{"id":65823,"date":"2022-06-20T10:45:09","date_gmt":"2022-06-20T08:45:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wholecelium.com\/?p=65823"},"modified":"2023-11-12T12:45:09","modified_gmt":"2023-11-12T11:45:09","slug":"pirmais-pacients-kvebeka-apstiprinats-terapijai-ar-burvju-senem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wholecelium.com\/lv\/blog\/first-patient-in-quebec-approved-for-magic-mushroom-therapy\/","title":{"rendered":"Pirmais pacients Kvebek\u0101 apstiprin\u0101ts burvju s\u0113\u0146u terapijai"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

You see, Health Canada has made access to psilocybin<\/a><\/strong> \u2014 the active compound in magic mushrooms and truffles \u2014 so much easier for healthcare experts. Where once psychedelic-based talk therapy could be done only in clinical trials, licensed experts can now ask for access to these drugs on behalf of their patients. This is a godsend for Canadians who live with PTSD, depression, and anxiety, but have found no relief so far in mainstream medicine. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

First Patient in Quebec Approved for Psilocybin Therapy<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A Montreal-based clinic, called Mindspace<\/a><\/strong> by Numinus, has been approved by Health Canada to give psilocybin-based therapy for a patient with resistant depression. This person is also the first in Quebec to undergo the said therapy in a legal manner. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"magic
(Photo via Wikimedia Commons)<\/mark><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Andrew Bui-Nguyen, a key therapist at Mindspace, told Canadian Press<\/em> about the approval:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a privilege to be able to accompany people in the exploration of their psychological distress and to <\/em>offer something different<\/em><\/strong> <\/em>[from] conventional treatment<\/em><\/strong> such as antidepressants.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The approval of psilocybin for clinics creates a wide range of medical options, especially for those with resistant depression. However, psychedelic-based therapy is not yet covered by Quebec\u2019s health insurance plan. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a rigorous screening procedure. We look at the diagnosis, the medical history, if there\u2019s a risk of addiction, what treatments have already been tried. There must have been a <\/em>lot of treatments done beforehand<\/em><\/strong> so the application is solid.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Psilocybin Creates New Paths in the Brain<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The approval doesn\u2019t mean that one can just enter a facility for a dose of psilocybin. The entire process, said Bui-Nguyen, has to include several talk therapy sessions before and after patients take the drug.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bui-Nguyen told Canadian Press<\/em>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not miraculous. You don\u2019t take psilocybin and that\u2019s it, a psychedelic trip and after, the depression is cured \u2014 no! The patient has a lot of work to do. But it opens perspectives; it creates <\/em>new paths<\/a><\/em><\/strong> in the brain that we aren\u2019t used to taking. The patient then explores new roads to get out of depression.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s also not your typical psychonaut<\/a><\/strong> trip at home, either. The patient must stay in the clinical setting for up to six hours<\/em>, while being supervised by two psychotherapists. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just You and the Music<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One such patient is Thomas Hartle, 54, whose terminal colon cancer diagnosis had left him suffering from end-of-life anxiety. He came very<\/em> close to giving up. Up until he received his first taste of legally-sanctioned psilocybin-based therapy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"black
(Photo via Unsplash)<\/mark><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Hartle, who lives in Saskatchewan, was among the first to take part in a legal psilocybin group therapy program offered by Roots to Thrive<\/a><\/strong>, a clinic based in Nanaimo, B.C.. He described his anxiety, and the first session that would change his life forever:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBefore the treatment, it\u2019s like you\u2019re sitting in your car. It\u2019s summer. You have your windows down. You\u2019re stuck in rush-hour traffic. It\u2019s noisy. It\u2019s unpleasant,\u201d<\/em> Hartle told Canadian Press<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYour favourite song is on the radio, but you can\u2019t actually appreciate any of it because all of the other distractions are preventing you from even noticing that the radio is on.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c<\/em>After a psilocybin treatment<\/em><\/strong>, [it\u2019s like] you\u2019re still in your car, in traffic, but you have the windows up, the air conditioning is on and it\u2019s quiet. It\u2019s just you and the music.