A largely debated topic in today's society is whether or not psychedelic drugs should be legalized for medicinal purposes and if they should, how this legalization would affect the communities in which they’re being prominently medicinally used. Although many scientists have argued that psychedelics pose a mental health risk, closer examination shows that communities would have a significantly lower depression rate if certain psychedelics were legalized. Now to fully understand how psychedelics could be beneficial or the opposite thereof, you’ll need to understand how they work and what they are. What a psychedelic drug is, the immediate effects, both mentally and physically, and how communities might benefit and function with the sudden use of these drugs.
A psychedelic drug is one that alters the brains perception and cognition. Drugs of this sort can cause visual hallucinations. People have said it feels as though everything is alive, breathing, dancing. Of course, like any drug, there is the possibility of having a “bad trip.” This is where things seemingly go wrong. The person tripping feels trapped, frightened, and extremely uncomfortable. The
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word psychedelic comes from the greeks understanding of the term “soul revealing.” These drugs are used for all sorts of recreational and medicinal/therapeutic reasons. Some types of psychedelics are pure LSD, research acid, mushrooms or shrooms, ecstasy or molly, and ketamine. That is just a short list of the many psychedelics drugs that are out there. The most popular use of psychedelics today is for recreational purposes. However, with the idea of mental health treatments through psychedelic drugs resurfacing, medicinal use has the potential to become more popular than ever before. Psychologists and mental health researchers have spent an exceptional amount of time looking back into medicinal psychedelic use from the past. “With an ancient history of civilizations using psychoactive substances as medicinal, ritualistic, and spiritual remedies, these drugs have still shown positive treatments in more recent years.” says Erika Lal, a psychologist from Azusa Pacific University who has studied the differences and similarities between religious experiences and psychedelic trips and how this information is beneficial to mental health. Examples of treatments that she has researched would be psilocybin, the mushroom hallucinogen, being used to treat obsessive compulsive disorder or pain in cancer patients. LSD has been used to treat alcoholics. Patients of psychedelic treatments usually come out of treatment feeling new and whole. Depression in patients who have been treated with psychedelic drugs has decreased and continues to do so. Not only are psychedelics used medicinally, but for some, the religious experience alone is reason enough to seek out these life changing drugs. A man named Dr. Walter N. Pahnke of Wesleyan University described nine different characteristics, all coming from a study of information from past spontaneous mystical experiences. Some describe the more spiritual aspects of one's trip. For example, “Sense of sacredness is a non-rational, intuitive, hushed, palpitant response of awe and wonder in the presence of inspiring realities. The main elements are awe, humility and reverence, but the terms of traditional theology or religion need not necessarily be used in the description.” While each trip is different, for years people have reported deeply spiritual experiences associated with their psychedelic experience. There are many ways that the legalization of medicinal psychedelic drug use could be implemented, although there are few ways that it would be truly beneficial to the community.
“Based on the 2011 final report of the New Zealand Law Commission, and following consultations with the industry, the new approach aims to balance the demand for access to such substances with the risk of likely harm to individuals and society” (EMCDDA 4). It is important that if we were to legalize such substances, we be sure take proper precautions. New Zealand has set the age limit to 18 and the drugs are not to be sold in convenience stores or places selling alcohol. Any drug legalized goes through extensive testing. In order for this legalization to be beneficial to communities and the society in general, it needs to be kept
controlled. It is widely assumed that the use of psychedelic drugs is directly related to mental illness. However, in an article written by Teri S Krebs and PO Johansen for the National Library of Medicine, they state, “We did not find use of psychedelics to be an independent risk factor for mental health problems” In their research studying mental health in relation to psychedelics, they randomly selected over 130,000 adults to participate. These participants were studied over the course of 3 years, going through regular mental health screenings. About 13.4% of the participants claimed a lifetime of psychedelic drug use. They claimed during their immediate trip, the drug could cause a period of confusion and emotional mood swings. These effects rarely last. Of the people studied, who had recently started using psychedelics, there was no large amount of increased mental health issues, in fact it was reported that in many cases there was a lower rate of mental health issues. This shows that in the community, psychedelic drug use does not pose a mental health risk to society. Psychedelics have proven more medicinally useful than ever expected. To create a spiritual being, draw depression out of a deeply saddened person, to treat physical ailments. It is proven that regulated psychedelic drug use can be regulated to create communities that thrive if properly implemented.
