Get Psychedelic Drug essential facts below. View Videos or join the Psychedelic Drug discussion. Add Psychedelic Drug to your PopFlock.com topic list for future reference or share this resource on social media.
Psychedelic Drug
Hallucinogenic class of psychoactive drug
Synthetic Mescaline. Normally biosynthesized from peyote and some other cacti. Mescaline was the first psychedelic compound to be extracted and isolated.[1]
Most psychedelic drugs fall into one of the three families of chemical compounds: tryptamines, phenethylamines, or lysergamides. These chemicals all bind to serotonin 5-HT2A receptors,[2] which modulate the activity of key circuits in the brain involved with sensory perception and cognition, however the exact nature of how psychedelics induce changes in perception and cognition via the 5-HT2A receptor is still unknown, although reduced default mode network activity is likely a primary mechanism of action.[3][4] The psychedelic experience is often compared to non-ordinary forms of consciousness such as those experienced in meditation,[5][6]mystical experiences,[7][8] and near-death experiences.[8] The phenomenon of ego dissolution is often described as a key feature of the psychedelic experience.[5][6][8]
Many psychedelic drugs are illegal worldwide under the UN conventions, with occasional exceptions for religious use or research contexts. Despite these controls, recreational use of psychedelics is common.[9][10] Legal barriers have made the scientific study of psychedelics more difficult. Research has been conducted, however, and studies show that psychedelics are physiologically safe and do not lead to addiction.[11][12] Studies conducted using psilocybin in a psychotherapeutic setting reveal that psychedelic drugs may assist with treating depression and alcohol addiction, and possibly also nicotine addiction.[13][14] Although further research is needed, existing results are showing that psychedelics may be useful for treating certain forms of psychopathology.[15][16][10]
Origin of the term
5-HT2A receptor
The term psychedelic is derived from the Greek words ? (psyche, "soul, mind") and (deloun, "to manifest"), hence "mind manifesting", the implication being that psychedelics can develop unused potentials of the human mind.[17] The word was coined in 1956 by British psychiatrist Humphry Osmond; the term was loathed by American ethnobotanistRichard Schultes but championed by American psychologist Timothy Leary.[18]
Aldous Huxley had suggested his own coinage phanerothyme (Greek phaneroein- "visible" and Greek thymos "soul", thus "visible soul") to Osmond in 1956.[19] Recently, the term entheogenic has come into use to denote the use of psychedelic drugs, as well as various other types of psychoactive substances, in a religious, spiritual, and mystical context.[20]
Mescaline is derived from the Mexican peyote and San Pedro cactus and produces similar effects to LSD.
DMT (N,N-Dimethyltryptamine) is structurally similar to psilocin, an alkaloid found in psilocybin mushrooms. It can be synthesised in the laboratory but is also a naturally occurring component of several plants.
DOM is a member of the DOx family of compounds which are known for their high potency, long duration, and mixture of psychedelic and stimulant effects.
2C-B (4-Bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenethylamine) is a psychedelic drug first synthesised in 1974. 2C-B is considered both a psychedelic and a mild empathogen/entactogen. 'Entactogen' means 'touching within' and is a term used by psychiatrists to classify MDMA and related drugs.
Peyote (Lophophora williamsii) is the most well-known and potent psychedelic cactus, although the smallest and slowest growing. Instead of growing upward to form a column, it grows as 'buttons' low to the ground. It has been used by Native Americans for over 5000 years.
25-NBOMe (N-methoxybenzyl) is the name for a series of drugs that have psychedelics effects. Reports indicate that there are a number of different versions of NBOMe available - all with differing effects.
