addiction

Weekly Psychedelic Links - September 2022

9.2.22

Cannabis

  • Oklahoma Supreme Court Gives Marijuana Activists Temporary Win As They Fight For Legalization Ballot Placement (Marijuana Moment)

  • Pharmaceutical Industry Suffers Billions In Losses After States Legalize Marijuana, New Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

  • Harvard Grad Student Dies in Bali From Police Brutality Over Cannabis Arrest (High Times)

  • Poll: South Dakota Legalization Initiative in Danger of Failing (High Times)

  • More Americans Now Smoke Marijuana Than Cigarettes, For The First Time Ever, Gallup Reports (Marijuana Moment)

  • Largest ever independent study into cannabis use (BBC)

  • Cannabis researchers say it’s high time to drop ‘lazy stoner’ stereotype (The Guardian)

  • Pennsylvania: Governor Launches Effort to Issue Mass Pardons to Those with Low-Level Marijuana Convictions (NORML)

  • Ghana's Legal Cannabis Hits a Constitutional Roadblock (TalkingDrugs)

  • Joseph Schooling: Singapore Olympic star suspended for taking cannabis in Vietnam (BBC)

  • Cannabis industry inches toward sustainability (Chemical and Engineering News)

  • New Study Shows Evidence That Low-Dose THC Could Help Treat Veteran PTSD (High Times)

  • U.S. Air Force And Space Force Reviewing ‘Common Sense’ Marijuana Drug Testing Policy Change For Recruits (Marijuana Moment)

  • Qualitative Study Reveals Medical Students’ Attitudes Toward Medical Pot (High Times)

LSD

  • LSD decreases binge-like drinking in a rodent model of alcoholism, but only temporarily (PsyPost)

  • Is the Color of LSD an Indicator of Purity? (Lucid News)

MDMA

  • Boy, 16, dies in suspected ecstasy-related incident at Leeds Festival (The Independent)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

Nitrous Oxide

  • Why Some New York Stores Will Require You to Show ID to Buy Whipped Cream (Newsweek)

  • Doctors warn of rise in nerve damage linked to nitrous oxide (The Guardian)

Ketamine

  • This New, Legal Cannabis and Ketamine Therapy is Designed to Heal Trauma in the Body (DoubleBlind)

  • They’re Pushing Cut-Rate Ketamine Therapy on TikTok (Rolling Stone)

  • Yukon woman paid $7K for private ketamine treatment, only to learn that the Yukon gov't covers it (CBC)

Miscellaneous

  • An Inside Look at the Lawsuit that could “Legalize Psychedelics in Canada” (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • MindMed Completes 1-for-15 Reverse Share Split (Psychedelic Alpha)

  • Student Loan Forgiveness Limited By the War on Drugs (High Times)

  • Aspen, Colorado Activists Pursue Psychedelics Decriminalization For 2023 Ballot As Voters Prepare To Decide On Statewide 2022 Legalization Measure (Marijuana Moment)

  • Psychedelic Advocate Facing Charges Calls for Help, Law Reform in New York (High Times)

  • Is the Psychedelic Therapy Bubble About to Burst? (WIRED)

  • In the Wake of Decrim, Police Continue to Target Psychedelics (Lucid News)

  • How Psychedelics Might Fuel a Paradigm Shift (DoubleBlind)

9.9.22

Cannabis

  • California: Governor Signs Bill Prohibiting Doctors from Discriminating Against Medical Cannabis Patients (NORML)

  • Nobody knows how widespread illegal cannabis grows are in California. So we mapped them (Los Angeles Times)

  • UK Government Blocks Bermuda From Legalizing Marijuana On Same Day New Prime Minister Takes Office (Marijuana Moment)

  • Afroman’s Ohio Residence Raided by Local Law Enforcement (High Times)

  • Minnesota Arrests Black People For Marijuana At Much Higher Rates Than White People, State Data Shows (Marijuana Moment)

  • New Poll Shows Overwhelming Support for Cannabis Banking Legislation (High Times)

  • Companies Turn to THC Beverages as Next Growing Legal Cannabis Market (High Times)

LSD

  • LSD-assisted therapy induces rapid and lasting reductions in anxiety and depression symptoms, according to new research (PsyPost)

Magic Mushrooms

  • Placebo-controlled study suggests that the benefits of psilocybin microdosing can be explained by expectancy effects (PsyPost)

  • Psilocybin Study To Investigate the Serotonin System in Autism (Technology Networks)

  • Optimi Health Completes Largest Legal Natural Psilocybin Harvest in Canadian History (Psychedelic Alpha)

  • 'Flesh of the Gods': The Trippy History of Magic Mushrooms (VICE)

MDMA

Ayahuasca

  • Why Are Scientists Dosing Fish with Ayahuasca? (DoubleBlind)

5-MeO-DMT

  • As Use Of The World’s Most Potent Psychedelic Skyrockets, New Site F.I.V.E. Fills An Education Void (Forbes)

Peyote

Novel Psychoactive Substances

Nitrous Oxide

  • Laughing gas: 'A 20-second high is not worth losing your life over' (BBC)

Ketamine

  • Scientists Discover That a Surprising Factor Improved The Effects of Ketamine in Mice (ScienceAlert)

  • Low-dose ketamine is safe and effective to treat children with ADNP syndrome, study suggests (News-Medical.net)

Miscellaneous

  • San Francisco decriminalizes psychedelics (Leafly)

  • Drug Executions in Iran Are Back on the Rise (TalkingDrugs)

  • This Psychedelic Company is Leading the Way on Reciprocity and Holistic Approaches to Healing (DoubleBlind)

  • WOC-led psychedelics conference champions gender equality with all-women speakers (Leafly)

9.16.22

Cannabis

  • Killings, robberies, extortion. California can’t stop its booming illegal cannabis stores (Los Angeles Times)

  • New Zealand Approves Domestic Medical Cannabis Products (High Times)

  • World Anti-Doping Agency Set To Keep Marijuana On Banned Substance List, Saying U.S. Didn’t Back Its Removal (Marijuana Moment)

  • Biden To Meet With Family of Brittney Griner (High Times)

  • Study: CBD Oil Safe, Effective for Autism Patients (High Times)

  • Missouri judge blocks attempt to kick legalization off ballot (Leafly)

  • GOP Missouri Lawmaker Files Revised Marijuana Legalization Bill, Urging Special Session Action To Compete With Ballot Initiative (Marijuana Moment)

  • Pregnant Women in Alabama Are Being Jailed For Smoking Pot (High Times)

  • Oklahoma Prosecutors Are Targeting Pregnant Women For Using Medical Marijuana (Marijuana Moment)

  • Thai Lawmakers Withdraw Bill to Regulate Cannabis (High Times)

  • New Jersey Employers Can’t Punish Workers Based On A Marijuana Test Alone, State Officials Say (Marijuana Moment)

  • Nevada Judge Orders State Board to Remove Cannabis from Schedule 1 (High Times)

  • Analysis: Legal Cannabis Businesses Associated with Increased Home Values (NORML)

  • Weed Legalization in Germany Hampered by EU Laws (High Times)

  • What’s Next For Cannabis Mergers And Acquisitions? (Forbes)

  • Oregon Officials to Deploy Decoys to Catch Underage Weed, Alcohol Sales (High Times)

  • Small Marijuana Growers Could Sell Directly To Consumers Across State Lines Under New Congressional Bill (Marijuana Moment)

  • Republican Congressmen Push for Environmental Impact Study on Cannabis (High Times)

  • US Court of Appeals: Federal Scheduling of Cannabis “Irrational,” But Not Unconstitutional (NORML)

  • In Hawaii, People Prefer Black Market Cannabis to State-Managed Facilities (High Times)

Magic Mushrooms

  • Scientists have started to examine whether “magic” mushrooms can help in the fight against obesity (PsyPost)

  • Oregon Overcomes Bureaucratic Delays to Therapist Training Program Approvals (Lucid News)

  • The shroom edibles market proliferates underground (Leafly)

  • Revive Therapeutics Provides Update on the Psilocybin Clinical Study for Methamphetamine Use Disorder and Oral Psilocybin Thin Film Strip Program (Psychedelic Alpha)

DMT

  • Algernon Pharmaceuticals Receives Approval for Groundbreaking Phase 1 DMT Human Stroke Study (Psychedelic Alpha)

Ayahuasca

  • Comedian Ron White Shares How Tripping On Ayahuasca In Costa Rica Turned His Life Around (BroBible)

5-MeO-DMT

  • ‘I’m not a shaman – I just want to help people’: shoe designer Patrick Cox on his psychedelic toad awakening (The Guardian)

Peyote

  • Native American Church of North America Advocates at Capitol Hill for Protections of Peyote (Native News Online)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

  • Mindset Pharma Receives Scientific Advice from UK Regulator Facilitating Advancement of Phase 1 First-In-Human Clinical Trial Plan for Its Lead Clinical Candidate, MSP-1014 (Psychedelic Alpha)

Ketamine

  • New study highlights ketamine’s promise for treatment-resistant depression (Popular Science)

  • Dealers Are Giving Discounts on Cocaine and Ketamine in Honour of the Queen (VICE)

