Authors Sam Gandy, Valérie Bonnelle, Edward Jacobs, David Luke Published May 16, 2022 Abstract Creativity, that is the creation of ideas or objects considered both novel and valuable, is among the most important and highly valued of human traits, and a fundamental aspect of the sciences. Dreams and hypnagogic states have been highly influential in  …

Authors Fabian Pitter Steinmetz, Maja Kohek Published May 3, 2022 Background The supply chains addressing the global demand for major recreational drugs are hardly addressed due to international contracts, particularly the UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs. Currently applied regulatory changes have several disadvantages ranging from political tensions to the neglect of ecological aspects. The  …

 This week’s episode features yet another great speaker at the ESPD55 conference Mark Plotkin, an ethnobotanist, advocate for tropical forest conservation and the host of Plants of the Gods podcast. Following research at Harvard under Richard Evans Schultes and years of working in a close relationship with the native communities of Amazonia, Mark with  …

Authors Jeremy Roscoe, Olivia Lozy Published March 16, 2022 Psilocybin is a naturally occurring psychoactive chemical produced by various species of mushroom, mainly in the psilocybe genus. Human consumption of psilocybin, primarily for its psychoactive properties, dates back thousands of years (Tylš et al., 2013). It was first isolated in 1958 by Albert Hoffmann, who was later  …

The last decade has seen a new focus on psychedelics as powerful medicines for treating severe mental health issues, including the use of psilocybin for conditions such as PTSD and treatment-resistant depression. However, many of these potentially life-saving treatments, including psilocybin, remain difficult to research due to overly strict drug laws. In this blog, Professor Jo  …

 Who is James Fadiman? James Fadiman is a true man of many talents. Wikipedia calls him an ‘American writer’, but actually, he’s worked in multiple fields, from psychology, through to IT and, finally, to psychedelic research. He studied Psychology at Harvard University and obtained a PhD from Stanford University. As a graduate student at Stanford,  …

 Access to Psilocybin-Assisted Psychotherapy This week’s episode features Spencer Hawkswell the CEO of TheraPsil – a non-profit coalition dedicated to helping Canadians in medical need access legal, psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy to treat end-of-life distress.  Spencer believes that responsible drug policy requires effective organization and leadership and is dedicated to bringing together the experts and advocates,  …

What is ayahuasca? Ayahuasca is a psychedelic brew originating from the Amazon, originally used by indigenous populations and later involved for local syncretic purposes. Since it’s origins, ayahuasca has spread across the world and has developed a more varied list of uses. The two hallmark ingredients of ayahuasca are: 1) the leaves of the Psychotria  …

Increasing Diversity in Psychedelic Science Research In order to generate research that is relevant to the masses, it is imperative that the field of psychedelic science involves a level of diversity that is representative of those it intends to treat. This renaissance of psychedelic research thus far has not sufficiently involved people of colour, in  …

 Have you ever felt moved by a song? Have had music affect your mood? For many of us music has a therapeutic quality to it. So what about combining that with psychedelics? In this week’s episode we’ll meet Dr Mendel Kaelen, CEO of Wavepaths, a London-based company researching and developing methods for music-assisted psychotherapy.  …

A fascinating Q&A on the ethical and philosophical considerations in psychedelic science and explanations of the psychedelic experience.   Prof David Nutt David is a leading Neuroscientist and drug policy reform advocate. Formerly the Chief Drug Advisor to the UK government he is currently the Edmond J. Safra Professor of Neuropsychopharmacology and director of the  …

In this webinar from the Student Psychedelic Conference, we hear from two groups doing amazing harm reduction work!   PsyCare Amanda Guzinska started working with PsyCare since 2013 having discovered them at a festival a couple of years prior while helping a friend through a difficult experience. Among her friends or even strangers in need,  …

Authors Annie Howard, Joanna C Neill, Anne Katrin Schlag, Charlotte Lennox Published October 25, 2021 Prior to the 1970s, psychedelics such as LSD were used and researched extensively. However, with the introduction of the UN convention Misuse of Drugs Regulations in 2001, all drugs were placed into one of five categories or ‘schedules’ based on  …

Dosing in psychoactive drugs Dosing represents one of the three critical elements that determine the quality of a drug experience, alongside set and setting. Determining appropriate dosages can be difficult due to ambiguity in drug purity, drug experience of the individual, tolerance, and the aforementioned set and setting. While these represent general guidelines, experience, variability  …

In this webinar, you will learn about the medicalisation of both psychedelics and cannabis, from two of the biggest experts in these respective fields; Prof Jo Neill, and Prof Mike Barnes. We expect these industries to grow to tremendous size and want to prepare the next generation for a new economy of medicine and psychiatry.  …

