Psychedelic scientist. Seminal psychedelic research for 22 yrs at Hopkins. Drugs, behavioral economics, addiction.
Baltimore, MD
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It’s official. I just receive a U01 grant from NIDA to study #psilocybin for tobacco addiction. To my knowledge it's the 1st grant from the US government in over a half century to directly study therapeutics of a classic #psychedelic. New era in legitimacy of psychedelic science.
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It’s official: I’ve been awarded an endowed professorship in psychedelic research. I’ll be the Susan Hill Ward Professor in Psychedelics and Consciousness at Johns Hopkins. To my knowledge this is the 1st endowed professorship on the planet with psychedelics in the title.
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I regret being interviewed for this article about psychedelics & Prince Harry w Daily Mail (& now copy cat articles also quote me). Many of my words were distorted or out of context. Biased & distasteful. dailymail.co.uk/health/artic…
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We just published the 1st randomized study of #psilocybin for major depressive disorder. Over two thirds had clinically significant response & over half were in remission at follow up visits. Effect sizes met the definition of "huge" (Cohen's d=2 for stats nerds) or much larger.
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Cold showers/ice plunge is one of the best "drugs" out there. Nothing is without risk, but the mental health benefits alone seem remarkable. Along with exercise & sleep, one of the best nootropics around.
A 2 min cold immersion to the neck and five, 30 second cold showers per week led to a significant reduction in abdominal fat and waist circumference in the men in this study; also multiple psychological improvements related to stress & wellbeing. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3659…
Community note
This study has been retracted as of Feb 1, 2024.
The authors audited their data and identified errors in the analysis including the incorrect inclusion of subjects from other ongoing studies... In addition, the study design is ambiguous.
militaryhealth.bmj.com/content/170/1/
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Psychedelic therapy is more psychotherapy than most pharma companies & neuroscientists know how to deal with, and more pharmacology than most psychotherapists know how to deal with.
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Promoted to full professor at Johns Hopkins. Bodes well for psychedelic research - might be the 1st case in the US in modern era of promotion to full professor AFTER devoting substantial effort to psychedelic research. Now more with #psychedelics #psilocybin #behavioraleconomics
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I spend half the time convincing some that psychedelics can be paradigm shifting as therapeutics & understanding brain/behavior. Other half convincing some fans & even close colleagues to tone down overblown claims e.g. psychedelics saving our species & revealing core of morality
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Decriminalization is supported by data & human rights. I'm concerned about focus only on psychedelics as “good” drugs. Even more important to decrim heroin, coke, meth… given number of convictions. Focus on “natural” psychedelics also concerning. As if iboga was safer than LSD.
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9 years for cannabis possession is a horrifically & unimaginably cruel & merciless violation of human rights & decency. Just like every drug possession conviction in the United States.
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Anybody not paying attention should start doing so. Seems likely either this man will go to prison or this will lead to the most important news in history. If the pentagon/intelligence agencies are not able to block a SCIF testimony it will soon be known one way or another.
Officer David Grush declares under oath for the first time that the US government is in possession of UFOs and non-human bodies.
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Here's my interview about #psychedelic therapy on Fox News! Really appreciate this opportunity to spread news about this work.
The instructions are: trust, let go, and be open”
Johns Hopkins Professor Matthew Johnson, Ph.D. joins @dbongino to discuss how psychedelics are becoming mainstream treatments for psychiatric disorders
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Psychedelic therapeutics made the cover of Newsweek! I was honored to be interviewed on the big picture of how #psychedelics seems to help people.
newsweek.com/2021/10/01/magi…
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Again, I should not have done the interview because the cards were stacked against nuance despite my efforts. Beware of interviews with the Daily Mail for those in psychedelic research (and perhaps for anybody else).
