tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7772182113499451603.post2083190404815694441..comments2024-03-27T10:50:53.692-05:00Comments on Real Psychiatry: Are Hallucinogens The New Miracle Drugs?George Dawson, MD, DFAPAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03474899831557543486noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7772182113499451603.post-26481668090552380002016-06-04T11:04:03.825-05:002016-06-04T11:04:03.825-05:00I am cautiously optimistic on MDMA for certain ill...I am cautiously optimistic on MDMA for certain illnesses in certain patients and certain settings. Much of this is simply clinical frustration with resistance in a health system that simply will not give you the time and money that was available during the Chestnut Lodge days, and let's face it, Chestnut Lodge didn't exactly prove it's worth in double blind clinical trials.<br /><br />With MDMA it's not really the hallucinogenic aspect but the oxytocin boost that is important to loosening people up in therapy. Besides, PTSD is so hard to treat, and FDA approved drugs don't really work that well.<br /><br />I would like to see this research continued. At the same time, recreational ecstasy use at raves is an incredibly bad idea (especially in young women) because it lowers defensiveness and one's BS meter at a time these faculties need to really be on high alert. Not to mention the problem of street drug toxicity. James O'Brien, M.D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/14994350319492582321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7772182113499451603.post-3626385406573353812016-06-03T21:51:17.981-05:002016-06-03T21:51:17.981-05:00Thanks for the great post. As a student, hallucino...Thanks for the great post. As a student, hallucinogens are often quickly glossed over when we are taught the different classes of toxic/addictive substances. <br /><br />While I am on board with most of your arguments, I still like the idea of a potential use as a psychotherapeutic adjunct. There, we have an actual symptom or syndrome target, and a specific treatment goal. Just because a healthcare system is not delivering the standard of care, doesn't mean it's still not a valid research question, because even the standard of care psychotherapies when give could use some boosting, especially for treatment resistant cases. I've read a bit about sodium amybarbital interviews which seemed to have been legit practice in the past, but now is rarely done for reasons I'm not sure of, but it sounded like it had it's merits and demonstrated benefits. <br /><br />It also reminds me of the literature out there that shows how medication and psychotherapy combined is better than either one alone, which makes me wonder if certain medications are acting as adjuncts to the psychotherapeutic process. In this way, perhaps hallucinogens can be used in the same way. "Expanding consciousness" is a vague measure for sure, but measured or assessed another way it can perhaps be shown to decrease rigid thinking (cognitive inflexibility), lack of insight, or fear/anxiety not responsive to other medications. Victor Marknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7772182113499451603.post-16238789978108924042016-06-03T13:06:14.554-05:002016-06-03T13:06:14.554-05:00Apparently there is no such thing as a bad trip an...Apparently there is no such thing as a bad trip anymore. It must have been a reaction that only hippies were susceptible to.George Dawson, MD, DFAPAhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03474899831557543486noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7772182113499451603.post-65962803205253280752016-06-03T09:32:58.186-05:002016-06-03T09:32:58.186-05:00Having myself been going to school in Berkeley dur...Having myself been going to school in Berkeley during the height of Haight Ashbury (before the media even discovered it) in 1966-1967, I have to ask: Doesn't anyone remember the term "bad trip?" People often had horrible experiences with LSD.David M. Allen M.D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/06280912088483192599noreply@blogger.com