Psychedelic Therapy
The reason I share news about what’s happening in the psychedelic field is because of the great Hope for Mental Illness there. In mid-November there were two of the most significant psychedelic conferences ever held; one in Las Vegas and the other in Miami. They were both hugely attended; over 6,000 people. Everybody in the field was there; doctors, scientists, CEOs of all the companies, even Wall Street. You can guess why all the big money investors were there; and that’s a good thing. The industry is moving at lightning speed and that takes investment capital.
Due to the pandemic this was the first opportunity for all of the key players in the psychedelic space to gather together. If anything good can come out of the pandemic it’s that the mental health crisis is being taken more seriously and funding for research is pouring in.
It was noted that there was a spirit of partnership and cooperation in these gatherings unlike the usual “convention” of potential competitors. I believe it’s because these folks understand the need to work together for the common good. The need is critical, the problem is huge; 3 trillion dollars a year is huge and there is room for all of them as they set out to solve this global mental health crisis.
Speaking of key people, let me introduce Mr. Mike “Zappy ” Zapolin. Mr. Zapolin is considered an expert in the psychedelic field and as such was invited by the organizers of both conferences to be a keynote speaker. His reputation in the space has earned him the nickname “Psychedelic Concierge to the Stars”. He wrote glowing reports on both conferences noting that spirit of cooperation I mentioned. To quote Mr. Zapolin; “I’m particularly excited about the psilocybin space. I believe one day, these mushrooms will replace all the antidepressants on the market”. From your mouth to God’s ear Zappy; because in 2019 alone it’s estimated, by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, there were nearly 1.5 million suicide attempts just in the U.S. Suicide is often the result of depression and anxiety. Again, it is estimated the global cost of mental illness is 3 trillion dollars; no wonder Wall Street and the Big Money Investors are interested in these new therapies and thank goodness they are. Don’t count out the little guys putting money into these companies because they care and have Hope For Mental Illness.
An FDA 1st: A trial led by the Translation Psychedelic Research Program (TrPR) of the University Of California San Francisco is the FIRST to assess the direct administration of psilocybin. All other FDA approved trials of psychedelics have used synthetically created compounds. The trial will use three botanical drug candidates from Vancouver based drug development company FILAMENT HEALTH’s oral psilocybin and oral psilocybin. With its proprietary technology FILAMENT HEALTH has produced stable formulations of both psilocybin and cybin from Magic Mushrooms. Confusing, No? Confusing, Yes, but there is a difference; perhaps next time we will take a look at Mushrooms and just how important they are for the Hope For Mental Illness and general health and wellbeing.
By the way, there are several psychedelic therapy clinics in the U.S. who at a brief glance appear to be specializing in ketamine therapy. That’s the one I believe is the one approved by the FDA for the VA to treat PTSD. However for psilocybin therapy, not yet approved by the FDA, one might consider vacationing in Mexico, Jamaica or the Netherlands. Not a bad “trip”, no pun intended. There are places around the world where these “therapies” are used for religious and spiritual healing; some are legal and others are where the Government just looks the other way; they don’t all have an FDA.
They’ve been used for thousand of years in different cultures for spiritual and religious purposes.
We’ll keep an eye on the news for you to Inform and Encourage in the Hope For Mental Illness. And be mindful, if you or a loved one are having serious problems, seek professional medical help.
