. This loosening up could then help the brain break the cycles of depression, addiction, etc. It truly is something quite fascinating!
Now I’m sure some of you are wondering how giving magic mushrooms, LSD and other psychedelic drugs could be ethical in testing. Many argue that the effects of taking LSD are unpredictable, users can lose their sense of judgment and put themselves in risky situations- wouldn’t this be violating the social responsibility to avoid harm? However, by prohibiting the research of psychedelic drugs because of a social misconceptions of their alleged harmful effects — as our friend Dr. Nutt would say- we would be depriving suffering participants from potential treatment. Researchers stress that the drugs have powerful, therapeutic advantages when taken in the right environment and with the right support such as in therapy.
I don’t know about you guys but the idea of psychedelic drugs having the potential ability to cure disorders is kind of mind-blowing!
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