In a large-scale (N = 1487) general population online study, we investigated the relationship between past experience with classic psychedelic substances (e.g. LSD, psilocybin, mescaline), nature relatedness, and ecological behavior (e.g. saving water, recycling). Using structural equation modeling we found that experience with classic psychedelics uniquely predicted self-reported engagement in pro-environmental behaviors, and that this relationship was statistically explained by people’s degree of self-identification with nature. Our model controlled for experiences with other classes of psychoactive substances (cannabis, dissociatives, empathogens, popular legal drugs) as well as common personality traits that usually predict drug consumption and/or nature relatedness (openness to experience, conscientiousness, conservatism). Although correlational in nature, results suggest that lifetime experience with psychedelics in particular may indeed contribute to people’s pro-environmental behavior by changing their self-construal in terms of an incorporation of the natural world, regardless of core personality traits or general propensity to consume mind-altering substances. Thereby, the present research adds to the contemporary literature on the beneficial effects of psychedelic substance use on mental wellbeing, hinting at a novel area for future research investigating their potentially positive effects on a societal level. Limitations of the present research and future directions are discussed.
Resources
Climate Anxiety
Greater Good Science Center
The therapeutic use of ayahuasca
Focusing on the potential of Ayahuasca in the treatment and management of various diseases and ailments. Presents a series of perspectives on the therapeutic potential and clinical use. Stimulates discussion on the methodological, ethical, and political aspects of research on psychedelics.
Project Drawdown
The World’s Leading Resource for Climate Solutions. Project Drawdown’s mission is to help the world stop climate change—as quickly, safely, and equitably as possible. We do this by advancing effective, science-based climate solutions and strategies; fostering bold, new climate leadership; and promoting new climate narratives and new voices.
Are climate change and mental health correlated?
Climate change is one of the biggest challenges of our time and is likely to affect human beings in substantial ways. Recently, researchers started paying more attention to the changes in climate and their subsequent impact on the social, environmental and economic determinants of health, and the role they play in causing or exacerbating mental health problems. The effects of climate change-related events on mental well-being could be classified into direct and indirect effects. The direct effects of climate change mostly occur after acute weather events and include post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, substance abuse disorder, depression and even suicidal ideation. The indirect effects include economic losses, displacement and forced migration, competition over scarce resources and collective violence. The risk factors for developing those mental health issues include young age, female gender, low socioeconomic status, loss or injury of a loved one, being a member of immigrant groups or indigenous people, pre-existing mental illness and inadequate social support. However, in some individuals, especially those undisturbed by any directly observable effects of climate change, abstract awareness and acknowledgement of the ongoing climate crisis can induce negative emotions that can be intense enough to cause mental health illness. Coping strategies should be provided to the affected communities to protect their mental health from collapse in the face of climate disasters. Awareness of the mental health impacts of climate change should be raised, especially in the high-risk groups. Social and global attention to the climate crisis and its detrimental effects on mental health are crucial.
This paper was written with the aim of trying to understand the currently, scientifically proven impact of climate change-related disasters on mental health and understanding the different methods of solving the problem at the corporate level, by trying to decrease greenhouse gas emissions to zero, and at the individual level by learning how to cope with the impacts of those disasters
Summary for Policymakers
In: Global Warming of 1.5°C. An IPCC Special Report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and related global greenhouse gas emission pathways, in the context of strengthening the global response to the threat of climate change, sustainable development, and efforts to eradicate poverty
The Greening of Psychedelics
Flower power and the birth of eco-radicalism.
I Got a Tour of the First Psychedelic Therapy Clinic in Britain
The CIPPres Clinic in London is all Scandi chic, leafy houseplants and psilocybin trials.
Studying Harms Is Key to Improving Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy—Participants Call for Changes to Research Landscape
Although psychedelic drugs generally have good safety profiles, a recent systematic review concluded that adverse events in psychedelic trials are poorly defined, not systematically assessed, and likely underreported. In the past year there have been multiple reports of serious adverse events (SAEs), and long-lasting harms to participants in clinical trials of psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT) have emerged. We draw attention to a unique and overlooked category of risk in PAT stemming from the interactions between therapists and patients receiving high doses of psychedelics. In our view, the understudied therapeutic component of PAT presents the most serious risks. Addressing it requires interdisciplinary approaches by researchers free from conflicts of interests.
The need for establishing best practices and gold standards in psychedelic medicine
Psychedelic substances are under investigation in several drug development programs. Controlled clinical trials are providing evidence for safe and effective use of psychedelic therapies for treating mental health conditions. With the anticipated FDA approval of MDMA-assisted therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder in 2023 and psilocybin therapy for depression disorders soon after, now is the time for the medical community to become informed on best practices and to actively participate in developing standards of care for these new treatments. Given the emergence of numerous drug sponsors and other companies developing therapeutic modalities for combination with psychedelic medications, it is essential that the medical professional field is at the forefront of communicating unbiased information related to safety and effectiveness. Gold standards have long been a part of medicine and serve to distinguish treatments and assessments as the highest quality by which all others can be compared to. For a treatment to be established as a gold standard, several factors are considered including the quantity and quality of the supporting data, the rigor of trials, and the safety and efficacy compared to other treatments. In this article, we review the origins of psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT), minimum requirements for safe use of psychedelics, criteria for gold standards in mental health, and the nuances regarding how to establish gold standards in psychedelic medicine and guide clinical decision making.