Psychedelics are potent psychoactive chemicals or plants that can alter perception, mood, and cognitive processes. Some of the most common psychedelics include:

Psilocybin (found in certain mushrooms)
LSD
MDMA
DMT (dimethyltryptamine)
Ayahuasca (a brew containing a woody vine and the leaves of the chacruna plant)
Mescaline (found in San Pedro and peyote cacti)

guide to all psychadelics
22 Feb
psychedelics

The ultimate (supreme) guide to all psychadelics

Welcome to push dispensary’s guide to all psychadelics, where we explore the therapeutic and recreational benefits of these amazing substances.

The word “entheogen” is commonly used for these substances nowadays, a word in Greek which means “generating the god within.”

Entheogens are understood as compounds that promote life-altering experiences, encouraging profound insights into the nature of life and consciousness, and the term also alludes to the spiritual aspect of these substances and the idea of them as plant teachers.

What are psychedelics(guide to all psychadelics)?

Psychedelics are potent psychoactive chemicals or plants that can alter perception, mood, and cognitive processes. Some of the most common psychedelics include:

  • Psilocybin (found in certain mushrooms)
  • LSD
  • MDMA
  • DMT (dimethyltryptamine)
  • Ayahuasca (a brew containing a woody vine and the leaves of the chacruna plant)
  • Mescaline (found in San Pedro and peyote cacti)

Mind-altering psychedelic plants naturally grow as far afield as the Amazon, the Himalayas, and the Pacific Northwest of the US.

Psychedelics aren’t a new fad. Their use predates the written word, with archaeologists confirming their use in ancient ritual and ceremonial contexts. While the ingestion of psychedelics for recreational and sacred purposes has been ongoing, their therapeutic potential was first recognized by scientists in the mid-20th century.

The word “psychedelics” was first coined in 1957 to identify drugs that reveal useful aspects of the mind. In recent years scientists have begun referring to psychedelic compounds more properly as “entheogens.”

The term “entheogen” is commonly used for psychedelics nowadays, meaning “generating the god within” in Greek.

One of the motivations for this renaming was a concern among scientists that “psychedelics” carried negative cultural baggage from the 1960s. Use of the term entheogens is intended to allow patients, medical practitioners, policymakers, and the public to approach this emerging field of medicine and discovery without stigma or bias.

Between 1950 and the mid-’60s, more than 1,000 clinical papers were published on psychedelic drug therapy, spearheaded by researchers awed by the assorted medical benefits these compounds could potentially offer.

Shop highly rated dispensaries near you, guide to all psychadelics

The introduction of the Controlled Substances Act in 1970 saw psychedelics research slow to a trickle as government-sanctioned research ceased, and the compounds became tarred by the War on Drugs.

Fast forward to the present day, and studies into this fascinating compound have picked up momentum again. Scientists are delving back into psychedelic research (guide to all psychadelics), exploring the myriad ways this unique medicine may help heal diverse ills. Recent research on guide to all psychadelics has shown promise in using psychedelics to treat substance dependency, PTSD, depression, anxiety, and to help with end-of-life care.

Which psychedelic drugs are legal
14 Jun
psychedelics

Which psychedelic drugs are legal?

Have you Ever wondered Which psychedelic drugs are legal?
Which psychedelic drugs are legal? 1

Which psychedelic drugs are legal? At present, psilocybin, the active compound in psychedelic mushrooms, LSD, MDMA, DMT, mescaline, and other psychedelic substances are classified as Schedule I controlled substances under US federal law, making them illegal.

Legalizing psychedelics would remove all legal prohibitions against their use and make them available to the general adult population for purchase and use at will, similar to cannabis in adult-use states.

Decriminalization, on the other hand, deprioritizes possession of psychedelics, so an individual would not be arrested for possessing small amounts, nor would it go on their criminal record, however, the substances would technically still be illegal.

Many issues relevant to cannabis decriminalization and legalization are also relevant to psychedelics, and there are compelling reasons to consider legalizing or decriminalizing them.

Why decriminalize or legalize psychedelics & Which psychedelic drugs are legal ?

The push for decriminalizing and legalizing psychedelics has been driven in part by the growing evidence that these compounds offer therapeutic potential to millions of people. Another reason is that the War on Drugs has been reevaluated by scholars, policymakers, and the public—and found to be misinformed, racist, and enormously damaging to both individuals and society.

Psychedelics, like cannabis, have been implicated in the War on Drugs, which soaks up more than $47 billion of funds in the US each year. More sobering still is the cost to society. Draconian sentencing saw the US prison population skyrocket following the 1970s when the War on Drugs began.

Black and Latino populations are notably more likely to receive prison sentences for drug violations, further entrenching socioeconomic disparities between ethnicities. Minor drug offenses that result in sentences can alter the course of a person’s life. It can be difficult to find work, rent a property, or receive assistance from the government after a drug arrest, as the consequences of that arrest can follow a person for the rest of their life.

