Study shows mushrooms have positive and permanent effect

[Perspicuo]

Washington Post: Psychedelic mushrooms put your brain in a “waking dream,” study finds
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...put-your-brain-in-a-waking-dream-study-finds/

Psychedelic mushrooms can do more than make you see the world in kaleidoscope. Research suggests they may have permanent, positive effects on the human brain.

In fact, a mind-altering compound found in some 200 species of mushroom is already being explored as a potential treatment for depression and anxiety. People who consume these mushrooms, after “trips” that can be a bit scary and unpleasant, report feeling more optimistic, less self-centered, and even happier for months after the fact.

But why do these trips change the way people see the world? According to a study published today in Human Brain Mapping, the mushroom compounds could be unlocking brain states usually only experienced when we dream, changes in activity that could help unlock permanent shifts in perspective.

Goo goo goo joob, my friends.

 

[T.G.G. Moogly]

Don't go psychedel too soon:

Conversely, the subjects of the study had decreased activity in other parts of the brain—areas associated with high level cognition. “These are the most recent parts of our brain, in an evolutionary sense,” Carhart-Harris said. “And we see them getting quieter and less organized.”

I get the same effect from a couple glasses of wine, though I admit it doesn't last more than an hour or so.

 

[ryan]

I tried mushrooms about 5 times. All 5 times were taken in a span of about 2 years about 10 years ago. I remember one of those times was exactly the way that the article described. Just one of the 5 times I felt the most positive that I have ever felt in my life. Even when I came off of them, just the thought of the experience made me feel happier and more optimistic. But that feeling faded daily, and in about a week the connection to that optimistic feeling was gone.

 

[rousseau]

Yep, contrary to popular belief, most of our positive emotions are chemically based, whether induced by artificial substances or physiological balance. Sometimes you don't need to think your way out of sadness, you just need a cup of coffee or a fruit cup.

 

[Valjean]

Mushrooms, and psychedelics generally, have the potential to do much, much more than simply induce a conscious dream or mimic the euphoria induced by alcohol.