This Week in Psychedelics - 4.20.18

Cannabis

• Trump To Support Major Marijuana Legislation (Marijuana Moment)
• Cannabis Component Found in Breast Milk, but Does It Harm Baby? (Medscape)
• Greens propose full legalisation of cannabis (The Guardian)
• Senator Sanders Co-Sponsors The Marijuana Justice Act (NORML)
• 'Cannabis strengthened our bond': can pot make you a better parent? (The Guardian)
• Cannabis harm to teenagers' brains 'overstated', finds study (The Independent)
• How Smoking Pot May Hurt the Teenage Brain (TIME)
• Marijuana-based seizure treatment gets positive review from FDA (Chicago Tribune)
• The Plan to Save California's Legendary Weed From 'Big Cannabis' (WIRED)
• Trump is backing off the marijuana fight. Jeff Sessions has not. (The Cannabist)
• Republicans eye getting in front of marijuana legalization (Michigan Radio)
• House GOP Blocks Another Marijuana Amendment (Marijuana Moment)
• Meta-analysis: Cannabis Exposure Not Associated With Residual Adverse Impact On Cognitive Performance (NORML)
• MassRoots reports net loss of $44 million in 2017 (The Cannabist)
• Here's Where Your Colorado Marijuana Tax Dollars Go (Westword)
• Meghan Markle's nephew developing special cannabis strain for royal wedding (The Independent)
• Oregon Grew More Cannabis Than Customers Can Smoke. Now Shops and Farmers Are Left With Mountains of Unwanted Bud. (Willamette Week)
• High Times Cannabis Cup 4/20 event rejected in Southern California (NBC)
• Australia's Medicinal Cannabis Patients Will Get 48-Hour Access...In A Few Months (BuzzFeed News)
• Legal highs: arguments for and against legalising cannabis in Australia (The Conversation)
• Bipartisan Legislation Introduced To Facilitate Medical Cannabis Trials For Veterans (NORML)
• Spliff, a film festival for stoners, by stoners (Boing Boing)
• Black and Indigenous people are overrepresented in Canada’s weed arrests (VICE)
• Exclusive analysis: Only one in seven California cities allow recreational marijuana stores (The Mercury-News)
• The Philosopher's Stoned: An Interview with Liber 420 Author Chris Bennett (Reality Sandwich)
• The new 4/20: Beyond legalizing it (CNN)
• Metric Coffee Unveils Cannabis Cold Brew on 4/20 (Eater)
• Why it can be okay to call it ‘marijuana’ instead of ‘cannabis’ (The Verge)
• What John Boehner's Pivot On Cannabis Tells Us About The Legal Weed Boom (NPR)
• Drug Made From Cannabis Plant Gets Backing From FDA Staff (Bloomberg)
• Medical cannabis treatment: Mother starts a petition for her child (Sunday Express)
• Pennsylvania to Make Whole-Plant Cannabis Flower Available to Patients (Leafly)
• Medical cannabis access simplified under unified state agreement (Small Caps)

LSD

• 75 Years After First LSD Trip, Psychedelic Science is Making a Comeback (Seeker)
• What Do Blind People 'See' When They Take LSD? (Live Science)
• The Strange History of Bicycle Day (Slate)
• What was Project MKUltra? Inside the CIA's mind-control program (Big Think)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• We talked with a researcher using psilocybin to treat cocaine addiction in Alabama (Psymposia)
• Would You Take Mushrooms With Your Mom? Meet One Woman Who Did and Made a Movie About It (PAPER)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• Alcoholics in Bristol are trialing MDMA therapy (The Bristol Cable)

Ayahuasca/DMT

• Can Drinking Ayahuasca Really Change Your Life? (Chacruna)
• Controversies Around the Toad Medicine (Chacruna)

Iboga/Ibogaine

• Treatment utilizing psychedelic drug ibogaine significantly reduces opioid withdrawal and cravings (PsyPost)
• Matthew Mellon was trying controversial addiction treatment before death (Page Six)

Dissociatives

• Ketamine has 'fast-acting benefits' for depression (BBC News)
• Ketamine Nasal Spray for Suicide Prevention Raises Serious Concerns (Inverse)

