Mapping the Brain on Mushrooms
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6 Tektite Serpent 17 weeks ago
6 Tektite Serpent 17 weeks ago In Central America and elsewhere, hallucinogenic drugs have been used for centuries in healing and religious ceremonies. Recent years have seen renewed interest in exploiting them to explore the neural basis of spirituality and potentially to treat depression, anxiety, and other mental illnesses.
2 Comments
science
I am extremely interested in the science of this and am glad we are finally able to see what exactly is going on in the brain concerning neurotransmitters and regions affected. Putting this through the lens of science and rationality will make the it more "acceptable" for lack of better words.
On the other hand, I think that a prerequisite for the researchers and doctors dealing with this subject matter ought to be that they have first hand account of how the substance works, whether that be psilocybin, dmt, etc ... reducing these experiences to their constituent biological parts and even explaining their effects does relatively little to explain the experience itself, as the experience is almost its own language and defies our attempts to package it up in linguistic boxes.
Analysis
There has been so much new evidence for efficacy in this field, I think it's reaching critical mass. The UK fMRI shows these substances influence neurobiology in the same way as pharma antidepressents (minus the side effects) and they also gathered evidence of how they can treat cluster headaches. There was also a study within the past few weeks identifying the neurochemical mechanism by which Ibogaine can cure addiction.
More analysis:
http://positivetimes.wordpress.com/2012/01/24/magic-mushrooms-cure-depre...