Biography/Memoir

NYC pharma startup wants to turn LSD into…

“…I want nothing to do with those kinds of folks who want to decriminalize psychedelics,” he says [a 32-year-old former Uber employee and co-founder]. …[he is part of] one of many companies trying to repurpose hallucinogenic molecules as the next blockbuster drug… has acquired the exclusive rights to eight clinical trials that are exploring the…

READ MORE
Science

Magic mushrooms and LSD give sustained boost in mood after recreational use, study concludes

“Our results show that people who take psychedelics ‘in the wild’ report positive experiences very similar to those observed in controlled laboratory studies,” said lead author Matthias Forstmann. By surveying 1,242 UK and US festivalgoers over a four-year period, the researchers were able to characterise the psychological effects of the “afterglow” often documented in laboratory-based…

READ MORE
Science

Acute subjective and behavioral effects of microdoses of LSD in healthy human volunteers

Single “microdoses” of LSD produced orderly dose-related subjective effects in healthy volunteers. Numerous anecdotal reports suggest that repeated use of very low doses of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), known as “microdosing,” improves mood and cognitive function. These effects are consistent both with the known actions of LSD on serotonin receptors, and with limited evidence that…

READ MORE
Medicine/Healing

Understanding the 5 M’s [5 S’s and 5 C’s] of LSD and Ergot

5 S’s[safety] *Safety 1: the ergot fungus pictured above (Claviceps purpurea, Claviceps paspali, Claviceps spp); of various plants shown here is not LSD, but has an ethnobotanically and historically-significant relationship with LSD. Ergot alkaloids are also found in many climbing plants (Convolvulacae), not pictured above. (Rastsch 2005). *Safety 2: The ergot alkaloids can be divided into two…

READ MORE
Science

Two leading psychedelic researchers—Heffter President Dave Nichols and board member Charles Grob—report on the toxicity of LSD

From a physiological perspective, however, LSD is known to be non-toxic and medically safe when taken at standard dosages (50–200 μg). The scientific literature, along with recent media reports, have unfortunately implicated “LSD toxicity” in five cases of sudden death. On close examination, however, two of these fatalities were associated with ingestion of massive overdoses,…

READ MORE