Psychedelic crossings: American mental health and LSD in the 1970s.
Medical Humanities June 23, 2019 DOI: 10.1136/medhum-2018-011593 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Historical analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Psychedelic-assisted therapy LSD |
| Keywords | LSD Therapy Hallucinogen treatment Psychedelic medicine Consciousness expansion therapy Mind-altering therapy Mental healthcare history Psychiatry history Medical history 1970s mental health Historical psychiatry Therapeutic history Forgotten chapter Therapeutic breakthroughs Psychological insights Patient outcomes Treatment advancements Healing discoveries Profound understanding Positive outcomes |
| Citations | 17 |
| Key points | Argues that LSD in the 1970s bridged biomedical understandings of health and cure with subjective individual needs, creating cross-disciplinary intersections in mental healthcare. |
Abstract
This article places a spotlight on lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and American mental health in the 1970s, an era in which psychedelic science was far from settled and researchers continued to push the limits of regulation, resist change and attempt to revolutionise the mental health market-place. The following pages reveal some of the connections between mental health, LSD and the wider setting, avoiding both ascension and declension narratives. We offer a renewed approach to a substance, LSD, which bridged the gap between biomedical understandings of 'health' and 'cure' and the subjective needs of the individual. Garnering much attention, much like today, LSD created a cross-over point that brought together the humanities and arts, social sciences, health policy, medical education, patient experience and the public at large. It also divided opinion. This study draws on archival materials, medical literature and popular culture to understand the dynamics of psychedelic crossings as a means of engendering a fresh approach to cultural and countercultural-based healthcare during the 1970s.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on LSD and psychedelic-assisted therapy, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Psychedelics and Psychotherapy: Cognitive-Behavioral Approaches as Default | 2022 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Flashback: psychiatric experimentation with LSD in historical perspective. | 2005 | Historical analysis | |
| LSD therapy in Dutch psychiatry: changing socio-political settings and medical sets. | 2002 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Psychedelics and psychotherapy in Canada: Humphry Osmond and Aldous Huxley. | 2018 | Historical analysis | |
| Research into Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy for Anorexia Nervosa Should be Funded. | 2023 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cited by 14
- Making psychedelics into medicines: The politics and paradoxes of medicalization Journal of Psychedelic Studies July 30, 2019
- Research abuses against people of colour and other vulnerable groups in early psychedelic research Journal of Medical Ethics July 12, 2021
- The Use of Classic Hallucinogens/Psychedelics in a Therapeutic Context: Healthcare Policy Opportunities and Challenges Risk Management and Healthcare Policy March 1, 2021
- Psychedelic medicalization, public discourse, and the morality of ego dissolution International Journal of Cultural Studies June 9, 2021
- Can psychedelics enhance group psychotherapy? A discussion on the therapeutic factors. Journal of Psychopharmacology February 28, 2023
and 9 more in the library
Cites 3
- LSD: My Problem Child The Antioch Review 1981
- Efficacy and Enlightenment: LSD Psychotherapy and the Drug Amendments of 1962 Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences August 16, 2012
- The Use of LSD in Psychotherapy: Transactions of a Conference on Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD-25), April 22, 23, and 24, 1059, Princeton, N. J JAMA December 10, 1960