![]() ![]() The Pew Research Center anticipates that more states will legalize psychedelics in the near future. Cambridge, Massachusetts San Francisco Oakland Seattle. Oregon and Colorado recently legalized them, and a growing number of cities have decriminalized their possession and use: Detroit and Ann Arbor, Michigan Washington, D.C. Following the triumphs of marijuana legalization, a major push for psychedelic legalization began. As of this writing, the medical use of cannabis has been legalized in 38 states, three United States territories and Washington, D.C., while 23 states allow some form of regulated, recreational use by adults. The number of Americans who approve of psychoactive “substances” - plants and drugs - has increased notably over the past two decades. When I read on a neuroscience news site that psychedelics have helped some people manage autism, I wonder if I might learn something in Colorado. This contradiction has plagued me throughout life and contributes to the reasons spiritual fulfillment eludes me. Autistic tendencies leave me lonely and disconnected. On the other, I yearn to participate in a beloved community, fully alive. On the one hand, I like being a quiet, solitary loner the idea of social distancing appeals to me. Could psychedelics help me? Why not go to Denver and poke around for an answer?Īnother personal reason: I’m suspended somewhere on the autism spectrum - let’s call it mild autism. Patients find peace of mind despite scoring low on the life-satisfaction scale. Psychedelics, according to medical research, can help cancer patients experience tranquility and serenity, even when their illness is terminal (which mine isn’t, yet). That I haven’t yet found it gnaws a dark pit into my soul. Not because I fear dying per se - I don’t - but rather dying before finding spiritual fulfilment. This news unsettles me psychologically and spiritually. That’s a gut punch, even though he doesn’t yet know if it’s metastasized that information will have to await the CT and bone scans. Following a biopsy, the urologist tells me, “In 30 years of practice I’ve seen only five biopsies, at most, that look this serious.” By “this serious,” he means “laden with cancer cells.” Oof. The first is this: Cancer cells are swarming in my prostate gland. ![]() ![]() I have personal reasons for attending, too. The conference organizer - the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies - advertised it as “the largest psychedelic science gathering in history.” That’s quite a claim, and since cannabis and psychedelic substances are making a rapid march toward legalization in America, I want to see what’s up. Why, then, am I attending this conference? Out of intellectual curiosity? For sure. At age 73, I’ve never used psychedelics, even though I came of age in the late 1960s when they were still legal and easy to obtain. This community includes research scientists, psychotherapists, educators, shamans, hippies young and old, legal advocates and attorneys, policy wonks and representatives of pharmaceutical companies and investment firms. I learn about this “clergy research project” while attending the Psychedelic Science 2023 conference in Denver, where over 12,000 members of the “psychedelic community” have congregated. They don’t order drinks instead, they ingest psychedelic mushrooms. A Catholic priest, three Jewish rabbis and a Buddhist monk walk into a bar.Īctually, they walk into a scientific research experiment, where they are joined by a Muslim imam, a Greek Orthodox priest and a score of clergy members - male and female - from different Protestant denominations. ![]()
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