How Psychedelics Could Become The “New Weed”

The hallucinogenic industry is on its way to becoming the new big thing now, as cannabis might no longer help people with mental disorders the way it used to

Recently, I’ve written a lot about weed and psychedelics. However, I never (until now) managed to get around to write about the connection between them both. Cannabis, in the past couple of decades, had become the savior for many people suffering from different mental & physical conditions, including anxiety, stress, PTSD, glaucoma, and so many more.

The same could be said about psychedelics, as well — numerous studies and personal stories so far have shown that substances such as ayahuasca, LSD, MDMA, and psilocybin (the active ingredient in “magic mushrooms”) have had a positive impact on its users’ health.

MDMA (ecstasy), for example, is now being pushed into the mainstream market. How come? A couple of Silicon Valley tech execs are currently pushing for new reforms in the psychedelics industry with a donation of $30 million. Our lives have become more fast-paced than ever and as our societies constantly push us to “become the best versions of ourselves,” inevitably, the stressors have also increased. This ultimately has lead to more anxiety, depression, and thus overall unhappiness.

In this high-tech world we live in, distractions are now everywhere around us. THINGS are constantly being pushed at our faces. Alas, we are slowly losing touch with what matters most — the present; and the Now. We have even done the unthinkable: we are avoiding the present, as if we purposively want, not need, to be drawn in this unconscious world of THINGS.

In order to avoid the present, which is now seen as something unpleasant, we reach out for substances that alter it, hence bringing us into the subconscious world, where everything is seemingly OK. But that aside for now.

However, there’s the other side of the coin:

Some people really want to live happier and healthier lives. However, due to certain external factors, such as the COVID pandemic, it has become really hard for all of us to maintain the balance we once might have had. That’s why some of us need and probably most importantly, want a quick way out of this situation.

For some, a psychiatrist might be an option. For others, just talking about the issue with a friend sometimes does the job. Unfortunately, in the past couple of years, it seems to me, such options have been widely refused by the public. That’s where psychedelics come in.

Every week, even every day, tons of new research and information on psychedelics is spread throughout the internet. The more we stay at home now, the more time we have to research such stuff. We read stories about celebrities using ayahuasca (Sting is an example of such a celebrity), about how MDMA has helped people treat PTSD, and how psilocybin might become the key when it comes to treating depression.

It also seems to me that we have slowly started to lose interest in cannabis’ health benefits and are now turning our attention to the stronger by nature psychedelics. And no wonder. Marijuana could help with anxiety and stress, some say, but the effects might not be that striking. Whereas hallucinogens are another story. Although they are more expensive, harder to find, and in most cases, illegal, people still go the extra mile.

But how are psychedelics now entering into the wide public’s world?

Retreats and Retreat Centers

Currently, the usage of hallucinogens is banned in the USA. That’s why currently there are no legal retreat centers in the country. Normally, ayahuasca is the preferred drug at such places, although DMT and LSD are also options.

So, instead of using ayahuasca illegally in the United States, people now prefer to go south and take the long road all the way to South America, where ayahuasca is considered to be an indigenous plant, and thus is not against the rules to consume it, as it grows in the jungles.

Emerging groups of people, especially those coming from the Silicon Valley and Manhattan, have started joining the so-called “retreats” — organized expeditions into the Amazon jungle, where participants take part in ayahuasca ceremonies while being guided by a designated local shaman.

Numerous celebrities, one of which is Sting, have already shared their experiences with such ayahuasca retreats:

“I realized for the first time that this is the only genuine religious experience I have ever had;”

and Lindsay Lohan:

“It changed my life. I’m in a good place.”

The whole idea behind such practices is for one to “purge” herself from “inner demons and conflicts.”

Currently, in the USA, there is a place called Entrepreneurs Awakening. It’s a San Francisco-based company that offers such retreats. According to the center, “We do not provide ayahuasca retreats, we provide life-changing coaching programs, the 1–1 Executive Awakening program, and our well known Ayahuasca Vision Quest, a group program that includes an ayahuasca retreat in Peru.”

