Tag: psychedelics

Zelensky’s Troops Injected With Various Party Drugs to ‘Promote Battle Readiness’

Facing a shortage of soldiers and the ravages of war, Ukraine has turned to the animal tranquilizer-turned party drug ketamine, the rave-scene classic MDMA and the lesser known hippy hallucinogen ibogaine to ‘promote battle readiness’. Perhaps more importantly however, by keeping its population comfortably drugged, the soldiers and citizens of Ukraine would, assumably, be less apt to protest the continuation of the war. Instead, they are likely to be satiated by the chemical-induced “Valhalla,” as one drugged Ukrainian solider recently described it.

Fascinatingly, during the Joe Biden administration, the United States Department of Defense (formerly Department of War) funded a study which allowed for the injection of ketamine or fentanyl into non-consenting Americans following a traumatic accident, like a car crash. It enrolled unconscious Americans into forced medical experiments regardless of their willingness to participate. The goal was to further develop treatment modalities for battlefield medical operations, specifically the practice of drugging soldiers and finding out if they develop a drug addiction later. The direct link between the U.S. and Ukrainian militaries became deeply intertwined during the Biden-era, as was exposed by Alex Jones in 2022 and eventually The New York Times in 2025.

The proposal to use wartime Ukraine as a testbed for psychedelic drug abuse was made by Dmytro Gurin, a member of the parliament in Kiev. Gurin is a member of the Servant of the People political party, the same party that the country’s Dictator Vladimir Zelensky is part of. Gurin is also a member of the country’s health committee. Gurin wanted MDMA (the primary drug within ecstasy, a mainstay of the electronic dance music scene) to be administered as a first-line treatment for war-related issues, not as a last-ditch effort to treat soldiers woes.

“He’d like E.U. financial support for Ukraine to develop a nationwide clinical trial to test MDMA-assisted therapy as a first treatment for trauma, rather than as a last resort, as is normally recommended,” Politico said in 2023.

While a drugged military may be a happy military, it may also be a productive military. By reducing trauma from the war via drug abuse, Kiev’s armed forces can make the most out of what manpower they have remaining. Ukraine’s military has been facing staffing shortages since soon after the war began. Conscription teams scour the country abducting young men.

Keep reading

Trump’s Veterans Secretary Had ‘Eye-Opening’ Psychedelics Talk With RFK Jr.—And He Plans To Press Congress To Act

The head of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) says he had an “eye-opening” talk with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Trump administration’s top federal health official, about the therapeutic potential of psychedelic medicine. And he intends to press Congress to take action on the issue.

VA Secretary Doug Collins, a former Republican congressman, also said during an interview on the Shawn Ryan Show that was posted this week that he’s open to the idea of having the government provide vouchers to cover the costs of psychedelic therapy for veterans who receive services outside of VA as Congress considers pathways for access.

Collins noted that VA has already been conducting clinical trials into the therapeutic use of psychedelics for veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI), and the initial results show it’s “working,” with “tremendous change” among participants.

The secretary said he and Kennedy, the health and human services secretary, “sat in my office two weeks ago and talked about this very issue,” including how to navigate the regulatory and bureaucratic barriers to freeing up funds to support psychedelics access.

“Because we’re actually a hospital, a healthcare organization, we’re bound by some of the laws that Congress has made that have bound us into what we can use and what we can’t use,” he said, adding that marijuana is a “big example” of an alternative therapy that VA isn’t able to provide under current law.

“You’ve had a lot of congressmen say, ‘We’re not gonna do that. We’re gonna keep it where it’s at’” under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). “And so that it binds us a little bit.”

Asked for details about his conversation with the HHS secretary, Collins said it was “eye-opening because, of course he is very ‘Make America Healthy Again—getting the food additives out, getting those kind of stuff.”

Keep reading

Iowa Lawmakers Unanimously Approve Bill To Create Psilocybin Program That Would Treat Up To 5,000 Patients With PTSD

An Iowa House committee has unanimously approved a Republican-led proposal to create a state-regulated therapeutic psilocybin program for adults with PTSD.

The bill, HF 620, from Rep. John Wills (R), passed the House Ways and Means Committee on a 23–0 vote at a hearing Thursday.

If enacted into law, it would allow up to 5,000 patients in the state to legally access psilocybin produced in-state by licensed entities. Administration sessions would need to be supervised by registered facilitators—mostly medical professionals—who would need to complete state-specified psilocybin education.

Psilocybin providers would need to be doctors, advanced nurse practitioners, advanced practice nurses, psychologists or social workers who complete psilocybin continuing education requirements, register with the state and pay a registration fee.

