Dr. Matthew Johnson: Psychedelics for Treating Mental Disorders

This episode I discuss medical research on psychedelic compounds with Dr. Matthew Johnson, Ph.D., Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. We discuss the biology and medical clinical-trial uses of psilocybin, MDMA, ayahuasca, DMT, and LSD. Dr. Johnson teaches us what the clinical trials in his lab are revealing about the potential these compounds hold for the treatment of depression, addiction, trauma, eating disorders, ADHD, and other disorders of the mind. Dr. Johnson describes a typical psychedelic experiment in his laboratory, start to finish, including the conditions for optimal clinical outcomes. And he explains some of the potential hazards and common misconceptions and pitfalls related to psychedelic medicine. Dr. Johnson explains flashbacks, the heightened risks of certain people and age groups using psychedelics and the ever evolving legal and pharmaceutical industry landscape surrounding psychedelics. Dr. Johnson also explains how the scientific study of psychedelics is likely to set the trajectory of psychiatric medicine in the years to come. Dr. Johnson is among a small handful of researchers who have pioneered the clinical study of these powerful compounds. He has unprecedented insight into how they can be woven into other psychiatric treatments, changing ones sense of self and of reality.

Read the full show notes for this episode at hubermanlab.com.

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Timestamps

00:00:00 Introducing Dr. Matthew Johnson  

00:02:27 Sponsors: AG1, LMNT & Waking Up

00:06:40 ‘Psychedelics’ Defined  

00:14:09 Hallucinations, Synesthesia, Altered Space-Time Perception  

00:19:56 Serotonin & Dopamine  

00:23:50 Ketamine & Glutamate  

00:28:00 An Example Psychedelic Experiment  

00:37:30 ‘Letting Go’ with Psychedelics  

00:44:10 Our Mind’s Eye  

00:48:00 Redefining Your Sense of Self  

00:58:56 Exporting Psychedelic Learnings to Daily Life  

01:04:36 Flashbacks  

01:12:10 Ayahuasca, ASMR, Kundalini Breathing  

01:15:54 MDMA, DMT  

01:26:00 Dangers of Psychedelics, Bad Trips, Long-Lasting Psychosis  

01:38:15 Micro-Dosing  

01:56:45 Risks for Kids, Adolescents & Teenagers; Future Clinical Trials  

02:03:40 Legal Status: Decriminalization vs. Legalization vs. Regulation  

02:18:35 Psychedelics for Treating Concussion & Traumatic Brain Injury  

02:27:45 Shifting Trends in Psychedelic Research, Academic Culture  

02:44:23 Participating in a Clinical Trial, Online Survey Studies, Breathwork  

02:50:38 Conclusions, Subscribing & Supporting the HLP, Supplements  

Disclaimer & Disclosures