In some respects, our culture seems to be experiencing a psychedelic renaissance, meaning a social and cultural upheaval fueled by mounting scientific evidence that there are some clinical benefits to the class of drugs encompassing LSD, psilocybin (i.e., “magic mushrooms") and DMT, most of which are highly illegal in most jurisdictions on the planet. While such drugs are infamous for the perceptual distortions they can cause, a growing body of research suggests that psychedelics can also be a balm for the mind, providing some relief for stubborn depression, PTSD and addiction.
Though it will likely still some time before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration officially sanctions these drug therapies, if that ever happens, reforms in Oregon, Colorado and over a dozen U.S. cities have helped erase the criminal penalties for “changing one’s mind,” as Michael Pollan put it.