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I encourage folks to listen to the Huberman Lab Podcast & follow @hubermanlab. I know of no better podcast that is squarely focused on hardcore science-based information for improving your health & well-being. I've learned astonishingly effective info.
piped.video/channel/UC2D2CMW…
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I should have declined any story with this backdrop. I have no interest commenting on any family's internal issues. Distasteful. Made it clear I wasn't commenting on them specifically. I thought I could provide nuance & balance but that didn't happen.
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My interview with @hubermanlab on #psychedelics. Like my interview w @lexfridman, this is with a podcast I already often listen to. Don't have much time for podcasts but Andrew's is one of the best. A health/fitness podcast by an active top scientist.
hubermanlab.com/dr-matthew-j…
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A dangerous idea is that psychedelics are inherently connected to morality. To paraphrase Terence McKenna regarding spiritual leaders in general, good advice with psychedelic gurus is to keep one hand over your wallet & the other hand over your asshole.
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Large psilocybin trial for depression! CNN interviewed me about this multi-site trial. The findings are promising & show a rapid response that's clear at 3 weeks & likely trend for improvement still at 3 months. From a single session. cnn.com/2022/11/02/health/ps…
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Big news! We've published our 1-year follow-up of our trial of #psilocybin for depression. The massive decreases in depression were unshaken a year later. Mystical experience in the session was related to improved well-being a year later. Great thread by 1st author @N_Gukasyan
Long-term (12 month follow-up) results of our waiting-list controlled study of psilocybin-assisted therapy for MDD are out today in JOP: journals.sagepub.com/doi/ful… 1/ 🧵
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Been using @DrBronner soap since, coincidentally, the time I started #psychedelic research 16 yrs ago. Today a routine supply comes in mail & I see normal text has been replaced with psychedelic therapy info - my research with tobacco addition, cancer distress, etc throughout
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Happy Bicycle Day! Celebrating the 1st intentional LSD taking on 4/19/1943. In a pharma industry lab in a neutral nation in the middle of war-torn Europe during humanity's largest war, Hofmann took 250mcg to test a trivial dose. Not trivial. He unleashed a scientific revolution.
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Journalists: How do psychedelics work to treat addiction & depression?
Me: 10 min on receptor pharmacology, post-receptor signaling, brain network dynamics, mystical-type effects correlated w treatment, openness, learning from the experience.
Journalists: But how does it work?
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Psychedelics are great tools but don't replace culture. They don't necessarily teach that communism doesn't work. Or that the excesses of woke culture destroy individual rights. Or that murdering a CEO is wrong & not the way to reform health care. They don't replace history, parenting, and moral lessons learned in a healthy culture. Too many are slipping again into the trap of weaponized empathy where unbalanced nominal concern for the oppressed leads to brutal oppression, where caring about looking good leads to evil. We need to hold on to the lessons of Western Civilization, and be guided by wisdom & principle. For societal issues, any power of psychedelics will be shaped by larger cultural forces. The Dark Side is always a potential.
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Psychedelic therapy will likely be an important new treatment option that can help many, but certainly not all. The REAL future of mental health is healthy physical & mental habits & systems. Healthy development & flourishing should be the conceptual foundation, not pathology.
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Psychedelic therapy can be appreciated by both liberals & conservatives. It can highlight systemic influences on a person, a focus of liberals. But can also highlight that a person should take responsibility to improve their life to the degree possible, a focus of conservatives.
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Victories for public health based drug policy initiatives. Expansion of regulated cannabis. Most important, decriminalization of all drug use in Oregon. Decrim can mean many things, but here it means no criminal record; a $100 ticket waived if you get a health assessment. Bravo.
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In yet another important step for psychedelic medicine, FDA has released new draft guidance for conducting clinical research with psychedelics. I'll be discussing live on CNN at about 5:50pm Eastern today, in about an hour.
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Thanks to @hubermanlab for the shout out about my psychedelic research on @joerogan. Starting @ 32:20. To answer Joe's question, the large psilocybin dose we use is equal to about 5 dried grams of cubensis - what Terrence McKenna called a "heroic dose."
open.spotify.com/episode/2BG…
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Michael Bogenschutz & team just published a landmark randomized clinical trial showing #psilocybin to have a substantial effect in helping with alcohol addiction. I was honored to provide comments on this research for NBC News.
nbcnews.com/health/mental-he…
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Hi had a fun conversation with the folks from El Cuartico on #psychedelics as medicines. Muchas gracias.
