2023-06-30 14:27:45
– Australia allows ecstasy and hallucinogenic mushrooms
From July 1, psychiatrists will be able to prescribe these substances for the treatment of post-traumatic stress and depression.
Posted today at 4:27 p.m.
Ecstasy makes it possible to facilitate contact with the therapist and to discuss the traumatic experiences of patients.
ROBIN VAN LONKHUIJSEN/AFP
Australia on Saturday became one of the first countries in the world to authorize ecstasy and hallucinogenic mushrooms for medical purposes, in the hope of combating certain mental pathologies.
From July 1, licensed psychiatrists will be able to prescribe the substances, also known as MDMA and psilocybin, for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder and certain types of depression, according to a February decision by the Australian drug control agency.
Canada and some states in the United States have authorized the medical use of psilocybin and/or MDMA, but only in clinical trials or with special authorizations.
Australia will reclassify these substances, after tests by the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration evaluating them as “relatively safe” when used in a “medically controlled environment”.
Proponents of this decision hope that these substances can lead to decisive advances in the treatment of certain mental disorders.
Lack of options
He explained that MDMA gives patients “a sense of connection” which allows them to facilitate contact with the therapist and to discuss their traumatic experiences.
The “psycho-spiritual effect” of psilocybin, “which you don’t get with traditional drugs”, he says, “can change your perception of yourself and your life (…) and with a luckily, it can make you want to live.
Mike Musker doubts these drugs will be “widely used” by patients before 2024, and said the process would not be about “taking a pill and disappearing into thin air”.
Ecstasy, for example, would probably require three treatments over a period of five to eight weeks, with each session lasting around eight hours.
He said therapists would stay with patients while on the drug, in sessions that could cost around 1,000 Australian dollars (609 euros) each.
Risk-benefit ratio
But Susan Rossell, a cognitive neuropsychologist at Swinburne University, said that while these treatments ‘have potential’, Australia is ‘moving five years ahead of where it should’.
“There are no drugs on the market that haven’t gone through phase three and phase four clinical trials – and that’s what we’re doing here.”
“However, the benefits for some patients (…) outweigh the risks, and there is currently a lack of options for patients with specific treatment-resistant mental illnesses.”
“I think the patient should be warned that (the bad trips) are a potential side effect before he entered the program,” said Mike Musker.
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