Can Psychedelics Treat Depression? | Are Psychedelics Mentally Dangerous?
Channel: Real Talk Philosophy
Date: 2021-07-20

--Transcript--
Researchers have found that Psychedelics can be extremely helpful in fighting depression. 

Researchers found that after a high-dose single sitting treatment with Psilocybin, patients with moderate to severe depression found a marked reduction in depressive symptoms after 1 week and 3 months following treatment.
She found that psilocybin is much faster acting than traditional depression medications. 

Because of this fast-acting quality, psilocybin may be used to offer swifter support for suicidal thoughts and self-harming behavior. After psilocybin treatment, 100% of patients with treatment-resistant depression showed a decrease in depressive symptoms 1-week post-treatment. And nearly half maintained this positive mood in a follow-up study 5 weeks after treatment.

Researchers have found significant increases in positive attitudes, mood, and social effects following psilocybin sessions in healthy patients. In one study, these effects continued in a 14 month follow up and the participants rated their experience as one of the most meaningful experiences of their lives.

One possible explanation for the anti-depressant application of psychedelics is that psychedelics decrease activity in the Default Mode Network, and Default Mode Network overuse has been linked to unhappiness. 

Another possible explanation is that the egolessness one experiences while on psychedelics decrease the sense of self, and a strong sense-of-self implies a strong sense of separation from others, causing feelings of loneliness. 


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