The International journal on drug policy
September 1, 2020
Michaela Barber, John Gardner, Michael Savic et al.
16 citations
Online forums like Reddit and Drugs Forum serve as key resources for people considering ibogaine therapy for addiction, where personal experiences and evidence-based information are both valued. Forum participants discuss treatment arrangements, risks, and harm reduction extensively. While many prefer clinic-based treatment due to safety concerns, financial and time constraints sometimes lead to lay-administration of ibogaine. Microdosing is frequently discussed. Therapeutic effects are primarily framed in terms of pharmacological mechanisms, but positive psychological changes from the psychedelic experience are also reported. The forums foster a sense of community where individuals are held accountable for treatment success, and neuroscientific explanations of addiction hold particular explanatory power for participants.
J Bioeth Inq
October 4, 2024
Michaela Barber, John Gardner, Adrian Carter
12 citations
As psychedelic medicine rapidly expands, Australia became the first country to legalize prescribed psychedelics, offering a case study for other jurisdictions. Interviews with fourteen Australian psychedelic researchers revealed three themes: emerging from the stigma of the 1960s, challenges and opportunities in engaging stakeholders, and growing pains as the field transitions from a small, like-minded group to a regulated, multi-interest industry. Researchers expressed concern for protecting the field from premature discontinuation while maximizing positive impacts. Targets for responsible innovation include equitable access, sustainable industry involvement, productive research agendas, responsible evidence reporting, and risk-taking within clinical trials.
Psychol Psychother
September 16, 2024
Michaela Barber, John Gardner, Paul Liknaitzky et al.
3 citations
Mental health clinicians who have delivered psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT) in clinical trials see it as requiring a therapeutic approach that blends multiple methods, demands heightened self-reflection from providers, and legitimizes non-medical perspectives in mental health care. They worry that when PAT moves from tightly controlled trials to broader community practice, key elements of this 'enhanced care' model may be lost due to underdeveloped regulations, workforce shortages, and economic pressures. The clinicians' views reflect an ongoing tension between a purely medical model of mental health and more psychosocial, relational approaches.
Therapeutic advances in psychopharmacology
January 1, 2025
Diana McHerron, Michaela Barber, Rachel Ham et al.
Physical touch is often used as a supportive tool in psychedelic-assisted therapy, but participants under the influence of psychedelics have reduced capacity to consent and are more suggestible. Interviews with 16 researchers revealed three themes: flexible frameworks, therapeutic alliance, and boundary management. Researchers noted that consent to therapeutic touch should be established before dosing sessions and continually managed. Flexibility in consent protocols helped build therapeutic alliance but also created challenges in boundary management. Researchers emphasized the need for clearer ethical guidelines for handling changing preferences during dosing sessions and limits on expanding consent after drug administration.