Reframing Bummer Trips: Scientific and Cultural Explanations to Adverse Reactions to Psychedelic Drug Use
The Social History of Alcohol and Drugs August 20, 2020 Erika Dyck, Chris Elcock 28 citations
The concept of a 'bad trip' on psychedelics was used strategically by public health officials and regulators in the 1960s to justify prohibition, emphasizing violent and fearful outbursts as chemical reactions causing harm. However, psychedelic therapists in the 1950s and 1960s offered an alternative interpretation, viewing fear and trauma confrontation as beneficial in psychotherapy. By comparing cases from North American psychedelic clinics with news, personal testimonies, and regulatory outcomes in the United States, the article argues that the specter of the bad trip galvanized public support for prohibition. This removed psychedelics from active research, moving psychotherapy away from addressing fear and trauma through confrontation.