Imagina que tu terapeuta te recomienda ingerir psicodélicos para tratar tu ansiedad y depresión. ¿Lo aceptas o piensas que en verdad es un dealer disfrazado? Hablamos sobre este tema junto a @Drug_Researcher
piped.video/DiwnvoSBLl0
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One of my favorite misspelling of my university name is "John's Hopkins." John called and wants his Hopkins back. They belong to him. Another is "Johns' Hopkins." Several Johns want their Hopkins back.
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Lex, please consider asking him about psychedelic therapies for mental health disorders, including federal funding for research as well as a realistic path at the FDA.
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I was interviewed by Discover Magazine about the lack of addictive potential of psilocybin, and its potential to actually treat addiction.
discovermagazine.com/health/…
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1st fully randomized test of different musical genres in #psychedelic therapy. Also 1st modern within-subject experiment of session set & setting in psychedelic research. We compared classical music to gongs, singing bowls etc. in #psilocybin therapy.
pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.102…
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Thanks. Part of this is a bit of ignorance by me as a Yankee on the media landscape in the UK (although it was actually my university's media group that relayed the request to me; I've warned them about the outlet now). Lesson learned :)
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Was interviewed by @lexfridman, 1 of the world’s greatest podcasters. Lex has interviewed Nobel Prize winners, other great scientists, tech leaders & many fascinating people. I was honored & lucky he invited me. Talked about #psychedelics, #behavioraleconomics, #drugs & reality.
Here's my conversation with Matthew Johnson (@Drug_Researcher), a professor at Johns Hopkins and one of the top scientists in the world conducting research on psychedelics. This was one of the most fascinating conversations I've ever had on this podcast. piped.video/watch?v=ICj8p5jP…
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I’ll be on @FoxNews tonight on @UnfilteredOnFox w @dbongino 9pm ET talking about #psychedelic treatment of depression/mental health in context of Colorado's psychedelics bill. I’ve lost my voice from great conversations at the #WonderlandMiami meeting so might sound a bit rough!
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I’m no virologist but I’m a drug scientist so here are my expert recommendations regarding COVID-19 and substance use. (1/11)
#COVID #coronavirus #COVID19US #drugs #alcohol #drinking #cannabiscoronavirus #ecigs #vaping #coffee #psychedelics #QuarentineLife #harmreduction
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A psilocybin patient stating her post-treatment suicidal ideation was judged unrelated to psilocybin despite her claiming a link. I've seen up close too many efforts to "protect" psychedelic research. Psychedelics are very promising, but we need to be principled.
Showcasing the power of psychedelic therapy patient stories:
“I was classed as a non-responder, and my suicidal behaviour a few days after the dose was considered unrelated. I’d just had one of the most intense experiences in my life, in which my only coping mechanisms were
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Some psychedelic fans oppose FDA medicalization despite millions who could be helped. Some psychedelic scientists don't critique drug war for fear it impacts their career or medicalization, despite millions suffering from criminalization. Needed path is honesty, nuance & wisdom
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Great formulation by @hubermanlab on how #psychedelic therapy works. Rapid new learning that fixes suboptimal, deeply ingrained associations (contingencies) seems to be fundamental. Learning is key.
Emerging data from clinical trials points to potentially powerful use of psilocybin for the treatment of depression and certain forms of addiction, and perhaps compulsive disorders, too.
One of the key questions to arise from those studies is: "what is the relationship between the actual journey (the subjective experience under the influence of psilocybin) and the improvements in mood and other thought patterns that persist afterwards"?
