Background: Recent studies of neurostimulation reported alteration of hypnotizability and hypnotic phenomena after inhibition of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), but the different assessments of hypnosis and the stimulation parameters still left open many questions about the role of this brain region in hypnotizability. We aimed to administer inhibitory transcranial direct current...
The Bonny Method of Guided Imagery and Music (GIM) has evolved out of a pharmaco-supported psychotherapy setting in which the Altered State of Consciousness (ASC) has been evoked with strong psychedelic drugs. However, Helen Bonny observed that inducing an ASC with deep relaxation methods and a subsequent journey in a reclined or supine position elicited sufficient imagery for the therapy...
PharmaceuticalsNovember 9, 2022Sabrina de Carvalho Cartágenes, Cinthia Cristina Sousa de Menezes Da Silveira, Bruno Gonçalves Pinheiro et al.
Ketamine, also called 'K-powder' by abusers, an analog of phencyclidine, primarily acts as an antagonist of N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) receptors, therapeutically used as an anesthetic agent. Ketamine also stimulates the limbic system, inducing hallucinations and dissociative effects. At sub-anesthetic doses, ketamine also displays hallucinatory and dissociative properties, but not loss of...
Virtual environments are emerging as a tool for providing psychede-lic experiences due to the increasing interest in altered states of consciousness (ASCs) and the spread of VR headsets. However, the user experience of commercial psychedelic VR applications has not yet been adequately explored in HCI. To fill this gap, we conducted a user experience study of Cosmic Flow, one of the psychedelic...
Distributed by Bullfrog Films, PO Box 149, Oley, PA 19547; 800-543-FROG (3764)Produced by Frauke Sandig and Eric BlackDirected by Frauke Sandig and Eric Black2021, Streaming, 106 mins With beautiful cinematography and a captivating topic, Aware: Glimpses of Consciousness is a film that quickly draws in the viewer. The film asks many questions like, what is consciousness? Are humans the only...
Revista de Neuro-PsiquiatríaNovember 2, 2022Laura Alcantarilla, Enrique García-alcarria, Celia Almonacid3 citations
La ayahuasca pertenece al grupo de alucinógenos de origen vegetal con los que comparte su capacidad de alterar el estado de conciencia y provocar alteraciones perceptivas. Empleada tradicionalmente en forma de brebaje en ritos ceremoniales con el propósito de alcanzar experiencias de contenido espiritual o sanatorio, su uso se ha extendido a lo largo de centurias hasta nuestro actual contexto...
The neural mechanisms through which individuals lose sensory awareness of their environment during anesthesia remains poorly understood despite being of vital importance to the field. Prior research has not distinguished between sensory awareness of the environment (connectedness) and consciousness itself. In the current study, we investigated the neural correlates of sensory awareness by...
Ketamine anesthesia increased glucose metabolism in most brain regions compared to another intravenous anesthetic propofol. However, whether the changes in cerebral metabolic networks induced by ketamine share the same mechanism with propofol remains to be explored. The purpose of the present study was to identify specific features of metabolic network in rat brains during ketamine-induced...
Thousand-year-old Buddhist traditions have developed a wide range of methods for the subjective exploration of consciousness through meditation. Combining their subjective research with the possibilities of modern neuroscience can help us better understand the physiological mechanisms of consciousness. Therefore, we have been guided by specifically Buddhist explanations when studying the...
Schizophrenia and states induced by certain psychotomimetic drugs may share some physiological and phenomenological properties, but they differ in fundamental ways: one is a crippling chronic mental disease, while the others are temporary, pharmacologically-induced states presently being explored as treatments for mental illnesses. Building towards a deeper understanding of these different...