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Psilocybin Treatment Made Easier<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Hartle is among the few Canadians so far who have received legal psilocybin-based  therapy after it was made easier by Health Canada in January. Healthcare workers were the first to benefit<\/a><\/strong> from the historic move, which granted access to restricted drugs such as psilocybin or MDMA, via its \u201cSpecial Access Program\u201d<\/em>. Since then, Health Canada has gotten 15 requests from clinics to use psilocybin or MDMA in their therapy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hartle shared his newfound hope with Canadian Press<\/em>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe therapy part has a capital T in this whole process. It isn\u2019t just taking psychedelics. It\u2019s just a tool in the process; the <\/em>therapy is crucial<\/em><\/strong> to getting a good outcome.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ease of restrictions has granted a new lease on life for those living with serious conditions, such as resistant depression and end-of-life anxiety. With the help of psilocybin and<\/em> talk therapy, a terminal diagnosis doesn\u2019t have to be a death sentence:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe <\/em>improvement in my mental health<\/em><\/strong> is so night and day that it would be difficult to say all of the things that it does for me.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI still have cancer. I still have difficulty with what it physically does, but there are days when I don\u2019t even think about it. What would you do to have a day where you just feel normal?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Psychedelic Renaissance<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Professor Danilo Bzdok, lead author of the world\u2019s biggest study<\/a><\/strong> on how psychedelics affect the brain, said that psychedelic drugs are likely the future of mental healthcare. The study also pointed out that patients enjoyed up to six months of relief<\/em> from depression and anxiety, after a single psychedelic-based session. There were also fewer side effects than mainstream antidepressants. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"pill
Traditional psychedelics via Unsplash<\/mark><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere\u2019s something like a <\/em>renaissance<\/a><\/em><\/strong>, a reawakening of psychedelics,\u201d<\/em> Bzdok, an associate professor with McGill University\u2019s biomedical engineering department, told Canadian Press.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHallucinogenic drugs may very well turn out to be the next big thing to improve clinical care of major mental health conditions.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shroom Boom in Canada<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Though these freedoms to use psilocybin are fairly recent in Canada, the practice of microdosing<\/a><\/strong> magic mushrooms and truffles is hardly new. To date, the top three provinces in terms of psilocybin drugs seizures are Ontario, Quebec, and Alberta. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"brain
brain neurons via Creative Commons<\/mark><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Professor Balazs Szigeti of Imperial College London, one of the pioneers of psychedelic research today, remarked on the trend:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is not an underground phenomenon anymore. There are businesses that make a living out of microdosing, and obviously that changes the game a little bit.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

One such entrepreneur is Tally*, who told CBC\/Radio-Canada of the growing shroom boom in the country. The demand is so high, apparently, that competing web shops have had to push prices down to entice customers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve seen an increase in our sales. There are even health professionals who come to ask us for information. Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia are our best sellers.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Better Treatments for Mental Health<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

So! What\u2019s next for this plucky new clinic in Quebec after being the first to administer psilocybin-based therapy legally? According to Payton Nyquvest, CEO of Mindspace by Numinus, he hopes to make psychedelics such as psilocybin from magic mushrooms and truffles, a widespread, more accessible<\/em> option for treatment in Canada:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe haven\u2019t seen significant innovation in mental healthcare in probably over 40 years.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re at a time where <\/em>new and better treatments for mental health<\/em><\/strong> are needed now more than ever. No matter what you look at: depression, anxiety, and suicidality\u2026these are all rates that continue to go up with no clear line in terms of how we\u2019re going to address these massive societal issues.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPsychedelics represent an opportunity to make a <\/em>significant impact<\/em><\/strong>.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Will this new approval for psilocybin therapy in Quebec change how the public sees psychedelics in the long run? While it will still take time to root fully, all the signs so far are pointing towards YES! <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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