If you think about it, this is a critical issue to resolve because it needn't be the case that the actual journey and insights therein are the cause of the antidepressant effects. The rewiring (neuroplasticity) events in the brain could, for instance, occur afterwards or be independent of the subjective experience of the journey. Or they could simply be the consequence of the serotonin receptor activation and strengthening of certain neural connections, or even neurogenesis.
During the Huberman Lab episode out now, I discuss the data related to all of these issues. I also discuss safety considerations, and who should absolutely avoid psilocybin, which, of course are critical issues. hubermanlab.com/how-psilocyb…
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Happy 420. A day that celebrates the freedom & humanity of people who use cannabis. Incredible progress in cannabis laws in last 25 years (Prop 215 in 1996). No drug use should be criminalized. More progress needed.
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I’m an “expert” in many areas of science- psychedelics, pharmacology, behavioral economics, addiction. Top credentials & achievements. If I can’t convince you of any position in plain language, DON’T TRUST ME. We have a problem with “trusting the experts” & trusting “THE SCIENCE"
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The suspect in the CEO murder follows me here & appears to be a psychedelic fan. IF guilty, it would reinforce the point that psychedelics don't necessarily make people MORAL or ETHICAL. In fact their generalized effects can potentially reinforce pathological & evil ideologies.
I see this Luigi fella is a fan of psychedelics... he follows @Erowid, @PaulStamets, and @Drug_Researcher. And a fan of the mushroom pokemon... which can't be a coincidence.
Respect. 🍄
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Notion that there is a safe level of drinking or that low levels have overall benefit is a fairy tale supported by the alcohol industry & bought into by many folks & scientists who want to view alcohol as more more justified & different than other drugs. Not supported by science.
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Great news. I'm proud that research I conducted with #psilocybin in cancer patients played some role in this.
NEWS: 4 Palliative Canadians experiencing end-of-life distress have been APPROVED to access psychedelic therapy through section 56 exemptions. This historic decision marks the first known individuals to legally use #psilocybin since it’s illegality in 1974.bit.ly/2DBiBzO
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FDA MDMA/PTSD meeting has been fascinating. One of the most compelling reveals: This isn't what I would call "expectancy" assessment, but the effect of functional unblinding. For those thinking they got MDMA, therapeutic effect was nearly identical between MDMA & placebo. Yikes
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This will be a multi-site trial with Hopkins as the lead site. The other sites will be NYU (site lead Michael Bogenschutz) and UAB (site lead Peter Hendricks).
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60 Minutes just ran the episode on our #psilocybin research again. It's on their website again, so you can see my colleagues and me being interviewed by @andersoncooper. Really enjoyed spending two days with the 60 Minutes team. Big thanks to Anderson!
cbsnews.com/news/psychedelic…
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Axios interviewed me on our new NIH funding for #psychedelic treatment research & why continued NIH support is so important for the future of research with psychedelics!
axios.com/psychedelic-therap…
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Made it clear openness/relaxed beliefs can theoretically be leveraged for good or bad; but good therapy looks to be successful in pushing good. Major examples of bad (Brainwashing, Manson, CIA, those w schizophrenia) are outside of therapy.
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Many of us scientists responsible for the psychedelic research renaissance think there is realistic question about heart valve disease from chronic admin of microdoses. LSD, psilocybin, MDMA all agonize 5-HT2B receptors, a mechanism linked to valve disease. It got fen-phen yanked
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This impossible narrative about incidental fentanyl contact overdose reminds me of one of my favorite Tim Leary quotes: "LSD is a psychedelic drug which occasionally causes psychotic behavior in people who have not taken it."
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Some psychedelic fans oppose medicalization & say psychedelics should not be used in clinical space. Don't recall telling folks what to do or not do (I do inform on relative risks). Clinical development is not mutually exclusive to others things folks are doing with psychedelics.
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This paper is my own little version of Luther nailing his theses to the church door. Sloppiness of consciousness talk, inappropriate religious content, & lose boundaries in #psychedelic research. With my 1st published art - "The Immaculate Sprouting"
pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.102…
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I try to avoid saying "psychedelic community." Aside from interest in psychedelics, I might have more in common with the average person on the street in Denver than the average person in the halls at the recent Psychedelic Science meeting in Denver.
