By Carl Zimmer — 2016
Psychiatrists have been using hypnosis on patients for decades—to help them reduce their pain or kick a smoking habit, among other reasons.
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CLEAR ALL
Taking drugs is generally perceived as a social activity. Whether you’re passing joints at home or raving bug-eyed in a forest, the presence of other people can elevate those bliss-inducing chemicals.
I'm no psychedelic prude. I reported on, and applauded, the resurgence of research into psychedelics in my 2003 book Rational Mysticism. I participated in a peyote ceremony of the Native American Church, and I advocated legalization of psychedelics for therapeutic purposes.
Traditionally, psychedelics (as well as other experiences, like Holotropic Breathwork) are coupled with practices that confirm, extend, and expand the insights intrinsic to altered states.
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What I will focus on are the psychological factors that influence people’s judgments about what is real and how these might explain why people come to believe in the existence of such beings.
Here, we asked Graham Hancock about plant medicine, the purpose and meaning of hallucinogenic experiences, and what bigger opportunities he sees for humanity in all of this.