Wrong Turn On Psychedelics?

 #323: Will Psychoactive Drugs Help With Mental Issues?

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A recent pair of articles on psychedelic research laid out the case against:

1. In a recent study, those micro-dosing LSD reported greater mindfulness.  But so did those ingesting a mere placebo.

2. Some mental health professionals feel psychedelic substances shouldn't be used on those with anxiety, depression, PTSD, etc.  They feel that this is another example of a search for a miracle cure, with uncontrolled pressures to report success.

My amateur's theory is that psychoactive substances simply diminish the 'standard operating procedure' function that our brains use to cope.  Then, over the course of the next several hours or day, users put the pieces back together again.  Ideally, they'll have experienced the inadequacy of certain of their worldly constructs, and will have made adjustments.  It is possible, however, that this rewiring will induce panic.

What I'd say determines whether one learns from psychedelic experiences is whether one is in control of one's mind.  If so, one is likely to make improvements, as well as marvel at the wonder of raw sensory input.  If not: mild to severe discombobulation.

If this theory is valid, psychedelic substances are most likely to help those who are already self-sufficient and mindful.  Those who suffer mental issues will likely be helped less, if at all.

And, further, since the help gained in either case will be relatively minor, it's probably advisable that micro-dosing be employed.

As for the placebo effect among micro-dosers, it should be pointed out that in the study cited, those micro-dosing had a history of doing so prior to the study.  I wouldn't be surprised if one minor, acquired tweak, courtesy of their previous LSD ingestion, was the ability to find pleasure in mindfulness.

Meanwhile: a brief case 'for'.

Update: January 10th, 2024.  It now seems likely that psychedelics do, in fact, have a big role to play in treating various mental deficiencies.  Sigal Samuel has a very exciting interview at Vox with one researcher studying this promising field.