Introduction

The realm of health and wellness is constantly evolving, with new and innovative approaches emerging to address various physical, emotional, and cognitive challenges. One such frontier that has gained significant attention in recent years is the realm of psychedelic therapy. In this blog post, we will explore the connections between psychedelic therapy and health, diving into the physical, emotional, spiritual, and cognitive benefits. So, let's start by unpacking the basics of psychedelics and how they differ from each other.

Understanding Psychedelics

Psychedelics encompass a wide array of compounds and molecules, each with its unique effects and applications. To begin, it's important to distinguish between two main categories: traditional psychedelics and entheogens.

Traditional Psychedelics: This category includes substances like psilocybin, LSD, MDMA, and 2C-B. These compounds are known for perturbing consciousness, offering opportunities to break free from self-limiting beliefs and narratives. They can help individuals escape the well-worn tracks of their minds, paving the way for personal growth and transformation.

Entheogens: Entheogens, on the other hand, are often associated with indigenous tribal cultures and used in ceremonial settings. Examples include Ibogaine, Ayahuasca, Peyote, and Wachuma (a cactus). These substances are considered sacred and are used for spiritual exploration, healing, and connecting with higher consciousness.

Physical and Mental Health Benefits

Now, let's explore some of the specific benefits of psychedelic therapy:

MDMA for PTSD: MDMA, commonly known as ecstasy, has shown promise in treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Clinical trials conducted by organizations like the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) have demonstrated its effectiveness in helping individuals cope with trauma.

Psilocybin for End-of-Life Anxiety: Psilocybin, found in certain mushrooms, has been shown to alleviate end-of-life anxiety in terminally ill patients. This substance facilitates profound emotional experiences, leading to a sense of peace and acceptance.

Ibogaine for Opioid Addiction: Ibogaine, a unique compound rooted in African culture, has gained attention for its potential to treat opioid addiction. It induces an 18-hour psychedelic journey, guiding individuals through ego dissolution and resolution, ultimately reducing opioid cravings.

Cognitive Benefits: Psilocybin studies suggest that this compound can forge new neural pathways, enhancing neuroplasticity. This neurogenesis can potentially aid in cognitive flexibility and problem-solving skills.

Cultural Acceptance and the Future

Beyond the scientific realm, there's also a cultural shift towards greater acceptance of psychedelics for personal development. Influential figures like Elon Musk have openly discussed their use of substances like ketamine to manage social anxiety and enhance their best selves. Such openness contributes to a shift in societal norms, making these tools more accessible and acceptable for personal growth.

Conclusion

The world of psychedelic therapy is filled with promise, offering a range of benefits that extend to physical, emotional, and cognitive well-being. While psychedelics may provide a shortcut to altering consciousness, there are also natural methods such as meditation, breathwork, and floatation therapy that can achieve similar results. Ultimately, the choice of approach depends on individual preferences and goals.

As research continues and societal attitudes evolve, we can expect to see a greater integration of psychedelics into holistic health and wellness practices. The journey of self-discovery and personal growth is an exciting one, and for many, psychedelics are proving to be valuable tools along the way.

In this episode, you'll discover:

• Psychedelic therapy offers various physical, emotional, and cognitive benefits, such as treating PTSD with MDMA and alleviating end-of-life anxiety with psilocybin.
• Ibogaine, a compound rooted in African culture, shows promise in combatting opioid addiction through an 18-hour psychedelic journey leading to resolution.
• The cultural acceptance of psychedelics, driven by influential figures like Elon Musk, is paving the way for their integration into holistic health and wellness practices, offering new opportunities for personal growth and transformation.

Watch Now

Listen Now

Transcription

Dr. Latt Mansor:

What are the connections between psychedelic therapy and health? Let's start with that. Yeah.

Sean McCormick

There are physical benefits. There are emotional benefits, spiritual benefits cognitive benefits. When you look at the research being done all over the world, but specifically through, phase two trials happening at the, at MAPS, the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, we know that.

MDMA helps with P. E. P. T. S. D. We know that psilocybin helps with end of life anxiety. The studies are becoming stronger and stronger. So the story in the case is being made for mental health treatments from, five grams, five dried grams of psilocybin combined with therapy.

But what people may not know such a story is that there's such a thing that's called ibogaine. Ibogaine is a very different compound. It's it's got roots in African culture and this can help with opioid addiction. It's something that I have not experienced yet, but we're talking about like an 18 hour psychedelic trip in which you are basically taken through a journey through ego death and resolution to emerge on the other side and the effects on opioid addiction are tremendous.

The studies are showing that that it's really effective there. In addition to that, the psilocybin studies that, that are connecting, new neural pathways neuroplasticity, there, and that's just the sort of scientific level. There is also, Elon Musk tweeted recently that he's microdosing ketamine at parties instead of drinking because it helps him deal with his social anxiety.

and mega dosing it occasionally in conjunction with therapy so that he can just be his best self. And when someone like that tweets that explicitly about how they're using something like ketamine, which is legal in the United States, there is a huge. Shift in sort of cultural acceptability for people.

