Credit: iStockphoto
IN AUSTRALIA, THERE HAVE been no applications for research licences for LSD, according to the Therapeutic Goods Administration. Its use in scientific or medical research remains prohibited. But McGregor believes the winds of change are coming. "I think we've almost reached a stage where the baby boomers are in control," he says. "So the ones who were trippin' out at Woodstock are going to be in power— or not quite yet — but I think the next generation will be there.
"It may be that we can use LSD to answer questions like: what is a religious experience? What is consciousness? What is sense of self? What stops us spending a whole afternoon looking at one leaf on a tree?" McGregor adds. "I don't think LSD will be given out for free to primary school children — and I don't think it should be either. But I think there will be more of a relaxed approach to the utility of these things in treating psychological problems."
The two thousand delegates who attended the world's first scientific symposium on LSD would like to think so. Over three days in January 2006, scientists and counter-culture enthusiasts attended the meeting in Basel, Switzerland, to mark the 100th birthday of Albert Hofmann — the man who stumbled across the drug in his laboratory 63 years ago and, as a result, had the most unusual bicycle ride of his life.
A frail but sharp Albert Hofmann addressed the melting pot of therapists, academics, doctors, writers, artists, spiritual leaders and baby boomer drug devotees who gathered in reverence of the Swiss chemist-come-spiritual father and his "problem child", as he called LSD.
"I produced the substance as a medicine. It's not my fault if people abused it," Hofmann said. "Before LSD got onto the streets [in the 1960s], we were able to gather a lot of therapeutic experiences. The substance was used in the psychoanalysis of patients who couldn't be talked to. If they were given LSD, they were stimulated enough to begin responding to analysis.
"What began as a miracle substance subsequently became a youth cult drug, and thus a political danger," Hofmann said. "The decision of the U.S. to ban LSD was purely political. Every doctor has controlled access to heroin, morphine and even strychnine. But for LSD there's a total prohibition."
Hofmann continues to insist the drug should be legalised for medical treatment, particularly in psychiatric research, and is frustrated by the worldwide prohibition that has pushed it underground. "It should be a controlled substance with the same status as morphine," he later told reporters. But he was pleased with the gathering — and the revived discussion of LSD's potential. "This is a wonderful birthday party we are having. One could say it is a consciousness-expanding experience," Hofmann said with a twinkle in his eye.
Alex Wilde is a science and health writer based in Sydney, Australia.
Arguments against LSD research don't make sense
If those are the best criticisms that people can come up with, then I find that pretty reassuring.
LSD causes long-lasting psychoses? The risk is only 1 in 50000 of a "psychosis lasting longer than 48 hours", and we have good treatments for that. And they seldom occur in people without preexisting mental disease, which can be screened for.
Flashbacks could be caused by subtle brain damage? Or, they could not. Let's do the research. Are flashbacks all that harmful, compared with the side effects that other drugs can cause? (Weight gain, word-finding difficulties, rash, osteoporosis, immune suppression, seizures, etc.) Nobody ever died from a flashback. Some people even like them.
It would be a brave ethics committee that would approve the use of a drug that could cause harm? Well, I guess Tylenol's out, then. And penicillin. In fact, any prescription drug can cause harm. That's why they're not over-the-counter.
Batey can't see the benefits of being forced to hallucinate? Maybe he should ask then why other people DO see the benefits. Maybe there's something about it he's missed. In any case, cluster headache sufferers benefit from a sub-hallucinogenic dose, so it's an irrelevant comment.
Published data is only anecdotal? This is actually an argument in FAVOR of randomized placebo-controlled trials.
If it's as good as its protagonists suggest, it would have been taken up by the drug companies long ago? What, a drug long out of patent that only needs to be taken once every three to six months? Sounds like a real moneymaker to me, and we all know that drug companies have patients' best interests at heart. That's why they're rushing to develop vaccines for tropical diseases that only Africans get.
In the case of cluster headache, there are compounds that act in a similar mechanism without the risk of flashbacks? True; they're called "psilocybin" and "lysergic acid amide". Not a good argument against psychedelics.
You'd have to control the dose extremely carefully because the drugs are potent in microgram amounts? Sure, and so's thyroid hormone, and I don't notice any problems dosing THAT. Modern technology has solved the problem of dosing things precisely.
There's absolutely no role for any substance that causes hallucinations? We'd better ban prednisone, then. And antiparkinsons medications. And benzodiazepines. Methysergide causes hallucinations in higher doses. It's easy to make a list of commonly prescribed drugs that cause hallucinations. There are a lot of them.
