Emergency workers and researchers use the term “critical incident” to describe a traumatic event. It’s estimated that people, on average, will experience two to three critical incidents in their lifetimes. My first came at 8 years old, when my father made his first suicide attempt. Five years and five attempts later, he was dead. I’ve […]
Read MoreTag: Psychedelic and Hallucinogenic Drugs
The Psychedelic Evangelist
Before he died last year, Roland Griffiths was arguably the world’s most famous psychedelics researcher. Since 2006, his work has suggested that psilocybin, found in magic mushrooms, can induce mystical experiences, and that those experiences, in turn, can help treat anxiety, depression, addiction and the terror of death. Dr. Griffiths and his colleagues at Johns […]
Read MoreLong Before Amsterdam’s Coffee Shops, There Were Hallucinogenic Seeds
In 2011, archaeologists in the Netherlands discovered an ancient pit filled with 86,000 animal bones at a Roman-Era farmstead near the city of Utrecht. It fell to Martijn van Haasteren, an archaeozoologist at the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands, to sort through them. Deep into the cataloging process, Mr. van Haasteren was cleaning the […]
Read MorePowerful Psychedelic Drug Gains New Notice as an Opioid Addiction Therapy
Ibogaine, a formidable hallucinogen made from the root of a shrub native to Central Africa, is not for the timid. It unleashes a harrowing psychedelic trip that can last more than 24 hours, and the drug can cause sudden cardiac arrest and death. But scientists who have studied ibogaine have reported startling findings. According to […]
Read MoreWhat to Know About Ibogaine, a Psychedelic
What is ibogaine? A naturally occurring psychoactive compound, ibogaine comes from the iboga tree, a rainforest shrub native to Central Africa. The drug comes from the bark of the root, which is crushed and consumed as a powder or given in an extracted form. Iboga has long been used for medicinal and ritual purposes in […]
Read MoreWhat to Know About the Effects of Ketamine
An autopsy report released by the Los Angeles County medical examiner on Friday said the death of “Friends” actor Matthew Perry, who was found face down and unresponsive in a hot tub at his home on Oct. 28, resulted from the “acute effects” of ketamine, an anesthetic with psychedelic properties. Ketamine has become increasingly popular […]
Read MorePilot Who Disrupted Flight Said He Had Taken Psychedelic Mushrooms, Complaint Says
An off-duty Alaska Airlines pilot who tried to shut off the engines during a flight on Sunday told investigators that he thought he was having a nervous breakdown at the time and had consumed psychedelic mushrooms, court documents said. In an interview with the police after he was taken into custody, the pilot, Joseph D. […]
Read MorePsychedelic Mushrooms Hit the Market in Oregon
In a carpeted office suite, Alex Beck settled onto a mattress and, under the watch of a trained guide, began chomping through a handful of “Pumpkin Hillbilly” mushrooms. A Marine Corps veteran who was sexually assaulted during his time in the armed forces, Mr. Beck had long been searching unsuccessfully for a way to put […]
Read MoreThe Quiet Reading Room That Gets Trippy After Dark
Midtown Manhattan doesn’t usually come to mind when thinking about the epicenters of psychedelic culture. But just three blocks from Grand Central Terminal, tucked within the sprawl of advertising offices, finance firms and chain stores, a community center dedicated to consciousness-altering substances has taken root. The only drug sold on site is the caffeine in […]
Read MorePsychedelics for Therapy: What to Know About Benefits and Risks
When Dr. Charles Nemeroff first met his patient, the 32-year-old woman had already been to see several psychiatrists. Initially, the woman, whose identity has been concealed to protect her privacy, had experienced paranoid and racing thoughts, insisting there were listening devices in her phone and that people were watching her; she even sold her home […]
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