Decriminalize Psychedelics: Are You Kidding Me?

That was my first thought when, several years ago, I was visiting Denver and I read an article in the newspaper about decriminalizing psychedelics and my next thought was, “There goes the decline of humanity!” My mind’s eye pictured addicts on street corners panhandling and laying on sidewalks with needles sticking out of their arms. Drug addicted babies being born right and left to using mothers. People becoming derelict because this was the stuff that made holes in your brain wasn’t it? Or that fried your brain like that egg being plopped into a hot skillet in the public service announcements on TV. I was born in 1958 and grew up in the tumultuous ‘60’s and 70’s. The clash between the Vietnam War and the hippies played out every night on the evening news. Protests, anti-war songs and the ever-present message of Timothy Leary, “Turn On, Tune in, Drop Out across college campuses was in the media. I bought the message, hook, line, and sinker, as they say! Little did my judging mind know….well anything at that time!

First, I had never taken any psychedelics. I didn’t even know what psychedelics really were aside from LSD.

Secondly, I was not aware of the over 8,000 research papers that had been published on the medicinal value of psychedelics in the 40’s and 50’s especially the addiction studies with alcohol abuse for which the famous Bill W. received LSD treatment to cure his addiction to alcohol and went on to write the Big Book of AA!

Thirdly, I was certainly not aware of the research and clinical trials that had been going on for three decades since the 90’s that were showing positive results for treatment resistant depression, anxiety, PTSD, end of life anxiety with terminally ill cancer patients, social anxiety in Autistic adults and eating disorders.

I was very aware of the struggle of Veterans returning from their assignments with intractable PTSD, of sexual abuse victims also struggling with PTSD. Addictions, hurt families, damaged lives and suicide! They were in my community! They came to my office for help! They were alive in my own family!

So, here I am now, many years later, a certified psychedelic-assisted psychotherapist, working with people with deep trauma every day. The difference between years ago and now? Years ago, I felt like I was beating my head against the wall! Sure, I made a difference in people’s lives, sure I helped them help themselves, but many people still struggled or fell off the wagon or couldn’t find enough self-love and self- compassion to forgive themselves and move on. Today, using ketamine, it feels like every therapy session is ten years’ worth of therapy! I delight in seeing individuals completely transform right before my eyes in a few months’ time!

I will be the first to say that psychedelics are not a panacea, they are not a magic pill, they are not for everyone. You have to qualify medically. You cannot be approved if you suffer from uncontrolled high blood pressure, heart disease, glaucoma, pregnancy, breast feeding or if you are in an active substance abuse, an active manic state or an active psychotic state.

Does it take guts, yes! With ketamine, you leave your body. It is a dissociative anesthetic, but used in lower doses, it allows a person to disassociate or peel away from their body and float in a non-ordinary state of consciousness, sort of like that state in between sleep and awake that we all go through every morning. Most people enjoy the journey. Sometimes childhood memories come up, sometimes traumas come up, but in the safe setting of a therapist’s office or clinic under the guidance of a trained professional, you feel safe enough to explore what comes up for you. We are taught that there is such an entity as a person’s inner healer and we trust that inner healer to bring up what you are ready to work through. When you come out from the influence of the medicine, you are still a bit groggy and need someone there to reassure you and guide you back into your body. The following day we meet for an integration session to talk about what came up for you, what meaning it has for you and how you can integrate it into your current life. Some people see events from a different perspective or can put life-long patterns together and understand them for the first time. There are a lot of “AHA” moments!

As far as eating holes in your brain? Yes, meth and other stimulants like Ritalin and adderall do that, but so does being in a state of high stress chronically!! Psychedelics are showing that they reverse that damage through neuroplasticity and neurogenesis! Neuroplasticity helps our brains to handle stress better and neurogenesis grows new neurons! A new line of research…psychedelics in treating brain damage and brain disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease!

So, what is the verdict today regarding my outlook on decriminalizing psychedelics? I am on the forefront of pushing for decriminalization in 100 cities in 100 days and I work in harm reduction volunteering at festivals, and I love my work! Will I continue offering ketamine and other psychedelics, MDMA and psilocybin as they become available? You bet! Will I continue with my own guided journeys in the hands of my trusted therapist friends? Wouldn’t miss it for the world!
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