The TGA is considering a proposal to reclassify psilocybin and MDMA from their current status as prohibited substances. This would allow psychiatrists to use these drugs to treat mental illness.
The TGA is currently evaluating a proposal to legalise MDMA and psilocybin for the treatment of mental illness. But there are a few reasons Australia isn’t quite ready to take this step.
Rather than a vaccine to beef up your immune system, a psychoactive substance could boost your cooperative, pro-social behavior – curtailing the selfish actions that spur on coronavirus’s spread.
Leaving predictability and entering into uncertainty is a threshold to transformation.
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Psychedelics can help reset the brain, shaking it out of old patterns. The current state of uncertainty could have similar impacts - a metaphorical psychedelic dose - for new insights.
Research has shown psychedelic drugs can have a positive effect on a range of mental health conditions, but there are side effects.
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Australia is about to start its first trial of psychedelic drugs for the treatment of anxiety and depression. If the results are positive, this could transform the way we treat mental illness.
A team of Canadian therapists have filed an application with Health Canada seeking permission to provide psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy to patients with terminal cancer.
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Research shows therapeutic psilocybin to be a safe and effective antidote to end-of-life anxiety and depression. Does prohibition therefore violate our right to “life, liberty and security?”
Books such as Ayelet Waldman’s A Really Good Day and Michael Pollan’s How to Change Your Mind have drawn popular attention to the practise of ‘microdosing’ psychedelics.
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According to new research, individuals who take small regular doses of psychedelics such as LSD and psilocybin mushrooms score higher on mental health, well-being and creativity.
There is a growing research literature suggesting psychedelics hold incredible promise for treating mental health ailments ranging from depression and anxiety to PTSD.
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To know the real promise of psychedelic substances like LSD, mushrooms and MDMA, researchers must embrace the principles and practise of ‘open science.’
Scientific pursuits need to be coupled with a humanist tradition — to highlight not just how psychedelics work, but why that matters.
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Once associated with mind-control experiments and counter-cultural defiance, psychedelics now show great promise for mental health treatments and may prompt a re-evaluation of the scientific method.
Shaman in ayahuasca ceremony, Ecuador.
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