Author Topic: Rick Perry returns to the Texas Capitol to pitch study of psychedelic drugs for PTSD in veterans  (Read 254 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Online Elderberry

  • TBR Contributor
  • *****
  • Posts: 24,284
Texas Tribune by Patrick Svitek April 13, 2021

The former Republican governor is throwing his weight behind a bill by state Rep. Alex Dominguez, D-Brownsville, that would order a clinical study of using psilocybin — found in "magic mushrooms" — to help veterans with mental health problems.

Rick Perry, in a rare return to policy debates in Austin, is teaming up with a Democratic state lawmaker to push for psychedelic drug therapy for veterans struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder.

The former Republican governor is throwing his support behind a bill by state Rep. Alex Dominguez, D-Brownsville, that calls for a clinical study of psilocybin — the active ingredient in "magic mushrooms" — to treat PTSD in veterans.

"To me, this may be one of the most hopeful pieces of legislation that the members of the Legislature have the opportunity to consider this session," Perry said in an interview Tuesday.

More: https://www.texastribune.org/2021/04/13/veterans-ptsd-psychedelics-texas/

Online Elderberry

  • TBR Contributor
  • *****
  • Posts: 24,284
Psychedelic experience may not be required for psilocybin's antidepressant-like benefits

EurekAlert! News Release 13-Apr-2021

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2021-04/uoms-pem041321.php

Quote
University of Maryland School of Medicine

Research News

University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) researchers have shown that psilocybin--the active chemical in "magic mushrooms"-- still works its antidepressant-like actions, at least in mice, even when the psychedelic experience is blocked. The new findings suggest that psychedelic drugs work in multiple ways in the brain and it may be possible to deliver the fast-acting antidepressant therapeutic benefit without requiring daylong guided therapy sessions. A version of the drug without, or with less of, the psychedelic effects could loosen restrictions on who could receive the therapy, and lower costs, making the benefits of psilocybin more available to more people in need.

In all clinical trials performed to date, the person treated with psilocybin remains under the care of a guide, who keeps the person calm and reassures them during their daylong experience. This can include hallucinations, altered perception of time and space, and intense emotional and spiritual encounters.

Researchers in the field have long attributed psilocybin's effectiveness to the intense psychedelic experience.

"We do not understand the mechanisms that underlie the antidepressant actions of psilocybin and the role that the profound psychedelic experience during these sessions plays in the therapeutic benefits," says Scott Thompson, Ph.D., Professor and Chair, Department of Physiology at UMSOM and senior author of the study. "The psychedelic experience is incredibly powerful and can be life-changing, but that could be too much for some people or not appropriate."

More at link.