Today, the only way to experience a real retreat is to go to one of the countries in South America. However, according to Ariel Levy from The New Yorker:

“On any given night in Manhattan, there are a hundred ayahuasca ‘circles’ going on.”

Due to factors such as globalization and the Internet, more and more people have started finding out about these 2-week “trips” in the Amazon, hence the increase of demand in the USA. With ayahuasca’s growing popularity, it would be no surprise that the backyard usage of ayahuasca will continue to rise not only in the States, but in other parts of the world, as well.

Tim Ferriss, a famous entrepreneur and podcaster, has referred to ayahuasca as like “having a cup of coffee.”

It is just a matter of time that the ancient Amazonian plant will skyrocket in demand in the Western world, as its positive effects continue to gain fame.

Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies

This newly-born therapy practice is not as simple as just taking drugs and going to a session. It is usually supervised by a professional and a plan is carefully created for each individual, matching each one’s condition. The substances which are most commonly used are MDMA, LSD, DMT, psilocybin, ketamine, and even ayahuasca.

It mingles together with the best of both worlds — psychedelics and therapy. Hallucinogens are known to help with mental disorders, however, often, people abuse these substances by not knowing the amount that they should intake. Psychedelic-assisted therapies come in handy in such situations.

According to the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS):

“Psychedelic psychotherapy is showing great promise for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, depression, social anxiety, substance abuse and alcoholism and suicide.”

This psychotherapy is aimed at finding the patient’s root of his/her problem. The difference with classic therapies that involve the usage of administrated, prescribed drugs, is that the “legal” ones tend to only work around the actual issue, reducing its symptoms, with a short-term effect while they’re being taken. Side effects are also taken into consideration here.

On the other hand, psychedelics are known to “attack” the problem directly, without the known ill side-effects the normally prescribed pills tend to trigger in the consumer. Another thing is that substances such as LSD, MDMA, and DMT are not supposed to be taken on a daily basis, unlike their counterparts.

This practice is called micro-dosing.

It’s the practice of intaking 1/10 to 1/20 (10 to 20 micrograms) of a normal recreational psychedelic dosage. Micro-dosing is intended to induce only the positive effects of the drug, such as more productivity, focus, and energy, without the negative ones a normal dose poses, such as sensory shifts, hallucinations, and ill out-of-body experiences.

Interest From The Tech Industry

It is possible that psychedelics to have long been the preferred drug in places such as the Silicon Valley for a long time now. However, it was until recently that entrepreneurs from the tech capital of the world expressed publicly their willingness to push for new reforms in the psychedelics industry with a donation of $30 million.

The fund is intended to aid the research for the therapeutic uses of MDMA, which is the active compound in ecstasy.

The undergoing research is currently awaiting legal approval from the US FDA. In this way the drug will be made legal to treat patients that suffer from PTSD. Capstone Campaign is the name of the program and is currently being conducted by MAPS and the Psychedelics Science Funders Collaborative (PSFC).

Moreover, a company called MindMed, has recently made public that it will make a commitment of $5 million over half a decade towards the research of psychedelic medicine training programs in collaboration with the NYU Grossman School of Medicine and NYU Langone Health.

What Does This All Mean For The Industry?

Although weed currently remains the preferred non-prescribed drug to people who suffer from different mental & physical illnesses, psychedelics are on their way to taking its place. With the inability of the classic treatment methods, hallucinogens are slowly becoming a way out.

Although substances such as LSD, DMT, and psilocybin are considered to help patients with different diseases, these psychedelics still remain mostly unknown even to researchers. The data so far has been promising, however, tons of research is further needed in order for us to fully understand the full impact of hallucinogens on our bodies and minds.

Thank you for taking some time to read my article! If you wish to read more written by me, check my Medium page:

I write about psychedelics and mental health. Recently, I wrote an article on whether being high makes you dumber and an interview with a current user of LSD.