Rachel Carlson

Is it possible for researchers to separate those things when weighing their potential benefits? And does the difference matter?

All right, quick history lesson.

All right, quick history lesson.

All right, quick history lesson.

So psychedelic substances have been around for millennia in indigenous medicine. Okay. And in the late 1930s, this guy named Albert Hoffman first synthesized LSD. Then the actual term psychedelics was coined in the 1950s. Okay. Now, those drugs like LSD, psilocybin, and mescaline are called classic psychedelics. In the brain, they all activate something called the serotonin 2A receptor.

So psychedelic substances have been around for millennia in indigenous medicine. Okay. And in the late 1930s, this guy named Albert Hoffman first synthesized LSD. Then the actual term psychedelics was coined in the 1950s. Okay. Now, those drugs like LSD, psilocybin, and mescaline are called classic psychedelics. In the brain, they all activate something called the serotonin 2A receptor.

So psychedelic substances have been around for millennia in indigenous medicine. Okay. And in the late 1930s, this guy named Albert Hoffman first synthesized LSD. Then the actual term psychedelics was coined in the 1950s. Okay. Now, those drugs like LSD, psilocybin, and mescaline are called classic psychedelics. In the brain, they all activate something called the serotonin 2A receptor.

Serotonin is a chemical in our brains. It regulates things like sleep, mood, appetite. And at this specific receptor, classic psychedelics have these very powerful psychoactive effects.

Serotonin is a chemical in our brains. It regulates things like sleep, mood, appetite. And at this specific receptor, classic psychedelics have these very powerful psychoactive effects.

Serotonin is a chemical in our brains. It regulates things like sleep, mood, appetite. And at this specific receptor, classic psychedelics have these very powerful psychoactive effects.

Yeah, exactly. So in the 50s and 60s, psychedelics, both in recreational use and in research, are huge. But then, in the early 70s, the U.S. does this big crackdown on controlled substances, and that, coupled with tighter regulation on pharmaceutical testing, really shuts down most psychedelics research on humans. And the next big phase in neuropsychiatry in the 80s is super different. Yeah.

Yeah, exactly. So in the 50s and 60s, psychedelics, both in recreational use and in research, are huge. But then, in the early 70s, the U.S. does this big crackdown on controlled substances, and that, coupled with tighter regulation on pharmaceutical testing, really shuts down most psychedelics research on humans. And the next big phase in neuropsychiatry in the 80s is super different. Yeah.

Yeah, exactly. So in the 50s and 60s, psychedelics, both in recreational use and in research, are huge. But then, in the early 70s, the U.S. does this big crackdown on controlled substances, and that, coupled with tighter regulation on pharmaceutical testing, really shuts down most psychedelics research on humans. And the next big phase in neuropsychiatry in the 80s is super different. Yeah.

Boris told me the goal became to have sort of a one-size-fits-all mental health approach.

Boris told me the goal became to have sort of a one-size-fits-all mental health approach.

Boris told me the goal became to have sort of a one-size-fits-all mental health approach.

So Gina, this is when SSRIs come on the scene. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. They also target serotonin receptors. antidepressants like SSRIs work for about two-thirds of people who take them, but there were still some major problems. They don't work for the other third, even after trying multiple different drugs. Right. Which leaves a lot of people like just in the lurch. Yeah.

So Gina, this is when SSRIs come on the scene. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. They also target serotonin receptors. antidepressants like SSRIs work for about two-thirds of people who take them, but there were still some major problems. They don't work for the other third, even after trying multiple different drugs. Right. Which leaves a lot of people like just in the lurch. Yeah.

So Gina, this is when SSRIs come on the scene. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. They also target serotonin receptors. antidepressants like SSRIs work for about two-thirds of people who take them, but there were still some major problems. They don't work for the other third, even after trying multiple different drugs. Right. Which leaves a lot of people like just in the lurch. Yeah.

And I mean, there's other factors, too. You have to take them every single day. You have to be on them for at least a few weeks until you can even really feel a change. Yeah. And so there's this urgent need for alternative treatments for mental health conditions, which is why around 2000 or so, researchers start studying another drug called ketamine.