  • Study Explores Effects of Experimenter Sex on Ketamine Response (Psychiatric Times)

PCP

  • PCP (aka Angel Dust) May Actually Have Therapeutic Potential (DoubleBlind)

Datura

Miscellaneous

  • Atlanta is considering the decriminalization of magic mushrooms and other psychedelics (Leafly)

  • Sexual Abuse in Psychedelic Therapy: Important Steps Being Taken to Support Survivors (DoubleBlind)

  • Oregon Voters Continue To Support Drug Decriminalization Law They Approved In 2020, New Poll Shows (Marijuana Moment)

  • Psychedelics Were the Hot Topic at This Year’s World Economic Forum (Lucid News)

  • Local Michigan Lawmakers Vote To Make September Psychedelics Awareness Month After Decriminalization Enacted (Marijuana Moment)

  • A Channel for Magic: Ralph Hood’s Mysticism Scale and the Occult Roots of the Johns Hopkins Psychedelic Research Program (Psymposia)

  • Psychedelic Twitter is Swarmed by Plug Bots (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • Finding Nuance in the Psychedelic Hype Bubble (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • Psilera Receives First Patent Allowance for Transdermal Patch Formulations (Psychedelic Alpha)

  • Adverse Events in Psychedelic Clinical Trials are Underreported (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • Psychedelic South: The Quest to find Good Drugs in Alabama (Psychedelic Spotlight)

9.23.22

Cannabis

  • Canada to review impact of cannabis legalization four years on (Reuters)

  • Marijuana Is Staying On The Banned Substances List For International Athletes, World Anti-Doping Agency Announces (Marijuana Moment)

  • California: Governor Signs Legislation Providing Employment Protections for Cannabis Consumers (NORML)

  • NY finally approves medical homegrow (Leafly)

  • Australian Cannabis Patients Turning to Prescriptions Over Illicit Market, Study Shows (High Times)

  • New Yorkers with weed convictions will have priority in retail market, state says (Leafly)

  • German Lawmakers Tour California Marijuana Businesses To Inform National Legalization Plans (Marijuana Moment)

  • Las Vegas City Council Approves Cannabis Consumption Lounges (High Times)

  • Leafly Report: ‘Opt-out’ towns are encouraging illegal marijuana sales (Leafly)

  • University of Kentucky Opens New Cannabis Research Center (High Times)

  • We spoke to the author of that new study on prenatal cannabis exposure (Leafly)

  • Apple Lets Users Search For Marijuana And Pharmaceutical Interactions In Latest iPhone Health Update (Marijuana Moment)

  • The Role of Cannabis in Treating Long COVID (High Times)

  • Canada’s rich and complicated history of psychedelic research (Leafly)

  • Oklahoma: Court Rules that Voters Can’t Decide on Legalization Ballot Measure This Year (NORML)

  • Arkansas: High Court Approves Marijuana Legalization Measure for the November Ballot (NORML)

  • Majority Of Maryland Voters Back Marijuana Legalization Referendum And Expungements, Poll Finds (Marijuana Moment)

  • Two Out Of Three Missouri Voters ‘Certain To Vote Yes’ On Marijuana Legalization Ballot Initiative, Poll Finds (Marijuana Moment)

  • Poll: Majority in Minnesota Want Legal Weed (High Times)

  • Two In Three Pennsylvania Voters Support Marijuana Legalization, New Poll Shows Amid Key Political Races (Marijuana Moment)

LSD

  • Miami clinic kicks off first national study of LSD, once a ‘public enemy,’ to treat anxiety (Miami Herald)

Magic Mushrooms

  • The Viagra of the Himalayas—the World’s Most Expensive Fungus—Faces Serious Decline Due to Growing Demand (DoubleBlind)

  • Liquid Culture vs. Spores (Reality Sandwich)

MDMA

  • Disruption to Australian ecstasy market following COVID-19 restrictions, report finds (Medical Xpress)

  • MindMed Collaborators Dose First Patient in Phase 1 Investigator-Initiated Trial of MDMA-Like Substances (Psychedelic Alpha)

DMT

  • Researchers Studying Psychedelic Drug as Treatment for Alzheimer’s Disease (High Times)

Ayahuasca

  • Packers Bust Out Ayahuasca TD Celebration Weeks After Aaron Rodgers Revealed Psychedelic Use (BroBible)

  • Aaron Rodgers Defends Ayahuasca, Says He May Be 'Called' to Take the Psychedelic Again (People)

Peyote

  • Native American Church Leaders Ask Congress For Funds To Support Peyote Cultivation And Preservation (Marijuana Moment)

  • The Complicated Ethics of Legalizing Indigenous Psychedelic Substances (Ethos)

Iboga

  • You Can Now Get Ibogaine-Based Addiction Treatment In A Hospital Setting In Brazil (Forbes)

Nitrous Oxide

  • What Nitrous Oxide Showed The Father of American Psychology (Lucid News)

Ketamine

  • Looking at Images of People Smiling at You Extends Antidepressant Effects of Ketamine (Neuroscience News)

DXM

  • Please don't cook chicken in NyQuil, the FDA asks TikTok users (NPR)

  • The FDA may have unintentionally made 'NyQuil Chicken' go viral on TikTok (Engadget)

Miscellaneous

  • Math Over Myth: Psychedelic Stock HAVN Life Collapses (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • Psychedelics face corrupting influence of financial interests (UC News)

  • Biden Administration Considers Psychedelic Therapies Task Force (Lucid News)

  • Colorado Polls Show Conflicting Results On Psychedelics Ballot Measure That Voters Will Decide On In November (Marijuana Moment)

  • Algernon Pharmaceuticals Announces Receipt of CDN $450K Cash Refund from Australian Research Program (Psychedelic Alpha)

  • Baby Boomers (Re)Discover Psychedelics as Tools for Aging with Grace (DoubleBlind)

  • Does Microdosing Impact Meditation? New Study From Beckley Foundation and Quantified Citizen Investigates (Newswire)

  • Colombia’s President Tells UN That ‘Democracy Will Die’ If World Leaders Don’t End Drug War And Pursue Different Strategy (Marijuana Moment)

  • The Undergrowth of Psychedelic Australia (Kahpi)

  • Beyond Michael Pollan: Where to learn more about psychedelics. (Medium)

  • Can Psychedelics Help Veterans with Chronic Pain? (Psychedelic Spotlight)

9.30.22

Cannabis

  • Switzerland: Revision of Narcotics Act – Switzerland fully legalizes medicinal cannabis (Global Compliance News)

  • Free medicinal cannabis to be donated to epileptic children in the UK (Sky News)

  • Medical cannabis for doggies, kitties is fully legalized in California (Leafly)

  • Medical Marijuana Helps Patients Reduce Use Of Addictive Opioid Painkillers, Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

  • Maltese Non-profit Cannabis May be The Way Forward (TalkingDrugs)

  • Check in, smoke up and tune out: Cannabis-friendly vacation rentals are catching on (CNBC)

  • Despite The Munchies, Marijuana Legalization Is Tied To Lower Obesity Rates, Stereotype-Busting Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

  • Investigators say more than 70% of cannabis growers use illegal water (Santa Barbara News-Press)

  • Germany Versus The United States: Which Will Legalize Cannabis First (Forbes)

  • As cannabis usage grows, so does the need for employers to revisit their workplace drug policies (The Philadelphia Inquirer)

  • Could Cannabis and Psychedelic Drugs Make Breast Cancer Treatments More Effective? (PR Newswire)

  • Federal Marijuana Prohibition Is Putting Patients At Risk Of Consuming Contaminated Products, Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

  • Supreme Court trial on homegrow ban reveals a bigger issue in federal cannabis legalization (Leafly)

  • Medical Marijuana Patient Plans To Sue Feds For $3.5 Million Over ‘Discriminatory’ Cannabis Raid On Tribal Land (Marijuana Moment)

  • Is Big Tobacco Pivoting to Big Cannabis? (High Times)

  • Wisconsin Governor’s Push To Allow Ballot Initiatives Could Put Marijuana Legalization Before Voters (Marijuana Moment)

  • Majority Of D.C. Voters Support Marijuana Legalization And Oppose Crackdown On Unregulated ‘Gifting’ Market, Poll Finds (Marijuana Moment)

  • Missouri Marijuana Legalization Ballot Initiative Leads In New Poll, But With Less Than 50 Percent (Marijuana Moment)

LSD

Magic Mushrooms

  • Connecticut to Offer Legal MDMA and Psilocybin Therapy as Early as Next Year (DoubleBlind)

  • DEA Claims Doctors Requesting Psilocybin For Dying Patients Have Commercial Interests (Benzinga)

  • Woman’s Breast Cancer Returned Immediately After Dropping Treatment With Cannabis, Shrooms (High Times)

  • Psilocybin Shows Gender-Specific Effects on CNS Reactivity and Behavioral Responses (Gilmore Health News)

  • Psyence Group Completes Export of Psilocybin Mushrooms to Portugal (Psychedelic Alpha)

MDMA

  • MDMA in the UK Is Finally Pure Again (VICE)

