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Related: About this forumJames Rucker, Psychiatrist, Thinks Psychedelic Drugs Should Be Legally Reclassified
When you think of psychedelic drugs, you might imagine a colorful 1960s scene, when LSD and mushrooms were wildly popular among musicians and artists. But scientists have found ways to extract certain compounds from shrooms, acid, and other psychedelics to the benefit of people suffering from depression, anxiety, and even PTSD.
A stigma around psychedelic drugs exists, yet research hints at their potential medicinal benefits. The Controlled Substances Act of 1970 defines them as a Schedule 1 substance which means they are considered dangerous and have no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.
This is why psychiatrist James Rucker, whos an honorary lecturer at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at Kings College London, is arguing for psychedelics to be reconsidered legally. In an editorial report published in BMJ, Rucker explains that psychedelics were extensively used and researched in clinical psychiatry before 1967, when they were prohibited.
Many of these drugs actually proved to make a beneficial change in many psychiatric disorders during the 1950s and 60s, he writes, and since then the limited research on them has only reinforced that. For example, a study from 2011 found that a small dose of psilocybin, the psychoactive chemical in shrooms, helped mediate anxiety in patients. Research has also delved into the effects of psychedelics on PTSD and depression, and found that it could potentially become an alternative form of treatment for mental illnesses.
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http://www.medicaldaily.com/james-rucker-psychiatrist-thinks-psychedelic-drugs-should-be-legally-reclassified-334984
Warpy
(111,162 posts)when Nixon's fucking paranoia about hippies and college kids got them reclassified so he could throw us in jail over them.
Stupid bastard, there should be no such thing as Schedule I. All those drugs have useful applications.
Warren DeMontague
(80,708 posts)Some of the most powerful tools ever discovered by humans, through which consciousness can examine itself.
And there are myriad more "prosaic" uses, too, therapy, depression and the like.
Obviously they can be misused but the current inquisition-like approach to these substances is beyond stupid.
gvstn
(2,805 posts)From my own personal experience. They help you think about the world and yourself in a different way (maybe that is why they are illegal--TPTB must be cottoned to). But the "experience" or experience(s) do have a long lasting effect on your outlook in life.
They have been talking about getting this effect into a pharmaceutical for several years and it is about time they do it. It can be done.
I keep seeing "horror" news stories about pot, now that it is on the threshold of being legalized but no news organization actually compiles all the times alcohol was involved in an unfortunate incident.
It is sad that we are still going by rules made up in the '60-'70's, when so many of their other "rules" have been debunked.