WEBVTT - BrainStuff Classics: Can Magic Mushrooms Help Stop Depression?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hi

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<v Speaker 1>brain Stuff Lauren Vogel bomb here with a classic episode

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<v Speaker 1>for you today. Lots of mental health issues can be

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<v Speaker 1>treated by pretty conventional therapies or combinations of therapies, but

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<v Speaker 1>some patients experience more severe cases of things like depression,

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<v Speaker 1>and in those cases, experimental therapies like psychedelic drugs are

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<v Speaker 1>being researched. Hey there, brain Stuff, Lauren Vogel bam here.

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<v Speaker 1>Depression treatment is better now than ever before thanks to

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<v Speaker 1>a variety of prescription drug options and improved therapy techniques,

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<v Speaker 1>but in some cases these proven therapies fall short. However,

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<v Speaker 1>magic mushrooms just might be the key to giving those

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<v Speaker 1>with depressions some much needed relief, according to a recent

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<v Speaker 1>study by researchers at Imperial College London published in the

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<v Speaker 1>journal Scientific Reports. The albeit small study looked at the

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<v Speaker 1>effects of psilocybin on nineteen patients for whom conventional depression

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<v Speaker 1>therapies ailed. Psilocybin is the psychoactive compound that is naturally

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<v Speaker 1>present in two hundred types of magic mushrooms. The researchers

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<v Speaker 1>described the results as rapid and sustained. In fact, within weeks,

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<v Speaker 1>the patients reported fewer depression symptoms, with several of them

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<v Speaker 1>describing a brain reset. This reportedly lasts for up to

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<v Speaker 1>five weeks post treatment. Other studies have shown positive effects

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<v Speaker 1>from using LSD and m d M, a the active

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<v Speaker 1>ingredient in ecstasy, to treat some mental illnesses, but this

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<v Speaker 1>is the first study to look at the effect of

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<v Speaker 1>psilocybin on depression. Dr Robin Carhart Harris, head of psychedelic

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<v Speaker 1>research at Imperial and leader of the study, said in

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<v Speaker 1>a press release, we have shown for the first time

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<v Speaker 1>clear changes in brain activity in depressed people treated the

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<v Speaker 1>psilocybin after failing to respond to conventional treatments. Several of

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<v Speaker 1>our patients described feeling reset after the treatment and often

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<v Speaker 1>used computer analogies. For example, one set he felt like

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<v Speaker 1>his brain had been defragged like a computer hard drive,

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<v Speaker 1>and another said he felt rebooted. Psilocybin maybe giving these

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<v Speaker 1>individuals the temporary kickstart they need to break out of

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<v Speaker 1>their depressive states, and these imaging results do tentatively support

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<v Speaker 1>a reset analogy. Similar brain effects to these have been

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<v Speaker 1>seen with electro convulsive therapy, which by the way, is

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<v Speaker 1>not as scary as it looks in movies and can

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<v Speaker 1>be a real help to those for whom other therapies

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<v Speaker 1>don't work. In the study, participants were given two doses

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<v Speaker 1>of psilocybin a week apart. Functional MRI is done after

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<v Speaker 1>each dose. Showed reduced blood flow in certain areas of

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<v Speaker 1>the brain, particularly the amygdala, which is credited with processing fear, stress,

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<v Speaker 1>and emotional responses. Greater stability in a different brain network

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<v Speaker 1>was also revealed. The tests appear to show that people

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<v Speaker 1>undergo a temporary disintegration of brain networks during a trip,

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<v Speaker 1>but reintegration follows soon after. Psilocybin has been used for

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<v Speaker 1>medicinal purposes for centuries and became a popular recreational drug

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<v Speaker 1>beginning in the nineteen sixties. Researchers warned that people should

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<v Speaker 1>not attempt to self medicate, as the experimental treatment was

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<v Speaker 1>conducted in tandem with other therapy. They also note these

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<v Speaker 1>small size of the study grew and the absence of

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<v Speaker 1>a control group as cautions before making applications to the

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<v Speaker 1>general population. However, the study author's right accumulating evidence suggests

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<v Speaker 1>that psilocybin with accompanying psychological support can be used safely

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<v Speaker 1>to treat a range of psychiatric conditions including end of

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<v Speaker 1>life anxiety and depression, alcohol and tobacco addiction, obsessive compulsive disorder, and,

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<v Speaker 1>most recently from our group, treatment resistant major depression. They

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<v Speaker 1>planned test psilocybin against a major antidepressant in another trial.

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<v Speaker 1>Despite these positive results, psilocybin can also cause some pretty

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<v Speaker 1>crazy side effects like panic attacks, paranoia, strange reactions, and outbursts. Also,

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<v Speaker 1>eating the wrong mushroom to get high may result in poisoning,

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<v Speaker 1>so seriously, don't undertake this treatment on your own. Today's

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<v Speaker 1>episode was written by A. Leah Hoyt and produced by

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<v Speaker 1>Tristan McNeil and Tyler Clang. For more on this lots

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<v Speaker 1>of other topics about brain stuff, visit how staffords dot com.

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<v Speaker 1>Brain Stuff is production of I Heart Radio or more podcasts.

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