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Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

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Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#71

Post by Pica_soO »

Honestly, if there are diseases like this- im for a all in approach, every human being free to try whatever might stick.

The thing is, we dont have that one type of humans. We have many - different Neuro-types, and what might be a salvation for one, might send another to a different hell altogether. I find this problematic not really addressed in most studies. Thus i take them with a grain of salt that is- find out first, via a independet third observer, whether you are a similar type of neuro-type to the one who recived the mircale cure.

Last but not least: Be aware that some drugs might prevent negative experience testimony by rendering the person unable to testify. If you are send over the edge and become a schizophrenic living in a cardboard box- you are unlikely to ever testify against the remedy you took.

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#72

Post by notadoc »

tasty_freeze wrote: post #61
notadoc wrote: post #52

Nothing like a good mental colonic with a brutal dissolution of ego to increase that amygdala response, right?

This is a reddit quality comment. On what basis do you justify classifying the treatment as brutal? Or that the dose was high enough that the test subjects underwent ego death? Were you just exaggerating for comic effect and didn't really have anything to add?

You sound very agitated and sensitive about this topic. Have you considered eating several grams of psilocybin mushrooms and involuntarily thinking about how your behavior is or isn't serving you for a few hours? I hear it increases amygdala response!

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#73

Post by ttul »

tzakrajs wrote: post #53
heavenlyblue wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can abuse mushrooms if you take them in lower dosages. This keeps the antidepressant effect, but doesn't allow you to trip. I had done this - nothing bad happened to me, but not suggesting to try this at home. The point still stands though: please don't misinform people around you since that just reinforces the negative agenda around theses substances.

I noticed no effect from microdosing mushrooms (0.5g per day for a few days) but I don't suffer from depression. How long did microdosing take to make a meaningful effect?

This is very poorly understood.

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#74

Post by scottmf »

the_cat_kittles wrote: post #66
tasty_freeze wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a reddit quality comment. On what basis do you justify classifying the treatment as brutal? Or that the dose was high enough that the test subjects underwent ego death? Were you just exaggerating for comic effect and didn't really have anything to add?

have you done them? i would say its a pretty accurate description of my experience. every time ive done them, ive found aspects extremely uncomfortable, but by the end i almost feel a sense of accomplishment. i know people read comments like this and imagine an idiot who is easily swayed by bullshit, so ill offer what i thought of as the most tangible interesting things that comes from taking mushrooms: many things t…

That stripping-away of context is a common effect. I find it fascinating.

It allows you to view things with fewer of your own biases and default thought patterns coloring your perception.

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#75

Post by theronic »

krylon wrote: post #63
TipVFL wrote: post #60

I can vouch for the antidepressant properties of psilocybin, as well as it's nearly miraculous efficacy at stopping cluster headaches. If any of you are unaware of cluster headaches, they are also called suicide headaches, because the pain is so great that many people just kill themselves. The pain level has few peers, it's been compared to amputation without anaesthetic. For me, the bulk of the sensation is of one o…

After the first time I took LSD, I, too, noticed an elevated mood for several weeks afterwards. I was not depressed at the time - I might have been a little down - but my mood was better - things that used to annoy me now annoyed me much less, while things that used to make me happy made me even happier. Since LSD and Psilocybin are so similar in their effects, I would not be surprised if the mechanism turns out to b…

The problem with acid is that you believe everything you think, so be careful what you think :)

Aside from LSD's longer duration[^1] and increased potency[^2] acid also has a dopaminergic action, whereas psilocin[^3] is primarily a serotonergic drug. It is the dopaminergic action that can result in the obsessive quality or "looping" experience of LSD trips.

When you eat magic mushrooms, you are essentially taking yourself for an existential ride by voluntarily staring into the abyss. The trip itself is primarily "weird" and euphoric, but IME, what many people refer to as a "rough trip" is actually the existential rebound that begins 1.5-2 hours in. During this serotonin recoil, you can face the heart of darkness: the realization of all potential simultaneous chaos and creativity.

This state can include a ton of beauty, but also a reminder of your own inevitable demise. This visitation to a more "eternal" mode of thought has the same effect as surviving a face-off with any dangerous unknown: radical personal transformation. Self-knowledge necessarily feeds back into your world-view, thus changing you (usually for the better, but not always).

Nowadays, when I embark on a shroom trip, I do so in the knowledge that I will have to stare into the abyss. Sometimes you have to chew glass while doing so, e.g. a friend enters a psychotic state, or somebody dies and you have to be useful. Nevertheless, you become vulnerable and have the opportunity to learn something, help someone, or be helped and form new relationships.

