Therapeutic uses nad mystic-emotional experiences with psilocybin mushrooms in the treatment of health problems in Argentina: a qualitative case studie
Keywords:
psilocybin, macrodoses, self-care, biomedicine, neurophysiological effects, mystical-emotional experiencesAbstract
The current boom in therapeutic use of psilocybin mushrooms occurs primarily in the treatment of mental health, such as depression and anxiet y. However, it has recently expanded to the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, specifically damage to the central nervous system. We address this novelty through two contemporary case-examples of psilocybin mushrooms macrodoses used to treat damage to the central nervous system: one case of spinal cord injury and the other of neurodegeneration associated with multiple sclerosis. Based on a literature review, we propose neurophysiological mechanisms potentially associated with the therapeutic action. In macrodoses, psilocybin appears to act on cells and tissues of the central nervous system, promoting neuroplasticit y and modulating the inflammatory response. It also induces mystical-emotional experiences that, far from being mere side effects, foster profound subjective transformations, such as reconciliation with the body, redefining trauma, and strengthening agency, which are crucial to healing. Thus, a scenario emerges of empirical-popular and self-care use of macrodoses of psilocybin for central nervous system damage as a possible novel therapeutic. These alternative therapies, in addition to being novel, are creative, as they mobilize biomedicine toward research and clinical practice. But they are also exposed to the logic of knowledge and health practices extractivism, transforming them into commodified and standardized forms characteristic of biomedicine. It is necessary to value empirical-popular practices for their inherent contributions; and also to protect them from biomedical extractivism.
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