This study describes the lifetime prevalence, correlates, and age of onset of selected psychiatric disorders among a community sample of MDMA users (n = 402), aged 18 to 30, in Ohio. Participants responded to interviewer-administered questionnaires, including sections of the computerized Diagnostic Interview Schedule for DSM-IV. Fifty-five percent of the sample had at least one lifetime...
The lowering of serotonin for a period following MDMA use could account for the increases in both self-rated and objective measures of aggression previously found in ecstasy users several days after taking the drug. There is some evidence of gender differences in the acute, sub-acute and long-term effects of MDMA use, and given that gender differences have been found in aggression, it is...
Repeated ecstasy (MDMA) use is reported to impair cognition and cause increased feelings of depression and anxiety. Yet, many relevant studies have failed to control for use of drugs other than MDMA, especially marijuana (THC). To address these confounding effects we compared behavioural performance of 11 MDMA/THC users, 15 THC users and 15 non-drug users matched for age and intellect. We...
SPIRIT POSSESSION: A PSYCHO-CULTURAL SYNDROME OF DEVIANT BEHAVIOUR The Voodoo trance represents the principal aspect of deviant behaviour among coloured people. This tricky phenomenon, always considered a challenge to any scientific explanation, was subjected to an experimental analysis. We wanted to find out what the trance performers have in common and to check whether a typical psychological...
Initial research suggests that rates of isolated sleep paralysis (ISP) are elevated in individuals with panic disorder and particularly low in individuals with other anxiety disorders. To further evaluate these findings, we examined rates of ISP in a sample outpatients with primary diagnoses of panic disorder (n=24), social anxiety disorder (n=18), or generalized anxiety disorder (n=18). We...
Endogenous opioids seem to play a critical role in the regulation of mood states. For example, there is accumulating evidence that stimulation of kappa-opioid receptors, upon which the endogenous opioid dynorphin acts, can produce depressive-like behaviors in laboratory animals. Here we examined whether systemic administration of salvinorin A (SalvA), a potent and highly selective kappa-opioid...
Despite the high prevalence of hypnopompic hallucinations in the community, to our knowledge there are no reports that have been published in the English literature of these phenomenon observed by staff in the hospital setting. Psychiatric or neurological evaluation often ensues if a patient reports hallucinations in other circumstances, but when they are reported in connection with sleep,...
In open and randomized controlled trials self-exposure therapy reduced the frequency of nightmares but follow-up ceased at 7 months post-entry. Ten adults who attended an outpatient clinic and had DSM-IV nightmare disorder were put on a 3-month waiting-list. After 3 months they were given a self-exposure manual and were asked to follow its instructions for 4 weeks and were then followed up for...
Salvia divinorum is a widespread hallucinogenic herb traditionally employed for divination, as well as a medicament for several disorders including disturbances of gastrointestinal motility. In the present study we evaluated the effect of a standardized extract from the leaves of S. divinorum (SDE) on enteric cholinergic transmission in the guinea-pig ileum. SDE reduced electrically evoked...
Throughout time, humans have used psychoactive plants and plant-derived products for spiritual, therapeutic and recreational purposes. Furthermore, the investigation of psychoactive plants such as Cannabis sativa (marijuana), Nicotiana tabacum (tobacco) and analogues of psychoactive plant derivatives such as lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) have provided insight into our understanding of...