A personal Q&A from two patients of psychedelic therapy:   Psilocybin for depression – Michael Bourne Michael Bourne is a 57-year-old website designer from the North East of England, who tried several unsuccessful depression treatments, including talking therapy and prescription medications, before turning to psilocybin clinical trials. Michael took part in research into psilocybin treatment  …

What Is Ayahuasca? The word ayahuasca is derived from the phrase “vine of the dead”, or “vine of the soul” in Quechuan languages – succinctly capturing its mystical and spiritual role in South American cultures. Ayahuasca is a psychedelic plant brew composed of two primary ingredients: 1) Banisteriopsis caapi and 2) Psychotria viridis. N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT),  …

 Today’s episode features Dr Peter Gasser, the president of the Swiss Medical Society for Psycholytic Therapy.  Professor Nutt and Dr Gasser talk about the rather unusual and innovative attitude to psychedelic research in Switzerland.   How can Britain learn from the Swiss? What are the drug policies in the Albert Hofmann’s – the discoverer of LSD –  …

In this webinar, two of the world’s leading psychedelic research experts; Dr Ben Sessa and Dr Meg Spriggs, answer questions on the therapeutic applications of MDMA and psilocybin!   Who is Dr Ben Sessa? Dr Ben Sessa is a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist who has worked with young people and adults in the field  …

 This week on the Drug Science podcast, Professor Deborah Mash tells us about Ibogaine. A hallucinogenic compound derived from the roots of a West African shrub, sometimes used as a treatment for heroin or cocaine addiction. Professor Mash found herself trying to reverse the damage that cocaine had caused on the streets of Miami,  …

Psychedelic drugs in the Netherlands In the Netherlands, it’s not difficult to find a shop selling psychedelic drugs – magic truffles, cacti, 5-Meo-DMT, iboga, and the like are all widely available at ‘smart shops’. Retreat centers are also accessible within the country, where individuals can pay to trip in a safe environment, and undergo therapy  …

 In this episode of the Drug Science Podcast, world-renowned journalist and psychedelics author Michael Pollan joins Prof David Nutt to discuss gardening. Of course, this being the Drug Science podcast, there’s no mention of sunflowers or strawberries. Instead, these two icons of psychopharmacology discuss the cultivation of mind-altering plants and everything else you might  …

What does the future of psychedelics look like? In this Drug Science webinar, Sarah Hashkes, breaks down the key factors which will influence the future of psychedelics.   Why do psychedelics have so much potential and what does it have to do with ‘predictive coding’? “Predictive coding” refers to the brain function theory where the  …

 Today’s episode features Ollie Ollerton, a former UK Special Forces soldier and directing staff (DS) of Channel 4’s SAS: Who Dares Wins. Mr Ollerton has always been involved in the social cause, serving in the army as well as supporting multiple charities. Thanks to the publicity from SAS: Who Dares Wins he has been, among  …

There is no defined road to legalising psychedelics, but there are many options available. Ismail Lourido Ali, of MAPS, discusses the important nuances in this Drug Science webinar on expanding access to psychedelics. Due to the recent progress of medical cannabis legalisation, many expect psychedelics to follow a similar path of medical legalisation, followed by  …

This is the full recording of our 4th Women in Psychedelic Science event, hosted in June. Featuring experts working at the cutting edge of psychedelic science and in related fieldwork. Psychedelic medicine: from lab findings to therapeutic applications Dr Kim Kuypers Kim PC Kuypers (PhD) is affiliated as an Associate Professor with Maastricht University, Faculty  …

 How can you study yourself and deal with the problems buried deep inside of you? In this week’s episode, Dr Meckel Fischer and Professor Nutt hope to answer these puzzling questions!   Who is Friederike Meckel Fischer?  Friederike Meckel Fischer is a German psychotherapist who also trained as a medical doctor. Her career involved  …

Prof David Nutt and Prof Jan Ramaekers discuss some of the biggest questions in Drug Science in this interview for the European Behavioral Pharmacology Society. They first discuss psychedelics in the treatment of depression, in light of the recent results comparing psilocybin to one of the most commonly prescribed antidepressants. They then address concerns that liberal  …

In this Drug Science webinar, Dr Balázs Szigeti explains the current science of microdosing as he presents the results from his self-blinded microdosing research, the largest placebo-controlled microdosing study in the world! Dr Szigeti also explains how participants created their microdoses with a placebo control as part of the revolutionary methodology he developed to reduce  …

Summary Full Report Survey Data Does the UK support psilocybin research? Public perceptions of psilocybin-assisted therapy have been revealed in a new YouGov poll, commissioned by Drug Science. This is the first nationally representative poll of UK attitudes towards the medicalisation of psilocybin and support for policy changes (such as rescheduling psilocybin) to make this  …