Administration sessions themselves would need to be at registered clinical locations and would need to be video recorded. Those records would need to be available for inspection by state officials upon request.

The psilocybin itself would be produced by state-licensed establishments. Local governments could not outright ban those facilities, nor could they deny them appropriate licenses based merely on the fact that psilocybin violates federal law.

Notably, a licensed psilocybin production facility could be co-located with one of the state’s few licensed medical cannabis producers—known in Iowa as medical cannabidiol producers—and the bill says regulators may grant psilocybin licensing preferences to those existing cannabis producers. Facilities couldn’t be located within 1,000 feet of a community location or 500 feet of a residential area.

Only people 21 and older and without “a misdemeanor for drug distribution or any felony” could work at psilocybin producers, and licensees themselves would face background checks.

Up to four independent testing labs could be licensed under the bill, and the state could also establish its own lab.

License applications would be accepted beginning July 1, 2026.

To oversee the system, the legislation would create a state Psilocybin Production Establishment Licensing Board under the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Appointed by the director of that department, the board would include a member of the public with knowledge of psilocybin, a member with knowledge and experience in the pharmaceutical or nutraceutical manufacturing industry, a law enforcement member, a university chemist or researcher with experience in manufacturing, a member who has a background in fungus or mushroom cultivation and processing.

Keep reading

Nevada Lawmakers Discuss Plan To Create Psychedelic Therapy Pilot Program

A Nevada bill that would create a psychedelic therapy pilot program for military veterans and first responders had its first committee hearing on Wednesday. Lawmakers heard testimony from reform advocates, veterans and their families and members of a state Psychedelic Medicines Working Group, which late last year called on lawmakers to establish a system for regulated access.

The legislation, AB 378, was filed March 10 by Assemblymember Max Carter (D) and 18 other cosponsors. Under the proposal, the state would establish an Alternative Therapy Pilot Program under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

The program would allow the medically supervised use of psychedelics including psilocybin, DMT, ibogaine and mescaline, specifically among military veterans and first responders with certain mental health conditions.

While the Assembly Committee on Health and Human Services didn’t act on the legislation at Wednesday’s hearing, they took testimony and asked questions of some speakers.

Carter, speaking to the panel, said that psychedelic therapy—involving ketamine, which is not part of the current bill—helped him overcome “profound, deep grief, treatment-resistant depression” and complex post-traumatic stress disorder after the traumatic death of his wife.

He explained that the pilot program would focus on first responders and military veterans because “those are demographics that everybody can identify with, but more importantly, they’re ones with accelerated—or exacerbated—suicide rates.”

“When we come back here in two years,” Carter told colleagues, “my belief is this will be mainstream therapy.”

Notably, no members of the public at Wednesday’s hearing spoke in opposition to the proposal, nor did any offer neutral comments.

Keep reading

Florida House And Senate Panels Pass Bills To Criminalize Sales Of Psychedelic Mushroom Spores

Agricultural legislation in Florida containing a provision to outlaw psychedelic mushroom spores has proceeded past two more lawmaking panels in the House and Senate.

The proposed ban on spores of mushrooms that create psilocybin or psilocin is part of roughly 150-page companion bills that would make a variety of adjustments to Florida’s agricultural laws, including around agricultural lands, utilities and wildlife management.

With respect to psychedelic mushrooms, both would outlaw transporting, importing, selling or giving away “spores or mycelium capable of producing mushrooms or other material which will contain a controlled substance, including psilocybin or psilocyn, during its lifecycle.”

Violating the proposed law would be a first-degree misdemeanor, carrying a maximum one year in jail and $1,000 fine.

On Wednesday, the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee passed HB 651, from sponsor Rep. Kaylee Tuck (R), on a 14–4 vote. Prior to the vote, the body adopted an amendment that simplifies the language of the psychedelic spore prohibition but doesn’t meaningfully change it.

Tuck explained to members at the hearing that the change “restructures” the language “to simplify the prohibition without changing the substance of the underlying bill.”

Later in the day, the Senate Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Environment and General Government favorably reported SB 700, by Sen. Keith Truenow (R).

While senators didn’t discuss the bill’s spore provision at the hearing, one public commenter, identified as Daniel Freeman, opposed it.

Keep reading

Using Psychedelics Is Tied To 25% Lower Likelihood Of ‘Frequent Bad Headaches,’ Study Shows

People who have used so-called “classic psychedelics” such as psilocybin or LSD are less likely to report having frequent bad headaches, a new study concludes.

The results, authors wrote this month in the Journal of Pharmacology, “add to the literature suggesting classic psychedelics as a possible future prophylactic treatment option for primary headache disorders.”