Advice for brave mushroom eaters:

- be well-rested, preferably in nature - don't trip alone, but keep it under 6 people - have music, or an instrument nearby - don't eat more than you can handle (0.7g is potent. 2.4g is effective. 4g is high. 10g is godlike and dangerous)

[^1]: LSD duration is 8-12 hours. Anything less than 8h is not LSD. [^2]: psychoactive LSD dose is 25µg and up, hence LSD-25. [^3]: the primary psychoactive metabolite of psilocybin

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#76

Post by onewhonknocks »

TipVFL wrote: post #60

I can vouch for the antidepressant properties of psilocybin, as well as it's nearly miraculous efficacy at stopping cluster headaches. If any of you are unaware of cluster headaches, they are also called suicide headaches, because the pain is so great that many people just kill themselves. The pain level has few peers, it's been compared to amputation without anaesthetic. For me, the bulk of the sensation is of one o…

The spores are legal in all but 3 states. It's VERY easy to order a grow kit, some spores, and you are in business. YouTube search 'Willy Myco'

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#77

Post by anigbrowl »

tasty_freeze wrote: post #61
notadoc wrote: post #52

Nothing like a good mental colonic with a brutal dissolution of ego to increase that amygdala response, right?

This is a reddit quality comment. On what basis do you justify classifying the treatment as brutal? Or that the dose was high enough that the test subjects underwent ego death? Were you just exaggerating for comic effect and didn't really have anything to add?

Quality and humor are not mutually exclusive. I'm experienced enough in this area to be both excited by this study and amused by this tongue-in-cheek characterization of the psychedelic experience. Not only is it worth pointing out that psychedelic experiences can be disorienting or scary as well as benign and thrilling, it may be that much or all of the therapeutic value comes from getting through those negative experiences.

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#78

Post by Fnoord »

TipVFL wrote: post #60

I can vouch for the antidepressant properties of psilocybin, as well as it's nearly miraculous efficacy at stopping cluster headaches. If any of you are unaware of cluster headaches, they are also called suicide headaches, because the pain is so great that many people just kill themselves. The pain level has few peers, it's been compared to amputation without anaesthetic. For me, the bulk of the sensation is of one o…

Are you sure growkits are illegal? Truffles?

Although nowadays I am rather conservative regarding recreative use of entheogenics Azarius ships their growkits seemingly to entire Europe [1]. Anecdata: it is fairly easy to grow champignons and psilos. The kits I used were complete with straightforward guides.

I wrote "psilos" because there is also A. Muscaria, though it has less severe effects care must be taken when plucking food in the wild (and I am unsure if they'd be an option for your specific use case). There are some great guides out there allowing you to distinct species but as Sean Penn's Into The Wild [2] shows one mistake can be fatal. There's a Dutch community on FB about plucking mushrooms in the wild, but its focusing on its culinary usage. As I said, there's also some guides (in the form of books) available.

BTW, do you know if and why psilocybin works (better) than LSD for your use case?

[1] https://azarius.net/smartshop/magic-mushrooms/grow-kits/ (Disclaimer: I'm not affiliated, used to be a customer back in the '00s)

[2] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0758758/

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#79

Post by hippich »

naasking wrote: post #27
TheAdamAndChe wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It makes me wonder if the real resistance to this research is that an unmodified mushroom medicine would not be patentable, and it would be financially catastrophic to big pharma if people stopped taking their medication and grew their own more effective ones. Many of the antidepressant and psychoactive/psychedelic effects are caused by 5-ht2a receptor agonism, and many novel 5-ht2a agonists have been made[1], most…

> The issue is abuse potential. Most of these drugs can be used to "trip," or have a psychedelic experience, meaning it would likely be made illegal very quickly. But why is tripping considered abuse? Particularly in cases where overdosing is difficult or impossible (like with marijuana). These requirements just seem asinine.

To all replied here with "politics" as a reason. How do you explain the fact there are harsh policies in the ex-USSR countries, where no racism existed, no hippies, no minorities to put in jail, etc?

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#80

Post by the_cat_kittles »

scottmf wrote: post #74
the_cat_kittles wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

have you done them? i would say its a pretty accurate description of my experience. every time ive done them, ive found aspects extremely uncomfortable, but by the end i almost feel a sense of accomplishment. i know people read comments like this and imagine an idiot who is easily swayed by bullshit, so ill offer what i thought of as the most tangible interesting things that comes from taking mushrooms: many things t…

That stripping-away of context is a common effect. I find it fascinating. It allows you to view things with fewer of your own biases and default thought patterns coloring your perception.

yes. it made me see myself and emotions and existence in a much more carefree, simpler light. sounds bad, or sad maybe, but its great.
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