Effects Of Shrooms On The Brain

Hallucinogens are drugs that produce hallucinations which produce distortions in a person’s perception of reality. Although, hallucinogens do pose a danger to both our body and mind there is a positive side to hallucinogens for therapeutic uses. The focus will be on three hallucinogens which are LSD, Psilocybin and Ibogaine therapy for their effectiveness for therapeutic uses for addictions to alcohol, smoking cessations etc.

Commonly known Hallucinogen drugs are LSD, also known as acid or mellow yellow; PCP, also known as angel dust, tic tac, super grass, or rocket fuel; Psilocybin also known as “shrooms” or magic mushrooms; DMT; and Peyote. Hallucinogen drugs alter human perception and mood by changing the user’s sense of reality. Effects of hallucinogenic drug abuse are unpredictable and the intensity varies on the dose amount. Common effects of abuse include an increase in heart rate and blood pressure, feelings of detachment from self and surroundings, nausea, vomiting, panic reactions, delusions, blurred vision, dizziness, and hallucinations (Drug-rehabilitation). “According to a study published in the Journal of Substance Abuse, 36 percent of Southern

Brain scans of individuals affected by psilocybin, the dynamic fixing in enchantment mushrooms, have given researchers the most itemized picture to date of how hallucinogenic medications work. The discoveries made by two studies, being distributed in exploratory diaries not long from now, recognize ranges of the cerebrum where movement is smothered by psilocybin and recommend that it helps individuals to experience memories all the more strikingly.

It is a powerful Hallucinogenic drug. It acts on dopamine, adrenergic and serotonin receptors specially 5-HT2A Receptor which is for hallucination and is in visual cortex. Serotonin is responsible for mood, feelings and sleeping which is converted to Melatonin in pineal gland. The most prominent effects occur in the prefrontal cortex an area involved in mood, cognition and perception. The effect of the drug begins within 20 to 90 minutes after administration and it lasts for 12 hours. During this period people can see images, hear sound and feel sensations and seem real but don’t exist. In addition to disability to the person to recognize reality, think rationally and communicate with others. This experiences are known as “trips”

LSD, d-lysergic acid diethylamide, is one of the most potent hallucinations (1-11). Since LSD has the similar chemical structures with serotonin (5-hydroxytrypatamine), it can work as an agonist on serotonergic receptors (1) to trigger various forms of toxic effects including altered affective states, delusions, auditor and/or visual hallucination, paranoids, and detachment from reality (8). LSD is a semi-synthesized drug since it is the result of the combination of naturally occurring substance and artificially manufactured chemicals (3). Lysergic acid is the natural component, deriving from a fungus, called ergot growing on grains, such as rye and wheat, and diethylamide is a synthesized non-organic chemical (3).

Hallucinogens effects are unpredictable and unreliable which makes these highly dangerous drugs. Each “trip” or high is different and even a user who is familiar with the effects of a particular hallucinogen has no real way of knowing whether the same effects will occur in the future.

The effects of LSD can vary, lasting from four hours, up to eight to twelve hours after consumption.

In this case, taking methamphetamine, lysergic acid diethyl amide, also known as LSD, and other hallucinogenic drugs, can cause synesthetic like experiences. (14). Because the disinhibitory feedback theory states there is no neuronal distinction in the brain between a non-synesthete and a synesthete, a non-synesthete has the potential to experience synesthetic like symptoms while being under the influence of a drug. But unlike genuine synesthesia, that is constantly experienced, drug induced synesthesia is temporary. Cross activation theory is not relative to drug induced synesthesia because these individuals do not have an increase in communication between

Research on psychedelic substances can assist in understanding the effects of the substances and their potential medical functions. Neuropsychopharmacology and brain imaging research team Franz X. Vollenweider and Michael Kometer claim ,“...research into psychedelics might identify novel therapeutic mechanisms and approaches that are based on glutamate-driven neuroplasticity...” (Vollenweider,Kometer 1) Research conducted on psychedelic substances is important as more research on these substances can lead to the development of alternative treatments available to treat certain psychological disorders. However, research on the medical applications of psychedelic substances have several obstacles as most psychedelic substances are scheduled under global drug laws making research difficult and costly for researchers.

LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) is a hallucinogen that is produced from lysergic acid, found in the ergot fungus that is found growing on rye and other grains. The drug is produced in crystal form, which can be converted to liquid form or put onto absorbent paper to be distributed. LSD is colorless, odorless, but has a slightly bitter taste. LSD was created by Albert Hoffman, who synthesized the drug in 1938 looking for a blood stimulant. The hallucinogenic effects were discovered in 1943, when Hoffman accidently consumed some of the substance.1 LSD was then used by physiatrists from the 1940s to the 1960s to find some medical use for it, due to its similarity in effects that are shared with psychosis2. Although no medical purpose was found

In terms of LSD’s biological and chemical significance, scientists always look to the brain. In neurology, its significance is this drug’s serotonin-blocking capabilities, as well as dopamine increasing capacities; two naturally produced hormones. This phenomenon works as follows. Neurotransmitters are like keys to the locks, or receptors, which allows the brain to process or exchange information. LSD has an uncanny resemblance/structure of several of these neurotransmitters, most notably (as stated previously) serotonin and dopamine. Therefore, whenever this drug is ingested or consumed, it has the unique ability to unlock serotonin and dopamine receptors, thus telling the body to produce said hormones. Because there is now a surplus of these

LSD and other stimulants make people invest most of their awareness in sensory information. This is why music sounds so genuine, colors look very vivid and usual things feel very unusual. As most of the time, we have a very small scope of senses. We avoid a lot of signals send to our brain because we are too busy making sense of our reality. This function interacts with a neural network many call the self or the ego. A sense of self, and a potential map of the world based on conditioning and past experience.

research suggests that they work at least partially by temporarily disrupting communication between neurotransmitter systems throughout the brain and spinal cord that regulate mood, sensory perception, sleep, hunger, body temperature, sexual behavior, and muscle control.

A psychoactive drug is any substance that can be used to change brain function. This resulting change is responsible for alterations in perception, mood, and consciousness. As long as man has had a basic grasp on understanding consciousness they have tried delving deeper and deeper into their own consciousness and not only grown a larger respect for just how deep they can go but have had experiences that have encouraged them to go deeper. Rock paintings and fossil finds from as far back as 10,000 years ago offer scientific evidence and proof of the extremely long and exciting history of psychedelic drugs. Unfortunately it wouldn’t be until the 20th century that we would actually start to understand just how valuable and versatile these substances truly would be. From religious and spiritual uses to medicinal and more, psychoactive drugs, particularly ones more in the realm of psychedelics, are more important to learning and understanding our own consciousness than we can even understand.

As with most drugs, a tolerance can be obtained with chronic use and eventually addiction. The difference with LSD, however, is that if administration is ceased for a period of days, the downregulation of the 5-HT2A receptor is reversed and normal function is restored. This indicates that physiological effects of the drug are only temporary and abstinence from use will reverse whatever process have been done. Furthermore, studies have shown that the addictiveness of LSD is on such a low scale that it is considered as being non-addictive. Because the effects of LSD only last as long as the drug is present in the blood stream, combined with the fact that the receptors naturally return to their original state and are ultimately unaltered by the interactions with LSD, indicates that the relative physical danger of LSD is low compared to that of other drugs. The aspect that makes LSD a dangerous drug is the altered state of mind that the individuals possess. Without clear cognitive thoughts and rational, users are prone to either formulating dangerous situations for others or entering perilous situations themselves. In relation to the relative harm of the drug, a comparison was done involving the social harm, individual harm, and dependence of a group of drugs including heroin, cocaine, LSD, cannabis, alcohol, and others. The results of this comparison depicted the dangers of LSD to be lower than the majority of the listed drugs; of the three categories of harm, social harm was