Today, attitudes toward the War on Drugs are changing as people realize how disproportionately it affects Black and Latino Americans and acknowledge the incredible amount of money wasted on it. Attitudes on how psychedelics and cannabis can offer incredible medical and therapeutic benefits are also changing.

Is cannabis considered a psychedelic
14 Jun
Cannabis flower, psychedelics

Is cannabis considered a psychedelic?

Written by Emma Stone

Is cannabis considered a psychedelic? If you’ve experimented with weed and journeyed with psychedelics, you’ll know that the two experiences overlap in some ways but diverge in others.

Hallucinogenic experiences such as distortions in time, perceptual changes, or loss of motor skills may occur after consumption of either cannabis or psychedelics, but are these similarities sufficient for cannabis to qualify as a psychedelic? How different are cannabis and psychedelics, really? 

How consumers use cannabis and psychedelics

Cannabis and psychedelics are typically used and experienced differently. A 2020 survey of 319 cannabis and psychedelic consumers found that the majority of the participants drew a clear line between the two in terms of motivations for using each, and the type of experiences they had.

Of the participants, 75% reported that their cannabis experiences did not resemble experiences with psychedelics. On average, consumers restricted psychedelic use to 1-10 times per year, with 69% of respondents saying they had a spiritual motivation for using a psychedelic.

Cannabis, on the other hand, was used, on average, 51-100 times per year, with only 25% of participants using the plant for spiritual purposes. Cannabis use was generally associated with motivations such as recreation, bonding with friends, relaxation, and coping with personal problems.

Two different paths through history and culture

Federal perceptions of cannabis and psychedelics have also influenced people’s understanding of the substances—both have been stigmatized, and the residue of history and culture continue to influence perceptions of each.

“Unlike traditional psychedelics, cannabis was subject to intense social and political scrutiny,” said Dr. Winston De La Haye, MD, a senior lecturer of psychiatry at the University of the West Indies and medical director at the Aion International Center for Psychedelic Psychiatry. 

“Harry Anslinger, the Commissioner of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics during the prohibition era, took the scientifically unsupported idea of marijuana as a violence-inducing drug, connected it to Black and Hispanic people, and created a perfect package of fear to sell to the American media and public,” said De La Haye. Beginning with the Marihuana Tax Act in 1937, Black and Hispanic people were arrested for the use, possession, and distribution of cannabis far more than whites. 

Psychedelics, on the other hand, initially came into the public consciousness in the 1950s, and were legitimized by scientific research. “Research into the potential therapeutic effects of LSD and other hallucinogens, like psilocybin, produced over 1,000 scientific papers and six international conferences,” said De La Haye.

Although pioneering psychiatrists demonstrated that psychedelics had significant therapeutic potential, research was halted due to a backlash against hippie anti-war counterculture in the ‘60s, and psilocybin and other psychedelics were outlawed.

How can or is cannabis considered a psychedelic?

Although there’s evidence to differentiate cannabis from psychedelics, the two substances also share a lot in common.

“The definition of a psychedelic is hallucinogenic, distorting perception and awareness,” said Dr. Stephen Barnhill, M.D., Executive Chairman of Aion Therapeutics, and a plant medicine expert. “Cannabis could certainly be considered a psychedelic: We know cannabis can cause time dilation, euphoria, and hallucinatory symptoms much like classic psychedelics.” 

Barnhill also emphasized that, like psychedelic compounds, too high a dose of cannabis can cause a “bad trip” of sorts—intense paranoia or agitation. 

“Some cannabis effects are psychedelic in nature,” said Dr. Lonny Weiss, an integrative psychologist with an expertise in plant medicine. “Cannabis is known for its hallucinogenic effects, which include distortions of time or space, loss of motor skill control, detachment from oneself or the surrounding environment, and hallucinations.”

Weiss points out that rather than debating whether or not Is cannabis considered a psychedelic or could be understood as a psychedelic, it could be more useful to identify both as entheogens.

“[Entheogens are] defined as promoting life-altering experiences, profound insights, and spiritual connectedness, or ‘generating the God within,’” said Weiss. “Like psychedelics, the use of Cannabis sativa has been widely documented as a powerful shamanic medicine for thousands of years all over our planet—many people across the world view cannabis as a master plant or teacher.”

Such views were echoed by cannabis consumers in the 2020 survey mentioned above, albeit a small group: Of the 319 participants, 25% had a spiritual or self-expansionary motive for using cannabis and regarded the plant as an entheogen.

What’s more, the survey participants reported experiences that resembled psychedelics in certain respects, such as enhanced connections and increased feelings of love toward other people. which conclude the question of “Is cannabis considered a psychedelic”