Opiates/Opioids

• It's legal to manufacture cocaine and heroin for medical use — and Britain is the world's biggest exporter (Business Insider)
• How France Cut Heroin Overdoses by 79 Percent in 4 Years (The Atlantic)
• Drug users to soon have all-hours access to syringes in Ballarat (The Courier)
• A Drug to End Addiction? Scientists Are Working on It. (The New York Times)
• The War on Opioids Probably Helped Kill Prince (Reason)
• U.S. has been quietly helping Mexico with new, high-tech ways to fight opium (Albuquerque Journal)
• Medicaid Is Helping to Combat the Opioid Crisis, Despite Trump's Attacks (Truthout)
• Did ancient Mesopotamians get high? Near Eastern rituals may have included opium, cannabis (Science Magazine)
• As Opioid Prescriptions Fall, Opioid Deaths Rise (Reason)
• Maine Lawmakers Clash With Governor Over Naloxone Access (The Wall Street Journal)
• Naloxone-access programs miss many opioid users (Reuters)
• The Surgeon General Wants More Naloxone, Now What (ModernMedicine)
• Public Defender Foils Prosecutor’s Murder Charge in Drug Overdose (Injustice Today)

Kratom

• Leading Fibromyalgia Doctor Says Wait on Kratom (National Pain Report)
• Kratom: Did I Lose My Sobriety and Not Even Know It? (The Fix)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• Canada's Liberal party considers decriminalization of all illicit drugs (The Guardian)
• Drug trafficking by Kiwis using dark web is booming - report (Newshub)
• These Teens Are Taking A Class On Drugs That Is Definitely Not What Trump Had In Mind (BuzzFeed News)
• Will psychedelics go corporate like cannabis? (Herb)
• Beyond Psychedelics 2018: Interview with Eva Césarová (Psychedelic Times)
• The case for decriminalizing drugs (The Star)
• Will El Chapo’s Arrest Make the Drug Trade More Deadly? (Reason)
• Tripping on drugs like ayahuasca and shrooms ‘might be cultural appropriation’ (Metro)
• An Audio Harm Reduction Guide For Psychedelic Psychotherapy (Chacruna)

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalogue how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

Happy 420 from Think Wilder

I just wanted to take a moment to wish all of my readers a Happy 420 this year! If you choose to use cannabis or any psychedelics to celebrate this year, make sure you are responsible. And you can click here to check out the 420 post I wrote a couple years ago that explains the origin behind the holiday a little bit.

Image by GDJ, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

75th Anniversary of Bicycle Day

This blog post was originally published two years ago. It is being re-published in celebration of the 75th anniversary of Bicycle Day.

Happy Bicycle Day everyone! For those of you that are unaware, April 19th is a day of celebration in the psychedelic community because it signifies the day that Albert Hofmann, the creator of LSD, took his first intentional LSD trip back in 1943.

You see, Hofmann first synthesized LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) on November 16, 1938 in the Sandoz laboratories in Basel, Switzerland. He was researching lysergic acid derivatives to obtain a respiratory and circulatory stimulant (an analeptic). The chemical was set aside for nearly five years until April 16, 1943, when Hofmann decided to revisit it. While re-synthesizing a new batch of LSD, he accidentally absorbed a small amount through his fingertips and found that it had powerful effects, which he described as being:

"... affected by a remarkable restlessness, combined with a slight dizziness. At home I lay down and sank into a not unpleasant intoxicated-like condition, characterized by an extremely stimulated imagination. In a dreamlike state, with eyes closed (I found the daylight to be unpleasantly glaring), I perceived an uninterrupted stream of fantastic pictures, extraordinary shapes with intense, kaleidoscopic play of colors. After about two hours this condition faded away."

Three days later, on April 19, he decided to intentionally increase the dose for a self-experiment, at a level that he thought would be a minuscule dose—250 micrograms (an actual threshold dose is 20 micrograms). This is a fairly large dose in actuality, and it hit him like a ton of bricks. Less than an hour later, he began experiencing abrupt and intense changes in perception, and asked his laboratory assistant to accompany him home. The personal use of motor vehicles was restricted because this was during World War II, and the pair had to make the journey by bicycle.

During the bicycle ride, Hofmann struggled with difficult emotions and thoughts, believing that his next-door neighbor was a malevolent witch, that he was going insane, that LSD had poisoned him, among other anxious thoughts. A house doctor was called for, who could find no physical abnormalities aside from Hofmann's extremely dilated pupils. This reassured Hofmann, who later wrote:

"... Little by little I could begin to enjoy the unprecedented colors and plays of shapes that persisted behind my closed eyes. Kaleidoscopic, fantastic images surged in on me, alternating, variegated, opening and then closing themselves in circles and spirals, exploding in colored fountains, rearranging and hybridizing themselves in constant flux..."

