What’s striking is the alleviation of depression occurs from emotional receptivity being enhanced – the opposite of SSRI antidepressants. “It has been proposed that decreased amygdala responsiveness to negative emotional stimuli under SSRIs is a key component of their therapeutic action,” the researchers explain, “but the present study’s findings suggest that this model does…
For the better part of 40 years the recipient of that check [money from various funding sources] has almost exclusively been …drug or alcohol treatment facility based on the 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous—a self help-style system developed by and for alcohol abusers more than 80 years ago, when neuroscience was in its infancy. To…
In the nomenclature of recovery studies, cannabis aided alcoholism recovery is referred to as “Marijuana Maintenance”. The Harm Reduction Journal reports that cannabis can curb an addict’s alcohol cravings and it is a viable, natural alternative to prescription medications such as benzodiazepines. Secondly, a large quantity of drinkers medicate with alcohol to relieve psychological conditions…
One recent study found that for married couples, smoking weed may actually decrease the likelihood of violence. While studies show no direct link between alcohol and domestic abuse, it’s use is certainly present in many such cases. A study by the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence found that “Two-thirds of victims who were…
“This is not a ‘take three pills and call me in the morning’ kind of situation,” Burge said, “At no point will people go to the pharmacist, for example, and pick up a bunch of MDMA and go home and try it … Rather, this is a 12-week course with introductory psychotherapy sessions and then…
Most tellingly, at a time when more than 60 million Americans enjoy legal marijuana in their home states and when opinion polls show strong and increasing majorities in favor of legalization nationwide, drug agents and federal prosecutors are still devoting more resources to marijuana than to heroin. According to the data, only 14.2% of federal…
The five-year-long study involved 125 participants, all of whom were suffering from chronic pain. 83 were taking cannabis as a prescriptive pain mediator, whereas 42 chose to abstain. They found that 34 per cent of the cannabis users stopped taking their medication, in comparison to just two per cent of the non-smokers, with 98 per…
“Drug experts consistently rank LSD and psilocybin mushrooms as much less harmful to the individual user and to society compared to alcohol and other controlled substances.” These words from a study by Norway’s Research Council mimic the self-reported effects of psychoactives, as well: Most users report deep or meaningful experiences while using LSD or mushrooms.…
One of the first things Petitpas Taylor did after being sworn in was to visit a supervised drug injection site in B.C. The day the Public Health Agency of Canada released its latest fatality statistics, the minister stopped by the Shepherds of Good Hope in Ottawa, a homeless shelter with a program designed to help…
In many ways psychiatry – biologic psychiatry or pharmacologic psychiatry – started with psychedelics. There were 2 studies done (on psilocybin). They were both randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind studies where people were blindly given either an active psilocybin or different placebos, but each study had a placebo. They got one treatment, and then they were followed…
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