Ayahuasca

  • Aaron Rodgers fumbles the science on psychedelics. Drugs like ayahuasca can alter the brain—but how? (Salon)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

  • 'A lot of MDMA that wasn't MDMA': The early results from inside Australia's first drug testing clinic (SBS)

  • atai Life Sciences Announces Initiation of Phase 1 Trial for its MDMA Derivative, EMP-01 (Psychedelic Alpha)

  • LSD-Like Molecules Counter Depression Without the Trip (UC San Francisco)

  • BetterLife Files Comprehensive Patent for BETR-001 and Other LSD Derivatives (Psychedelic Alpha)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

  • A new urine test could help curtail the use of the latest synthetic cannabinoids to enter the drug scene (Medical Xpress)

Ketamine

Miscellaneous

  • How Interdisciplinary Research Could Reveal Psychedelics’ Blind Spots (Microdose)

  • New Theory Believes Psychedelics Could Benefit Long-Term Space Travelers (High Times)

  • After rocky start, hopes up in Oregon drug decriminalization (ABC)

  • Psychedelic drugs: how to tell good research from bad (The Conversation)

  • Do You Even Trip, Bro? A Look At Psychedelic Masculinity, From Joe Rogan To Mike Tyson (Benzinga)

  • I went to the only psychedelic dispensary in North America—here’s how they do it (The Manual)

  • The Racism and Classism Hidden Behind “Moms who Microdose” (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • Whole-Body Effects of Psychedelics Part 3 – The Heart (Psychedelic Science Review)

  • Majority Of Mainers Support Drug Decriminalization And Other Harm Reduction Policies, Poll Finds (Marijuana Moment)

  • Why Tripping at Raves Can Be Just As Healing as Ceremony (DoubleBlind)

  • Math Over Myth: MindMed’s Self Destructive Stock Mission (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • Men More Likely To Have Substance Abuse Disorder, Women More Likely To Overdose (High Times)

  • Psychedelic Retreats Offer Healing Only for the Wealthy (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • Psychedelic therapy could reduce anxiety, distress among patients with cancer (Healio)

  • The Narrowing of Psychedelic Discourse (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • Is Now a Good Time to Invest In Psychedelics Stocks? (The Motley Fool)

  • The Messy Job of a Psychedelic Integration Coach (Psychedelic Spotlight)

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this month’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

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

This Month in Psychedelics - August 2022

Policy

Following last month’s attempt to ban five novel psychoactive substances, which was later withdrawn, the DEA announced a plan to criminalize two additional psychedelic drugs—DOI and DOC. However, shortly after the announcement the DEA backed down and communicated that it no longer intends to place these two substances in Schedule I. While this may end up being a temporary victory, it is still a big win for now.

Industry

The psychedelic industry experienced a lot of movement this month. MindMed put an end to its 18-MC for opioid addiction program and slashed a lot of their early research and development projects. atai Life Sciences also decided to narrow its focus as well, cutting three programs: DemeRx’s noribogaine program, the non-psychedelic drug N-acetylcysteine for brain injury, and Salvinorin A for depression. And finally, Mydecine is looking like it is on the verge of closing due to a lack of funding.

Research

A randomized-clinical trial found that psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy is capable of treating alcohol use disorder. The study had a fairly small sample size of only 93 patients but the effect size was large, with the patients who received psilocybin reduced their drinking by 83% within eight months of their first dose.

Meanwhile, yet another placebo-controlled study found that psilocybin microdosing did not have any significant benefits to creativity, cognition, or perception. This study also had a small sample size, with only 34 participants, but it adds to the pile of evidence accumulating against the idea that microdosing has any tangible benefits that go beyond the placebo effect.

Miscellaneous

NFL football player Aaron Rodgers opened up about how he used ayahuasca to help him with his mental health and propel him to the point where he is at now in his career as the quarterback for the Green Bay Packers. This was a pretty big admission in the world of sports, where the use of illegal drugs is a big no-no. Fortunately both his coach and the league were accepting of the news, and hopefully this is the beginning of a trend because it would be great to see even more professional athletes come forward about their experiences with illegal drugs.

However, not all athletes got off so easy. WNBA star and two-time Olympic gold medalist Brittney Griner was sentenced to nine years in a Russian prison for the possession and smuggling of cannabis oil cartridges. Since then she has appealed the conviction and is hoping to overturn the ruling, but there’s no telling how this case will play out in court.

Wrapping up this month’s recap is a video of a wild bear who helped himself to a supply of psychedelic honey and ended up incapacitated in the back of a truck. Fortunately he turned out just fine after coming down from his trip, which I’m sure he’ll remember for the rest of his life!

That’s all for this month’s update. Remember to always test and weigh your drugs and until next time—keep thinking wilder.

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this month’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

Weekly Psychedelic Links - August 2022

8.5.22

Cannabis

  • Brittney Griner sentenced to 9 years in Russian prison for drug possession and smuggling (Leafly)

  • Another American Caught With Weed in Russia Sentenced to 14 Years in Prison (High Times)

  • Cannabis no more of a risk than tobacco and alcohol – study (Cannabis Health News)

  • Federal Marijuana Records Would Be Expunged Under New Bipartisan Congressional Bill (Marijuana Moment)

  • New Study Says Legalization Hasn’t Caused More Teens To Try Cannabis (Marijuana Moment)

  • Cannabis Cafes Emerge in Post-Legalization Thailand (High Times)

  • Study Shows Cannabis Users 55% Less Likely to Develop Common Liver Cancer (High Times)

  • Arkansas Marijuana Campaign Files Lawsuit To Put Legalization Measure On Ballot After State Board’s Rejection (Marijuana Moment)

  • US weed homegrowers produce 8x more than Colorado legal market, says new report (Leafly)

  • Feds Seek Contractor To Help Test Marijuana Compounds In People’s Breath (Marijuana Moment)

  • New 3D Structures of Cannabinoid Receptor Inform Safer Drug Design (Psychedelic Science Review)

  • New Report Recommends Tips for Successful Cannabis-Impaired Driving Campaigns (High Times)

  • Colleges In States That Legalize Marijuana See A Boost In Application Numbers, Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

  • Brazilian Government’s Selective Blindness to Cannabis Evidence (TalkingDrugs)

  • Largest Federal Workers Union Calls For Ending Marijuana Tests For Most Government Employees In Legal States (Marijuana Moment)

LSD

Magic Mushrooms

  • Psilocybin Microdosing Shows No Benefit to Creativity, Cognition, Perception in New Scientific Study (Willamette Week)

  • Oregon Psilocybin Rules Set To Be Finalized in December (High Times)

  • Lead Plaintiff in Canadian Right To Try Lawsuit Shares His Psilocybin Story (Lucid News)

  • The Rise of Casual Shrooms (VICE)

MDMA

  • It’s Festival Season! How Should We Group Dose MDMA? (Lucid News)

DMT

Ayahuasca

Mescaline

  • Mescaline: A Neglected Tool for Psychotherapy (Sam Woolfe)

Peyote

  • The Peyote Plot: The Indigenous Fight to Conserve the Sacred Plant and the Spiritual Medicine it Contains (DoubleBlind)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

Ketamine

  • Double-action mechanism found that makes ketamine less addictive (New Atlas)

  • How ketamine chic became the new heroin chic (Dazed)

Miscellaneous

  • Poll States 28% of Americans Have Tried At Least One Psychedelic Substance (High Times)

  • The Need for 100,000 Psychedelic Facilitators is Real (LA Weekly)

  • Morgan Stanley Publishes Optimistic Report on Psychedelics (Psychedelic Alpha)

  • California Bills To Legalize Psychedelics Possession, Allow Interstate Marijuana Commerce And More Teed Up For Key Hurdle Next Week (Marijuana Moment)

  • MindMed Board of Directors Approves Reverse Share Split (Psychedelic Alpha)

  • Majority Of Americans Support Psychedelics Research For Military Members, New Poll Finds As Bipartisan Reform Advances In Congress (Marijuana Moment)

8.12.22

Cannabis

  • Report: Spike in Marijuana Positives Fueling Truck Driver Shortage, Supply Chain Disruptions (NORML)

  • Ottawa on track to spend $200M per year on cannabis for veterans (CBC)

  • Wisconsin Governor Pardons Several for Cannabis Offenses (High Times)

  • Missouri will vote on marijuana legalization in November (Leafly)

  • Arkansas Supreme Court Orders State To Put Marijuana Legalization Initiative On Ballot, But Votes May Not Be Counted (Marijuana Moment)

  • Colorado Marijuana Shops Are 98 Percent Compliant With ID Checks To Prevent Underage Sales, State Regulators Say (Marijuana Moment)

  • Cannabis And Lower COVID Hospitalizations: Is There A Connection? Here’s What A New Study Found (The Fresh Toast)

  • Biden DOJ Says Medical Marijuana Patients Are Too ‘Dangerous To Trust’ In Motion To Dismiss Lawsuit On Gun Rights (Marijuana Moment)

  • Voters Across Wisconsin Will See Marijuana Questions On Their Ballots In November (Marijuana Moment)

  • ‘Very good for tourists’: Thailand aims for high season with U-turn on cannabis (The Guardian)