Despite the hype and propaganda, LSD is actually pretty safe, given appropriately in a controlled environment.
Flashbacks ? What flashbacks ?
Whats the scientific evidence that flashbacks are more than just a convenient myth for propaganda like this article?
Where's all these flashbacks ? I've never had any and I've never met anyone who has. Even if you meet someone who has, how do you know what they took was really acid ? Unless they are supported with rigorous research, such claims are merely myth.
I have actually had a few flashbacks
I can confirm that flashbacks do actually occur. I did LSD Several times, in college, over 13 years ago and I've had 3 flashbacks since. While they are not a myth, they also weren't threatening in any way. Not one lasted for more than a few minutes and none were anywhere close to a real "trip". In every case it was just trails from a light source or the hallucination of a wall or mirror bending. Quite fun, over quick, and no damage done. The last time I was driving and I saw the trails of the taillights of the cars in front of me for a few seconds which did not impare my driving in any way. They are making a mountain out of a molehill.
what flash backs
i have done lsd a few times it seems to make me a little more aware of what is going on around me , i have never had any horrible flash backs . the most i have seen on acid is thing bleeding into other things this overwellming jolt of happiness racing through my body i never once thought that i was going to die just dont eat to much youll freak youself out. LSD is a wonderful drug it makes you open up the only down fall is your fears seem to be 10X more scarrier than what they are that is why you need to be around the people that you most trust and care for to be there to enjoy it with you . just give LSD a chance in this world it is not a drug to kill yourself on that is why you shouldnt give it to certain people like crazzy pepople . i dont know what everyones proplem with LSD is , it is just a peace making drug that makes you feel good and relaxed .
lucy
you apprently havent eaten very much lucy or you didnt eat the good stuff.
Spiritual Use of Psychedelics
Not only are psychedelics like LSD and psilocybin useful as theraputic medicin a recent study done at Johns Hopkins University has shown that psilocybin can induce genuine spiritual or religious experience that has lasting beneficial effects.
It is no wonder that religions like Matrixism that promote the use of psychedelics are gaining in popularity.
psychedelic medicine, additional leads
The cluster headache research Wilde mentions and over a dozen other diseases and conditions for which psychedelics show promising treatments are described in "Psychedelic Medicines: New Evidence for Hallucinogens as Treatments" co-edited by Michael Winkelman and me. The 2-book set was published in June 2007 by Praeger/Greenwood. "Psychedelic Horizons" (2006) presents the speculation that powerfully positive emotional experiences (peak experiences, mystical experiences) sometimes caused by psychedelics may boost the immune system. The research has yet to be done on this. -- Tom Roberts
The acid test
I've had cluster headaches (CH) for around ten years. Every Autumn for ten weeks I used to average about 60 of these 'headaches' - about 150 hours of pain allegedly worse than childbirth. Since I'm a bloke I can't verify the childbirth bit but can't argue with the consultant who calls them the most painful thing we can suffer from.
Since I came across the clusterbuster website for CH sufferers that has done so much work in the use of psychedelics as a treatment all that has changed. For the first time I've missed an Autumn cycle, something 'prescribed' medicine just hasn't do for me in the past.
If anyone's in doubt as to what a CH attack is like search youtube, it's not pretty. The sooner this approach is taken more seriously for CH the better.
Cool Test done in the late 1950's (ART)
http://analogik.com/acid_trip/acid_trip.html
Yea, it has nothing to do with treating chronic/fatal illness, but still kinda interesting.
hysteria
This article reflects the irrational hysteria surrounding all drugs. It is natural for people to fear things they don't understand and have no experience of. Sadly, it is also natural for politicians and vested interests to take advantage of this fear to push their own interests - increasing their power and control.
Of course there are risks with drugs, as with all human activities. However, many drugs, such as LSD, have tremendous potential to benefit mankind when they are respected and used sensibly.
We don't legislate to prevent people eating too much junk food and watching too much TV, yet the societal and individual health consequences from such poor lifestyle choices dwarf even the worst case scenarios of allowing full individual freedom with regards to drugs. Such irrationality is driven by the 'War on Drugs' propaganda and the vested interests making money and increasing their control over people through the promotion of this "threat". Even with the most dangerous and addictive drugs, it is prohibition that causes most of the harm, not the drugs themselves.
It should be remembered that on any objective scale, LSD and MDMA are relatively safe (despite the lies generated by the anti-drug propaganda machinery). Nothing in life is completely without risk, but as adults we all have a right to make the risk/reward judgements for ourselves.