Category Archives: Psychedelics

Editor's note: This article mentions violence, suicidal ideation, and sexual assault.

When Nathan McGee closed his eyes, he felt a wave wash over him. He felt like a curious child.

"It was like pulling back curtains and exploring different avenues or aspects of what was going on inside my head," McGee told Insider.

He'd taken MDMA, a drug that distorts perception and creates feelings of euphoria, as a participant of a clinical trial studying the drug as a therapeutic treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder.

McGee, now 44 and living in Colorado, applied for the trial after a doctor diagnosed him with PTSD when he was 40.

Throughout his life, McGee felt overwhelmed, sometimes debilitated, by his emotions. He also experienced depression , anxiety, and suicidal ideation.

"I would be there physically, but mentally I was looking at the world as if I didn't really belong," McGee said.

After three MDMA sessions throughout the trial, McGee said he no longer experiences PTSD symptoms like flashbacks, paralyzing emotions, and disassociation.

A mounting body of research suggests psychedelics like MDMA, psilocybin, DMT, and 5-MeO-DMT have the ability to rewire the brain and relieve anxiety, depression, and other mental health symptoms.

Insider interviewed five people, including McGee, who were diagnosed with or experiencing symptoms of PTSD and had used psychedelic drugs as treatments for their conditions. Psychedelic treatments for PTSD aren't yet approved by the Food and Drug Administration, but there's growing interest among patients and healthcare providers in using psychedelics as an alternative or last-resort treatment option for their illnesses.

Many of the people Insider spoke to found that after using the substances, they no longer felt PTSD symptoms that had affected their daily lives for years. Those who said they still had symptoms said the experience had improved their lives and mental health.

For this story, Insider reached out to two nonprofit organizations that work with patients with PTSD: the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, which is developing MDMA-based treatments for PTSD, and Heroic Hearts, which works to connect veterans to ayahuasca and psilocybin ceremonies in countries like Mexico, where the practices aren't explicitly illegal.

Three of our five interviewees were veterans, a group that experiences PTSD at extremely high levels compared to civilians, according to data by the US Department of Veteran Affairs.

Some interviewees reported microdosing or otherwise partaking in unsupervised psychedelic experiences. Researchers studying these compounds for medical purposes say that self-medicating with powerful mind-inducing compounds is not without risk.

People tend to underestimate the challenging experiences psychedelics bring to the surface, said Marcela Ot'alora, a principal investigator for MDMA-assisted-therapy research at MAPS.

Ot'alora, who was a co-therapist in the first Spanish government-approved MDMA-assisted therapy study in Madrid, said she's worked with patients who came to her after having harmful psychedelic experiences.

"What we hope for, what we do in our research, is keep people safe," Ot'alora said. That, she said, includes understanding their backgrounds, race, and culture, as well as how trauma has impacted their lives.

Even among more structured trials, an increasing number of participants have begun to speak out about the negative experiences they've had related to their psychedelics experiences. Recently aired episodes of "Power Trip," a podcast from New York Magazine and Psymposia, detailed some of these experiences by MAPS clinical-trial participants.

MAPS, a nonprofit that's authorized by the FDA to study psychedelic treatment, is undertaking phase-three clinical trials of the therapy and believes it's close to receiving FDA approval for the treatment.

MAPS's director of communications, Betty Aldworth, pointed Insider to the organization's safety practices on its website and said that there are many inherent challenges to providing therapy treatments to patients with PTSD.

Aldworth added that MAPS has done and is continuing to do the work "to protect participant safety, and that includes training, oversight, participant education, and creating the conditions for culture of safety."

Here are the experiences of people who used psychedelics to treat their PTSD:

Crystal said her psychedelic experiences with psilocybin and MDMA helped her process sexual trauma. Courtesy of Crystal/Insider

Crystal, a 37-year-old living in North Carolina, wanted to heal childhood and sexual trauma from her 16 years in the military as a special-operations sergeant and medic.

"I got to a point where I literally was too depressed to function while I was still on active duty and I was about to deploy," Crystal told Insider. She requested we not use her last name to protect her family's identity. "I knew that I was going to be a liability for my team."

While on leave in 2018, Crystal's doctor diagnosed her with PTSD. Antidepressants had barely any effect, and she went to a rehab facility for alcohol abuse.

