Tripping into the (un)known: treating the mind with psychedelics

For millennia, humans have “tripped” on psychedelic substances for spiritual growth, healing or recreational purposes. Today, the healthcare community has renewed interest in the potential of psychedelics for mental health.

In this Ar event, Tiago Quendera and Tatiana Silva, two neuroscience PhD students at the Champalimaud Centre for the Unknown, will take you through the ups and downs of the history of psychedelics and their use in research.

Psilocybin, a naturally occurring substance in the psilocybe mushroom - with hallucinogenic properties - has particularly been in the spotlight. Neuroscientists and mental health professionals are now pairing up to study the potential of psilocybin in treating mental health disorders.

Carolina Seybert, a clinical psychologist and researcher at the Champalimaud Neuropsychiatry Unit, will share how her longtime interest in helping patients has led her to perform research with psychedelic substances. She will guide us through some promising clinical results and, as in any trip, “safety comes first” - so Carolina will explain how researchers provide adequate guidance to patient treatments.

As our special guest, we will host William Richards. Bill is a Psychologist and one of the pioneers of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. He was, most likely, the last person to legally apply this treatment in a research setting, before it came to a halt. After a 22 year period of dormancy in the USA,  together with Roland Griffiths, they made psilocybin research possible again. Bill will share with us the challenges of implementing these research protocols and provide insight regarding both the therapeutic process and the intricacies of working with psilocybin.

Join us on March 18th, at 9:00pm. Register here.

To know more about the event, visit the dedicated Ar events webpage.