  • The (Possibly) Best and Worst Countries To Get Caught With Pot (Benzinga)

  • New Florida Marijuana Legalization Initiative Filed For 2024 Ballot, With Backing Of State’s Largest Medical Cannabis Company (Marijuana Moment)

  • Can memory loss be good? How cannabis can help with PTSD (Leafly)

  • Arresting illicit weed sellers repeats our drug war mistakes (NJ.com)

LSD

  • Neuroscience research suggests LSD might enhance learning and memory by promoting brain plasticity (PsyPost)

Magic Mushrooms

  • Psilocybin therapy is prompting states to reconsider laws about magic mushrooms (USA Today)

  • Many Oregonians will have to vote again on psilocybin (Oregon Capital Chronicle)

  • Buried Treasure: How Does Psilocybin Reduce Compulsivity? (Psychedelic Science Review)

  • Can Psilocybin Treat Obesity? New Evidence, Future Directions (Psychedelic Science Review)

  • Inside the lab that's creating enough psilocybin for everyone on Earth (Wisconsin Public Radio)

  • Phase 2 clinical trial to examine efficacy of psilocybin for anorexia nervosa (Healio)

  • Coos County cities move to ban psilocybin for medical use in their communities (KCBY)

  • Optimi Health To Launch Therapeutic Psilocybin Product In Partnership With Patient Advocate Thomas Hartle (Psychedelic Alpha)

MDMA

  • Las Vegas Wastewater Study Finds Absolutely Bonkers Spike In MDMA Levels During EDC (BroBible)

  • Where Ecstasy Meets Power: The Unique Risks of MDMA Therapy (Sam Woolfe)

Ayahuasca

  • Packers’ Aaron Rodgers Won’t Be Disciplined for Using Psychedelic Drug (Sports Illustrated)

  • Aaron Rodgers’ former Packers QB coach reacts to psychedelic drug revelation (New York Post)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

  • Psilera’s New Compounds Show Potential for Significant Treatment Improvement in Depression and Neurodegenerative Disorders (Psychedelic Alpha)

  • Majority of 'Bath Salt' Deaths Concentrated in Just Two States (Medpage Today)

  • Woman likely drowned after taking hallucinogenic drugs, coroner finds (Stuff.co.nz)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

  • States That Legalize Marijuana See ‘Significant Reductions’ In Synthetic Cannabinoid Poisonings, Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

  • A 'very unpleasant time' - new synthetic drug in NZ (Radio New Zealand)

Nitrous Oxide

  • Urgent warning to parents over teens inhaling nitrous oxide after canisters found across Dublin (The Irish Sun)

Ketamine

  • How The Brain Changes In People With Chronic PTSD Following Ketamine Treatment (Healing Maps)

Miscellaneous

  • VR is as good as psychedelics at helping people reach transcendence (Technology Review)

  • The DARE Program Is Back in Some School Districts — Here’s What to Know (Teen Vogue)

  • Compass Pathways Sued for Stealing Trade Secrets (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • An initiative to decriminalize most plant-based psychedelics is likely to fall short on signatures (Colorado Public Radio)

  • Colombia’s New President Wants to End the Drug War. Can He Succeed? (Filter)

  • Bear high on hallucinogenic 'mad honey' rescued in Turkey (Irish Mirror)

  • How Do We End the ‘War on Drugs’? Perhaps Scandinavia Has the Answer.. (Volteface)

  • Psychedelics are having a moment and women could be the ones to benefit (MIT Technology Review)

  • Over the counter culture: Are psychedelics coming to the corner shop? (The Independent)

  • Psychedelics researchers and investors should focus on delivering therapy, not drugs (STAT)

  • Muslims on Drugs: Psychedelics, Queerness, and Identity in the Post-9/11 Era (DoubleBlind)

  • What Role does Philosophy Play in the Future of Psychedelics? (TalkingDrugs)

  • First Reddit Community-Led Scientific Study to Launch on Quantified Citizen (Yahoo!)

  • Red Wall Voters Want Drug Law Reform – New Polling Shows (Volteface)

  • Psychedelic Clinical Trials and the Michael Pollan Effect (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • Young Psychedelic Philanthropist Blazes Path for the Psychedelic Future (Lucid News)

  • Rediscovering Our Ancestral Roots of Exploration (Chacruna)

  • What Happens when Psychedelics Meets Video Games? (Lucid News)

8.19.22

Cannabis

  • Brittney Griner Appeals Conviction in Russian Drug Case (High Times)

  • North Dakota will vote on cannabis legalization in November (Leafly)

  • Arkansas court orders recreational cannabis amendment put back on ballot (Marijuana Business Daily)

  • Pot-smoking tourists not welcome in Thailand, says health minister (Reuters)

  • South Dakota Reservation Bans Alcohol, Allows Cannabis (High Times)

  • Analysis: Racial Disparities in Marijuana Possession Arrests Becoming More Pronounced in Prohibition States (NORML)

  • ‘Clean weed’ is about to be everywhere in California. Here’s what you need to know (Los Angeles Times)

  • Ohio Voters In Seven More Cities Will Decide On Marijuana Decriminalization At The Ballot This November (Marijuana Moment)

  • Idaho Activists Launch Medical Marijuana Ballot Push For 2024 (Marijuana Moment)

  • Alberta cannabis sales slow to grow as online identity verification deters consumers, say retailers (CBC)

  • Gallup: Those with First-Hand Experience with Cannabis Likely to Perceive It Positively (NORML)

  • Majority Of Texas Voters Support Marijuana Legalization, Poll Finds (Marijuana Moment)

  • Most Wisconsin Voters—Including Republicans—Support Legalizing Marijuana, Poll Shows (Marijuana Moment)

Magic Mushrooms

  • Is Oregon Ready for the Coming Psilocybin-Fueled Mushroom Tourism Boom? (Portland Monthly)

  • Optimi Health Unveils Canada’s First Natural Therapeutic Psilocybin Product For Approved Patients (Psychedelic Alpha)

MDMA

  • Warnings over dangerously high-strength MDMA pills found at Boardmasters (Mixmag)

DMT

  • Small Pharma Receives Approval for DMT-Assisted Psychotherapy and SSRI Drug Interaction Study (Psychedelic Alpha)

Ayahuasca

  • The Misfortune of “Right Wing” Psychedelia” in Brazil (Chacruna)

  • Anonymous Letter to Conservative Masters of the UDV (Chacruna)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

Nitrous Oxide

  • Atlanta neighbors frustrated by nitrous oxide use outside Widespread Panic show (KMIZ)

Ketamine

  • We Asked the Experts: What Exactly is in Ketamine? (TalkingDrugs)

Miscellaneous

  • Video of a forester who found a drunken bear gorged on hallucinogenic honey became a hit on the Internet (The Saxon)

  • California Psychedelics Legalization Bill Gutted by Key Committee (DoubleBlind)

  • Psychedelics as a sacrament? Lawsuit says drugs are a religious right. (The Washington Post)

  • Integration of psychedelic experiences linked to self-actualization via improvements in personal development and self-insight (PsyPost)

  • Two In Five Americans Say They’ve Changed Their Mind On Drug Policy, With Most Becoming “More Liberal,” Poll Finds (Marijuana Moment)

8.26.22

Cannabis

  • Federal Trade Commission issues refunds to CBD buyers, here’s why (Leafly)

  • Nebraska Officials Will Take A Second Look At Signatures For Rejected Medical Marijuana Ballot Measures (Marijuana Moment)

  • New medical marijuana campaign launches in Idaho for 2024 ballot (Marijuana Business Daily)

  • Study Shows 20% Increase in Frequency of Cannabis Consumption in Recreational States (High Times)

  • FBI Says CBD Use Is An ‘Automatic Disqualifier’ For Employment Despite Federal Hemp Legalization (Marijuana Moment)

  • Oklahoma’s legalization initiative at risk due to state delay (Leafly)

  • The casualties of California legalizing pot: Growers who went legal (The Washington Post)

  • U.S. Forest Service Reminds Workers Of Federal Marijuana Ban And Warns Against CBD Use (Marijuana Moment)

  • Dennis Rodman Proposes To Negotiate Russia Brittney Griner Release (High Times)

  • Why The Legal Cannabis Industry Needs The Black Market (Forbes)

  • Legalization Opponents Sue To Block Initiative From Missouri Ballot (High Times)

  • Cannabis for Chronic Pain Linked to Slightly Increased Risk of Arrhythmia (Healthline)

LSD

  • First Patient Dosed in Trial of LSD for Generalized Anxiety Disorder (Psychiatric Times)

Magic Mushrooms

  • Psilocybin May Help Treat Alcohol Addiction, Study Shows (TIME)

  • Three Out Of Four Oregon Counties Will Vote On Banning Or Postponing Psilocybin Services This November (Marijuana Moment)

  • Inside Paul Stamets’ Massive Microdosing Study (DoubleBlind)

Ayahuasca

  • Mormon Bishop And Former GOP Utah Rep. Champions Ayahuasca After Faith-Affirming Psychedelic Experience (Marijuana Moment)

