Can psychedelics be the treatment for the crisis in psychopharmacology?
Authors:
Genís Oña, and José Carlos Bouso.
Project:
Psychoactive Plants and Public Health
Year:
2019
About the study
Psychiatry is facing serious challenges, since for the past years we have been witnessing a crisis in the field of psychopharmacology, and this is having an inescapable negative impact on public health.
Thus, a more integrative treatment is required that combines pharmacological tools with psychosocial interventions. Psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy could satisfy this need, offering pharmacological action along with enhanced psychotherapeutic interventions.
Due to the fact that only a few administrations are necessary, psychedelics could mean saving millions of dollars for public health systems in both direct and indirect costs, ranging from the direct health costs of current treatments to the price paid by patients and families that find themselves impaired by mental illness.
Abstract
The current crisis in psychopharmacology has a long history and needs to be addressed with innovative and effective strategies.
Here we discuss some of the roots of this crisis and suggest that the therapeutic use of psychedelic drugs represents a promising and integrative treatment with enduring effects for mental health problems.
Excerpt: Psychedelics & Psychopharmacology
“Preliminary evidence from a public health approach showed that a long-term ritualistic use of psychedelic drugs is associated with higher positive perception of health or with a healthy lifestyle. Additionally, 56% of the sample could diminish the use of prescription drugs due to their use of psychedelic drugs. This finding encourages us to continue researching the usefulness of psychedelics as a means to overcome at least part of the crisis in psychopharmacology. Apart from clinical approach, we should remember that there is a growing tendency towards the ritualistic and communal use of plants like ayahuasca, which can function as both a health and a self-care practice. These plants have been traditionally used in many cultures, and must be framed as such within the pluralistic medical systems. The use of these plants by shamans, traditional healers or by religious/neo-shamanic communities, alongside with biomedical research and clinical applications, must be concurrently respected and permitted.”
Photo by Vladimir Fedotov on Unsplash.
Categories:
Studies & papers
, Psychedelics
Tags:
psychedelics
, hallucinogens
, mental health
, psychopharmacology
, substance use disorders
, mood disorders
, 5-HT2A receptor
, anxiety disorders
, crisis
, ayahuasca
, scientific research
, study
, DMT
, psychiatry
, LSD
, psilocybin