Altered State Of Consciousness Essay

This answers the complicated question, but broken down it is somewhat simple. The “altered perception and thought” side means that the psychedelic drug changes what you are seeing and mangles up what is real and what is not. These types of drugs can cause you to see things that are not there, colors or shapes, make you hear things, like songs or people and overall distorts what is actually happening. The “mind expanding” part mean that the psychedelic broadens your perspective on the world and what you are perceiving at that moment, many people say you are “re-learning” everything you see. When on a psychedelic drug you may feel as if you are able to answer anything, and everything makes sense, but at the same time nothing makes sense at all; every secret in the world has been exposed and only you know the answer but it’s in a foreign language you do not understand. Finally, the “heightened awareness but diminished control” side means that you are extremely aware of what is going on, but you have no control over what is actually happening. There is no specific purpose that a psychedelic drug is meant to fill, they were previously used in therapy sessions for extreme cases of PTSD and MDMA was used in

"Of all the objects in the universe, the human brain is the most complex. There are as many neurons in the brain as there are stars in the Milky Way galaxy.", a quote from an issue of a Discover magazine article. But what comes from this complexion? The answer is thought. Consciousness has been quarreled between writers, scientists, priests, atheists and everyone in between. The priest says it is divine and cannot be explained, the atheist says no - it’s evolution. The writer romanticizes it, creating characters that contain the free will of the author but have more unrealistic complexion than any real human character. Scientists explain that we are in a state of awareness and that consciousness cannot be entirely explained as it is subjective and objectively, it cannot be measured. Human existence has transcended from being a simple organism living with survival instincts: hunting and gathering food for our kin, to working boring jobs to feed the family and to have just enough leisurely time to assure yourself not to jump off the nearest building to end it all. The question is - can an organism become complex enough to consciously choose what they believe is morally right with free will. Do we live for others or ourselves? Does consciousness actually exist and how do we prove it?

Consciousness is a state of awareness. This includes a person’s feelings, sensations, ideas, and perceptions. There are many different states of consciousness.

Numerous factors determine when and why you feel tired, full of energy, and hungry. A person's state of consciousness and awareness varies throughout the day and depends on a person's activity, environment, and time clock.

The fascination with consciousness dates back to the time of Plato and Descartes. Since those times the term “consciousness” has spurned controversy in many scientific fields, including the fields of biology, psychology, and neuroscience. However, with the recent advancements in brain imaging technologies, such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and electroencephalography (EEG), human consciousness has shifted from being a subjective, abstract idea into being a observable scientific phenomenon. As neuroimaging capabilities progress, the public interest in consciousness also grows.

LSD has many effects on the body and the mind for example “An hour later Stanley thought he had gone insane. His head was filled with terrifying visions and his body seemed to tumble through time and space. Then his mind snapped and sent him into a frenzy of rage. "They told me the next day that I broke down the door and ran down the hall screaming," Stanley recalled” (Linda Hunt).

LSD acts to decrease the responsiveness of the LGN to signals from the retina. How this effects the production of visual hallucinations is unclear LSD is also concentrated highly in parts of the limbic system. The limbic system is dedicated to regulating emotion, aggression, docility, and memory. Also, LSD concentrates in areas of the reticular formation. The reticular formation mediates the level of arousal and alertness in the brain.

Aldous Huxley takes us on a journey explaining the some truths about altered mind states and the drugs involved. It talks about psychedelic drugs, which basically alter our thinking patterns and make us view ideas and concepts from an unconventional angle. Its a good read which i'd recommend especially if you're interested in surreal mind states and also deep reflection about the mind. It also has a very useful appendix; which I found quite informative. Some people take drugs for recreational purposes, some for work reasons e.g a musician. You can relate to why some of these drugs are used or abused and the book gives you an unbiased review in a way. Its fair judgement comes from the fact that the author himself used a mind - state altering