Sobriety helped with suicidal ideation and depression, Crystal said, but she wanted an alternative to antidepressants for her PTSD symptoms. When she heard Dr. Gabor Mate mention ayahuasca, a brew made with DMT, on an episode of "The Tim Ferriss Show" about addiction and ADHD, it led Crystal down a rabbit hole of research.

During a Heroic Hearts retreat in Mexico, Crystal took a combination of psilocybin and MDMA.

As she lay among the other retreat participants, all listening to music while wearing eye masks, Crystal said her body began to shake uncontrollably.

But the feeling was pleasant and felt like it was literally warming her heart. She came away from the experience learning to savor those kinds of stirring physical sensations.

"That was so mind-blowing to me, just being in a space where I didn't have to feel guilty or bad or shameful for anything, but just feel connected," Crystal said.

Many of the participants Insider spoke to said that while their experiences with psychedelics had helped them overcome their PTSD or see growth in their mental well-being, it wasn't a one-and-done solution.

Fei Fei Chen, who worked as a paralegal and combat driver in the military between 2001 and 2005, told Insider that when she went on a retreat with Heroic Hearts in the spring of 2021, she and others had to abide by a strict diet that restricted caffeine, sugar, salt, alcohol, nicotine, or any kind of stimulant.

They also prepared for their trip mentally by journaling, talking in groups, and reflecting on what they wanted out of the experience.

"I think without that part, it wouldn't have been complete," she said.

Chen describes her experience during the ayahuasca ceremony as drifting "in and out of consciousness." When she came to, she said she "felt the medicine was moving inside of me."

First it moved up to her throat, and then it traveled down to her stomach and began to swirl around her pelvis.

"I'm telling you, this thing is alive," she said. "It's a consciousness traveling inside of me. And all I had to do was just be open and stay in a space of like appreciation. My mantra was just like, 'Thank you for healing me, thank you for showing me,' for like four hours."

Chen said she doesn't think psychedelics are a cure-all. Before going on the trip, she did talk therapy for around a year and then worked one-on-one with a coach to make sure she felt ready for the experience.

"I think healing should be multidisciplinary," she said."It's like a buffet of things you shouldn't just eat one thing and hope that it will last forever."

Rudy Gonsior said he turned to psychedelics in 2019 to treat his PTSD. Gonsior, left, swimming with his daughter near his home in Maine. Rudy Gonsior

Rudy Gonsior, 36, a special forces operator of 18 years, told Insider that before going on an ayahuasca retreat in 2019, he had never done any illicit drugs.

"I was pretty much straight-edge all the way through, other than some of the classical experiences with alcohol," he said. "An altered state of mind was something that I've never experienced. So it was kind of a turn into a whole different world for me."

But earlier that year, he began to consider psychedelics as a possible treatment for his PTSD, after experiencing the end of his marriage and an emotional breakdown. He began to bury himself in research that had already been done on psychedelics.

"I was desperate," he said. "It was a real Hail Mary move for me. I didn't feel like I had anything else going for me at that point. I had done traditional talk therapy, I had been offered cornucopia of pharmaceuticals from VA, which I turned down because I saw what it had done to good friends of mine."

Gonsior said he was experiencing classic PTSD symptoms that many veterans go through, like waking up from a dream and feeling like he was still in the midst of combat, becoming aggravated at small things that shouldn't matter, and feeling suffocated and anxious in crowded spaces.

One night, he recalled, he found himself standing nude at his front door in the middle of the night, pistol in hand, because he thought someone was trying to break into his home.

"I had this idea in my head that like I was in Iraq and I was trying to protect my teammates and that basically our position was being overran," he said. "I didn't really come to complete consciousness until my wife at the time came to me as I was standing at the door."

Gonsior traveled with Heroic Hearts to experience ayahuasca ceremonies that he said relieved his service-related PTSD.

"Honestly, I feel really great," he said. "It's allowed me to really change a lot of the ways that I process experiences. I guess it's like having a whole new template to experience things."

Gonsior said he still has memories of combat, but he sees them in a different context.

"The things that occurred in the war, I'm OK with them. They are parts of me that I have grown into and I've been able to actually let them go."

Gonsior joked that there are "entire buckets of vomit" that he left at the retreat because they no longer served him.

"I was told I'm a good purger by the shaman," he said. "Apparently I vomit pretty hard core."

