Below is a sample of my work for a private startup company that specializes in educating the public on psychedelic pharmaceuticals. The following post is in regards to medical research.
Entheogenic plants are psychoactive substances that are typically of plant, cacti, or fungal origin and are used in a religious or spiritual context.
Many entheogenic plants have been used by indigenous tribes for religious and sacral purposes for centuries. More recently, entheogens have been used in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy and have shown potential for increased quality of life and optimism in patients who don’t respond to traditional treatment.
In a pilot study from 2011, patients with advanced-stage cancer and end-of-life anxiety reported improved depression and pain up to six months after their second psilocybin treatment. The promising results from this study, among others, have sparked interest in doctors and therapists world-wide, including Canadian therapist Bruce Tobin, whose main concern is for his cancer patients. Tobin submitted an application with Health Canada in March 2020 asking for an approval to treat cancer patients’ end-of-life anxiety with psilocybin. He believes Canadian citizens “have the right to autonomy in making healthcare decisions with regards to life and death medical conditions,” and will not stop fighting until psilocybin is included in those healthcare decisions. As of June 2021, “development of a medical psilocybin program is not being considered at this time,” says a Health Canada spokesperson. Clinical trials, however, remain well in tact. Once a psilocybin treatment goes through all four phases of clinical trials, full legalization of psilocybin for medical conditions will be considered.
2021