In fact the precise neural pathway that LSD effects is not fully known but LSD has such a similar chemical structure to that of the neurotransmitter called serotonin in the brain which contributes to feelings of happiness and well being and it may affect sleep and appetite as well. It is believed that LSD modifies the way the brain’s serotonin receptors work preventing neurotransmission or stimulation. For a person with a serious mental illness, LSD can be dangerous as it may worsen or speed up the effects of their illness. For example, a person who suffers from schizophrenia and takes LSD may worsen their current mental

In the early stages of taking it, the user may feel a sense of anxiety. Some of the physical effects of the drug include dilated pupils, a higher heart rate, loss of appetite, and increased perspiration (Drugs, Inc. Facts: Hallucinogens). LSD will mainly affect the user emotionally and distort their sensory perceptions. The first sensory effect to hit will generally be visual changes. The user could start to see a wide range of things that can range from bright flashing colors to objects changing shape or position. The user is also subject to sudden changes in mood. They are very susceptible to being happy one moment and immediately becoming depressed the next. LSD can also draw people towards random bouts of depression and despair. According to the article "Drug Fact Sheet: GHB", “the user may suffer impaired depth and time perception of the shape and size of objects, movements, colors, sound, touch, and the user’s own body image” ("Drug Fact Sheet: GHB"). This means the user may not be able to realize how fast or slow the time is going or even know if what they are seeing or hearing is actually real. If a person starts to take large enough doses, they will begin to start seeing delusions and hallucinations. These

Drugs have been around for a very long time. They are used for a variety of reasons. Some of these reasons include relaxation, socialization, curiosity, stress relief, or a form of escapism. However, most people don’t know the threats and danger that it can cause to the body. In this paper, we are going to examine the changes that happen inside the brain due to the effects of different drugs. We will look closely at how drugs such as hallucinogens, ecstasy, cocaine, heroin, and cannabis affect an individual psychologically. I will explain the origin of the drugs, how a person feels while on the drug, how the drugs

An individual’s behavior and emotion becomes chemically altered often resulting in dependency, aggression, onset of diseases and poor judgement. This poses a dangerous threat to the neurotransmitters since they have multiple jobs in different parts of the brain. Drugs of abuse are able to exert influence over the brain reward pathway either by directly influencing the action of dopamine within the system, or by altering the activity of other neurotransmitters that exert a modulatory influence over this pathway. These drugs are often powerful and have been known to trigger schizophrenic behavior and can also cause a person to cease breathing, for example hallucinogens such as LSD, mescaline, and psilocybin are able to artificially stimulate the serotonin receptor (Sapolsky, 2005).

The appeal for using LSD is what it does to the body, within 20 to 30 minute the body receive energy, and start to feel like fun and laughter. The uses of LSD can help people who are know that there going to dye, research on end of life study are hoping this study can help others pass away comfortably. The physical effects on using the LSD are dilated pupils, rise on body tempter, hart rate, and blood pressure. The LSD trip is strongly affected that it makes the user wanting more and claim to be for a therapeutic session.

Throughout the history of the human species, we have been always wanted to know three basic questions: why we are here, where did we come from, and where do we go after this life? Whether we were created from an omnipotent being as in many religions, we happened by chance and made it to where we are through evolution, or maybe even something else. Whatever the case may be, humans have always been curious and wondered about our existence and consciousness. Along with these age old questions, also came the use of psychoactive drugs and other mind altering substances. In order to try to understand these questions, humans have experimented with drugs that alter their state of consciousness.

Psychedelic drugs have been used by people around the globe for the last few decades. They’re known for their abilities to alter perception and invoke behavioral alterations in people who consume the drugs, such as psilocybin (magic mushrooms), DMT, and Lysergic acid diethylamide(LSD). In 1958 (Moore, Hatada, Dominos) it was found that when consumed by humans, N-N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT), causes visuals that make up of colorful, luminous, rapid changing visual illusions and hallucinations. Ingestion of a psychedelic drugs such as DMT influences the cortex, optic lobes, and thalamus, as well as effecting sleep.