Some participants said that one of the more difficult parts of undergoing such intense experiences is coming back home to everyday life, where it becomes all too easy to slip back into familiar routines, which is why support and reintegration is important.

Lori Tipton, 42, was one of the first people to take part in an FDA-cleared clinical trial of MDMA, organized by MAPS.

Tipton had severe and chronic PTSD and depression as a result of a variety of traumas in her life, including her brother's overdose death, a rape by someone she knew, and coming across three bodies after her mother had killed two people and then herself in a murder-suicide.

MDMA administered in three sessions, prefaced by talk therapy and followed by "integration sessions" made it easier for her to talk about her experiences, Tipton said. As she lay in a room with low lightning and soothing music alongside two trained professionals, Tipton says she felt safe as she talked through some of her traumas.

Tipton says her experience with MDMA worked to put her PTSD in remission.

She wrote a blog about her experience and shared it with her closest friends all of whom were supportive. Her therapist was happy for her, too.

"I think in order for it to be as successful as possible, people have to be supported by their community. You can't just take a person that's been significantly traumatized, go through the therapy, and then put them right back into a traumatic lifestyle," she said.

"That's not going to serve them."

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5 people who used psychedelics to treat PTSD describe their trips - Business Insider

So many of the scientists who pioneered research into full doses of psychedelics have started studying whether a microdose might also be beneficial. But evidence is limited, and experts are divided about how microdosing helps people or if it does at all.

Much of the early research into microdosing has been anecdotal, consisting of enthusiastic survey responses from users who experienced enhanced attention and cognition, feelings of well-being and relief from anxiety and depression. Lab studies of psilocybin and LSD microdoses tend to support these claims, showing improvements in mood, attention and creativity. But these studies have generally been small, and they didnt compare a microdose to a placebo.

You probably only participate at this point in a trial in microdosing if you really have a strong belief that this might help you, said Dr. David Erritzoe, clinical director of the Centre for Psychedelic Research at Imperial College London. And when people expect to benefit from a drug, they typically do.

The two largest placebo-controlled trials of microdosing were published last year, and they both suggest that the benefits people experience are from the placebo effect. In the studies, volunteers used their own drugs to participate and, unknown to them, received either active doses or a placebo packaged in identical capsules. At the end of several weeks, almost everyones mood and well-being had improved, regardless of what they had taken.

I was initially surprised but also a bit disappointed by the results, because when we set up the study we were quite optimistic that microdosing could have an effect beyond a placebo, said Michiel van Elk, an assistant professor of cognitive psychology at Leiden University in the Netherlands who led one of the trials.

Dr. Erritzoe, who ran the other study, found that the drugs efficacy was tied to users expectations. If they took a placebo but thought it was a microdose, they felt better, and if they had an active dose but wrongly guessed it was a placebo, they did not.

A third placebo-controlled trial, published earlier this month from the University of Chicago, tried to get around user expectations by giving participants four microdoses of LSD over the course of two weeks, but without telling them about the purpose of the study or even what they were taking. Once again, there was no difference between the LSD and placebo groups.

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What is Microdosing, and Does it Work? - The New York Times

Bolt co-founder Ryan Breslow, who stepped down as the e-commerce software startups CEO after publishing a Twitter rant aimed at powerful Silicon Valley institutions, is taking another stab at startup leadership. This time hes planning to develop drugs initially based on nutraceuticals, food-derived substances that have health benefits, to treat sleep and pain problems.

Breslow has founded the startup, Love Health, with JR Rahn, co-founder of MindMed, a publicly traded developer of psychedelic-based medicines, and Ashwath Rajan, who co-founded Stockwell AI, an ill-fatedvending-machine startup formerly known as Bodega.

The Miami-based company plans to perform clinical trials to seek Food and Drug Administration approval for its drugs, which will focus on solutions to the opioid crisis, said Rahn, who is CEO, in an interview with The Information. Love will eventually expand to pharmaceuticals and has no immediate plans to use psychedelics, he said. In the future, the company may issue a cryptocurrency token to participants in its clinical trials.

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Bolt's Breslow Teams With Psychedelics Founder on Crypto Pharma Startup - The Information

Enveric Biosciences is partnering with the University of Calgary to study its first-generation psychedelic treatment EVM-101 in patients with cancer-related distress (CRD).