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No, having drugs in your system doesn't justify police slowly murdering you while you & every citizen watching beg for your life. Overwhelming majority who use drugs on any given day don't die that day. Drugs & substance use disorders are no excuse for murder. Justice served.
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Thanks @elonmusk for bringing more light into the world. Free speech is good for #psychedelic research. It’s critical for society. Psychedelic can help people. But while some think psychedelics will save humanity, it's really the enlightenment that can do so if we don't kill it.
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Many of my critiques of what's wrong with psychedelic therapy or research could be replaced by “OK Boomer”
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Turns out a psychedelic trip from an alive nose-diving lizard helped transform Boba Fett from ruthless bounty hunter to good guy. Psychedelic renaissance off to a great start in 2022. #Psychedelic #StarWars I'm available as consultant.
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Might as well speculate that someone may have alcohol based dementia as an explanation for family issues just because someone has used alcohol in the past. Sure, theoretically possible, but by itself worthless even as a speculative explanation for a particular person.
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No reason whatsoever to conclude that increased openness/suggestibility is responsible for someone with family conflicts just because they have used psychedelics in the past. Completely speculative & not a service to the public.
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CNN interviewed me about the pilot who reportedly took mushrooms. Psychedelic science needs to do better public education about risks. I've gotten professional pushback for speaking bluntly about atypical risks like this. Atypical doesn't mean nonexistent.
amp.cnn.com/cnn/2023/10/25/u…
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Super excited about our major new comprehensive review of 5-MeO-DMT, a #psychedelic with apparent incredible therapeutic potential. Great collaboration with colleagues Anna Ermakova, Fiona Dunbar, and @drjrucker! If you read it and love it, I toad you so.
journals.sagepub.com/eprint/…
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Big Think has finally released the full interview with me about psychedelics. They released several short segments over the last few months but this is the whole enchilada. All things psychedelic: history, culture, indigenous use, pharmacology, therapy...
piped.video/watch?v=QBA98jHW…
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Psychedelic scientists saying they started their 1st psychedelic study skeptical of beneficial impact & were astonished at impact on participants are likely taking you for a ride w/ bogus origin story. They're no Albert Hofmann. Likely the ones getting off on playing guru. Beware
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Many posts about psychedelics end up with bot comments about their mental health recovery by microdosing psychedelics, referring you to psychedelic vendors on Instagram. Please don't fall for these ads. Even if they deliver, they're dishonest & super shady. And FYI illegal.
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What’s a heroic dose of psilocybin? I explain to Lex Fridman. Mushroom species, milligrams, hunkering down in the tent at Burning Man, and inter-planetary space.
piped.video/watch?v=lJpX5y5w…
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Drugs were a massive aspect of the #GeorgeFloyd murder. Officer Thao literally said "This is why you don't do drugs, kids" while Mr. Floyd was being slowly executed in front of horrified citizens. Drugs in Mr. Floyd's system was a major part of Chauvin's defense. Dehumanization.
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My greatest scientific mentor, Warren Bickel, has passed away. Warren was my grad advisor and the most creative scientist I’ve ever worked with. I consider him the greatest addiction scientist of his generation. His contributions are staggering.
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Amazing! These researchers systematically analyzed NIH funding records to confirm that NIH has not funded a single psychedelic therapy trial in the modern psychedelic renaissance. But while their paper was in-press, our psilocybin trial (for tobacco addiction) was funded by NIH!
From 2006-2020 NIH funded 0 psychedelic therapy clinical trials. Incredibly, while our article on this was in press, @Drug_Researcher and colleagues received a grant from NIDA for an RCT of psilocybin for nicotine use disorder. @JeremyWeleff #psychedelics authors.elsevier.com/a/1dsfa…
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Anyone opposed to the excesses & injustice of the Drug War should be thankful. This man did not deserve to rot in prison into old age. This is great news!
