From the SF Chronicle:
Psilocybin, or "magic mushrooms," can make people more open in their feelings and aesthetic sensibilities, conferring on them a lasting personality change, according to a study by Johns Hopkins researchers.
People who had mystic experiences while taking the mushrooms were more likely to show increases in a personality trait dubbed "openness," which is related to creativity, artistic appreciation and curiosity, according to the study in the Journal of Psychopharmacology. The change was still in place a year later, suggesting a long-term effect.
"The remarkable piece is that psilocybin can facilitate experiences that change how people perceive themselves and their environment," said Roland Griffiths, a study author and professor of psychiatry and behavioral science at Johns Hopkins University of Medicine in Baltimore. "That's unprecedented."
Magic mushrooms, also known as "shrooms," are hallucinogens native to tropical and subtropical regions of South America, Mexico and the U.S. The fungi were favored by former Harvard psychologist Timothy Leary, who founded the Harvard Psilocybin Project, and explored by '60s writer and anthropologist Carlos Castaneda. They are typically eaten but can also be dried and smoked or made into a tea.
Openness is one of five major personality factors known to be constant throughout multiple cultures, heritable in families and largely unvarying throughout a person's lifetime. The other four factors, extroversion, neuroticism, agreeableness and conscientiousness, were unchanged by being dosed with the hallucinogenic mushrooms, the study found. This is the first finding of a short-term intervention providing a long-term personality change, researchers said.
Mystical Experiences
The 51 participants, who had an average age of 46, completed two to five eight-hour drug sessions at least three weeks apart. They were asked to lie down on a couch, use an eye mask and listen to music on headphones while focusing on an inner experience. Their personalities were screened initially, one to two months after each drug session and about a year after the last trip.
In the test, 30 people had a mystical experience, as established by a set of psychological scales. On tests of major personality traits, their openness scores rose, suggesting a greater interest in imagination, aesthetics, feelings, ideas and values. The 22 patients who didn't have a mystical experience showed no change...
Magic Mushrooms Can Make Lasting Personality Changes, Study Says
Elizabeth Lopatto, Bloomberg News
Thursday, September 29, 2011
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2011/09/29/bloomberg_articlesLS96451A74E9.DTL
Showing posts with label Mushrooms. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mushrooms. Show all posts
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Monday, August 15, 2011
Konformist Book Club: The Psilocybin Solution
The Role of Sacred Mushrooms in the Quest for Meaning Simon G. Powell
Pages : 272
Pub Date : 2011
Publisher : Park Street Press
ISBN : 9781594774058
http://www.erowid.org/library/books/psilocybin_solution.shtml
It has been more than 50 years since sacred mushrooms were plucked from the shamanic backwaters of Mexico and presented to the modern world by R. Gordon Wasson. After sparking the psychedelic era of the 1960s, however, the divine mushroom returned underground from whence it mysteriously originated. Yet today, the mushroom's extraordinary influence is once again being felt by large numbers of people, due to the discovery of hundreds of wild psilocybin species growing across the globe.
In The Psilocybin Solution, Simon G. Powell traces the history of the sacred psilocybin mushroom and discusses the shamanic visionary effects it can induce. Detailing how psilocybin acts as a profound enhancer of consciousness and reviewing the research performed by the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), Johns Hopkins University, and the Heffter Research Institute on psilocybin's ability to dispel anxiety in the terminally ill and its helpful effects on obsessive-compulsive disorder, he examines the neurochemistry, psychology, and spirituality underlying the visionary psilocybin experience, revealing the interface where physical brain and conscious mind meet. Showing that the existence of life and the functioning of mind are the result of a naturally intelligent, self-organizing Universe, he explains how sacred mushrooms provide a direct link to the wisdom of Nature and the meaning of life.
BLURBS
"Simon G. Powell has crafted a magnificent, multifaceted argument for the reintegration of psychedelics into science, culture, psychotherapy, and religion to inspire our unbalanced species before we 'push the biosphere into total decline.' The Psilocybin Solution persuasively illuminates the profound social value of large numbers of people experiencing communion with and direct personal perception of Nature as a single system of self-organizing intelligence. A massive accomplishment!"
-- Rick Doblin, Ph.D., founder and president of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Simon G. Powell is a writer, musician, and filmmaker with an avid interest in the biosphere and psychoactive fungi. He lives in London.
