Philosophical Perspectives on Psychedelic Psychiatry

Abstract

Abstract A recent wave of research in psychiatry and neuroscience has re-examined the properties of ‘classic’ psychedelic substances—also known as serotonergic hallucinogens—such as psilocybin, lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), and N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT). Evidence to date suggests that psychedelics can be given safely in controlled conditions, at moderate to high doses, and may have potential as therapeutic agents in the treatment of various addictive and mood disorders. The main mechanism of action appears to be the induction of a dramatically altered state of consciousness, but the details of how psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy works are hotly debated, as are the relations between psychedelic experiences themselves and the neural changes induced by the drugs. The chapters collected in this volume address the fascinating philosophical questions raised by the renewed psychiatric use of psychedelics. The topics of these chapters cluster around three main themes, in terms of which the volume is organized. Chapters in Section One, ‘Self and Mind’, ask: what can we learn about the self and the mind from psychedelic science? Chapters in Section Two, ‘Science and Psychiatry’, address methodological, theoretical, and clinical questions concerning how psychedelics can best be studied scientifically and used therapeutically, and how they might work to relieve psychiatric suffering. Finally, chapters in Section Three, ‘Ethics and Spirituality’, address broader questions about the interpretation of psychedelic experience, its ethical implications, and its possible role(s) in the broader culture.