Ross Ulbricht has been freed by President Trump with a full pardon! Thank you for keeping your word to me and others who have been advocating for Ross’ freedom, Mr. President! #freeRoss
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If psychedelic science had been around & had been a focus of the 4th Earl of Sandwich, humans would have terraformed Jupiter by now.
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And thanks to @hubermanlab for bringing psychedelic science to a broader audience!
The fact that both @UCSF and @Stanford Magazine have cover features this month on the potential for psychedelics to treat mental illnesses (&more) is incredible. Hat tip @RCarhartHarris @NolanRyWilliams @Drug_Researcher @JHPsychedelics @MAPS @tferriss & others for paving this in.
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Despite several credible attempts, the most rigorous studies to date suggest microdosing thereapeutic claims *might* be all driven by placebo effect. Therapeutic effects could be real for some claims, but I'm just conveying where we are scientifically. Also there may be risks...
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One of the most compelling psychedelic studies ever published.
Peer-reviewed and published today in @NatMentHealth Thank you co-authors, and particularly @SNACCNeuro for seed funding.
nature.com/articles/s44220-0…
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Our Johns Hopkins survey on #psychedelics. Please RT! Have you used them to treat mental health? We wanna know the results, whether positive, negative, or neutral. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly!
Have you used psychedelics/MDMA to help anxiety, depression, trauma, or PTSD? Johns Hopkins researchers, in collaboration w/ Erowid, seek responses to an anonymous #research survey. Must be 18+.
Please repost and help spread the word!
tinyurl.com/PsychedelicsSurv…
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Proposed wording "Warning: conducting therapy with a psychedelic may lead you to think you are especially clinically gifted, spiritually enlightened, or are saving humanity itself. Please check your ego and just try to focus on your patient." 😂
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Although we do need to keep an eye on potential bad actors among therapists & scientists. I did say in more minor ways scientists have done things like pushed personal supernatural spiritual beliefs which is concerning as it takes advantage of such vulnerability.
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Great news on the confirmation of @RobertKennedyJr. A great prospect for psychedelic medicine, prevention of chronic disease, and reducing corporate influence over our health agencies.
Promises made, promises kept.
This is the most important Cabinet win in modern American history.
A seismic political event of grassroots voices over special interests.
A primal scream from a diverse coalition to improve Children’s Health.
Thank you @realDonaldTrump
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Good Housekeeping interviewed me about psychedelics. They also interviewed a wonderful volunteer in the smoking cessation research. She credits it as the most intense experience of her life and prompted her to remain cigarettes free for 3 years now. goodhousekeeping.com/health/…
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This is amazing. Universities take all these costs yet they keep almost all of it for bloated leadership and administration. Then they fight researchers & make them pay basic operating expenses out of their direct costs that should come from indirects. It's been a huge scam & I'm glad it's changing.
Last year, $9B of the $35B that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) granted for research was used for administrative overhead, what is known as “indirect costs.” Today, NIH lowered the maximum indirect cost rate research institutions can charge the government to 15%, above what many major foundations allow and much lower than the 60%+ that some institutions charge the government today. This change will save more than $4B a year effective immediately.
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My conversation with Lex Fridman about the mind blowing effects of DMT has been viewed over 1 million times.
The elves have been known to say "don't give in to astonishment" but nonetheless I have to say ... WOW! Folks love to hear about some DMT.
piped.video/watch?v=Gy4QHTgi…
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Thanks to @tferriss for bringing attention to milestone. The philanthropic funding from him and others has paved the way for this possibility of federal funding.
Johns Hopkins Medicine (@HopkinsMedicine) Receives First Federal Grant for Psychedelic Treatment Research in 50 years
cc: @Drug_Researcher
hopkinsmedicine.org/news/new…
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My conversation w @lexfridman on #tobacco. Nicotine is an under-recognized battle front in the War on Drugs. While the world is slowly moving away from prohibition for other drugs, many tobacco researchers adopt a prohibition model for nicotine products.
piped.video/qVLMLar4dMQ
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To clarify, the endowed professorship is new. But I'm not new to psychedelic research; been doing that for 17 years & am already full professor. This does provide more security and lets me take more chances & know the position is secure and less dependent on continual funding.
