Scientific Research
Mark Haden – Illicit Drugs: A Public Health Aproach
Haden will explore the history and current research and possible future regulation of psychedelics. He will begin with an overview of indigenous history then explore the history in Canada and why psychedelics were criminalized.
The current psychedelic research renaissance with a focus of the MDMA MAPS study will be explored. Finally, a proposal for legalization of psychedelics will be detailed.
By Jan Hoffman
On a summer morning in 2013, Octavian Mihai entered a softly lit room furnished with a small statue of Buddha, a box of tissues and a single red rose. From an earthenware chalice, he swallowed a capsule of psilocybin, an ingredient found in hallucinogenic mushrooms.
Then he put on an eye mask and headphones and lay down on a couch.
Read from the original source The New York Times
Mark Haden | Psychoactive Therapy
Mark Haden discusses the creative uses for psychoactive drug use for therapeutic purposes.
A New Understanding: the Science of Psilocybin
What if we had a microscope for observing the mind, a telescope for seeing the soul? A New Understanding: The Science of Psilocybin follows research meant to produce that tool and provide effective new treatments for depression and the existential distress of the terminally ill. In the early
MDMA Therapy and Healing
MDMA The Movie is an upcoming full-length feature documentary by Viveka Films. Produced and directed by DanceSafe founder, Emanuel Sferios, MDMA The Movie explores the medical and recreational use of this unique drug, emphasizing its role in the treatment of PTSD and advocating harm reduction as an appropriate public health-based alternative to prohibition. This YouTube channel will present clips from interviews done during the making of the film. The clips may or may not appear in the final version of the film.
Around 40-50% of newly-diagnosed cancer patients suffer some sort of depression or anxiety. Antidepressants have little effect, particularly on the “existential” depression that can lead some to feel their lives are meaningless, and to contemplate suicide.
The research has shown that Psilocybin produced significant decreases in clinician-rated and self-rated measures of depression, anxiety and mood disturbance, and increases in quality of life, death acceptance and optimism; effects sustained for at least six months.
Addiction to alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs is the leading preventable cause of death and disability globally; the economic costs of substance use disorders are over half a trillion dollars per year in the US alone, including factors like health care costs, lost productivity, crime, and law enforcement.
The psychedelic method, rather than emphasizing resolution of childhood conflicts or traumatic experiences, used higher doses of hallucinogens. Administered on one or a few occasions with the goal of inducing a “mystical” experience, they often induced lasting change in habitual patterns of thought, emotional response, and behavior.
PTSD is a debilitating anxiety disorder characterized by re-experiencing, hyperarousal and avoidance symptoms. In the US, the lifetime prevalence of PTSD in the general population is between 6% and 10%. Existing therapies for PTSD are ineffective for 25-50% of patients in clinical trials.
Preliminary studies have shown that MDMA, in conjunction with psychotherapy, can help people overcome PTSD, and possibly other disorders as well. MDMA is known for increasing feelings of trust and compassion towards others, which could make an ideal adjunct to psychotherapy for PTSD.
Taking entheogens can be like air travel: people do it all the time, it’s usually fine, but when it’s not fine, it’s sometimes very bad. We’ve been there. And that’s where an experienced GUIDE can make the difference in the outcome.
I’m available by phone if you or someone you know wants to ask questions of ANY nature. Use this link to schedule a call HERE.