Later this year, the University of Calgary's Hotchkiss Brain Institute, led by Valerie Taylor, the head of its psychiatry department, will work with Enveric to explore the effects of EVM-101 in CRD patients. The study will build on earlier work that suggests psilocybin, the main active ingredient in magic mushrooms, can help people with the condition.

Based on several pilot studies conducted at different academic centers, psilocybin at a dose range of 25-30 mg, in association with support therapy, demonstrated significant benefit in cancer patients with CRD, said Bob Dagher, chief medical officer at Enveric.

A 2018 study found 52% of the 3,724 tested cancer patients had high levels of psychological distress, with fatigue and sleep problems among the most common issues. Other groups have run randomized clinical trials to explore the idea that psilocybin can help alleviate depression and anxiety in cancer patients, generating the data that encouraged Enveric to move its candidate into clinical development.

As in other clinical trials of psychedelic medicines, EVM-101 forms part of a broader therapeutic support package in the study planned by Enveric and the University of Calgary. The psychedelic experience is the centerpiece of a process designed to help patients prepare for and then integrate what happens when they take the therapy.

Cancer participants who enter the EVM101-201 study will receive supportive therapy that includes education on the role of psilocybin on inducing a psychedelic mind-manifesting experience, preparation for the dosing session, support during the dosing day, and post-dose integration therapy to explore the resulting effects on the participant's experience, mental status changes, and symptomatology, said Dagher.

Enveric acquired a library of novel derivative psychedelics molecules last year through its acquisition of MagicMed Industries, a Canadian developer of psychedelic-derived medicinal products. The acquisition followed the spinning off of Enveric from AMERI Holdings.

After spinning off, Enveric initially focused on the use of novel cannabinoid medicines to help patients with the side effects of cancer treatments, later expanding into psilocybin and dimenthyltryptamine with the takeover of MagicMed.

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Enveric, University of Calgary to study psychedelic therapy - OutSourcing-Pharma.com

In Elido Francisco Jr.s home in Reading, his living room was dimly lit, and soft music played. He had cleared time in his evening to delve deeply into an experience he said changed his life.

Through tears, brief moments of frustration and in-the-moment realizations, Francisco detailed the psychedelic experience he said changed his perspective on his childhood trauma and his life.

I felt so much relief of everything that Ive been holdingit was just like, wow, Francisco said. Then in the moment when I was crying, I was outside of my body looking at myself being empathetic. Its okay, let it go.

He recounted moments of mystical wonder, immense anger and otherworldly peace.

Francisco credits the visuals and sensations he experienced to a compound found in the psychedelic drugs such as the South American brew Ayahuasca and psilocybin, or magic mushrooms.

But Francisco emphasizes his experience was transformational not just because of the substances he ingested, but because he was guided through his trauma by trained professionals through two nights of shamanic group therapy.

The use of psychedelics as aids in mental health is gaining momentum in the clinical arena, and some elected officials and advocates in Pennsylvania are pushing for more insight on how powerful drugs can help people heal.

Republican state Rep. Tracy Pennycuick of Montgomery County is an army veteran who has PTSD from three combat tours in the middle east.

Last year, after learning of the positive effects it has had for other veterans, Pennycuick introduced House Bill 1959, which would allow the Department of Health to oversee at least two facilities to grow psilocybin mushrooms in the state for use in the clinical studies.

Why wouldnt we be on the cutting edge of technology here in Pennsylvania? Pennycuick said. That, to me, is an opportunity that I think can be groundbreaking.

It would prioritize studies that focus on veterans, retired first responders and their families.

The bill has bipartisan support with more than 20 co-sponsors, but has sat in the House Health committee. Pennycuick expects the bill to come up for a House vote within the next two months.

We owe it to [veterans] to look for new and innovative treatments for PTSD; we have to do it, Pennycuick said, noting that mushrooms are already a huge industry in the commonwealth.

The use of these sorts of drugs appear to be on the frontiers of mental health treatment in Pennsylvania. But psychedelic assisted healing isnt anything new, especially for the native people that many Latinos hail from, according to therapist Victor Cabral.

Im talking about our indigenous ancestors from the continent of Africa, or from the Caribbean, or from South America, and their use of these medicines over thousands of years, to heal their communities to be in balance with nature, etcetera, Cabral said. Thats usually a good way to start to explain what is the purpose of these medicines, what is their origin, and I think that opens up the conversation a little bit more.

