Worth the Trip: Psychedelics as an emerging tool for psychotherapy
What are psychedelics and why is everyone talking about them?
As your eyes close, a kaleidoscopic vision engulfs your entire field of experience, filled with pattern, color, and sense of deep meaning. Thirty minutes ago you were given a controlled dose of a potent, and illegal, hallucinogenic compound—all in the name of science. Months from now, you will say that this was one of the most profound experiences of your life.1 You have joined a small but growing number of human subjects participating in an exciting new wave of research. The aim of this work is to understand how an infamous class of mind-altering substances—psychedelics—may actually be a powerful tool for treating certain forms of psychological suffering.
Psychedelics are a special class of substances known for the vivid perceptual and cognitive changes they induce. Most are classified as Schedule I controlled substances. Legally, this means the U.S. federal government believes they have a high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use, and are unsafe to consume even under…