So how does one celebrate Bicycle Day? Well, there isn't really a defined method of celebration, but one could take LSD, ride a bicycle, check out Hofmann's book My Problem Child, donate to MAPS to support psychedelic research or to Erowid to support harm reduction and drug education, attend a local psychedelic dinner, or spread the word about any of these things. At any rate, be safe in whatever you do, and Happy Bicycle Day!

Image by lab604, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

Weekend Thoughts - 4.14.18

Happy Saturday y'all! Below, I have rounded up some things for you to think about this weekend:

1. Another week, another update on Facebook's Cambridge Analytica scandal. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg testified before Congress this week, apologizing and claiming that the company made a "big mistake". You can now click this link (while signed into your Facebook account) to see if your data was shared with the political consulting firm.

2. Ride-sharing app Uber purchased Jump, a dockless bike-sharing app. It's good to see that bike-sharing is becoming more and more common, because that means it'll be a whole lot easier to get around without needing to own a car or bike of your own.

3. Earlier this week, Apple announced that it is now powered by 100% renewable energy worldwide. That means the company's retail stores, offices, data centers, and more are powered by clean energy. It took a lot of investments in solar arrays, wind farms, and other energy storage technologies to get to this point, and I feel like Apple should be commended. Let's hope that other companies will follow suit—and soon.

That's all for this week's edition of Weekend Thoughts. Until next week, keep thinking wilder.

Image by sasint, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.

This Week in Psychedelics - 4.13.18

Cannabis

• Google and Facebook won’t advertise marijuana, even where it’s legal (The Cannabist)
• Former House Speaker John Boehner Is Now Working at a Marijuana Firm Advisory Board (TIME)
• “Salmonella Kratom” and “Rat Poison K2” are two more reasons to go ahead and legalize weed (The Outline)
• Legalised cannabis could help solve America's opioid crisis, studies suggest (The Independent)
• Senate Majority Leader Introduces Bi-Partisan Hemp Legalization Bill (NORML)
• The Ultimate Guide to Cannabinoids in Cannabis (High Times)
• Can You Get Contact High From Weed? (Real Stoned Times)
• Senate Hopeful Cynthia Nixon Says She Wants to Legalize Marijuana (TIME)
• Can Cannabis Help Prevent Domestic Violence? (High Times)
• The country that pioneered "wellness" is adopting cannabis as a cure (Quartz)
• Massachusetts Is The New Testbed for Cannabis Legalization (Forbes)
• Wine veteran hopes to elevate cannabis with wine and food pairings (San Francisco Chronicle)
• How To Treat Eczema With Cannabis (High Times)
• How to Host a Cannabis-Themed Game Night (Leafly)
• Major Coffee Chain Teaming Up With Cannabis Company (High Times)
• Cannabis rules in CA: Are some cities trying to regulate away Prop 64? (OCRegister)
• Cannabis Compound CBD May Offer Medical Marijuana Benefits Without The High (CBS New York)
• Psychiatrist Says Cannabis Should Be Banished From The Planet (High Times)
• Reader: Legal Cannabis Saved Me From Opioids! (Westword)
• 9 Things Cannabis Investors Should Know (Visual Capitalist)
• Why Canadian Cannabis Stocks Are On Sale (Forbes)
• Louisiana veterans advocate for medical cannabis (Leesville Daily Leader)
• How Archytas Ventures Helps Capital-Starved Cannabis Startups Get Equipment (Forbes)

LSD

• Scientists keep "discovering" things stoners already know (Quartz)
• LSD causes congenitally blind man to experience synesthesia-like hallucinations (PsyPost)
• LSD Cured My Eating Disorder (Psymposia)
• Deputies: Babysitter on LSD refuses to leave home, tries to steal toys (The Independent Florida Alligator)
• LSD making comeback as professionals drop ACID before work (Daily Star)

Psilocybin/Magic Mushrooms

• Multi Species Psilocybin Mushroom Dosage Calculator (Psychedelics Daily)

MDMA/Ecstasy

• An analysis of the most common ecstasy pills in the US by name and color (Mixmag)
• Teenager took so many Ecstasy pills at festival his lungs collapsed (Metro)