5-MeO-DMT

  • Trip Advisors: Group Promotes 5-MeO-DMT Harm Reduction By Exposing Shamanic Hustlers (Forbes)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

  • The DEA is Attempting to Ban Two New Psychedelic Drugs (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • Clearmind Medicine Announces Additional Positive Pre-Clinical Results for its Cocaine Addiction Treatment (Psychedelic Alpha)

  • BetterLife Lead Drug (BETR-001) Promotes Structural Neural Plasticity with Possible Nootropic Effects Similar to That of LSD Without Hallucinogenic Side Effects (Psychedelic Alpha)

Nitrous Oxide

  • Laughing Gas During Labor Is Becoming More Popular Among Women in the United States (People)

Ketamine

  • Ketamine’s upgrade to an employee benefit in US may hasten the legitimacy of psychedelics in SA (BizNews)

DXM

  • FDA Approves First, Only NMDA Receptor Antagonist for Major Depressive Disorder (Pharmacy Times)

Miscellaneous

  • Psychedelic Stocks: MindMed and atai Slash their Pipelines, Mydecine Collapses (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • Psychedelics Use Increasing Among Adults, But Decreasing For Teens, New Federally Funded Studies Find (Marijuana Moment)

  • Psychedelic-occasioned mystical experiences linked to increased pro-environmental behaviors (PsyPost)

  • How near-death experiences and psychedelics alter attitudes about death (EurekAlert!)

  • Does Microdosing Actually Work? The Science Is Still Conflicted (VICE)

  • Issues of Patient Safety and Ethical Violations in Psychedelic Therapy (Psychedelic Science Review)

  • As Plant-Medicine Churches Grow, Legal Questions Linger (Lucid News)

  • This Psychedelic Theater Troupe Has Been Quietly Changing the World for Decades (DoubleBlind)

  • Do Psychedelic Trips Actually Start In The Gut Instead Of The Brain? (Healing Maps)

  • The Psychedelic Community Takes Itself Too Seriously (Psychedelic Alpha)

  • Ethics in Psychedelic Therapy: The Promises and Pitfalls of Increased Suggestibility (Sam Woolfe)

  • Do You Even Trip, Bro? On Psychedelic Masculinity (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • How Long Can the Psychedelic Renaissance Last? (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • The Legal Risks of Psychedelic Therapy and Coaching (EntheoNation)

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this month’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

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

Weekly Psychedelic Links - July 2022

7.1.22

Cannabis

  • Fentanyl-laced marijuana is a myth. It’s time to end the hype (Leafly)

  • Medical Weed Cards No Longer Required in Virginia Starting July 1 (High Times)

  • Hemp, CBD get permanent legal status in NC after 11th-hour rescue (MSN.com)

  • Scientists find THC in over 60% of CBD products they tested — and that may be a huge problem (ZME Science)

  • UN Report Dramatizes Uptick in Global Cannabis Use (High Times)

  • Louisiana Governor Signs Bill Providing Medical Marijuana Workplace Protections For State Employees (Marijuana Moment)

  • Maryland Court: Cops Can Stop, Question Someone Who Smells of Pot (High Times)

  • Nevada Cannabis Consumption Lounges Could Go Live By End Of 2022 (Marijuana Moment)

  • Edibles, beverages infused with cannabis ingredient THC become legal Friday in Minnesota (Star Tribune)

  • Inside The Process To Legalize Recreational Cannabis In Germany (Forbes)

  • California Bill to Require Cannabis Warnings About Mental Disorder Risks Advances (High Times)

  • Pennsylvania Lawmakers Advance Medical Marijuana DUI Protections And Cannabis Banking Reform Bills (Marijuana Moment)

  • Texas Supreme Court Bans Smokable Hemp Production, Sales (High Times)

  • Montana Lawsuit Challenges Marijuana Ban In State’s Third-Largest City (Marijuana Moment)

  • House Panel Approves Amendment to Protect State Legal Cannabis Programs (High Times)

  • Feds Fund Development Of Hemp-Based, 3D-Printed Materials To Build Affordable Housing (Marijuana Moment)

  • New Vermont Guidance Looks to Eliminate Plastic Waste From State’s Cannabis Industry (High Times)

  • Cannabis users are at greater risk for emergency and inpatient care: study (Fox News)

Magic Mushrooms

  • These Mormons Have Found a New Faith — in Magic Mushrooms (Rolling Stone)

  • New Jersey Senate President Files Psilocybin Legalization Bill That Includes Home Grow Option, Unlike Current Marijuana Law (Marijuana Moment)

  • Tryp Therapeutics Strengthens IP Portfolio with Provisional Patent Application for Binge Eating Disorder Treatment (Psychedelic Alpha)

  • Digging Up Druggable Targets: Psilocybin Efficacy in a Model of OCD (Psychedelic Science Review)

MDMA

  • First-of-its-kind MDMA group therapy trial set to commence (New Atlas)

  • Over One Hundred Years of MDMA Research (Drug Science)

Ayahuasca

  • How the Shipibo Came to Be the Most Common Group Serving Ayahuasca to Foreigners (DoubleBlind)

Peyote

  • Decriminalize Nature Targets Peyote: Drug Reform or Settler Colonialism? (Chacruna)

  • Big business could wipe out Mexico’s sacred psychedelic peyote cactus (openDemocracy)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

  • How Did A Minnesota Honor Roll Student Die As Her Parents Were Sleeping Upstairs? (Oxygen)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

  • A Loophole in Japan’s Weed Laws Is Getting Tens of Thousands High (VICE)

Miscellaneous

  • Colorado Activists Turn In Signatures To Put Psychedelics Legalization And Therapeutic Psilocybin Program On Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

  • War on drugs prolonged Colombia’s decades-long civil war, landmark report finds (The Guardian)

  • Is there a future for psychedelic treatment in Saudi Arabia? (Arab News)

  • Do Bad Psychedelic Patents Matter? (Lucid News)

  • 4 Recommendations for Disability Inclusion in Psychedelic Therapy Research (Psychiatric Times)

7.8.22

Cannabis

  • WNBA Star Brittney Griner Pleads Guilty To Cannabis Charge As Russia Calls Out U.S. Hypocrisy In Maintaining Criminalization (Marijuana Moment)

  • Make no mistake, marijuana edibles are legal now in Minnesota (Leafly)

  • Washington, D.C. Mayor Signs Medical Cannabis Self-Certification Bill (High Times)

  • Pennsylvania Bill Gives Medical Cannabis Patients DUI Protection (High Times)

  • Oklahoma: Advocates Turn in Signatures to Place Adult-Use Legalization Measure on November Ballot (NORML)

  • Study Shows Flower Still Reigns Supreme in U.S., Canada as Consumer Favorite (High Times)

  • Arkansas Activists Set To Turn In Double The Signatures Needed To Put Marijuana Legalization On Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

  • Nebraska Medical Marijuana Activists Turn In Ballot Signatures After Campaign Suffers Legal Setback (Marijuana Moment)

  • Albania Prompted to Implement Medical Cannabis Reform After U.N. Criticism (High Times)

  • U.S. Army Wants To Make Sniper Uniforms Out Of Hemp (Marijuana Moment)

LSD

  • A man whose daily headaches felt like an ice pick in his eyes says he tried 12 treatments but only found relief after taking LSD (Insider)

Magic Mushrooms

  • New Study Shows Mood, Mental Health Improved by Microdosing Psilocybin (High Times)

  • Indiana Nurse Faces Ten Years in Prison for Microdosing Psilocybin Mushrooms (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • Two Cancer Patients Battle to Make Psilocybin Accessible for Palliative Care (Scientific American)

  • Rural Oregon counties are lining up against psilocybin launch (OPB)

MDMA

  • Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Pushes for Psychedelic Reform in Congress (DoubleBlind)

  • GOP Congressman’s Amendment Would Direct Military To Study Psilocybin And MDMA Benefits For Service Members (Marijuana Moment)

DMT

  • Algernon Pharmaceuticals Provides Update on Its Phase 1 DMT Stroke Study (Psychedelic Alpha)

Iboga

  • ‘To Heal and to Care for’: Protecting Iboga and Indigenous Voices in the Face of Corporatisation (Volteface)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

  • DEA Announces Hearing On Proposed Ban Of Five Psychedelic Compounds Following Significant Pushback (Marijuana Moment)

  • Mindset Pharma Receives Allowance for Patent Application Covering its Short-Duration Novel Psychedelic Medications for The Treatment of Central Nervous System Disorders (Psychedelic Alpha)

Ketamine

  • PharmaTher Announces Positive Results from Study For Ketamine Microneedle Patch (Psychedelic Alpha)

Miscellaneous

  • The Never-Ending Psychedelic Trip of Michael Pollan (Rolling Stone)

  • Journey Colab scores $12M to move psychedelics-based addiction treatment into clinic (Fierce Biotech)

  • User perceptions of the benefits and harms of hallucinogenic drug use: A web-based questionnaire study (Drug Science)

  • Tripping the Reward Circuit: Psychedelics for Substance Use Disorders (Psychedelic Science Review)

  • Psychedelics Give a Glimpse of Enlightenment (Psychology Today)