Many of the currently known psychedelics are classified as having no accepted medical use in the United States.[24] However, in 2018 the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted breakthrough therapy designation for psilocybin-assisted therapy for treatment-resistant major depressive disorder.[25] In 2019, the FDA also granted breakthrough therapy designation for psilocybin therapy treating major depressive disorder more generally.[26][27]
Recreational
Recreational use of psychedelics is common.[9][10]
Microdosing
Psychedelic microdosing is the practice of using sub-threshold doses (microdoses) of psychedelics in an attempt to improve creativity, boost physical energy level, emotional balance, increase performance on problems-solving tasks and to treat anxiety, depression and addiction.[28][29] The practice of microdosing has become more widespread in the 21st century with more people claiming long-term benefits from the practice.[30][31]
Amides of lysergic acid are collectively known as lysergamides, and include a number of compounds with potent agonist and/or antagonist activity at various serotonin and dopamine receptors. LSD is one of many lysergamides. A wide range of lysergamides have emerged in recent years, inspired by existing scientific literature. Others, have appeared from chemical research.[41]1P-LSD is a derivative and functional analogue of LSD and a homologue of ALD-52. It modifies the LSD molecule by adding a propionyl group to the nitrogen molecule of LSD's indole.[42]
Psychedelic experiences
Although several attempts have been made, starting in the 19th and 20th centuries, to define common phenomenological structures of the effects produced by classic psychedelics, a universally accepted taxonomy does not yet exist.[43][44] At lower doses, features of psychedelic experiences include sensory alterations, such as the warping of surfaces, shape suggestibility, and color variations. Users often report intense colors that they have not previously experienced, and repetitive geometric shapes are common. Higher doses often cause intense and fundamental alterations of sensory perception, such as synesthesia or the experience of additional spatial or temporal dimensions.[45]
Classic psychedelics are considered to be those found in nature like psilocybin, DMT, mescaline, and LSD which is derived from naturally occurring ergotamine, and non-classic psychedelics are considered to be newer analogs and derivatives of pharmacophore lysergamides, tryptamine, and phenethylamine structures like 2C-B. Many of these psychedelics cause remarkably similar effects, despite their different chemical structure. However, many users report that the three major families have subjectively different qualities in the "feel" of the experience, which are difficult to describe. Some compounds, such as 2C-B, have extremely tight "dose curves", meaning the difference in dose between a non-event and an overwhelming disconnection from reality can be very slight. There can also be very substantial differences between the drugs; for instance, 5-MeO-DMT rarely produces the visual effects typical of other psychedelics.[] Tryptamines are well documented to cause classic psychedelic states, such as increased empathy, visual distorsions (drifting, morphing, breathing, melting of various surfaces and objects), auditory hallucinations, ego dissolution or ego death with high enough dose, mystical and spiritual experiences, closed eye hallucinations and complete detachment from reality with a high enough dose.[46]
Potential adverse effects
Despite the contrary perception of much of the public, psychedelic drugs are not addictive and are physiologically safe.[11][12][13] As of 2016, there have been no known deaths due to overdose of LSD, psilocybin, or mescaline.[13]
Risks do exist during an unsupervised psychedelic experience, however. Ira Byock wrote in 2018 in the Journal of Palliative Medicine that psilocybin is safe when administered to a properly screened patient and supervised by a qualified professional with appropriate set and setting. However, he called for an "abundance of caution" because in the absence of these conditions a range of negative reactions are possible, including "fear, a prolonged sense of dread, or full panic." He notes that driving or even walking in public can be dangerous during a psychedelic experience because of impaired hand-eye coordination and fine motor control.[47] In some cases, individuals taking psychedelics have performed dangerous or fatal acts because they believed they possessed superhuman powers.[13]
The usage of psilocybin entails a risk of eliciting lasting flashbacks of the drug experience (see hallucinogen persisting perception disorder).[48] Psilocybin-induced states of mind share features with states experienced in psychosis, and while a causal relationship between psilocybin and the onset of psychosis has not been established as of 2011, researchers have called for investigation of the relationship.[48] A population study on associations between psychedelic use and mental illness published in 2013 found no evidence that psychedelic use was associated with increased prevalence of any mental illness.[49]
Potential therapeutic effects
Psychedelic substances which may have therapeutic uses include psilocybin, LSD, and mescaline.[16] During the 1950s and 1960s, lack of informed consent in some scientific trials on psychedelics led to significant, long-lasting harm to some participants.[16] Since then, research regarding the effectiveness of psychedelic therapy has been conducted under strict ethical guidelines, with fully informed consent and a pre-screening to avoid people with psychosis taking part.[16] Although the history behind these substances has hindered research into their potential medicinal value, scientists are now able to conduct studies and renew research that was halted in the 1970s. Some research has shown that these substances have helped people with such mental disorders as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), alcoholism, depression, and cluster headaches.[10]
It has long been known that psychedelics promote neurite growth and synaptic plasticity.[50][51][52] Psychedelics have also been shown to have potent anti-inflammatory activity and therapeutic effects in animal models of inflammatory diseases including asthma,[53] and cardiovascular disease and diabetes.[54]
Legal status
Many psychedelics are classified under Schedule I of the United Nations Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971 as drugs with the greatest potential to cause harm and no acceptable medical uses.[55] In addition, many countries have analogue laws; for example, in the United States, the Federal Analogue Act of 1986 automatically forbids any drugs sharing similar chemical structures or chemical formulas to illicit or prohibited substances if sold for human consumption.[]
^R. R. Griffiths; W. A. Richards; U. McCann; R. Jesse (7 July 2006). "Psilocybin can occasion mystical-type experiences having substantial and sustained personal meaning and spiritual significance". Psychopharmacology. 187 (3): 268-283. doi:10.1007/s00213-006-0457-5. PMID16826400. S2CID7845214.
