Clinical studies suggest that psychedelics exert robust therapeutic benefits in a number of psychiatric conditions including substance use disorder. Preclinical studies focused on safety and efficacy of these compounds are necessary to determine the full range of psychedelics' effects. The present study explores the behavioral pharmacology of structurally distinct psychedelics in paradigms...
Novel psychedelics (NPs) are an expanding set of compounds, presenting new challenges for drug policy and opportunities for clinical research. Unlike their classical derivatives, little is known regarding their use profiles or their subjective effects. The purpose of this study was to compile usage patterns and adverse event rates for individual NPs belonging to each of three main psychedelic...
We are amidst a 'Renaissance' in the field of psychedelic psychiatry. For several decades, following a period of promising research, governmental barriers and regulations halted any research into the utility of these substances in psychiatry. Over the past few decades, however, we are seeing a revival of these studies due to an abundance of positive findings as well as the need for improved...
Background: Psychedelics represent a unique subset of psychoactive substances that can induce an aberrant state of consciousness principally via the neuronal 5-HT2A receptor. There is limited knowledge concerning the interest in these chemicals in Poland and how they changed during the pandemic. Nonetheless, these interests can be surveyed indirectly via the web. Objectives: We aim to conduct a...
Altered states of consciousness (ASC) provide an opportunity for researchers to study the neurophysiological basis of changes in phenomenal experience. Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the primary psychoactive constituent of cannabis, however whether the effects of THC include ASC features that are shared with other ASC induction mechanisms, such as classical psychedelics, has not been...
In healthy adults, LSD produces little change in cognition, mood There have been numerous anecdotal reports of beneficial mood and cognitive effects from repeated administration of low doses of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) at intervals of 3 to 4 days, but few controlled studies have been conducted. Animal research has suggested that repeated low doses of LSD could confer antidepressant...
Co-use of alcohol and cannabis is associated with increased frequency and intensity of use and related problems. This study examined acute effects of alcohol and cannabis on mood, subjective experience, cognition, and psychomotor performance. Twenty-eight healthy cannabis users aged 19-29 years with recent history of binge drinking completed this within-subjects, double-blind, double-dummy,...
Abstract After decades of criminalization, psychedelic substances such as psilocybin and LSD are experiencing their comeback in science and Western culture more broadly. While psychedelic plants and fungi have a long history of use in Indigenous cultures, the Western prohibitionist reality instantiated around 1970 has stigmatized psychedelics as medically useless and a threat to society. Yet...
In this précis I summarise the main ideas of my book Philosophy of Psychedelics. The book discusses philosophical issues arising from the therapeutic use of “classic” (serotonergic) psychedelic drugs such as psilocybin and LSD. The book is organised around what I call the Comforting Delusion Objection to psychedelic therapy: the concern that this novel and promising treatment relies essentially...
Abstract Opioid use disorder (OUD) is a major source of morbidity and mortality in the U.S. and there is a pressing need to identify additional treatments for the disorder. Classic psychedelics (psilocybin, peyote, mescaline, LSD) have been linked to the alleviation of various substance use disorders and may hold promise as potential treatments for OUD. The aim of this study was to assess...