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The FDA MDMA/PTSD meeting was pretty brutal. A lot of negative focus on therapy compliance which I don't see as a problem. It was randomized. The safety issues are addressable thru a good REMS. Other approved treatments have blinding issues. Prior use didn't drive results.
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I think the biggest meta level issue with psychedelic medicine & science, manifested in countless ways, is that it's an unprecedented virtue signaling machine. The spiritual effects are very effective at providing cover for unethical behavior.
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If a bill is on the table to support decrim of any drug, it's a step in right direction. But this "good" drug rationale is problematic. It’s not about good vs. bad drugs. It’s about public health & human rights.
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I testified today at the invitation of New Jersey Assembly Judiciary Committee on a bill to move psilocybin from felony to misdemeanor. It passed for movement to full Assembly. Among the 6 member, 1 no vote & 1 abstained based on sending the wrong message
nj.com/marijuana/2020/12/nj-…
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Although I would've recommended approval & advocated for a strong REMS, the failure of MDMA/PTSD at FDA yesterday is sobering. Unfortunately, I must conclude that the cult-like "psychedelics will save humanity" vibe I've been warning about played some role in multiple ways.
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I was interviewed about the depiction of psychedelic use in the TV show "Nine Perfect Strangers." I emphasized that dosing folks without their consent (in ANY context, not just medical research) is horrendously unethical.
verywellhealth.com/psilocybi…
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Big Think interviewed me on #psychedelics
Most drugs change your physiology. Psychedelics change your reality. Here’s how they work, explained by Johns Hopkins professor Matthew Johnson, @drug_researcher.
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Psilocybin treatment of tobacco addiction! Please repost & spread the word. Study sites in New York City, Birmingham Alabama & Baltimore. This was the 1st US federal funding for research to administer a classic psychedelic for treatment in modern era. Thx
quitsmokingbaltimore.org/
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I'll be interviewed on the BBC World Service at about 12:10 AM ET (in about 3 hours) to discuss #psilocybin and the new depression treatment trial published by @RCarhartHarris and his lab. bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/live:b…
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Major academic shots fired. #Impulsivity is a failed psychological construct. 70 years ago folks took the new idea of #psychology as a natural #science seriously. Drifted too far for too long. Stewing this for 15 years. With 1st author @juststrickland
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3296…
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Recommend watching the interview @JulesEvans11 did with someone who had long term anxiety from ayahuasca sessions. Humbling as she was prepared, knowledgeable, and well experienced with meditation and mental health practice. She reports feedback from psychedelic practitioners that put the blame on her and shamed her for the the distress. I've seen this first hand in clinical trials research when a heavy handed approach is applied. Difficulties are put on the patient for allowing their "ego" to trick them. Every difficulty can be construed as their failure to be open to the experience. I strongly suspect the "retreat" practice of massing multiple psychedelic sessions within a few days was a major factor in her case. They try to pack in all these sessions into a brief visit, with sessions every day or every other day. Then off on a plane home a day or two after the last session. This hardly sounds optimal to me, and seems to be more a product of the retreat industry trying to sell folks more bang for their buck. Link in the post below.
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I'll be doing this AMA with Tim Ferriss (@tferriss) & Michael Pollan (@michaelpollan) on #psychedelics, mental health & scientific philanthropy. Submit questions & check it out! Thanks @Effect_Altruism! RT to spread the word!
We're thrilled to be hosting an Ask Me Anything session on psychedelics, mental health, and science philanthropy — featuring @tferriss, @michaelpollan, and @Drug_Researcher!
efctv.org/2SN7rzM
Get your questions in before Sunday, when our experts join the discussion.
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