![]() ![]() Psilocybin, the active compound in magic mushrooms, has been found to mitigate acute anxiety among patients with life-threatening cancer. In 2018, the bestselling book How to Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan pushed psychedelic use into the public spotlight, inspiring many skeptics and on-the-fence supporters to take the plunge.Īway from the recreational crowd, patients can now use ketamine nasal sprays in the safety of a doctor’s office to manage treatment-resistant depression. T he last decade has seen the resurgence of the 1960s psychedelic movement, and once-maligned psychedelic substances are now rapidly gaining credibility and popularity. He wondered: could psychedelic therapy be the solution? Debilitating panic attacks incapacitated him multiple times a day insomnia drained his meager remaining energy.Īfter unsuccessfully trying three different anti-anxiety medications, he finally stumbled upon a study on psychedelics for racial trauma. And like many Black Americans, he experienced traumatic-stress symptoms triggered by the constant exposure to cases of police brutality and racial discrimination. Like most Americans, Evan followed the widespread media coverage of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor’s deaths in 2020. But six years later, magic mushrooms have become Evan’s remedy to cope with racial trauma. A teenager at the time, he swore off drugs forever. In 2015, Evan’s father was arrested for misdemeanor drug possession. He’s finicky and cautious toward other substances: when he orders wine at restaurants, he asks, “but does this one have any added food coloring?” He’s a 23-year-old quantitative economics graduate student who takes pride in steaming his sweater vests to maintain a studious appearance. The moment was “less about yelling ‘screw you, you racist!’” and more about reclaiming power.Įvan, a middle-class Black man, doesn’t come across as a psychedelic enthusiast. But during his psychedelic hallucination, Evan altered the memory, screaming in his classmate’s face and calling him racist. ![]()
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