Beyond Blue Mondays: The Problem of Post-Psychedelic Depression | Chemical Collective

The day after a psychedelic trip is often described in two very different ways. For some, there’s the “afterglow”: a lingering sense of joy and clarity that can last days or even weeks. But there’s also a lesser-acknowledged counterpart: the psychedelic hangover, which may accompany an afterglow in some mitigated form. This can mean feeling drained, irritable, foggy, or emotionally flat in the hours or days after a session.  Sometimes, this dark mood doesn't stop, and people develop debilitating depressive disorders.

Inside the psychedelic elite

When a mother spikes their emotionally disturbed child with large quantities of class-A drugs, the response is not often sympathetic. Yet Paul Stamets – a fungus expert and wildly popular psychedelics advocate who is fond of appearing on Joe Rogan’s podcast wearing a mushroom hat – is choked with emotion when telling the story, which he received via anonymous email, and recalled following a question about the possible role of psychedelics in paediatric medicine.

Psychedelic therapy & the Metaphysical Menu

I examine a proposal in psychedelic-assisted therapy to present a 'menu' of different metaphysical beliefs for clients to ponder in assisting the aftermath of their dosing sessions. Is metaphysical truth an appropriate domain for therapy? Are psychedelics useful as tools of metaphysical illumination? And does presenting a 'menu' encourage the idea that we can 'pick and choose' what's true like philosophical consumers?
Load More Articles