Cabral recently stepped down as deputy director of Gov. Tom Wolfs office of advocacy and reform, where he spent around two years working to make Pennsylvania a state that allows healing centers, among other initiatives.

Cabral is also a social worker and certified in therapies using MDMA and ketamine, which are already permitted in the state.

The therapies do not rely on heavy or even regular use of the drugs. Instead, patients take the drugs around three times over as many months paired with conversation and other sessions with therapists.

Cabral notes there are several barriers in getting Black and Brown men to participate in therapy at all, let alone ones with powerful mind-expanding drugs.

Part of our colonization as Latinos, and even Black and Brown communities, is that we were taught that our ancestral traditions and our cultural traditions and beliefs and spirituality were tied to demonic black magic, evil things, Cabral said. So, anything that doesnt fit the mold of the religions that we were handed by our colonizers usually gets the response of, this is something bad.

He is also working on a documentary about the power and utility of psychedelic therapy.

Cabral has said culturally informed therapy helped him and others overcome specific, nuanced trauma that comes with being a male of color, raised in an urban setting or being burdened with the pressure of becoming a first generation success story in a family of immigrants.

Francisco himself is a social worker who works in a behavioral health hospital with people who are often in the most difficult points of their lives.

He said his psychedelic experience has made him more compassionate and helped him empathize with himself and others.

I have moments like that with these individuals that are so pristine, enlightenment, its beautiful, Francisco said. That also brings healing to myself, if I could connect with individuals that are under a manic state of psychosis.

Francisco said the abuse and neglect he experienced as a child could have manifested in harmful ways. But he said is grateful to have been guided through transformative psychedelic treatment.

A lot of us males need to heal not through savagery but through tears and hugs and love, he said.

And, he said, sometimes you need to pass through dark and intimidating doorways to find resolution and peace.

Read more from our partners, WITF.

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Psychedelic therapy integral to ancient societies may be coming to Pennsylvania - 90.5 WESA

NEW YORK, March 14, 2022 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ --Today, The Bluntness reveals the BLUNTNESS/100, its inaugural list of the 100 most influential people in cannabis and psychedelics. The BLUNTNESS/100 showcases the people and companies who have impacted the cannabis industry primarily, and to a lesser but equally significant extent the psychedelics industry, in a positive and measurable way.

All of those included represent the driving thesis behind the compilation of the BLUNTNESS/100 list: it's not just enough to have money, or a position of power. A person must be doing something positive with their position, voice or public platform.

"The BLUNTNESS/100 provides our audience of canna-sseurs, canna-curious, cannabis professionals and psychedelic trailblazers a truly robust resource to find information about the people, companies and brands pushing the boundaries of the rapidly growing global cannabis and psychedelics industries," said Harrison Wise, Chairman and Publisher of The Bluntness. "We looked at connections, reputation, visibility and the outcomes where they have been involved over the last year and we also considered our own interactions with these pioneers, disruptors and influencers."

The 2022 BLUNTNESS/100 list, tributes, videos and photos will be rolled out over the next several weeks with the full list revealed on 4/20 and will be available at http://www.thebluntness.com/Bluntness100:

Of the 2022 BLUNTNESS/100 list, The Bluntness executive editor Gregory Frye shares, "It was not easy to carve down this inaugural list of the most influential people in cannabis to 100 entries. While there are hundreds more people who could have been included, this list features extraordinary people from around the world of cannabis and psychedelics working to build a better future, from athletes and entertainers striving to make cannabis more acceptable and inclusive to legacy operators and activists fighting for legalization, decriminalization and social equity.Those included on the list are disruptors, innovators, doers, iconoclasts, agitators, problemsolverspeople who in a year of crisis have leaped into action and continue to show both passion and resolve."

To stay apprised of the 2022 BLUNTNESS/100 list visit: https://www.thebluntness.com/Bluntness100 or subscribe to our weekly newsletter.

About The Bluntness

Headquartered in NYC, The Bluntness Inc., is one of the fastest growing independent digital media companies and 360 lifestyle brand that explores, examines and elevates cannabis & psychedelic culture, community & commerce. Since 2018, The Bluntness has served a sophisticated and engaged audience consisting of millions of motivated, passionate and productive adults who choose to enjoy cannabis and psychedelics as part of a balanced lifestyle. The Bluntness media properties feature original articles, interviews, video and photography covering a host of topics that appeal to diverse demographics such as business, health & wellness, food, travel, music, lifestyle and culture. For more information visit: http://www.thebluntness.com.