7.15.22

Cannabis

  • Feds Must Defend Historical Rationale Of Banning Guns For Medical Marijuana Patients, Revised Lawsuit Argues After SCOTUS Ruling (Marijuana Moment)

  • ‘Green way of life’: Thailand sees cannabis boom after law change (Al Jazeera)

  • Washington DC just legalized weed for all adults—but it’s locals only (Leafly)

  • Oklahoma, North Dakota, Arkansas, and Nebraska submit signatures to put cannabis on November ballot (Leafly)

  • Study Shows Decrease in Heavy Truck Crash Rates Since Cannabis Legalization (High Times)

  • NYPD Will Keep Testing Officers For Marijuana, Reversing Course Hours After Announcing Policy Change Mandated By City (Marijuana Moment)

  • Cannabis Laws in France Have Disproportionately Affected Muslims (High Times)

  • New York Firefighters Won’t Be Tested For Marijuana, Department Says Following NYPD Leak (Marijuana Moment)

  • Argentine Supreme Court Endorses Medical Cannabis Home Grow (High Times)

  • Pennsylvania Governor Signs Marijuana Banking And Insurance Reform Bill Into Law (Marijuana Moment)

  • Portland Weed Demand Hits Three-Year Low (High Times)

  • Pennsylvania Police Arrested Over 13,000 People for Marijuana Possession in 2021 (NORML)

  • The Fight for Medical Cannabis in Indonesia (High Times)

  • Weed, Like Change, Nourishes The Soil To Regenerate The Cannabis Industry (Forbes)

LSD

  • Why David Bowie wasn’t a fan of LSD (Far Out)

Magic Mushrooms

  • DEA May Find Itself In Federal Court Again Over Refusal To Provide Psilocybin Access To Terminally Ill Patients (Marijuana Moment)

  • Oregon therapeutic psilocybin program sparks some confusion (OPB)

MDMA

  • World's first ecstasy 'shop' set to trial in the Netherlands (Mixmag)

  • Luxury Champagne Recalled Again Over Ecstacy Contamination (Newsweek)

  • MDMA: Rolling from Counterculture to the Clinic Counter (Psychedelic Science Review)

Ayahuasca

  • Study suggests ayahuasca users tend to eat healthier, get more exercise, and experience physical and mental health benefits (PsyPost)

Ketamine

  • PharmaTher Announces Notice of Allowance for U.S. Patent Covering Ketamine for the Potential Treatment of Parkinson’s Disease and Motor Disorders (Psychedelic Alpha)

Miscellaneous

  • Ann Shulgin, Forerunner of Today's Psychedelic Re-Emergence, Dies at 91 (Transform Press)

  • House Approves Marijuana And Psychedelics Amendments As Part Of Must-Pass Defense Bill (Marijuana Moment)

  • What Ethnographers Have Learned from People Who Use Drugs (Undark)

  • Inside the Chemistry Lab Where the MDMA Godfather Synthesized Novel Psychedelics (DoubleBlind)

  • The Tory Leadership Candidates on Drugs (Volteface)

  • Filament Health Issued Third Patent By United States Patent and Trademark Office (Psychedelic Alpha)

  • Doctors Urge Access to Psychedelic Therapies in New Mexico (TIME)

  • Can Psychedelics Treat Inflammation and Eye Disease? Eleusis Thinks So. (Lucid News)

  • Villain Or Victim? Understanding The Role of Women In The Latin American Drug Trade (TalkingDrugs)

  • San Francisco’s New DA Vows to Ramp Up City’s Drug War (Filter)

  • The Battle for Psychedelic Patents (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • How To Become a Psychedelic Therapist (DoubleBlind)

  • 5 Countries Where Psychedelics are Legal (Psychedelic Spotlight)

7.22.22

Cannabis

  • Senate Leadership Introduces Legislation to End Federal Marijuana Prohibition (NORML)

  • District of Columbia: Mayor Signs Legislation Prohibiting Most Employers from Discriminating Against Cannabis Consumers (NORML)

  • Legal cannabis is producing more plastic waste than pot (Leafly)

  • Colorado Company To Research Cannabis As A Treatment For Parkinson’s Disease (Forbes)

  • Biden Says He’s ‘Working On’ Bill To Release Cannabis Inmates (High Times)

  • Germany, Luxembourg, Malta And The Netherlands Discuss Marijuana Legalization At Historic Joint Meeting (Marijuana Moment)

  • Colorado Springs Recreational Cannabis Initiative Qualifies for November Ballot (High Times)

  • Minnesota Is Home To America's First Cannabis Disc Golf Course (MIX 108)

  • House Passes Bill Permitting Weed Ads on TV and Radio (High Times)

  • Colorado's New Lead Marijuana Monitor Treks Through Heavy Issues (Westword)

  • Cannabis Telemedicine Launches in Montana (High Times)

  • Montana Marijuana Businesses Face Seemingly Endless Cycle Of Local Votes On Allowing Them To Operate (Marijuana Moment)

  • People Busted for Weed in the U.K. Could Lose Passports Under Proposed Rules (High Times)

  • Missouri Marijuana Legalization Measure In Danger Of Not Qualifying For Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

  • Denver officials want to save struggling cannabis delivery businesses (The Denver Post)

  • Study Finds Australians Support Cannabis Use Over Smoking Tobacco (High Times)

  • House Will Not Vote On Marijuana Amendments For Veterans And Public Housing Residents After Committee Snag (Marijuana Moment)

  • Marijuana use is higher among US states that have legalized recreational cannabis use (News-Medical)

LSD

  • The Doors of Expression: LSD Alters Epigenetics and Protein Induction (Psychedelic Science Review)

  • Science Feature: MindMed’s LSD Trial for ADHD (Microdose)

  • Watch John Lennon explain that 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds' was not about LSD (Far Out)

Magic Mushrooms

  • The Sloppy Science of Psilocybin Microdosing Surveys (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • A single dose of psilocybin has long-lasting antidepressant-like effects in fruit flies (PsyPost)

  • Restrictions on Psilocybin ‘Magic Mushrooms’ Are Easing as Research Ramps Up (Scientific American)

MDMA

  • Patient safety issues halt trial for MDMA-assisted psychotherapy during Health Canada review (CBC)

  • 'Corrective' measures ordered, but Health Canada says 2nd MDMA trial can continue (CBC)

DMT

  • Teenager Used LSD And DMT To Help Overcome Trauma, Case Report Says (IFLScience)

Ayahuasca

  • Churches sue to use hallucinogenic tea in religious practice (UPI)

  • The Global Ayahuasca Boom: What About the Conservation of the Ayahuasca Vine? (Chacruna)

5-MeO-DMT

  • The Story Behind a 1984 Hallucinogenic Pamphlet From Denton Is Just as Trippy as Its Subject (Dallas Observer)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

  • Mydecine Files Full Patent Application Covering MYCO-006 Family of Novel Short-Acting MDMA Analogs (Psychedelic Alpha)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

  • Weed vapes probably sending a toxic gas to your lungs, study finds (Salon)

  • Cannabis getting stronger with synthetic versions added leading to psychosis, report warns (Independent.ie)

Ketamine

  • Largest-ever clinical study of ketamine therapy shows that at-home model can be a safe, effective treatment for anxiety and depression; 62% fewer patients report suicidal ideation after four sessions (PR Newswire)

  • Ketamine Beneficial For Treating Neonatal, And Pediatric Epilepsy: Study (Medical Dialogues)

Miscellaneous

  • The Long, Strange Relationship Between Psychedelics and Telepathy (VICE)

  • DEA Sued Over ‘Unlawful’ Delays On Psychedelic And Marijuana Public Records Requests Through FOIA (Marijuana Moment)

  • Colorado Psychedelics Legalization Measure Qualifies for November Ballot (DoubleBlind)

  • Keeping the Hippie Dream Alive (The New York Times)

  • Accessibility Is Key for the Psychedelic Revolution (Pharmacy Times)

  • Podcast aims to raise awareness about future of psychedelic treatments (CBC)

  • Skip the trip – does the world need non-hallucinogenic psychedelics? (leafie)

  • New Regulations for Psychedelics? Here's What Investors Need to Know (The Motley Fool)

7.29.22

Cannabis

  • Weedmaps again advertising illegal marijuana retailers and products, complaints allege (Marijuana Business Daily)

  • Singapore Executes Man for Cannabis Trafficking (High Times)

  • House Passes Bipartisan Marijuana Research Bill, With Senate Expected To Send It To President Soon (Marijuana Moment)

  • Zimbabwe OKs First Medicinal Cannabis Sales (High Times)

  • Secret Australian marijuana facility exposes location after turning sky pink (The Washington Post)

  • Biden Administration Proposes Prisoner Swap To Free Brittney Griner (High Times)

  • Over 850 Doctors in Thailand Protest Pot Legalization (High Times)

  • Senator Files Bill To Allow Marijuana Advertising On TV And Radio In Legal States (Marijuana Moment)

  • The 'World's Biggest Cannabis Scam' Is Totally Unravelling (VICE)

  • Bronx Cannabis Hub Fosters Opportunity in Communities Hit Hard by Arrests (Filter)

