Brian is a young, charming, intelligent professional who graduated from an Ivy League business school. His strong desire to challenge himself and his motivation to succeed have made him the CEO of a small but popular start-up company in San Francisco. However, Brian suffers from general anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorders, which have worsened ever since his company took off. After trying a variety of antidepressants and anti-anxiety drugs, Brian decides to schedule an appointment with a psychedelic therapist.

“Brian, good to see you! Please come in.” Said Dr. Talbert Doffman, one of the most reputable psychedelic therapists in the state. “I reviewed your file – we have many patients like you. We’ll start you off with psilocybin, a naturally occurring psychedelic compound found in mushrooms.” he added.

Brian lies down on the chaise lounge, while the nurse gives him a small oral dose of psilocybin. Dr. Doffman turns on some relaxing, meditative music, dimmed the lights, and gives Brian eye shades. Both the nurse and Dr. Doffman guide Brian through his mental journey that will help him understand the causes of his anxiety and help him cultivate a sense of mental wellbeing.

The goal of Dr. Doffman’s therapy is to integrate the affirmative aspects of a patient’s psychedelic experience into their everyday living and transform the patient in beneficial ways by unlocking deeper levels of their psyche.

***

Of course, this is not a real story. It’s just a fictional snapshot on what psychedelic therapy might look like. Psychedelics have been known to mankind for thousands of years, mostly being used for religious and spiritual purposes. In the 1960s and 1970s, psychedelic drugs were criminalized for societal and cultural reasons, which greatly obstructed psychedelic research. But now, this type of research is undergoing a renaissance as scientists see its potential in treating mental illnesses.

In the U.S. psilocybin is listed as a schedule 1 drug, meaning that it is considered highly addictive and poses no medical benefits, so you could be sentenced for up to one year in jail for possessing it. There are several solid reasons to regulate the use of psilocybin – it has been associated with many side effects such as anxiety, panic reactions, paranoia, and psychosis that may subsequently lead to violent or self-destructive behavior¹.

Still, there is a small but significant body of literature that demonstrates the potential of psilocybin for treating mental illnesses. In 2016, Robert Carhart-Harris² and his research team from Imperial College London in the United Kingdom investigated the effects of psilocybin among patients diagnosed with treatment-resistant depression. Participants of this study were given two oral doses of psilocybin (separated a week apart) as a treatment package and were provided psychological support before, during, and after psilocybin administration. The purpose of psychological therapy was to build trust not only between the patient and the therapist but most importantly, for the patients to trust themselves. The results of the study were quite shocking – the researchers noted significant decrease in depressive symptoms, and those decreases were still present up to 6 months later!

Further, there are a handful of studies from the 1960s and 70s suggesting that psilocybin might be effective in treating psychological distress among cancer patients. Cancer is a life-threatening condition and its diagnosis poses a particular threat to existential and spiritual well-being. Roland Griffiths³ from John Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland did a study on the effects of psilocybin on anxiety and depression related to life-threatening cancer. He recruited 51 cancer patients with a diagnosis of anxiety for his study. The patients either received orally a very low (placebo-like) dose or a high dose of psilocybin 5 weeks apart. Psilocybin dosing was given in a counterbalanced sequence, meaning that all possible treatment combinations were used among patients. During the sessions, the patients were guided and encouraged to “trust, let go and be open” to their psychedelic experiences. After a 6-month follow-up, 80% of cancer patients who received a high dose of psilocybin felt less depressed and reported overall improvements in their attitudes about life, the concept of death, and their selves.

But, there are several caveats in the Robert Carhart-Harris and Griffiths studies, the most notable of which are the small pools of participants. Also, it is possible that the psychological support that was offered in conjunction with psilocybin administration itself may have made the patients feel less depressed – rather than psilocybin itself.

There is an ongoing debate among scientists, clinicians, and regulatory authorities whether the psychological benefits outweigh the potential harms of psilocybin. These drugs can provide access to one’s sub-consciousness, facilitating emotional release and autobiographical insight, but how a person responds to psychedelics strongly depends on the individuals disposition and environmental setting. Psychedelics don’t exactly fall into the “classical drugs” that the FDA would approve, since the responses to these drugs are so subjective and it’s difficult to measure the physiological changes they induce. Additionally, these drugs are highly regulated by the criminal justice system, making it even harder for scientists to do research on their potential benefits.

Even so, there are a handful of labs that are eagerly pursuing psychedelic research despite its social stigma. This brings us to the question at hand: Is our society ready to overcome cultural bias and controversy in favor of effective treatments?

References:

1. Phil Cowen The Lancet 2016
2. Carhart-Harris et al. Lancet Psychiatry 2016
3. Griffiths et al. Journal of Psychopharmacology 2016