This survey examined perceptions among college students about the potential medicinal benefits of hallucinogenic drugs. Current research and potential benefits include an ability to help anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and addiction with hallucinogen-assisted psychotherapy. We devised and administered a survey on 124 students at two college campuses, one small private college in the...
Objective: Nightmares are among the most frequent and disturbing symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, basic research questions regarding key associations between certain nightmare characteristics, especially replicativeness, and posttraumatic psychopathology need further empirical elaboration. Method: Sixty-two German soldiers (mean age 33.8 years, 17.7% females) admitted...
ABSTRACT S,R(+/–)‐3,4‐methylenedioxymethamphetamine (SR‐MDMA) is an amphetamine derivative with prosocial and putative therapeutic effects. Ongoing clinical trials are investigating it as a treatment for post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other conditions. However, its potential for adverse effects such as hyperthermia and neurotoxicity may limit its clinical viability. We investigated...
The N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor antagonist ketamine has rapid onset activity in treatment-resistant depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder. Due to similarities in brain network activity in depression and anxiety disorders, we hypothesized that ketamine might also be active in other refractory anxiety disorders. We evaluated the efficacy and safety of...
Sustaining a burn injury increases an individual's risk of developing psychological problems such as generalized anxiety, negative emotions, depression, acute stress disorder, or post-traumatic stress disorder. Despite the growing use of Dialectical Behavioral Therapy® (DBT®) by clinical psychologists, to date, there are no published studies using standard DBT® or DBT® skills learning for...
After World War II, traumatic after effects often caused persistent sleep disorders for Holocaust survivors (HSs). This is a review of studies reporting on sleep disturbances and nightmares (as primary or secondary outcomes) among HSs between 1939 and 2015, conducted in various countries and contexts (clinical settings, pension claims, community surveys, sleep laboratories). Most studies...
This article examines DMT by Jeremy Shaw, a Berlin-based Canadian artist whose oeuvre has investigated altered states. For this 2004 video work, Shaw administered the hallucinogen dimethyltryptamine to a group of friends and videotaped their experiences. I am interested in how Shaw curates the psychedelic session as a performance of the drug’s agency and aesthetic power. A powerful entheogen...
A growing body of research suggests that traumatic events lead to persisting personality change characterized by increased neuroticism. Relevantly, enduring improvements in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms have been found in response to 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-assisted psychotherapy. There is evidence that lasting changes in the personality feature of "openness"...
Nightmares are inherently distressing, prevent restorative sleep, and are associated with a number of psychiatric problems, but have rarely been the subject of empirical study. Negative affect, linked to stressful events, is generally considered the key trigger of nightmares; hence nightmares have most often been considered in the context of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, many...
As rates of opiate misuse rise in the United States, so do significant associated health and financial consequences to afflicted individuals, their families, and society at large. Methadone maintenance therapy (MMT) is one evidence-based approach to treating opiate addiction, yet supplemental psychosocial treatment to support this approach is lacking. Mindfulness-based relapse prevention (MBRP)...