textfiles/drugs/med_lsd.txt

                         MEDICALS USES FOR HALLUCINOGENS
                                       by
                                  Rich Hartman



    Is a substance a danger to the public even if it is not a psychological or

physical danger to the individual? The government seems to think so. It has

banned hallucinogens, even though these drugs have helped generate numerous

scientific breakthroughs.  Psychology and science would benefit from the

legalization of hallucinogens for research.

     Before the banning of hallucinogens in 1966, psychologists had used them

with notable results. In the early 1940's both mescaline, the psychoactive agent

in peyote, and lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) became very significant in the


field of experimental psychology. Rumored that they could produce model

schizophrenic psychoses, many psychotherapists started to take them rather

seriously. The standard position became that nobody could call himself qualified

to treat schizophrenia unless he had experienced the world of schizophrenics

firsthand. This world became quite easy to experience by simply taking

mescaline.  "Mescaline, when taken under the proper guidance, could produce a

wide variety of abnormal states: catatonia, paranoia, delusions of persecution

and grandeur, hallucinations, religious ecstasy, homicidal and suicidal

impulses, apathy and mania" (Stevens 88). To use a Freudian term, "mescaline

shattered the unity of the ego" (Dunlap 116).

     Soon after the discovery of mescaline, Sandoz, a Swiss pharmaceutical

company, synthesized a new hallucinogen called LSD. They marketed it under the

trade name of Delysid. The distribution literature contained the following

information:

                    SUGGESTED APPLICATIONS

     a) Analytical psychotherapy, to elicit release of
        repressed material and provoke mental
        relaxation, particularly in anxiety states and
        obsessional neuroses.
     b) Experimental studies on the nature of psychoses:
        By taking Delysid himself, the psychiatrist is
        able to gain insight into the world of ideas
        and sensations of mental patients. Delysid can
        also be used to induce model psychoses of short
        duration in normal patients, thus facilitating
        studies on the pathogenesis of mental disease
        (Hoffman 47).

The literature also offered the following precautions:

     Pathological mental conditions may be intensified
     by Delysid. Particular caution is necessary in
     subjects with suicidal tendencies and in those
     cases where a  psychotic development appears
     imminent. Delysid should only be administered under
     strict medical supervision. The supervision should
     not be discontinued until the effects have
     completely worn off (Hoffman 49).

     By the late fifties, LSD therapy had gained popularity because of its

remarkable results. Fifty percent of chronic alcoholics exposed to just one LSD

session quit drinking permanently. Several advances with autistic children also

came about (Stevens 214). Two schools of thought developed.  One saw LSD as a

facilitator for traditional therapy and became known as psycholytic therapy. The

other, psychedelic therapy, involved giving the patient a massive dose and using

subtle cues to try to produce a moving, transcendental experience. At first,

psycholytic therapy had a larger following, but soon psychedelic therapy got

more and better results. With the patient's eyes closed, the mind would begin to

project a three dimensional movie in the inner visual field. Some of these

"films" consisted of remembered childhood incidents, while others contained

Freudian symbolism (Stevens 227).  The patients seemed particularly sensitive to

their environment. If the therapist acted cool and detached, the patient would

respond with hostility and hurt feelings. However, if the therapist seemed warm

and gentle, they would develop a bond unseen in traditional therapy (Dunlap 46).

     Meanwhile, research on the effects of LSD continued. Studies of people who

had taken LSD under controlled settings revealed the following:

     78% felt an increased ability to love,
     69% felt an increased ability to communicate and
         understand others,
     69% felt that they were able to handle hostility
         better,
     71% felt an increase in self esteem,
     83% thought that they had brushed up against some
         "higher power" or "absolute reality" (Stevens
         319).

People who had a transcendental experience while on LSD had second thoughts

about settling for a secure corporate job and leaned toward something more

contemplative. Personality tests revealed that as long as six months after LSD

therapy, people showed significant positive changes in self perception and self

approval areas (Dunlap 79). One of the most interesting aspects of LSD is its

effect creativity. In 1962, Dr. William Janiger conducted a study of over 800

people, including Cary Grant, Aldous Huxley and Jack Nicholson. The results of

the tests on artists proved most interesting. Dr.  Janiger gave each artist a

doll and asked him to paint it. He then gave the artist a dose of LSD and asked

him to paint the doll again. The LSD inspired paintings seemed more abstract,

symbolic and emotional. They tended to cover all available space on the canvas.

The artists claimed that the LSD seemed to relieve inhibitions and dramatically

altered the way that they perceived the world. ("Acid Test" 16).

     Further research revealed the three stages of the LSD "trip." The first,

termed evasive maneuvers, is what the earlier psycho-therapists had confused

with schizophrenia.  During this stage, so many new ideas and thoughts rush

through the mind that it can produce overtones of panic. The symbolic perception

stage comes next, with Freudian hallucinations that seem to work off repressed

thoughts. Last comes the immediate perception stage: "the single reality in

which the infinite and eternal are understood" (Stevens 19).

     While others studied LSD, Harvard psychologist Dr.  Timothy Leary began to

study psilocybin, or hallucinogenic mushrooms. In one experiment, he gave the

drug to 175 people.  Over 50% the people claimed to have learned a great deal

about themselves, and felt their lives had changed for the better. Over 90%

wanted the experience again (Hoffman 232). In a psilocybin study at a maximum

security prison, hardened criminals began to talk about love, ecstasy and

sharing (Stevens 413).