Pages : 272
Pub Date : 2011
Publisher : Park Street Press
ISBN : 9781594774058
http://www.erowid.org/library/books/psilocybin_solution.shtml
It has been more than 50 years since sacred mushrooms were plucked from the shamanic backwaters of Mexico and presented to the modern world by R. Gordon Wasson. After sparking the psychedelic era of the 1960s, however, the divine mushroom returned underground from whence it mysteriously originated. Yet today, the mushroom's extraordinary influence is once again being felt by large numbers of people, due to the discovery of hundreds of wild psilocybin species growing across the globe.
In The Psilocybin Solution, Simon G. Powell traces the history of the sacred psilocybin mushroom and discusses the shamanic visionary effects it can induce. Detailing how psilocybin acts as a profound enhancer of consciousness and reviewing the research performed by the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), Johns Hopkins University, and the Heffter Research Institute on psilocybin's ability to dispel anxiety in the terminally ill and its helpful effects on obsessive-compulsive disorder, he examines the neurochemistry, psychology, and spirituality underlying the visionary psilocybin experience, revealing the interface where physical brain and conscious mind meet. Showing that the existence of life and the functioning of mind are the result of a naturally intelligent, self-organizing Universe, he explains how sacred mushrooms provide a direct link to the wisdom of Nature and the meaning of life.
BLURBS
"Simon G. Powell has crafted a magnificent, multifaceted argument for the reintegration of psychedelics into science, culture, psychotherapy, and religion to inspire our unbalanced species before we 'push the biosphere into total decline.' The Psilocybin Solution persuasively illuminates the profound social value of large numbers of people experiencing communion with and direct personal perception of Nature as a single system of self-organizing intelligence. A massive accomplishment!"
-- Rick Doblin, Ph.D., founder and president of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Simon G. Powell is a writer, musician, and filmmaker with an avid interest in the biosphere and psychoactive fungi. He lives in London.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Shrooming Is Good for You
From Time.com:
The psychedelic drug in magic mushrooms may have lasting medical and spiritual benefits, according to new research from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
The mushroom-derived hallucinogen, called psilocybin, is known to trigger transformative spiritual states, but at high doses it can also result in "bad trips" marked by terror and panic. The trick is to get the dose just right, which the Johns Hopkins researchers report having accomplished.
In their study, the Hopkins scientists were able to reliably induce transcendental experiences in volunteers, which offered long-lasting psychological growth and helped people find peace in their lives — without the negative effects.
"The important point here is that we found the sweet spot where we can optimize the positive persistent effects and avoid some of the fear and anxiety that can occur and can be quite disruptive," says lead author Roland Griffiths, professor of behavioral biology at Hopkins.
Giffiths' study involved 18 healthy adults, average age 46, who participated in five eight-hour drug sessions with either psilocybin — at varying doses — or placebo. Nearly all the volunteers were college graduates and 78% participated regularly in religious activities; all were interested in spiritual experience.
Fourteen months after participating in the study, 94% of those who received the drug said the experiment was one of the top five most meaningful experiences of their lives; 39% said it was the single most meaningful experience.
Critically, however, the participants themselves were not the only ones who saw the benefit from the insights they gained: their friends, family member and colleagues also reported that the psilocybin experience had made the participants calmer, happier and kinder.
Ultimately, Griffiths and his colleagues want to see if the same kind of psychedelic experience could help ease anxiety and fear over the long term in cancer patients or others facing death. And following up on tantalizing clues from early research on hallucinogenic drugs like LSD, mescaline and psilocybin in the 1960s (which are all now illegal), researchers are also studying whether transcendental experiences could help spur recovery from addiction and treat other psychological problems like depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
For Griffiths' current experiment, participants were housed in a living room-like setting designed to be calm, comfortable and attractive. While under the influence, they listened to classical music on headphones, wore eyeshades and were instructed to "direct their attention inward."
Each participant was accompanied by two other research-team members: a "monitor" and an "assistant monitor," who both had previous experience with people on psychedelic drugs and were empathetic and supportive. Before the drug sessions, the volunteers became acquainted enough with their team so that they felt familiar and safe. Although the experiments took place in the Hopkins hospital complex in order to ensure prompt medical attention in the event that it was needed, it never was.
