Psychedelics are drugs that alter the state of consciousness. In other words, these drugs alter your perception or the way things sound, look, and feel. Some people take psychedelics for fun, while others use them for medicinal purposes, especially for treating depression because they stimulate the production of serotonin.

Taking psychedelics in high amounts can cause many issues, as a result, many healthcare practitioners advise for it to be taken under recommendation or in small doses called micro-dosing. This is contrary to what people who abuse psychedelics do. Ideally, psychedelics are used to treat mental illnesses and they also serve other needs to the human brain.

You may wonder; how do psychedelic drugs work? How can one use them? And what are the benefits of these drugs? Well, this article will help you find answers to all your questions.

How Do Psychedelic Drugs Work?

For mental health conditions, some medications may take time to treat the condition. However, psychedelic shows an immediate improvement in mental health patients. How does it do this? You will find an explanation below:

Mystical Experiences

These medications are known to alter a person’s consciousness, changing the way you think or feel. You might experience vivid imagination that would change how you behave. When taken in monitored micro doses, these medications give intense meaningful experiences in the imagination. This would change your belief and mindset and help you to start thinking and behaving differently.

Depression makes a person feel undervalued and less important, affecting behavior and thinking. With psychedelic experiences, a depressed person would find relief and start thinking properly.

Increased Suggestibility

The drugs are known to make you more suggestible. This allows you to respond positively to suggestions from your psychologist or therapist. It could also help a person benefit from hallucinations.

Neurotransmitter Changes

Neurotransmitters are what send messages in the brain. They can affect mood and produces several hormones to regulate how you feel or think. Many mental disorder medications have an effect on the neurotransmitters to regulate moods. They help to stimulate the production of dopamine and serotonin which produce a positive and happy mood. 

Some psychedelic drugs also affect neurotransmitters and stimulate the production of hormones.

How to Use Psychedelic Drugs

Micro dosing of psychedelic medication can only be accessed from a clinic or hospital. Here are some ways a medical practitioner offers these medications:

Drug Assisted Treatments

This is when a medical professional offers other treatment along with psychedelics. The healthcare provider might include traditional therapy like psychotherapy and acupuncture in the treatment.

Guided Therapy

In this treatment, a professional would guide a person taking these medications through the mind-altering effects by giving therapeutic suggestions that help to keep the person calm and sane.

Psychedelic Alone Treatment

The professional would give the patient these medications alone with no extra treatments or therapy.

Types of Psychedelic Drugs

There are several types available. Some of which include:

Lysergic Acid Diethylamide

This is also called LSD. It is produced from a substance found in a fungus called ergot. This fungus mostly grows on the rye plant.

Dimethyltryptamine

This is also known in its short form DMT. Its structure resembles psilocin. Psilocin is a naturally occurring alkaloid found in mushrooms. Although di-methyltryptamine is mostly synthesized in the lab, it can also be found naturally in several plants.

4-Bromo-2,5-Dimethoxyphenethylamine

This psychedelic drug has been in existence since 1974. It is a mild entactogenic and psychedelic drug. Entactogen was a term that psychiatrists used to classify mental health drugs. It means touching within since they change the way the brain functions.

LophophoraWilliamsii

Also known as peyote peyote, this is a popular and potent psychedelic plant. It is a cactus plant that grows upside down. It has been in existence for more than 5000 years and has many health applications.

Benefits of Psychedelic Drugs

The following are some health benefits of using this medication:

It Helps Patients with Terminal Illnesses

When a person is faced with a serious diagnosis or illness like cancer, it can be a scary and troubling experience for such an individual. The fear of death or what may happen during treatment can cause anxiety and stress to the individual. When this happens, taking psychedelic therapy would ease this fear and anxiety of the unknown.

It would reduce mood swings and feelings of hopelessness, and replace those feelings with happy, serene thinking. This would help the individual to respond to treatments and improve relationships with others.

It Helps Patients with Anxiety and Depression

Not only those who face serious or terminal illnesses experience anxiety and depression. Many people today are faced with these mental health disorders. Stress from school, work, and society can cause anxious thoughts and depression. Psychedelic drugs can ease the symptoms of anxiety and depression too. 

It would act on the neurotransmitter and stimulate the production of positive mood regulator hormones. This would help one to sleep better and perform activities without worries.

It Helps Patients with Post Traumatic Stress (PTSD)

When faced with a traumatic experience, the brain might refuse to forget what occurred. This could cause a continuous recollection of the events months or years after they happened. This is what post-traumatic stress is all about. These mushroom drugs are hallucinogens, so they might help to ease the effects of trauma. For other healthy ways to ease trauma, you can read this article.

It Helps Patients with Addiction

Stress and depression make some individuals become substance addicts. This psychedelic medication can help to reduce the feelings or symptoms of addictions. It does so by reducing depression and anxiety symptoms one might face. When a person has no reason to worry or become depressed, it becomes easy to quit substance abuse. 

It Helps Patients with Eating Disorders

One of the ways this work is by mystical experiences. These experiences change the way a person thinks and feel. For those with eating disorders, mystical experiences would alter their mind from thinking about unhealthy food and promoting positive eating habits.

Risks of Psychedelic Drugs

These risks only occur in rare cases or in situations where there was no micro-dosing. Here are some risks one could face:

Psychosis

This is an escape from reality. People with mental conditions that cause them to go into psychosis are at risk of it occurring more frequently than before.

Fear

It could cause people to hallucinate scary things. This can induce traumatic experiences and negative flashbacks.

Cardiovascular Problems

Individuals with heart disease should not use these medications. This is because the drugs can increase blood pressure and heart rate. If care is not taken, it can lead to hypertension or other heart problems.

Conclusion

Psychedelic medications can offer multiple neurological and psychological benefits. When used in the right dose, even individuals with serious mental health disorders would benefit from it.