Has anyone here conducted, participated or generally taken part of a LSD-induced psychotherapic session? A friend of mine, who introduced me to LSD, have told me a lot of it's potentials for unravelling one's childhood fears and such. Apparently you can receive memories of your own birth and, if you go even further, encounter transpersonal experiences, memories of other people. I'm very much interested in, not so much as a participant as curious of people who have done this.
^ yeah, lol. the only people who have done psychedelic therapy, legally, would be either incredibly old by now or, more likely, just dead. there was some research on this topic about a half a century ago when there was interest in using psychedelics like LSD to ease the anxiety and fear associated with the dying process, experienced by terminally ill cancer patients. the results of the pilot studies were very promising.... this shouldn't be too surprising consider the potential that psychedelics have for "enhancing" the mind. but LSD is illegal now, so too bad. fortunately, however, there is a resurgence of psychedelic interest among scientific communities. it's coming back, i promise. there are already several studies underway.... just give it a few more years.... the last paper i wrote in college was on this very topic: reassessing the value of psychedelics in mental health. it was for my clinical psychobiology seminar and was supposed to be no more than 15 pages. but, of course, mine ended up being 22 pages.
Well you can still do pyschotherapy even though it's illegal. I nearly underwent a session with my friend, but I opted out cos the thought was a bit too intimidating. I'm not thinking so much of a professional P.h.D shrink as just a friend or such.
Is your friend a skilled psychotherapist with experience of LSD therapy? If not it could end up as a total disaster. Myself, I can see a theraputic value to LSD, but I don't think it's the thing to take and then start to try to get at buried traumas etc. Also, great sensitivity is needed on the part of an LSD guide or babysitter, or they may end up imposing their stuff on you. IMO another illegal substance which has a wider theraputic application than acid would be MDMA.
He's a professional yes. But he hasn't had any experience with LSD therapy yet no, but he knows pretty much everything there is to know about the subject, he's reading about it like a madman. He refused doing it with me though, saying he wanted to do some self-imposed sessions first before attempting to do it with anyone. After the first time he tried he told me he had had strong symbolic visions of his childhood, but he seemed okay though.
wider therapeutic application? i would say different but certainly not wider. oh, but now i see that you said this claim was "in your opinion." so, no problem... i've read lots of research on various psychedelics and MDMA in therapy. there's arguments for and against both classes of drugs. in the end, though, what it really boils down to is the patient and their particular situation.... peace!
That is some of the best news I've heard in a long time. Do you have details of any of these rising studies?
It examples from books are okay, then get either of the following books by Stanislav Grof: Realms of the Human Unconscious: Observations from LSD Research LSD Psychotherapy I'm pretty sure these are available from Amazon; you can probably find them in college libraries as well. One of Grof's observations is that a person undergoing LSD psychotherapy first deals with current issues and traumas. Gradually he recalls (and relives under LSD) traumas from childhood. Often these eventually lead back to problems in the womb (health problems of mother, twin situations, etc.). Once these have been resolved, "karmic" traumas (i.e. from previous lifetimes!) surface. I'm not sure I believe all the details, but either book has a lot of insights on the use of LSD in psychotherapy.
Well I wouldn't be qualified to speak from a medical point of view, but only as one with experience of both substances. Whatever I say here is only culled from my experience and general reading over the years. I also have a friend who is a qualified psychiatrist, for what that's worth. And I have an interest in healing and therapy in general. Myself I would not be comfortable with taking LSD with the goal of trying to bring to light buried traumas and so on. It may happen that during an LSD session such things can come up - and they can be quite difficult to deal with, because the effect of the drug can actually amplify any pain, fear etc you may be feeling. For that reason, I think that in many cases it is contra indicated, and may make things worse. I know one or two people with mental problems who have used it, and it hasn't helped at all. In one case, it led to a violent assault. I know that their use was not in a clinical context, but I think the very nature of the LSD experience makes it difficult to contain within such a context. I think that in the case of a relatively sane and normal person, it can give great insights, and it could certainly help science gain a better understanding of the mind. MDMA on the other hand is a much gentler experience. Under its effect, it is possible to re-visit past traumas, look into one's emotional pains and so on in a totally detached way, without experiencing any negative emotion, or having in some sense to re-live traumatic events. It can help remind those who have forgotten how to feel good. Because of its seemingly almost unique 'empathogenic' action, it is potentially both a medicine and a tool for the therapist/healer looking to get in touch with the feelings of the patient, deepen their own sense of empathy. I believe some work has been done on both fronts in the past, prior to the demonization of ecstacy by govt and media from the 80's onward. For psychotherapists themselves, I think the LSD experience could be very good. Certainly I don't think anyone who hasn't had it themself should be giving it to others in whatever context.
One thing to note is that Grof distinguised between a "psycholytic" and a "psychedelic" dose of LSD, with the former being much smaller (say 100ug or less). Per Grof, with psycholytic doses, there is a fairly smooth evolution through recall of traumas beginning with the most recent first. Whereas with a large (psychedelic) dose, all sorts of memories can come up at the same time, and panic is much more likely. Generally psycholytic doses are recommended in most cases for ongoing therapy. Psychedelic doses are recommended for psychotherapy when only one or a few total sessions are possible, or when the problem being treated is an addiction.
Many street tabs or blotters actually have less than 100 micgrms. of LSD according to test figures I've seen. Yet for many, even that is enough to initiate a freakout.But I'm not against theraputic use of LSD. It is a thing that I'm sure could be beneficial to some, if not to all.
Also, here is an online source I found that gives a basic outline on conducting LSD psychotherapy. Not as complete as the Grof books but it is a good overview. It was written in 1959 when LSD research was still legal. http://www.erowid.org/psychoactives/guides/handbook_lsd25.shtml
sure: www.heffter.org the Heffter institute funds research all over the world. i just went to their site for the first time since a few weeks ago and the site has been replaced with two words and an exclamation mark. my best guess is that the results of the psilocybin studies are finally in..... *big smile* www.maps.org http://www.maps.org/research/cluster/psilo-lsd/#lsd MAPS is awesome.... they do psychedelic and cannabis research. should find plenty of stuff on anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive, cluster headaches, etc... that should perk your interest.
I'm always interested, thanks. I think no matter what going back to childhood traumas is a difficult and dangerous road to trot unless you're prepared, no matte under what influences. I think with the proper regulations, amounts and preparations LSD could be beneficial in helping people out of their misery.