As described by early advocates of the use of psychedelics — from ancient shamans to Timothy Leary and the Grateful Dead — the psilocybin experience typically involves a sense of oneness with the universe and with others, a feeling of transcending time, space and other limitations, coupled with a sense of holiness and sacredness. Overwhelmingly, these experiences are difficult to put into words, but many of Griffiths' participants said they were left with the sense that they understood themselves and others better and therefore had greater compassion and patience.
'Magic Mushrooms' Can Improve Psychological Health Long Term
Maia Szalavitz
Thursday, June 16, 2011
http://healthland.time.com/2011/06/16/magic-mushrooms-can-improve-psychological-health-long-term
The psychedelic drug in magic mushrooms may have lasting medical and spiritual benefits, according to new research from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
The mushroom-derived hallucinogen, called psilocybin, is known to trigger transformative spiritual states, but at high doses it can also result in "bad trips" marked by terror and panic. The trick is to get the dose just right, which the Johns Hopkins researchers report having accomplished.
In their study, the Hopkins scientists were able to reliably induce transcendental experiences in volunteers, which offered long-lasting psychological growth and helped people find peace in their lives — without the negative effects.
"The important point here is that we found the sweet spot where we can optimize the positive persistent effects and avoid some of the fear and anxiety that can occur and can be quite disruptive," says lead author Roland Griffiths, professor of behavioral biology at Hopkins.
Giffiths' study involved 18 healthy adults, average age 46, who participated in five eight-hour drug sessions with either psilocybin — at varying doses — or placebo. Nearly all the volunteers were college graduates and 78% participated regularly in religious activities; all were interested in spiritual experience.
Fourteen months after participating in the study, 94% of those who received the drug said the experiment was one of the top five most meaningful experiences of their lives; 39% said it was the single most meaningful experience.
Critically, however, the participants themselves were not the only ones who saw the benefit from the insights they gained: their friends, family member and colleagues also reported that the psilocybin experience had made the participants calmer, happier and kinder.
Ultimately, Griffiths and his colleagues want to see if the same kind of psychedelic experience could help ease anxiety and fear over the long term in cancer patients or others facing death. And following up on tantalizing clues from early research on hallucinogenic drugs like LSD, mescaline and psilocybin in the 1960s (which are all now illegal), researchers are also studying whether transcendental experiences could help spur recovery from addiction and treat other psychological problems like depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
For Griffiths' current experiment, participants were housed in a living room-like setting designed to be calm, comfortable and attractive. While under the influence, they listened to classical music on headphones, wore eyeshades and were instructed to "direct their attention inward."
Each participant was accompanied by two other research-team members: a "monitor" and an "assistant monitor," who both had previous experience with people on psychedelic drugs and were empathetic and supportive. Before the drug sessions, the volunteers became acquainted enough with their team so that they felt familiar and safe. Although the experiments took place in the Hopkins hospital complex in order to ensure prompt medical attention in the event that it was needed, it never was.
As described by early advocates of the use of psychedelics — from ancient shamans to Timothy Leary and the Grateful Dead — the psilocybin experience typically involves a sense of oneness with the universe and with others, a feeling of transcending time, space and other limitations, coupled with a sense of holiness and sacredness. Overwhelmingly, these experiences are difficult to put into words, but many of Griffiths' participants said they were left with the sense that they understood themselves and others better and therefore had greater compassion and patience.
'Magic Mushrooms' Can Improve Psychological Health Long Term
Maia Szalavitz
Thursday, June 16, 2011
http://healthland.time.com/2011/06/16/magic-mushrooms-can-improve-psychological-health-long-term
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Dutch ban famed hallucinatory mushrooms
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071012/ap_on_re_eu/netherlands_magic_mushrooms
Dutch ban famed hallucinatory mushrooms
By TOBY STERLING, Associated Press Writer
10-12-7
The Dutch government said Friday that it will ban the sale of hallucinatory mushrooms, rolling back one element of the country's permissive drug policy after a series of high-profile negative incidents.
The decision will go into effect within several months and doesn't need parliamentary approval, Justice Ministry spokesman Wim van der Weegen said.
"We intend to forbid the sale of 'magic' mushrooms," he said. "That means shops caught doing so will be closed."
Under the country's famed tolerance policy, marijuana and hashish are technically illegal but police don't bother to prosecute people for possession of small amounts, and they are sold openly in designated cafes.