  • Cannabis Users Less Likely to Face Complications After Spinal Fusion Surgery (High Times)

  • 15 State Attorneys General File Brief Opposing Lawsuit To Help Put Medical Marijuana On Nebraska Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

  • Thai businesses cash in on cannabis, from milk tea to toothpaste (Reuters)

  • Missouri Marijuana Legalization Initiative Short Of Signatures Needed For Ballot In County Reviews (Marijuana Moment)

  • New Hampshire stands alone in New England as only state without legal marijuana (WMUR)

LSD

  • New Zealand Government Grants $650K For LSD Microdosing Trials (Benzinga)

  • Operation Julie: Rural Wales LSD bust becomes a musical (BBC)

Magic Mushrooms

  • DEA Sued Again Over Refusal To Allow Psilocybin Access For Patients Despite Federal Law (Marijuana Moment)

  • Why some of Colorado’s foremost shrooms advocates won’t be voting to legalize psilocybin (The Denver Post)

  • Legal psilocybin prescriptions in Canada (Drug Science)

  • Project Solace: The World’s Largest Medical Psilocybin Access and Data Project (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • COMPASS Pathways launches phase II clinical trial of psilocybin therapy in anorexia nervosa (Psychedelic Alpha)

DMT

  • U.S. Patent Grant to Strengthen Small Pharma’s DMT Patent Strategy With Injectable Formulation (Psychedelic Alpha)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

  • DEA Cancels Proposed Ban Of Five Psychedelics, Giving Scientists More Time To Research Therapeutic Benefits (Marijuana Moment)

  • Working with Indigenous allies is the ethical way to develop psychedelic-based pharmaceuticals (STAT News)

  • Festival drugs: Warning over 'imposter' substances threat (BBC)

  • Ecstasy for the 21st Century: Designer Drugs to Improve MDMA Therapy (Psychedelic Science Review)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

  • Easy On The Eyes — This Company Reports Using a Unique Synthetic Cannabinoid Derivative To Treat Glaucoma (Benzinga)

Nitrous Oxide

  • Doctors warn ‘dangerous’ laughing gas is becoming an ‘epidemic’ amid rise in hospitalisations (The Independent)

  • A Law will Prohibit the Sale of Nitrous Oxide or “Laughing Gas” to Minors in Bulgaria (Novinite.com)

Ketamine

  • At Home Sublingual Ketamine Exhibits Rapid And Significant Antidepressant And Anxiolytic Effects (Medical Dialogues)

  • Ketamine found to be unlikely to lead to addiction (Medical Xpress)

  • Silo Pharma Announces Positive Results from its Topically Administered Formulation of Ketamine (Psychedelic Alpha)

Miscellaneous

  • Biden Administration Plans For Legal Psychedelic Therapies Within Two Years (The Intercept)

  • San Francisco Launches Bid to Decriminalize Psychedelics (Filter)

  • Your Genes May Determine How You React To Psychedelic Drugs (IFLScience)

  • The Psychoactive Substances Act on Trial (Volteface)

  • The High-Stakes Race to Engineer New Psychedelic Drugs (WIRED)

  • Trump Urges ‘Very Quick Trial’ and Death Penalty for Drug Dealers (High Times)

  • The Psychedelics Industry’s Next Hurdle Is How to Go Mainstream (Bloomberg)

  • One in four Americans say they’ve tried at least one psychedelic drug (YouGov)

  • Microdosing: Scientists tackle psychedelic trend becoming ‘creative enhancer of choice’ (The Sydney Morning Herald)

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this month’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

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

Weekly Psychedelic Links - June 2022

6.3.22

Cannabis

  • Virginia: Approved Budget Recriminalizes Public Marijuana Possession Over Four Ounces of Marijuana (NORML)

  • Connecticut Gov. signs bill to crack down on weed gifting (Leafly)

  • North Carolina Senate Approves Medical Marijuana Legalization Bill (Marijuana Moment)

  • Study Finds THC Detected in Blood or Breath Does Not Indicate Impairment (High Times)

  • Medicinal cannabis reduces pain and the need for opiate painkillers among cancer patients (PsyPost)

  • North Carolina Lawmakers Advance Bill To Make Hemp Permanently Legal (High Times)

  • With veto, path to marijuana legalization in Delaware still open but fraught with unpredictability (WHYY)

  • FBI Marijuana Arrest Data May Be Critically Flawed, And DOJ Is Being Asked To Investigate (Marijuana Moment)

  • Louisiana Senate Approves Bill Allowing Public Employees to Use Medical Pot (High Times)

  • New York Senate Passes Gray Market Cannabis Bill (High Times)

  • Legal Cannabis Use Could Disqualify White House Intern Applicants (Forbes)

  • Texas Activists Say They Collected Enough Signatures To Put Marijuana Decriminalization On Another City Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

  • Gen Z Prefers Weed Over Booze (High Times)

  • Marijuana Research Has Exploded In Recent Years Despite Barriers Caused By Prohibition, New Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

  • Peru Issues Draft Law to Allow and Regulate Patient-Grown Medical Cannabis (High Times)

  • New York Senate Approves Bill To Mandate Medical Marijuana Health Insurance Coverage (Marijuana Moment)

  • Austria Imports Record Amount of Medical Weed While Constitutional Challenges Loom (High Times)

  • Weed Joke on Jeopardy! Triggers Viewers (High Times)

LSD

  • Neuroscientists gain a deeper understanding of how LSD affects molecular brain activity (PsyPost)

  • Ceruvia Lifesciences to Supply LSD to Qualified Researchers at No Cost (PR Newswire)

Magic Mushrooms

  • Oregon Officials’ Rejection Of Rules For Spiritual And Religious Psilocybin Use Called Into Question (Marijuana Moment)

  • In Algeria, Ancient Cave Art May Show Psychedelic Mushroom Use (Atlas Obscura)

  • New studies shed light on the mysterious process by which psilocybin can rapidly improve depression symptoms (PsyPost)

  • B.C. company opens Canada's largest licensed psychedelic mushroom growing facility (CBC)

  • Policy and Legal Considerations for Religious and Community Use of Psilocybin Mushrooms under Oregon Measure 109 (Chacruna)

MDMA

  • A Balm for Psyches Scarred by War (The New York Times)

  • 'Highly unusual': Methamphetamine found in MDMA tablets for the first time in New Zealand (Stuff.co.nz)

Peyote

  • The Navajo Nation to Protect the Sanctity of Azeé – Peyote Medicine from Legalization and Commercial Use (Chacruna)

Nitrous Oxide

  • Warning over climate threat from laughing gas used during childbirth (Sydney Morning Herald)

  • Linking nitrous oxide to climate risk is yet another example of the disdain shown to women’s pain (The Guardian)

Ketamine

  • Ketamine can treat depression — but teletherapy could make it accessible (Inverse)

Miscellaneous

  • Canada to decriminalize some drugs in British Columbia for three years (The Guardian)

  • Maryland Bill To Fund Psychedelics Research And Access For Veterans Takes Effect Without Governor’s Signature (Marijuana Moment)

  • DARE 2.0 is "Keepin' it Real" in US schools (Substance)

  • Indigenous and drug policy groups seek to preserve traditional approaches as psychedelic markets open in Oregon (OPB)

  • Michigan Activists Give Up 2022 Push For Psychedelics Legalization Ballot Initiative, Shifting Focus To 2024 (Marijuana Moment)

  • The Intertwined Prohibitionist Histories of Psychedelics and Kratom (Psychedelics Today)

  • Why this startup is encouraging employees to microdose psychedelics at work (Fast Company)

  • From Psychedelic Pharma To Crop Gene Editing - The UK’s Big Opportunity (Forbes)

  • Don’t Count on RFRA to Protect Psychedelic Churches (Lucid News)

  • Tripping over the potential of psychedelics for autism (Spectrum)

  • Understanding the Current Legal Status of Psychedelics in the United States (JD Supra)

  • Can you take the trip out of psychedelics and still treat depression? (New Scientist)

6.10.22

Cannabis

  • Thailand legalises cannabis trade but still bans recreational use (BBC)

  • Prescription cannabis products with more THC may ease chronic pain, at least a little, study finds (CNN)

  • North Carolina Senate Passes Medical Marijuana Bill To House, But Questions Loom About Further Action This Year (Marijuana Moment)

  • Delaware: Lawmakers Decline to Overturn Cannabis Legalization Veto (NORML)

  • Voters In Five Texas Cities Will Decide On Marijuana Decriminalization In November, Activists Say (Marijuana Moment)

  • Louisiana Legislature Passes Bill to Protect State Workers from Termination for Medical Cannabis (Ganjapreneur)

  • Portugal Group Demands Freedom to Vote for Personal Use of Cannabis (High Times)

  • The Rapidly Expanding Cannabis Industry Needs To Get Its Marketing Act Together, A New Report Finds (Forbes)

  • If you’re high your love life might not be as great as you think (New York Post)

  • Ukraine to Legalize Medical Cannabis, Health Minister Says (High Times)

  • Illinois Governor Signs Bill To Close Marijuana Expungement ‘Loophole’ (Marijuana Moment)