Psychedelic drugs were an icon of the 1960s, its role embedded within the rising counterculture in response to the economic, social, and political turmoil throughout the United States. As a means to impose a central power and control social order, federal authorities were quick to ban the recreational and medical use of psychedelic drugs without consideration of its potential benefits. The recent state laws on the legalization of marijuana in Oregon and Colorado with others soon to follow, is a sure sign of an eventual collective shift in the perceptions of psychedelic drugs. Not only does Daniel Pinchbeck document his reflections on the personal consumption of psychedelic drugs in his unconventional novel Breaking Open the Head, he also advances several assertions on modern Western society in his exploration of polarized attitudes on this controversial topic.
Psychedelic drugs affect more then creativity, they are also known to have the ability to increase the users sense of spirituality and religion. In the academic journal, “Voice of The Psychonauts,” author Levente Moro explores the correlation between spirituality, and psychedelic drug use. He claims that when psychedelic drugs are taken in a “supportive” environment they have the ability to induce “deeply meaningful religious revelations and spiritual awakenings” (Moro et al. 190). Psychedelic drug use in hopes of spiritual revelations is not new, and has actually been going on for hundreds of years. The Native American Church has been known to traditionally use psychedelic drugs for spiritual experiences (Moro et al. 190). Some Mexican tribes are also known to ingest psilocybin mushrooms in order to induce religious awakenings (Moro et al. 190). To further prove his argument, Levente Moro conducted an online survey amongst 667 random people. His results suggested that people still take psychedelic drugs in order to have religious experiences, even though it is looked down upon in certain religious groups (Moro et al. 195). Levente Moro is not the only one interested in psychedelic drugs and religion. Many other scientists have also examined this theory. In the article, “Values and Beliefs of Psychedelic Drug Users,” author Michael Lerner also discusses the relationship between psychedelic drug use and spirituality. Lerner also believes that when psychedelic drugs are taken with the correct mindset, they have the ability to increase ones sense of religion. In order to test his theory, Michael Lerner had 183 volunteers fill out a questionnaire. Even though he conducted the survey amongst people from all over the world...
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Drugs are used to escape the real and move into the surreal world of one’s own imaginations, where the pain is gone and one believes one can be happy. People look on their life, their world, their own reality, and feel sickened by the uncaringly blunt vision. Those too weak to stand up to this hard life seek their escape. They believe this escape may be found in chemicals that can alter the mind, placing a delusional peace in the place of their own depression: “Euphoric, narcotic, pleasantly halucinant,” (52). They do this with alcohol, acid, crack, cocaine, heroine, opium, even marijuana for the commoner economy. These people would rather hide behind the haze than deal with real problems. “...A gramme is better than a damn.” (55).
The drugs issue is a major problem in Australia. A simple solution cannot be found to solve this great problem because there are so many decisions, thoughts and sacrifices that need to be made. All sides of the issue must be considered when making such a large decision. To find a solution, several tests, meetings, interviews and research need to be made, to name a few. Extreme care is needed when challenging such major issues, all aspects of the problem need to be considered.
Psychedelics have always been a controversial subject in the world of drugs because they have the ability to alter one’s perception of reality. L.S.D, MDMA, and psilocybin are three of the main types of psychedelics on the drug market, all three of which are listed as schedule 1 by the DEA. A schedule 1 drug is considered to have a high addiction risk, has no medical value whatsoever, and is illegal to have in your possession. A schedule 2 drug is considered to have the potential for both medical purposes, and abuse. A schedule 3 drug is considered safe for medical use and can only be prescribed by a doctor. I however, believe that psychedelics should be reconsidered for at least schedule 2 as studies have shown an increase in the use of psychedelics in psychotherapy and can even help the terminally ill come to terms with their own deaths.
One must look beyond the stereotypes that psychedelics have earned in the twentieth century, and also modern science, that presupposes that any thing that cannot be explained within its own contexts either does not exist or is but a fanciful idea. However, the realm of psychedelics is uncharted area, and when dealing with such experimental substances, such as these psychedelic agents, one must proceed with caution, as was mentioned earlier the agents are powerful tools and can be used with skill or reckless abandon, and therefore can yield positive responses or deadly consequences. If used with care psychedelics will allow many psychologists and patients to embark on a perhaps endless journey of self-discovery.