Possession of "hard" drugs like cocaine and Ecstasy is illegal.
Psilocybin, the main active chemical in the mushrooms, has been illegal under international law since 1971. However, mushrooms that are fresh and unprocessed in any way have continued to be sold legally in the Netherlands, on the theory that it was impossible to determine how much of the naturally occurring substance any given mushroom contains.
Mushrooms will fall somewhere in the middle of the Dutch legality scale.
"We're not talking about a non-prosecution policy, but we'll be targeting sellers," Van der Weegen said.
Van der Weegen said that, in the end, that was also the reason the policy proved unworkable.
"The problem with mushrooms is that their effect is unpredictable. It's impossible to estimate what amount will have what effect."
Calls for a re-evaluation arose after a French 17-year-old, Gaelle Caroff, jumped from a building after eating psychedelic mushrooms while on a school visit to Amsterdam.
Caroff's parents blamed her death on hallucinations brought on by the mushrooms, though the teenager had suffered from psychiatric problems in the past. Her photographs was splashed across newspapers around the country.
Since Caroff's death, other dramatic stories involving mushrooms have been reported in the Dutch press, though mushroom vendors complained that each of the cases involved tourists who were using other drugs and alcohol at the same time — against their usage instructions for mushrooms.
The users include:
• A British tourist, 22, who ran amok in a hotel, breaking his window and slicing his hand badly.
• An Icelandic tourist, 19, who thought he was being chased and jumped from a balcony, breaking both his legs.
• A Danish tourist, 29, who drove his car wildly through a campground, narrowly missing people sleeping in their tents.
Amsterdam mayor Job Cohen had suggested a 3-day "cooling off" period between ordering them and using them. Most mushrooms sold in Amsterdam are sold to tourists, and the city's reputation for liberal drug policies and legalized prostitution are major tourist attractions.
Dutch ban famed hallucinatory mushrooms
By TOBY STERLING, Associated Press Writer
10-12-7
The Dutch government said Friday that it will ban the sale of hallucinatory mushrooms, rolling back one element of the country's permissive drug policy after a series of high-profile negative incidents.
The decision will go into effect within several months and doesn't need parliamentary approval, Justice Ministry spokesman Wim van der Weegen said.
"We intend to forbid the sale of 'magic' mushrooms," he said. "That means shops caught doing so will be closed."
Under the country's famed tolerance policy, marijuana and hashish are technically illegal but police don't bother to prosecute people for possession of small amounts, and they are sold openly in designated cafes.
Possession of "hard" drugs like cocaine and Ecstasy is illegal.
Psilocybin, the main active chemical in the mushrooms, has been illegal under international law since 1971. However, mushrooms that are fresh and unprocessed in any way have continued to be sold legally in the Netherlands, on the theory that it was impossible to determine how much of the naturally occurring substance any given mushroom contains.
Mushrooms will fall somewhere in the middle of the Dutch legality scale.
"We're not talking about a non-prosecution policy, but we'll be targeting sellers," Van der Weegen said.
Van der Weegen said that, in the end, that was also the reason the policy proved unworkable.
"The problem with mushrooms is that their effect is unpredictable. It's impossible to estimate what amount will have what effect."
Calls for a re-evaluation arose after a French 17-year-old, Gaelle Caroff, jumped from a building after eating psychedelic mushrooms while on a school visit to Amsterdam.
Caroff's parents blamed her death on hallucinations brought on by the mushrooms, though the teenager had suffered from psychiatric problems in the past. Her photographs was splashed across newspapers around the country.
Since Caroff's death, other dramatic stories involving mushrooms have been reported in the Dutch press, though mushroom vendors complained that each of the cases involved tourists who were using other drugs and alcohol at the same time — against their usage instructions for mushrooms.
The users include:
• A British tourist, 22, who ran amok in a hotel, breaking his window and slicing his hand badly.
• An Icelandic tourist, 19, who thought he was being chased and jumped from a balcony, breaking both his legs.
• A Danish tourist, 29, who drove his car wildly through a campground, narrowly missing people sleeping in their tents.
Amsterdam mayor Job Cohen had suggested a 3-day "cooling off" period between ordering them and using them. Most mushrooms sold in Amsterdam are sold to tourists, and the city's reputation for liberal drug policies and legalized prostitution are major tourist attractions.
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