Researchers gathered data from 11,419 records collected from 1999 to 2000 as part of the British Child Development Study 1958, which follows a cohort of people born over the course of a single week in March 1958.

Specifically, they looked at responses to three questions: “Do you often have bad headaches?” “Have you ever tried LSD, also known as acid or trips?” and “Have you ever tried magic mushrooms?”

The team’s analysis showed that “lifetime use of classic psychedelics was associated with 25% lower odds of having frequent bad headaches.”

There are, of course, limitations as to what conclusions can be drawn from the observational nature of the study.

“Although we have proposed a direction of association, we cannot draw any causal inferences about the association between lifetime use of classic psychedelics and frequent bad headaches,” they wrote. “It is possible that the negative association found is a result of people suffering from frequent bad headaches abstaining from the use of classic psychedelics.”

Data from the same survey, for example, showed that low alcohol use was associated with higher likelihood of frequent bad headaches. In that case, authors interpreted the finding by saying it “may be explained by individuals experiencing frequent bad headaches choosing to abstain from alcohol,” noting that alcohol is understood to be a trigger for headaches.

Overall, 16 percent of people in the survey reported frequent bad headaches. Of those, 71 percent were female and 29 percent were male. Lifetime use of classic psychedelics, meanwhile, was reported by 6.5 percent of people with frequent bad headaches and 8.6 percent of those without.

Notably, when the research team divided reports by sex, they noticed a stronger association between psychedelics use and headaches among female respondents.

Keep reading

Texas Senator Files Bill To Support Research On Psychedelic Therapy For PTSD And Depression

A Texas senator has introduced a bill to require studies on the therapeutic potential of psychedelics in the treatment of serious mental health conditions.

Sen. César Blanco (D) filed the legislation on Friday. It aims to facilitate the studies—which would be conducted by medical schools at two Texas universities—to better understand the possible benefits of psychedelics for those with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression.

Researchers at Baylor University and the University of Texas at Austin would be tasked with researching the existing scientific literature around psychedelics, actions made by the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and potential strategies to provide access to the novel medicines.

The study would involve an evaluation of “patient access to current treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and other co-occurring conditions and recommend legislative or other actions necessary to ensure patient access to psychedelic therapies following approval” by FDA, “including considerations of provider availability, affordability, accessibility, training and licensure, and other regulatory requirements.”

Substances within the scope of the review include psilocybin, MDMA and ketamine, according to the bill’s text.

Keep reading

Nevada Senators Take Up Resolution Calling On Congress To Reschedule Psychedelics And Streamline Research

Nevada senators took up a joint resolution on Tuesday that calls on Congress to reschedule certain psychedelics, provide protections for individuals using the substances in compliance with state law and streamline research.

As the Nevada legislature pushes forward with psychedelics reform, the Senate Legislative Operations and Elections Committee discussed the resolution from Sen. Rochelle Nguyen (D), hearing testimony from experts in the field.

“It is very much a grassroots, bipartisan issue. It is a Nevada issue,” Nguyen said in her opening remarks. “This is such an important issue. And this may seem like it’s an innocuous [resolution] where we’re sending a letter, but it is super important that we as a state send a message to the federal government—send a message to Washington, D.C.—that we need to start helping our community.”

“We have a mental health crisis. I don’t think you go into a committee room where you don’t hear about this,” she said. “This is just another solution to a problem that we have across our state.”

Keep reading

Psychedelics Have ‘Promising Medical Applications,’ Congressional Watchdog Agency Says, But Research Challenges Remain

A federal agency has published a short report on the medical use of psychedelics, finding that their ability to “change a person’s perceptions and sense of self” can make for “promising medical applications.”

The paper, from the Government Accountability Office (GAO), says there’s a need for further research, but it also notes that because psychedelics such as LSD, MDMA and psilocybin remain Schedule I controlled substances, securing permission to carry out that research can be a challenge.

“To conduct research on these drugs, scientists need to follow several steps,” the report from GAO, which is often referred to as Congress’s “watchdog,” states in a section about ongoing challenges. “These include obtaining permission from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, finding clinical grade drugs to test, and identifying appropriate spaces in which to test and store these drugs.”

“Difficulties associated with conducting large, blind trials of psychedelics have limited researchers’ ability to determine the safety and effectiveness of these drugs,” GAO continues, “which is required for them to gain approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). FDA approval is generally required before prescription drugs can be marketed for sale in the U.S.”

Despite the obstacles, the paper acknowledges that hundreds of clinical trials have investigated psychedelics as a potential treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression.

“Between 2015 and early 2025, over 340 trials on psychedelics began or were completed,” it says. “For example, one study found that psilocybin reduced depression symptoms more than escitalopram, an SSRI.”

Keep reading