Enter the void: the effects of psychedelics

Hudson Fox

Since the ‘60s, hallucinogenics have been portrayed as “hippie drugs” used on the fringes of society. Yet, as more and more research emerges, psychedelics could hold the key to future therapeutic treatments for behavioral and chronic conditions.

Ismail Lourido Ali, the director and counsel for policy and advocacy at the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), highlighted two main factors in the popularization of psychedelics: promising research into psychedelic mushrooms and the evolution of state and local laws.

To Ali, greater legal acceptance means “increased opportunities to communicate about psychedelics and harm reduction.”

Scientists are taking advantage of this shift in focus.

Dr. Jon Dean, a lead post-doctorate scientist at the University of California San Diego’s Psychedelics and Health Research Initiative, has worked to understand the brain’s function and response to psychedelics. Currently, Dean’s lab focuses on two main pursuits: analyzing the uses of psilocybin, a chemical contained within infamous “magic mushrooms,” for treatmentresistant depression, and an MRI brain imaging study on phantom limb pain.

The interest in researching recreational psychedelic use may be in response to trends such as a 60% increase in LSD use between 2015 and 2019, per the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH).

Dean sees the future in startup and clinical settings, especially with “legalization itching on the horizon.”

However, he also noted that skepticism exists due to the historical stigmatization of psychedelics.

“Back (in the 1960s and 1970s), cannabis and psychedelics were sort of lumped into the anti-war movement and hippie protester movement, for good or for ill,” Dean said.

However, he was quick to dismiss this outdated perception. He held that psychedelic research has come a long way since then.

“Despite what we’ve been told for the past many decades, (psychedelics) may have some sort of clinical application, medical purpose, and benefit,” Dean said. “For the scientific community, (the idea of unproven health benefits) is helping lead the charge.”

In a Journal of Psychopharmacology study published this past December, psychiatrist Stephan Ross of New York University, and colleagues across the nation, conducted successful studies on psilocybin’s ability to relieve depression and anxiety in cancer patients.

Recently, chronic conditions have found an audience in eager researchers. In the past few months, MAPS conducted a Phase 3 trial on MDMAassisted treatment for PTSD with promising results. According to Ali, MAPS could take action in the near future.

“These results leave MAPS in a good place to apply for our new drug application with the FDA later this year,” Ali said.

Even on a federal level, there seems to be progress. After designating psilocybin as a potential “breakthrough therapy” for severe depression in 2018, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will review applications for its use as a drug more quickly than usual.

Ali said, “While there is a long way to go, in general, the public’s perception of psychedelics has been trending in a positive direction.”