Is it now time to prepare psychiatry for a psychedelic future?
The British Journal of Psychiatry – May 20, 2024
Source: OpenAlex
Summary
Australia has made a landmark decision, rescheduling two psychoactive substances, psilocybin and MDMA, for therapeutic use. Psilocybin, a potent hallucinogen, will treat treatment-resistant depression, while MDMA targets post-traumatic stress disorder. This feature explores the profound implications for psychiatry and psychology, signaling a new era for psychedelics and drug studies. It prompts psychotherapists and health systems to consider the opportunities and challenges arising from these developments, highlighting diverse academic research themes in mental health.
Abstract
Australia has just rescheduled two drugs controlled under the United Nations Psychotropic Drug Conventions, psilocybin and MDMA, as treatments for treatment-resistant depression and post-traumatic stress disorder respectively. This feature explores the reasons for these developments, the opportunities and challenges they provide to psychiatry communities and how along with health systems these communities might respond to these developments.