The CEOs that the Silicon Valley CEOs at Burning Man who are doing acid quietly and then, not really talking about it in the boardroom to the micro dosers. Microdosing psilocybin or LSD in Manhattan, trading on the stock exchange.

That that's 10 years old. And what we're looking at into the future is a greater acceptance of the application of psychedelics for individual use to, to literally make people better people and make the world a better place. And it's something that's been near and dear to my heart for.

15 years and I'm not that old yet, but I've seen a whole bunch of incredible life transform, forming stories in my time. And it's a it's an exciting industry.

That's a lot of information that you just shared there. So I want to break it down a little bit for my sake and for the audience sakes as well.

Can you just go back to basic as to what is considered a psychedelic and surely of all the compounds that you just mentioned, I'm sure they act differently. So what essentially is the characteristic of psychedelics as a Group overall, and then go into details of these few ones that you want to focus on as to how they differ from one another.

Yeah, I just gave you like the fire hose approach to you gave me a softball and I turn on the fire hose to At least now we got people's

attention. Yeah. So now we can unpack it a little bit. Psychedelics. Include an immense amount of compounds and molecules and, something we consider cannabis psychedelic because it is it is a mind altering substance, Psychedelics in general have been used to party, to play to treat mental illness.

And there is in what I think is an important distinction between psychedelics and what are called entheogens. And if you are, if your Latin is good, you'll know that Entheo means God, right? So Entheogen is usually correlated with indigenous tribal cultures and applications of plant medicine.

So like Ibogaine, Ayahuasca, Peyote. Wachuma, which is which is a a cactus, even coca, in ceremonial settings, tobacco specifically is also considered an entheogen because it's, it does alter the mind, but there, those sorts of plant medicines, which are psychedelics, but used in a ceremonial setting is.

One kind of category, the other psychedelics, which range from psilocybin, LSD, MDMA 2C B, the tryptamines, the, those are used in ways that, that perturb your consciousness. And when you look at what is the usefulness. Why does it, why is this cool? Why does this matter?

Why is it important to perturb our consciousness the way that I think about it is it helps you get out of the rut? It helps you get out of self limiting beliefs Self limiting narratives that you are just you're you know Michael Pollan who wrote how to change your mind talks about the idea Which I really love is that you're if for those of you who ski you get stuck in ski tracks Your skis are in that ski tracks, you're going down the mountain and it's tough to pop out of those ski tracks and make new tracks for yourself.

And what psychedelics do would be clinically proven is, namely psilocybin which he talks to at length gives you an opportunity to get out of that rut out. Where you're not really in control. You're just following the path of those ski tracks that have already been laid down.

And every time that you go down those ski tracks, you're getting deeper and deeper into that frame of thought

Dr. Latt Mansor:

Now, will you

be able to get out of that rut with other means? Or is this, I guess my question is this a shortcut? Or is this a best solution?

Sean McCormick

That's a really great question. The Yes, it's a shortcut.

The short answer is yes, absolutely. It is. Now, there are other ways to reach those altered states of consciousness in which you can change your mind and provide those new, create those new tracks. Those ways are there extratic dance, right? Fasting. Flotation tanks, flotation therapy, which is near and dear to my heart.

I started a chain of float tank centers back in 2012. Meditation, breath work. These are all ways That are considered natural, but do that thing of proturbing your consciousness. They change you into a specific altered state of consciousness. Now, when you are taking two and a half grams of dried a psilocybin, Q Benzi mushrooms at two and a half grams.

It starts to kick in at about 45 minutes. If you're fasted, it begins to feel like something is happening to your body and to your brain. There's visual acuity, so your vision actually improves. Your sense perception improves. It almost feels like you're... Peripheral vision expands further out.

You're making connections between thoughts and ideas a little bit more. And yeah, in 45 minutes, you're going to be going into a trip at that dose that may last three and a half hours where you're seeing the connections between things. You're seeing yourself in a new way. So set and setting is what we always talk about within psychedelics is what is the mindset that you're taking into the use of, again, these sorts of psychedelic substances.

What is your mindset and where are you doing? What is the setting? So many people listening right now are probably thinking, you know what, I've tried mushrooms a couple of times in college. Wasn't for me. I freaked out. I didn't feel comfortable. And most of those experiences are usually like you're six beers deep at a house party in college.

You just broke up with your girlfriend. You've got finals to study for in, in two weeks and then, you, you take a, take a couple of bites of mushrooms and then you have a hard trip. You have an uncomfortable trip, but when you do it with more specificity, with intention, with the right set and setting, it can be.

An amplifier to your thought framework, to your creativity and your productivity like that.

We sell nutrition & supplements for optimal metabolic & cognitive performance. Check us out!