Exploring ayahuasca-assisted therapy for addiction: A qualitative analysis of preliminary findings among an Indigenous community in Canada Elena ARGENTO, Rielle CAPLER, Gerald THOMAS, Philippe LUCAS & Kenneth W. TUPPER Drug and Alcohol Review, 2019 Doi : 10.1111/dar.12985 Abstract Introduction and Aims. A previous observational study of ayahuasca-assisted therapy demonstrated statistically significant reductions in self-reported problematic cocaine use among members of an Indigenous community in Canada. This paper aims to qualitatively explore the impact of ayahuasca assisted therapy on addiction and other substance use-related outcomes and elucidate the lived experiences of participants. Design and Methods. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 11 adult Indigenous participants of the ayahuasca-assisted [...]
Lire la suiteAn ontology of psychedelic entity experiences in evolutionary psychology and neurophenomenology Michael James WINKELMAN Journal of Psychedelic Studies, 2018. Doi : 10.1556/2054.2018.002 Background and aims : Psychedelic entity experiences are examined from perspectives of evolutionary psychology and neurophenomenology. Their similarities with other entity experiences illustrate the need for a general biological explanation of entity experiences. Mechanisms are proposed to involve innate modules, operators, and intelligences that underlie ordinary cognitive inferences and provide the basis for supernatural thought. Methods : Comparisons of ayahuasca and dimethyltryptamine (DMT) entity experiences with other types of entity experiences show their fundamental similarities to conceptions of spirit guides, mythological beings, divinities, [...]
Lire la suitePsychedelics in History and World Religions, Editorial Michael James Winkelman Journal of Psychedelic Studies, 2019, 3, (2), pp. 41–42 Doi : 10.1556/2054.2019.021 Recent research has given new hope that psychedelics might provide important tools for treating some of our more intractable ailments. Assessment of the therapeutic applications of psychedelics for various conditions (Winkelman & Sessa, 2019) offers tantalizing promises of what may be seen as miracle cures for their immediate results and effectiveness. As new technologies expand our understandings of the effects of these substances, we are entering a new epoch of understanding the systemic effects of psychedelics on the brain. These findings regarding the [...]
Lire la suiteTherapeutic Applications of Ayahuasca and Other Sacred Medicines Michael J. Winkelman chapter 1, in B. Caiuby Labate and C. Cavnar (eds.) : "The Therapeutic Use of Ayahuasca", Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2014 Doi : 10.1007/978-3-642-40426-9_1 Abstract : Therapeutic applications of the psychedelics or hallucinogens found cross-culturally involve treatment of a variety of physical, psychological, and social maladies. Modern medicine has similarly found that a range of conditions may be successfully treated with these agents. The ability to treat a wide variety of conditions derives from variation in active ingredients, doses and modes of application, and factors of set and setting manipulated in ritual. Similarities in effects reported [...]
Lire la suiteTherapeutic Bases of Psychedelic Medicines : Psycho-integrative Effects Michael J. WINKELMAN chapter 1, in "PSYCHEDELIC MEDICINE: SOCIAL, CLINICAL, AND LEGAL PERSPECTIVES" january 2007, pp 1-19. INTRODUCTION For thousands of years, human beings have used medicinal plants to enhance their health and well-being. In cultures around the world, plants commonly referred to as psychedelic, hallucinogens, and entheogens have played central roles in their healing practices. These vision-inducing plants have also played important roles in the religious and spiritual practices of many societies, evoking powerful emotional, cognitive, and therapeutic reactions. These plants that were central to concepts of health, spirituality, and well-being were, however, demonized and rejected [...]
Lire la suiteHenri Michaux et les gouffres (à propos de l’expérience mescalinienne) François Emmanuel « Moi n’est jamais que provisoire » (Plume). « J’écris pour me parcourir… » annonçait Henri Michaux. À l’hiver 1954 (il a cinquante-cinq ans) il a amplement parcouru le monde, descendu en pirogue un affluent de l’Amazone, promené son étrangeté en Inde, en Chine, en Malaisie…, ramené de ces pays lointains des notations buissonnières, éparses, décalées, des fables drolatiques. Çà et là il s’est fait entomologiste fantasque ou zoologiste d’animaux fantastiques. Toujours curieux de l’ailleurs mais toujours un peu déçu, il a délaissé ces contrées réelles pour d’autres imaginaires, s’est lancé [...]
Lire la suiteSingle Shot of Ketamine May Herald 'Last Call' for Problem Drinking Deborah Brauser Medscape, December 11, 2019 Medscape Medical News © 2019 https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/922460?src=wnl_tp10n_200116_mscpedit&uac=292598PZ&impID=2238619&faf=1 An experimental treatment that includes a single infusion of ketamine may lead to long-term improvement in problem drinking, new research suggests. In an study of 90 heavy drinkers, those who received a single dose of intravenous (IV) ketamine plus cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) that focused on reactivating drinking-related "maladaptive reward memories" (MRMs) significantly curbed the urge to drink and reduced alcohol intake compared with those who received the ketamine alone or a placebo infusion. In addition, the combination group reduced their average weekly alcohol consumption by [...]
Lire la suiteThe Confrontation between Ethnopharmacology and Pharmacological Tests of Medicinal Plants Associated with Mental and Neurological Disorders Giovanna Felipe Cavalcante e Costa, Hisao Nishijo, Leonardo Ferreira Caixeta, and Tales Alexandre Aversi-Ferreira Hindawi - Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Volume 2018, Article ID 7686913, 27 pages Doi : 10.1155/2018/7686913 Abstract For neurological disorders, pharmacological tests have shown promising results in the reduction of side effects when using plants with known therapeutic effects in the treatment of some types of dementia. Therefore, the goals of this study are to gather data about the major medicinal plants used in the nervous system as described in ethnopharmacological surveys from South [...]
Lire la suiteTranslational evidence for ayahuasca as an antidepressant : what’s next ? Rafael Guimaraes dos SANTOS, José Carlos BOUSO British Journal of Psychiatry, 2019, 41, (4), 275-276. Doi : 10.1590/1516-4446-2019-4104 Depression is among the most important contributors to global disability and suicidal deaths. Available antidepressants are usually selective inhibitors of serotonin and norepinephrine uptake, which need weeks of daily intake before therapeutic effects appear, have limited efficacy for many patients, and induce significant adverse reactions after prolonged use. Therefore, recent research has focused on finding new antidepressant compounds that are fast-acting, more effective, and less toxic. The article recently published by da Silva et al. in the [...]
Lire la suited-Lysergic acid diethylamide has major potential as a cognitive enhancer Felipe Augusto Cini, Isis Ornelas, Encarni Marcos, Livia Goto-Silva, Juliana Nascimento, Sergio Ruschi, José Salerno, Karina Karmirian, Marcelo Costa, Eduardo Sequerra, Dráulio de Araújo, Luis Fernando Tófoli, César Rennó-Costa, Daniel Martins-de-Souza, Amanda Feilding, Stevens Rehen, Sidarta Ribeiro BioRxiv, 6 december 2019. Doi : 10.1101/866814 Abstract Psychedelic agonists of serotonin receptors induce neural plasticity and synaptogenesis, but their potential to enhance learning remains uncharted. Here we show that a single dose of d-LSD, a potent serotonergic agonist, increased novel object preference in young and adult rats several days after treatment. d- LSD alone did not increase preference [...]
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