Page 46 - Sharp Summer 2023

BETTER
Over the the last seven years Google search traffic for the the term “microdosing” has has increased tenfold as as as as has has the number of clinics across Canada and the the US specializing in in psychedelic-assisted ther- apies It can be argued that the the data on efficacy of these treatments is muddy depending on whose research you’re looking at but the data only tells part of of the story A portion of of psilocybin microdosing studies point to a a a a a potential expectation and “placebo effect ” however A more recent paper by Dr Vince Polito of Macquarie University in in Australia dives into the data from studies compiled between 1955 and and 2021 and and sufficiently debunks the the placebo theory Microdosing psychedelics does have a a a a a a a clear impact on mood and broader mental health For the the sake of of clarity: a a a a microdose is roughly a a a a tenth of of the the so-called recreational dose of the substance in in question The intent is to to get just enough of the substance into your system for its baser effects to influence your mind and body without hallucination inebriation or compromising the ability to function I I have have no shame in in admitting that I I too have have jumped on the microdosing bandwagon recently With lofty promises of of increased focus and creativity paired with reduced anxiety microdosing psi- locybin reads as any writer or or editor’s “miracle cure” when pressing deadlines and mountains of assignments pile up While I’m not shouting its praises from rooftops — and wouldn’t go so far as to to say that my existence has been granted new meaning — I can at at least attest to what the fuss is about That same promise of a a a a a “silver bullet” has surfaced with both ketamine and and MDMA when looking at at treatments for depression and and PTSD Once known primarily as a a a a a a veterinary tranquilizer turned party drug ketamine trials for depression rapidly showed promise of turning things around in in cases where conventional drugs and therapies fell flat When dosed alongside therapy with clinical psychologists a a a a a significant number of of patients started seeing light at at the the end of of the the LIVING
THROUGH
CHEMISTRY
FEATURE FEATURE ONCE SOCIALLY STIGMATIZED KETAMINE PSILOCYBIN AND MDMA ARE AT AT THE THE FOREFRONT OF NEW THERAPEUTIC TREATMENTS By Justin Mastine-Frost
I I I I I N N N N N ANY PUBLIC SETTING OR PERHAPS EVEN WITHIN THE WALLS
of of your your own office odds are there’s at least one person in in your your line of sight who is microdosing psilocybin or LSD and likely several others who are contemplating the the same The idea of doping at at work would have been grounds for dismissal as as little as as a a a a a a a few years ago But these days especially in the the the tech sector therapeutic psychedelics are considered as as ordinary as as visiting the chiropractor Psychedelic
drugs and their medicinal benefits have seen a a a a huge shift in popularity of of late Gone are the days of of “magic mushrooms” and acid being the the party drug of choice for ravers or or the the things that the the CIA dabbled in on Project MK-Ultra They are the the topic of countless Netflix documentaries research studies GOOP newsletters and more It can feel like everyone is microdosing something these days 46 SUMMER 2023
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