“Of all the Buddhist groups in America, those focusing on meditation have been most attractive to young people from the drug scene, and it is these groups that have taken the strongest stand against drug use. The psychological literature as well as the literature on Zen abounds in descriptions of the altered states of consciousness experienced under the influence of LSD-25 and other hallucinogenic drugs. Descriptions of these drug-induced states often compare them with the experience of satori or enlightenment which may result from Buddhist meditation. Frequently the opinion is expressed that, under certain circumstances, the LSD experience is a satori experience. ”
“Ecstasy”, a drug with many different opinions and views, is often viewed as a killer, which is a stretch of the truth. The drug is sometimes thought of as one of the worst things in the world, but also as the best. Health issues are a problem and there have been some deaths .The deaths though are no way near the number of alcohol or cigarette deaths. How could such a beautiful word be considered such a horrible thing . Ecstasy can kill, but you can die tomorrow by being hit by a car or getting shot, why not live your life to the fullest. Live everyday as if it were your last, but don’t be stupid about it. Ecstasy does not kill a person, that’s just the excuse they use for ruining their life or killing themselves.
Recreational drug use has been controversial for years. Government has deemed the use of certain drugs to be dangerous, addictive, costly, and fatal. Governmental agencies have passed laws to make drugs illegal and then have focused a great deal of attention and money trying to prohibit the use of these drugs, and many people support these sanctions because they view the illegality of drugs to be the main protection against the destruction of our society (Trebach, n.d.). Restricting behavior doesn’t generally stop people from engaging in that behavior; prohibition tends to result in people finding more creative ways to obtain and use drugs. However, just knowing that trying to control people’s behavior by criminalizing drug use does not work still leaves us looking for a solution, so what other options exist? This paper will discuss the pros and cons about one option: decriminalizing drugs.
Nichols, D. E., & Chemel, B. R. (2011). LSD and the serotonin system's effects on human
Right now in this country (and many other countries for that matter) we are experiencing a transitional period that is dependent on legislation, legislation that is bound to reinforce or oppress marijuana legalization. It’s not every day that states have policy that conflicts with federal laws and everyone seems to have an opinion. There are many options on the table for law makers. We could see the federal government enforce their current marijuana laws by cracking down and increase their raids on dispensaries, or they could make marijuana a higher priority with agencies from the DEA to local law enforcement. Another option is to loosen up on what some would deem a “futile” war on drugs; the end result would be each individual state deciding if medicinal marijuana would be ideal for their state. Last but not least there is the route that the states Colorado and Washington took which is to legalize marijuana for recreational use. Every option has their pros and cons. However I believe the option where the pros most heavily outweigh the cons is legalizing recreational use.
America is wasting it’s money and resources. It’s trying restrict something on which restrictions don’t have any effects: drugs. People who don’t use recreational drugs don’t do so because of the health risks; people who do use drugs would whether or not they are legal. The fact that they are illegal makes little difference. Nevertheless, $15,000,000,000 goes directly into drug prohibition every year, and has very little effect. Very much money is spent to pay police narcotics officers, fund the D.E.A., and house drug-offenders in prison. The prisons are full of drug-related criminals, and violent offenders go free earlier because of this. Which would you prefer walking the streets, a rapist, or a potsmoker?
It is important to be informed of what we are defending, and in this case it is to not legalize drugs. One may ask, what are drugs? Drugs are chemicals, that may affect your body in many different ways, whether it be good or bad. However, most of the time, it 's not always a positive outcome. Some drugs even leave lifetime damage to your brain and body. Although, there are many different ways to take drugs, some of the most common ways are; inhalation, ingestion, and injection. All three ways, however affect the body differently. You don 't always know what you are ingesting or injecting and even inhaling. Most of the time, because drugs are illegal, they are sold through drug dealers
Contrary to the feelings of those who rationalize legalization, this answer does not seem to hold a feasible solution to the drug problems of today. In essence, legalizing them is just like saying that the use of mind altering substances is not only...