  • Inflation’s so insane Snoop Dogg gave his blunt roller a raise (Leafly)

  • Legal Cannabis Use Could Disqualify White House Intern Applicants (Forbes)

  • West Virginia Activists Are Collecting Signatures To Put Marijuana Decriminalization Measures On Local Ballots (Marijuana Moment)

  • Medical Cannabis & Sleep Disorders: What Do We Really Know? (The Fresh Toast)

  • Is the word ‘marijuana’ racist? (Leafly)

  • Opening the Curtain on Cannabis in the Opera (High Times)

LSD

  • LSD microdosing does not appear to improve mood or cognitive ability, according to new placebo-controlled study (PsyPost)

Magic Mushrooms

  • Clinical Trial in South Africa to Study Efficacy of Psilocybin on Women with HIV and Depression (High Times)

MDMA

  • Colorado Governor Signs Bill To Legalize MDMA Prescriptions Pending Federal Approval (Marijuana Moment)

  • Brexit helping cause harmful increase in fake ecstasy, study warns (The Guardian)

Ayahuasca

  • I Tried Everything. Then I Tried Ayahuasca. (Esquire)

Miscellaneous

  • Psychedelic Pharma’s Big Spin (Lucid News)

  • The Nationwide Reach of Harmful Drug “Paraphernalia” Laws (Filter)

  • Tracing The History of Hallucinogens in China (TalkingDrugs)

  • How psychedelic drugs might treat depression (BBC)

  • Bosses want to feed psychedelics to their staff (The Economist)

  • The Great Cannabis Microdosing PR Conspiracy (High Times)

6.17.22

Cannabis

  • Germany set to legalise sale of cannabis in licensed shops (Metro)

  • Study Finds Weekly Cannabis Use Has Minimal Impairment on Physical Health (High Times)

  • How cannabis-fed chickens may help cut Thai farmers’ antibiotic use (The Guardian)

  • Analysis: Cannabis Retailers Drive Economic Growth, Are Not Magnets for Crime (NORML)

  • Maine’s Legal Marijuana Stores Are Effectively Displacing Illicit Market, State Report Finds (Marijuana Moment)

  • New Zealand Leaders Demand Cops Stop Spraying Chemicals on Cannabis (High Times)

  • Study: Regular Cannabis Consumers Perform Better Than Occasional Users on Distracted Driving Tasks (NORML)

  • Kentucky Governor Issues Medical Marijuana Executive Order Creating Advisory Committee To Study Patient Access Options (Marijuana Moment)

  • Study Shows Medical Cannabis Enrollment Has Quadrupled (High Times)

  • EPA Warns Workers They’re Banned From Using Marijuana Or Investing In The Industry In New Memo (Marijuana Moment)

  • DEA Reports Significant Uptick in Marijuana-Related Seizures, Arrests (NORML)

  • Athens, Georgia on Cusp of Major Decriminalization Ordinance (High Times)

  • Teen Marijuana Use Dropped Dramatically In Colorado In 2021, State Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

  • New Mexico Lawsuit Seeks Insurance Coverage for Medical Cannabis (High Times)

  • GOP Senate Candidate Pushes ‘Pot For Potholes’ Marijuana-Funded Infrastructure Plan In Hilarious Campaign Ad (Marijuana Moment)

  • Superior Court in Brazil Affirms Right to Cannabis Home Grow (High Times)

  • Federal Court Sides With Nebraska Medical Marijuana Activists In Lawsuit Over Ballot Requirements (Marijuana Moment)

  • West Virginia Advocates Collecting Signatures for Decriminalization Ballot Measures (High Times)

LSD

Magic Mushrooms

  • Psilocybin-induced mystical experiences linked to lasting positive psychological effects (PsyPost)

  • Anticipating Legalization: Making Psilocybin Accessible (Cannabis Science and Technology)

  • Could magic mushrooms in care homes help curb fear of death? Psychedelic drugs could 'revolutionise' end-of-life treatment, expert says (Daily Mail)

MDMA

  • Paraguay May Be Shifting from Producing LSD and MDMA to Consuming Them (InSight Crime)

5-MeO-DMT

Iboga

  • Ibogaine Isn’t a “Cure” for Addiction—But It Can Be a Useful Detox Tool (Filter)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

  • Oregon ban on synthetic cannabis products will be nation’s first (Oregon Live)

Ketamine

Miscellaneous

  • Mind-Altering Drug Docuseries Lined Up At Netflix From Alex Gibney & Michael Pollan (Deadline)

  • Malaysia Ends Mandatory Death Penalty for Nonviolent Drug Crimes (High Times)

  • Is drug testing going to become a regular part of UK festivals? (iTV)

  • Missoula City Council measure would decriminalize hallucinogenic plants (Missoula Current)

  • Local Psychedelics Decriminalization Measure Stalls In Amherst, Massachusetts (Marijuana Moment)

  • The abuse of power in psychedelic retreats (leafie)

  • Psychedelics Can Help Boost Scientific Creativity, Review Finds (Analytical Cannabis)

  • NFTs Are Getting Psychedelic. Is It Worth the Trip? (Lucid News)

  • Michigan moves to outlaw fake urine as marijuana popularity soars (MLive)

6.24.22

Cannabis

  • Psychosis, Addiction, Chronic Vomiting: As Weed Becomes More Potent, Teens Are Getting Sick (The New York Times)

  • California may require labels on cannabis products to warn of mental health risks (OPB)

  • Vets And Medical Cannabis: It’s The Least We Can Do (Forbes)

  • Louisiana: Multiple Marijuana Reform Bills Signed Into Law; Measures Take Effect August 1 (NORML)

  • Spain Approves Medical Cannabis Reform: Pharmacy Dispensation Planned for End of 2022 (High Times)

  • Medical Marijuana Legalization Linked To Reduced Drunk Driving And Safer Roads, Study On Auto Insurance Data Suggests (Marijuana Moment)

  • Switzerland to Lift Ban on Medical Cannabis (High Times)

  • DEA Marijuana Busts Increased In 2021, Seizing Over 5.5 Million Plants (Marijuana Moment)

  • U.S. English Teacher Sentenced to 14 Years in Russia for Pot ‘Smuggling’ (High Times)

  • North Carolina House Republicans Block Senate-Passed Medical Marijuana Bill (Marijuana Moment)

  • Cannabis ‘Very Promising’ as Opioid Replacement, Early Study Results Show (High Times)

  • U.S. Supreme Court Denies Medical Marijuana Workers’ Compensation Cases (Marijuana Moment)

  • Study Shows Cannabis Use Could Lead to Increased Kindness and Empathy (High Times)

  • Senate Committee Votes To Let People Who’ve Used Marijuana Work For CIA, NSA And Other Intelligence Agencies (Marijuana Moment)

  • Analyses: Drug Interdiction Efforts at US Borders Typically Yield Only Small Quantities of Marijuana (NORML)

  • MLB Teams Can Now Be Sponsored By CBD Companies, Baseball League Official Says (Marijuana Moment)

  • Mississippi Supreme Court Upholds Life Sentence for Weed Possession (High Times)

  • Scientists find little evidence to show cannabis oils help end pain, according to major study (Daily Mail)

  • District of Columbia: Council Advances Legislation Prohibiting Most Employers from Discriminating Against Cannabis Consumers (NORML)

  • New Gene Technology Allows Growers To Boost THC Levels In Cannabis (Forbes)

LSD

  • ‘I’m happier now and nowhere near as intense’: GoDaddy.com’s founder pivots to LSD (The Daily Dot)

Magic Mushrooms

  • Judges Deny Challenge to Psilocybin Patent (VICE)

  • COMPASS Pathways presents largest ever study of psilocybin therapy, at American Psychiatric Association annual meeting (Psychedelic Alpha)

  • Pa. bill to study of psilocybin – the drug in magic mushrooms – as mental health treatment languishes in Harrisburg (PhillyVoice)

  • Oregon County Considers Banning Legalized Psilocybin Therapy (Filter)

  • How an NHL Enforcer Broke His Body — and Turned to Psychedelics to Heal His Brain (Rolling Stone)

MDMA

  • MDMA trials under review in Canada over alleged abuse of study participants (The Guardian)

  • Canadian Firm Seeks Approval to Manufacture MDMA and Other Psychedelics (High Times)

DMT

  • DMT is Effective at Treating Depression, New Study Finds (Psychedelic Spotlight)

  • What do we see when dying? How a psychedelic trip can trigger at life’s end, and why we need to be better prepared for it (South China Morning Post)

Ayahuasca

  • An Ayahuasca Retreat Claims to Sell 'Miracles.' Former Workers and Guests Say It's Unsafe and Abusive. (VICE)

  • Another Phoenix Church Sues DEA Over Religious Use of Ayahuasca (Phoenix New Times)

  • The Ayahuasca King's Last Tour (The Texas Observer)

Ketamine

  • Tripping Through Motherhood: How Some Women Are Using Ketamine to Treat Postpartum Depression (Glamour)

  • Exploring Ketamine’s Antimicrobial Effects & Fungal Sources: Part 2 (Psychedelic Science Review)

Miscellaneous

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