^ abLe Dain, Gerald (1971). The Non-medical Use of Drugs: Interim Report of the Canadian Government's Commission of Inquiry. p. 106. Physical dependence does not develop to LSD
^Friedman, Harris (2006). "The Renewal of Psychedelic Research: Implications for Humanistic and Transpersonal Psychology". The Humanistic Psychologist. 34 (1): 39-58. doi:10.1207/s15473333thp3401_5. ISSN1547-3333.
^A. Weil, W. Rosen. (1993), From Chocolate To Morphine: Everything You Need To Know About Mind-Altering Drugs. New York, Houghton Mifflin Company. p. 93
^W. Davis (1996), "One River: Explorations and Discoveries in the Amazon Rain Forest". New York, Simon and Schuster, Inc. p. 120.
^Webb M, Copes H, Hendricks PS (August 2019). "Narrative identity, rationality, and microdosing classic psychedelics". The International Journal on Drug Policy. 70: 33-39. doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2019.04.013. PMID31071597.
^Wölfel, Reinhard; Graefe, Karl-Heinz (February 1992). "Evidence for various tryptamines and related compounds acting as substrates of the platelet 5-hydroxytryptamine transporter". Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Archives of Pharmacology. 345 (2): 129-136. doi:10.1007/BF00165727. ISSN0028-1298. PMID1570019. S2CID2984583.
^Shimazu, Seiichiro; Miklya, Ildikó (May 2004). "Pharmacological studies with endogenous enhancer substances-phenylethylamine, tryptamine, and their synthetic derivatives". Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry. 28 (3): 421-427. doi:10.1016/j.pnpbp.2003.11.016. PMID15093948. S2CID37564231.
^Little, Karley Y.; Krolewski, David M.; Zhang, Lian; Cassin, Bader J. (January 2003). "Loss of Striatal Vesicular Monoamine Transporter Protein (VMAT2) in Human Cocaine Users". American Journal of Psychiatry. 160 (1): 47-55. doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.160.1.47. ISSN0002-953X. PMID12505801.
^Brandt, Simon D.; Kavanagh, Pierce V.; Westphal, Folker; Stratford, Alexander; Odland, Anna U.; Klein, Adam K.; Dowling, Geraldine; Dempster, Nicola M.; Wallach, Jason; Passie, Torsten; Halberstadt, Adam L. (2020-04-20). "Return of the lysergamides. Part VI: Analytical and behavioural characterization of 1-cyclopropanoyl- d -lysergic acid diethylamide (1CP-LSD)". Drug Testing and Analysis. 12 (6): 812-826. doi:10.1002/dta.2789. ISSN1942-7603. PMID32180350.
^Preller, Katrin H.; Vollenweider, Franz X. (2016). "Phenomenology, Structure, and Dynamic of Psychedelic States". In Adam L. Halberstadt; Franz X. Vollenweider; David E. Nichols (eds.). Behavioral Neurobiology of Psychedelic Drugs. Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences. 36. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg. pp. 221-256. doi:10.1007/7854_2016_459. ISBN978-3-662-55878-2. PMID28025814.
^Rucker, James J. H. (2015). "Psychedelic drugs should be legally reclassified so that researchers can investigate their therapeutic potential". British Medical Journal. 350: h2902. doi:10.1136/bmj.h2902. S2CID46510541.
^Hicks, Michael (15 January 2000). Sixties Rock: Garage, Psychedelic, and Other Satisfactions. Chicago, IL: University of Illinois Press. pp. 63-64. ISBN0-252-06915-3.
^Krippner, Stanley (2017). "Ecstatic Landscapes: The Manifestation of Psychedelic Art". Journal of Humanistic Psychology. 57 (4): 415-435. doi:10.1177/0022167816671579. S2CID151517152.
^Gallagher, Mark (2004). "Tripped Out: The Psychedelic Film and Masculinity". Quarterly Review of Film and Video. 21 (3): 161-171. doi:10.1080/10509200490437817. S2CID191583864.