Media Contact

Harrison Wise, The Bluntness, Inc., 3479460469, news@thebluntness.com

SOURCE The Bluntness, Inc.

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The Bluntness Debuts The BLUNTNESS/100 Its Inaugural List of the 100 Most Influential People in Cannabis & Psychedelics - 69News WFMZ-TV

Former NFL offensive tackle Eben Britton has come a long way since the end of his football career in 2014. In his new book, The Eben Flow: Basic Tools To Transform Your Life, Britton takes readers on a journey through his mental, physical, and spiritual recovery, and offers them insights into the tools that helped get him there.

At a very young age, I saw [football] as this vehicle to transcend the darkness of my childhood, says Britton in a recent interview about his book with The Dales Report.

In the process of achieving this dream of playing in the NFL, I viewed football as this opportunity to show the world how big and scary and to be feared I was, and in the process of proving that to the world, I destroyed myself.

The Eben Flownot to be confused with Brittons podcast with the same namebegins with his life before football, details the state he found himself in after his career, and unpacks what it took to put his life back together after a lot of pain, a lot of suffering, and a lot of darkness, says the author.

Although the book covers seven concrete tools including things like breathwork, movement, healthy eating habits, and the use of plant medicine, Britton writes that thereis no magic pill or secret sauce, just ancient techniques distilled down to the nuts and bolts to help you optimize your life and live in your highest greatness.

Plant medicine has been such a profound healing modality for me in my life, he says. Whats really interesting about the athletes experience, especially if youre an athlete engaging in a very physical sport the day you step on the field, or you step into competition, is the day you stop emotionally developing.

Britton says that psychedelic plant medicines including ayahuasca helped him come to terms with the tidal wave of his life that had been put on hold while football was the priority.

Another medicine he used was kambo, a poisonous secretion from a frog that causes an intense physical purge. Watch the interview above to hear how profound the experience was for Britton, and about the changes it set in motion.

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Former NFL Player Eben Britton On His New Book, And The Tools He Used To Rebuild His Life (Including Psychedelics) - The Dales Report

Sunlight floods in from the Dunster fifth floors angled skylight as Max Ingersoll settles into his makeshift meditation space. He starts breathing in a cadence, focuses on how his body feels, and tries to imagine himself dying. As he thinks about his own life ending, he tries to make himself feel physically hotter. He imagines getting older with age and losing the things that make him happy.

To most people, Ingersoll acknowledges, visualizing this sense of loss is morbid. Why, and especially in a time of so much uncertainty, would anyone want to intentionally experience despair? To Ingersoll, however, this practice provides the opposite result.

Visualizing death is one of the five Buddhist subjects for daily recollection, colloquially known as the Five Reflections: aging, illness, death, separation, and accountability. The purpose of envisioning death is to anticipate and prepare for natures inevitable afflictions while developing an appreciation for lifes impermanence.

All these things are natural laws. They will happen. The idea is to accept these natural laws as inevitable It creates a ton of gratitude, and the more you do it, the more you appreciate it. You realize wow, Im not sick, and wow, I have my friends and my family that I love. Let me make the most out of that.

This practice of intentionally embodying pain is one of Ingersolls preferred methods of meditation. Another, he calls metta. The idea of metta, which Ingersoll argues is grossly undervalued throughout the mediation community, is about cultivating the intention for things to go well for yourself and for others. The practice considerably differs from that of envisioning pain, yet the outcomes are relatively similar. He compares it to the love that a grandparent would offer to their grandchild: Its not love through attachment its not trying to change someone elses life through love or positive thoughts, I just want to cultivate the way I think about someone else. May they be happy. May they be healthy.

Like the Five Reflections, metta meditation can promote self-compassion by reducing the temporary negative emotions that frequently cloud our perspective of ourselves and others. By fostering gratitude and empathy for individuals around you, this practice can transform both emotional and physical health. It promotes grace and recognition of everyday fortunes, and Ingersoll encourages everyone to try it.

By changing your mindset, you then treat other people differently, which then makes their situation better because they can feel that you want things to go well for them, Ingersoll comments. You become so much happier and can start breaking down the walls of the ego. The stronger the ego, the more separate you are from other people and the world, and thats when paranoia and envy come in.