     A recently developed drug is MDMA, or Ecstasy. MDMA acts like an empathogen

rather than a full-fledged psychedelic.  An empathogen alters mood, not

consciousness. Psycho-therapists have compared one good MDMA session to two

years of traditional therapy ("Ecstasy" 96). They claim that it tends to

eliminate anxieties and defenses. This elimination allows people to achieve

insight into their emotions ("Trouble" 86). MDMA has proved very effective in

the curing of phobias ("MDMA" 34).  In addition to the psychological benefits,

hallucinogens have helped scientists understand how the brain works. When

these drugs first appeared, they shocked the scientific community. "If what we

thought of as reality was so fragile that it could be shattered by 250

millionths of a gram of LSD, then how did our conception of reality relate to

the brain" (Hoffman 59)? Science simply did not have the vocabulary to discuss

hallucinogens, so many terms came from Zen Buddhism and Hinduism. Eventually,

however, science caught up. Theories about the brain sprung up everywhere. The

most widely accepted was that the brain has "reducing plugs" which screen out

millions of impulses every second.  Hallucinogens removed some of these plugs,

it seemed (Huxley 87).  Psychotherapists developed maps of the unconscious which

allowed them to guide patients through their sessions (Stevens 222). They also

developed a four level model of the unconscious. The sensory storehouse of

images and colors existed on the first level. The next level contained the

recollective-analytic domain of psychotherapy. The symbolic level, predominantly

mythical, followed. On the highest level, the unconscious has an integral

confrontation with reality, which some have perceived as God (Dunlap 93).  With

the invention of computers, research on the brain became much easier. "Man can

only understand his inner workings in terms of external, mechanical models that

we build" (Stevens 73). Dr. Timothy Leary developed his theory of the eight

circuit brain, with each circuit acting as a "mini-brain." Four exist in the

left half of the brain, and four exist in the right. Number one contains the

bio-survival circuit, which sees the world in terms of black and white, right

and wrong. Number two contains the emotional circuit, number three contains the

dexterity-symbolism circuit and number four contains the socio-sexual circuit.

Only alcohol affects the first four. Number five contains the neuro-somatic

circuit, affected by marijuana. Both mescaline and psilocybin affect number six,

the neuro-electric circuit.  Number seven contains the neuro-genetic circuit,

affected by LSD. Number eight contains the neuro-atomic circuit, not affected by

anything until recently. "Vitamin K," a brand new psychedelic still in the

experimental stages, affects this circuit ("Dr. Timothy Leary" 228).

     Contrary to popular belief, these hallucinogens have proven to have no

harmful side effects. After 68 studies, the federal government has concluded

that pure LSD, when ingested in moderate doses, causes no damage to chromosomes,

causes no detectable genetic damage and contains no carcinogens (Stevens 129).

Most psychotherapists agree on these five points about hallucinogens:

     a) They are safe. Very large doses may be given without detectable tissue
        damage.
     b) They are effective in therapy.
     c) The patient remains conscious and cooperative.
     d) They may be given repeatedly. There is no evidence of addiction and the
        effects wear off in about twelve hours.
     e) Patients usually like the experience if given the
        proper dose (Stevens 129).

     The dangers of hallucinogens come when they are taken illegally. When

psychotherapists in the 1960's conducted LSD sessions, a dose of chlorpromazine

was always on hand. This would rapidly negate the effects of the drug in case

anything went wrong. Under controlled settings, the psychotherapist could guide

the patient. When taken illegally, however, the user is on his own and may

experience a "bad trip." Also, much of today's illicit LSD contains little or no

LSD, but amphetamines, or, more commonly, PCP. Often misclassified as a

hallucinogen, PCP is medically described as a deliriant ("New Medicines" 68).

Because it is easy and cheap to make, PCP often gets sold to an unknowing buyer

as LSD or mescaline.

      All research on mescaline, LSD and psilocybin came to a halt on October 6,

1966, when the FDA placed them on a Schedule 1 drug classification. MDMA was

placed on Schedule 1 in July of 1985. This is the same class as marijuana,

heroin and cocaine. "Schedule 1 is supposed to be reserved for drugs that have

no medical use, are addictive and destructive to human tissue, and cause social

destruction, diseases and accidents" ("New Medicines" 67). Ironically, the

dangers of alcohol outweigh those of all the drugs on Schedule 1 combined

("Trouble" 102). With all of the evidence considered, it would seem that

hallucinogens should be taken off of Schedule 1 and place back into Schedule 3,

which would allow for continued research and scientific experimentation.

                         WORKS CITED

"Acid Test." Omni November 1987: 16.

"Dr. Timothy Leary." Rolling Stone 5 November 1986: 226-28.

Dunlap, Jane. Exploring Inner Space: Personal Experiences With LSD. New York:
     Harcourt, Brace & World, 1961.

"Ecstasy." Newsweek April 1965: 96.

Hoffman, Albert. LSD: My Problem Child. Los Angeles: J.P.  Tarcher, 1983.

Huxley, Aldous. The Doors of Perception. New York: Harper & Row, 1971.

"MDMA." Discover August 1986: 34.

"New Medicines for Moods." Changing Times August 1985: 67-69.

Stevens, Jay. Storming Heaven. New York: Atlantic Monthly Press, 1987.

"The Trouble With Ecstasy." Life August 1985: 86-102.
 
 
 


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