Ayahuasca/DMT

• Two Montreal Religious Groups Can Now Legally Import Ayahuasca (VICE)
• Message From Santo Daime Dutch Churches in Response to the Verdict That Makes Santo Daime Illegal in the Netherlands (Chacruna)

Iboga/Ibogaine

• New Research Study Will Look at the Efficacy of Treating Alcoholism with Ibogaine (Psychedelic Times)
• Americans turning to an illegal treatment for heroin addiction (BBC News)

Synthetic Cannabinoids/Psychoactive Research Chemicals

• Fake Marijuana Likely Laced With Rat Poison Has Killed 3 People and Sickened More Than 100 (TIME)

Dissociatives

• Ketamine Shows Promise For Depression Treatment (The Fix)
• Ketamine Effective as Maintenance Treatment for Anxiety (Psych Congress Network)
• Morgan Freeman's Granddaughter Recorded Boyfriend High on PCP Before Stabbing Her to Death (PopCulture.com)
• Pierce County deputies say man was high on PCP during armed confrontation (Q13 FOX)
• Stamford woman booked for driving high on PCP (The Stamford Advocate)

Opiates/Opioids

• Surgeon General Advises Greater Use of Naloxone to Help Save Lives (Reason)
• Naloxone Stops Opioid Overdoses. How Do You Use It? (The New York Times)
• How to Get Naloxone (Tonic)
• One Woman Got Facebook to Police Opioid Sales On Instagram (WIRED)
• Scotland gathers evidence from Australia on safe drug rooms (The Herald)
• Trump Is Freaking Out About the Wrong Border: Killer Fentanyl Is Coming From Canada (The Daily Beast)
• Notre Dame researchers say they found link between rising heroin deaths and OxyContin (WSBT)
• Study: Despite decline in prescriptions, opioid deaths skyrocketing due to heroin and synthetic drugs (The Washington Post)
• Former Mexican President Fox calls for opium poppy legalization (Reuters)
• Overdose Deaths Dropping, But Narcan Costs Rising (Firehouse)
• Carrying Naloxone While Black: When Saving a Life Could Cost Me My Own (Philadelphia Magazine)
• Narcan in Every Medicine Cabinet: Will Increasing Naloxone Access Save Lives? (The Fix)
• Maine Lawmakers OK Plan to Lower Age for Naloxone Access (U.S. News & World Report)
• Naloxone Saves Lives, But Does It Also Enable Opioid Addiction? (WCPO)
• Overdose Deaths Are the Product of Drug Prohibition (Reason)
• As the opioid epidemic rages, the fight against addiction moves to an Ohio courtroom (The Washington Post)

Kratom

• A mysterious 'supplement' with a viral following has been linked to salmonella — and the outbreak is still spreading (Business Insider)
• FDA Warns of Dangers to Kratom Consumers (NBC 7 San Diego)
• Is Kratom as Dangerous as the FDA Claims? It's Hard to Tell (MedShadow)
• Kratom And Salmonella: AKA Advises All Kratom Vendors To Act Responsibly And Be Transparent (Kratom Guides)
• Kratom Recall in Colorado Could Lead to More Product Seizures (Westword)
• Reader: Keep kratom from FDA overreach (Colorado Springs Independent)

Kava

• Kava plants worth $10000 stolen (Matangi Tonga)

Miscellaneous Psychedelics/Psychoactives/Drug Policy

• Many People Taking Antidepressants Discover They Cannot Quit (The New York Times)
• Australia missing psychedelic drug 'renaissance' for mental health (The Sydney Morning Herald)
• Trump Administration Is Considering Allowing Mandatory Drug Testing for Food Stamp Recipients (TIME)
• Sewage Study Reveals That Americans Took Way More Drugs During Two Major Events In 2017 (IFLScience)
• Albuquerque New Mexico to End the City's Asset Forfeiture Program (Drug Policy Alliance)
• Awakening into Psychedelic Spirituality: Interview with Samuel Lee, MD (Psychedelic Times)
• The FBI Has Announced a $20 Million Reward for a Fugitive Mexican Drug Lord (TIME)
• Healing with Movement, Psychedelics and Breathwork: Interview with Samuel Lee, MD (Psychedelic Times)
• Our Ancestors Got High, Too (Discover Magazine)
• Psychedelic drugs could be the answer to mental illness: study (Starts at 60)

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalogue how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

Image by Dahtamnay, courtesy of Creative Commons licensing.