Max Ingersoll grew up in Cambridge, Massachusetts, attending Graham and Parks, NuVu Studio, and Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School before coming to Harvard. He recounts loving sports as a child and developing a passion for art and philosophy as he entered high school. During his gap year, his appreciation towards meditation blossomed. After spending over three months at silent meditation retreats at the Insight Meditation Center in Massachusetts and a temple in Mahasi Sayadaw tradition in Thailand, Ingersoll recognized his passion for the activity and started incorporating it into his everyday life.

He continues to demonstrate this commitment to mental and emotional well-being as the co-president of the Harvard Psychedelics Club, where he promotes objective research into the mental health benefits of psychedelics. The clubs website recognizes research showing the ability of psychedelics to effectively treat seemingly intractable conditions such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) [MDMA], Treatment-Resistant Depression [Psilocybin], and Addiction [Psilocybin]. The club aims to use its credibility to garner support for education and decriminalization surrounding psychedelic medicines in the hope of promoting more responsible usage.

Ingersoll confirms the clubs firm policy against drug use at any events and argues that psychedelics should be treated with sincerity and respect. Through extensive research, conversation, and collaboration, the Psychedelics Club actively recognizes the role that psychedelics have played in Indigenous cultures practices and the potential they have in treating several medical conditions. The Psychedelics Club has hosted several events, including art shows and speakers, and is focused on creating a space on campus built around the values of mindfulness, inclusion, respect, and individual expression.

Marbella Marlo 24 (mmarlo@college.harvard.edu) is the Sports Editor for the Independent.

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Made by Marlo: Max Ingersoll and the Meaning of Meditation - Harvard Independent

Psychedelics, or psychedelic drugs, are substances whose primary action is to alter the cognition and perception of people who take them. According to Princeton University, psychedelics are part of a wider class of drugs called hallucinogens, which also includes dissociatives and deliriants. These drugs affect the senses and how people see the world.

Salvia divinorum is a psychedelic drug that is smoked for its out-of-body effects.

Psychedelic drugs each have different effects, depending on which type is taken, but they all share certain qualities. According to Columbia University, the effects also vary depending on where a user is experiencing them, their mood, expectations, and level of experience with the drug. The drugs effects can be different, for example, if someone is in a noisy and stressful situation like at a concert or party rather than at home or in a quieter setting. The sense of doubt or uncertainty someone may feel, especially someone who has never taken the drugs, can also affect their experience. This doubt could magnify into extreme anxiety and can be dangerous for the user.

Generally speaking psychedelics alter a users perception of space and time, as well as their thoughts and feelings.

Some commonly reported psychedelic effects include:

Some people who take psychedelic substances end up having a very distressing time while under their influence. This is referred to as a bad trip and can be very dangerous due to the alarming effects it causes. Bad trips are often brought on by fear or doubt in the beginning of the drug experience, or an unexpected event while the drugs are being felt. While that is true, there are no exact known causes of bad trips. Bad trips are associated with the following feelings:

The effects of psychedelics are largely unpredictable, which makes them dangerous. Hallucinations have been known to lead people to do very serious things, such as jumping off of roofs or running into traffic. Some people, however, report religious, spiritual, and enlightening experiences while using psychedelic drugs.

All psychedelic drugs would also been found on a list of hallucinogens, although not all hallucinogens are psychedelics. Some of the more commonly heard of forms of psychedelic drugs include:

Most of these substances are ingested, while a few are smoked. DMT and salvia divinorum are two of the substances that are sometimes smoked.

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What are Psychedelics?

As little is understood regarding the health and fitness pitfalls from using these medications, customers position on their own liable to an array of Negative effects, some of which include things like:

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. And that i wake sensation like Ive just been so Lively all evening so Im physically exhausted and having a heavy brainfog. Uncovered the same occurrence with kava though the desires were significantly less violent and I used to be able to recollect additional. Also felt much more rested.

A surge of startups are experimenting with different ways to make the most of psychedelics, featuring clinics or retreats, formulating novel molecules that behave in strategies just like basic psychedelics, and synthesizing plant-primarily based substances, Maybe to make more predictable or facet-result-cost-free journeys.

is really a plant that at first grew in forests in Mexico. It is among the strongest pure psychedelics. The psychoactive component in Salvia. On the other hand, its lucky this cactus is so massive, as its also one of the considerably less strong mescaline cacti, with only 0.24% in the plants pounds getting made up by mescaline.

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