Secured in partnership with the Santa Cruz City Council and Councilman Dr. Justin Cummings, the proclamation’s goal is to raise awareness – both in Santa Cruz and beyond – to alternative, holistic healing methods that are rapidly gaining support in the U.S. medical community.

“We’re proud to proclaim April as Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy Awareness Month in the City of Santa Cruz. As Western research continues to advance what generations of healers across the world know, our hope is that our citizens who are struggling with mental health or treatment-resistant ailments can find transformative healing with the supervised use of psychedelics,” said Cummings. “Santa Cruz is at the forefront of this movement and we’re passionate about expanding access to the medicinal uses of psychedelics openly and legally, and clinical research to help us understand how to maximize the benefits of their use and mitigate any negative consequences. We made the right decision in decriminalizing psychedelics in the city of Santa Cruz last year. It’s significant progress for Californians and we look forward to continuing to advocate for legalization and responsible use of psychedelics to improve the health of our city, county, state and country. I look forward to continuing to work closely with Psychable to advocate for legislation, and applaud their leadership in this space.“

Proclamation Copy: Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy Awareness Month

WHEREAS, substance abuse, addiction, recidivism, trauma, post-traumatic stress symptoms, chronic depression, severe anxiety, end of life anxiety, grief, cluster headaches, and other debilitating conditions are present in our community;

WHEREAS, the use of psychedelics has been shown by scientific and clinical studies and traditional practices to be beneficial to the health and well-being of individuals and communities in addressing these conditions, as well as personal spiritual growth;

WHEREAS, medicinal practices with psychedelics have been considered sacred to human cultures and human relationships with nature for thousands of years; 

WHEREAS, clinical studies and research in the U.S., Canada and Europe have shown the safety and efficacy of psychedelics for treating a variety of mental health illnesses going back to the 1960s;

WHEREAS, the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) was founded on April 8, 1986 to further the research on psychedelics as medicine, and psychedelic practitioners celebrate the healing power of psychedelics on World Bicycle Day on April 19; 

WHEREAS, the FDA has granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation to MDMA for the treatment of PTSD, and to Psilocybin for use in major depressive disorders; Ketamine is now being used successfully across the US and Canada for treatment-resistant depression and to help with chronic pain and cluster headaches; Psilocybin has been shown to ease treatment-resistant depression, end-of-life anxiety, and cluster headaches, Ibogaine has been shown to be an effective treatment for opiate addiction, and 

Ayahuasca studies are currently underway to better understand its ability to address depression, and substance dependence;

WHEREAS, Psychable is committed to being a trusted and comprehensive community dedicated to connecting those interested in legally exploring psychedelic-assisted therapy with practitioners and bringing together generations of indigenous healing with Western medicine;

Now, therefore, be it resolved, I, Mayor Donna Meyers and the members of the Santa Cruz City Council hereby proclaim April 2021 to be Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy Awareness Month in Santa Cruz, California and call upon our citizens, government agencies, public and private institutions, and businesses to commit to increasing the awareness and understanding of mental ailments, the need for appropriate and accessible treatment options, and the transformative power of psychedelic-assisted therapy for all those suffering or looking to improve their mental health.

References:

Psychedelics and Reduced Recidivism

Hendricks, P., et al. (2014). Hallucinogen use predicts reduced recidivism among substance-involved offenders under community corrections supervision. Journal Of Psychopharmacology 28(1), pp. 62-66.

Walsh, Z. , etal. (2016). Hallucinogen use and intimate partner violence: Prospective evidence consistent with protective effects among men with histories of problematic substance use. Journal of Psychopharmacology, pp. 1-7. DOI: 10.1177/0269881116642538.

Psychedelics for Personal and Spiritual Growth

Frecska, E., et al. (2012). Enhancement of Creative Expression and EntopticPhenomena as After-Effects of Repeated Ayahuasca Ceremonies. Journalof Psychoactive Drugs 44(3), pp. 191-199.

Hartogsohn, I. (2018). The Meaning-Enhancing Properties of Psychedelics and TheirMediator Role in Psychedelic Therapy, Spirituality, and Creativity. Frontiers inNeuroscience, 12 (129). doi:10.3389/fnins.2018.00129

MacLean, K., et al. (2011). Mystical experiences occasioned by the hallucinogen psilocybin lead to increases in the personality domain of openness. Journal of psychopharmacology, 25(11)1453-1461.

Moro, L., et al. (2011) Voice of the Psychonauts: Coping, Life Purpose, and spirituality in Psychedelic Drug Users. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 43 (3), pp.188-198. DOI: 10.1080/02791072.2011.605661

Nour, M., etal. (2017): Psychedelics, Personality and Political Perspectives. Journal of psychoactive Drugs. D0l:10.1080/02791072.2017.1312643

Sweat, N., et al. (2016). The Associations of Naturalistic Classic Psychedelic Use, Mystical Experience, and Creative Problem Solving. Journal of psychoactive drugs, 48(5), pp. 344-350, DOI: 10.1080/02791072.2016.1234090

Historical Use of Psychedelics 

El-Seedi, H., et al. (2005). Prehistoric peyote use: Alkaloid analysis and radiocarbon dating of archaeological specimens of Lophophora from Texas. Journal of Ethnopharmacology 107(1), pp. 238-242.

Guzman, G. (2008). Hallucinogenic Mushrooms in Mexico: An Overview. EconomicBotany, 62(3), pp. 404-412.

Miller, L. et al., (2019). Chemical evidence for the use of multiple psychotropic plants in a 1,000-year-old ritual bundle from South America. Proceedings of the national academy of Sciences. DOI :10.1073/pnas. 190217411

Samorini, G. (1992). The Oldest Representations Of Hallucinogenic Mushrooms in the World (Sahara Desert, 9000 – 7000 B.P.). Integration, Journal of Mind-moving plants and Culture 2/3.

 Psilocybin for End-of-Life Anxiety

Blinderman, C. (2016). Psycho-existential distress in cancer patients: A return to entheogens. Journal of Psychopharmacology 30 (12), pp. 1205-1206.

Kelmendi, B., et al. (2016). The role of psychedelics in palliative care reconsidered: A Case for psilocybin. Journal of Psychopharmacology 30(12), pp. 1212-1214.

Ross, S., et al. (2016). Rapid and sustained symptom reduction following psilocybin treatment for anxiety and depression in patients with life-threatening cancer: a randomized controlled trial. Journal of Psychopharmacology, 30(12), pp. 1165-1180.

Psilocybin and Treatment-Resistant Depression

Hendricks, P., etal. (2015). Psilocybin, psychological distress, and suicidality.Journal of Psychopharmacology, 29(9), pp. 1041-1043.

Lyons, T. and Carhart-Harris, R. (2018). Increased nature relatedness and decreased authoritarian political views after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression. Journal of Psychopharmacology, 32(7), pp. 811-819.

Psilocybin and Cluster Headaches

Schindler, E. et al., (2015) Indoleamine Hallucinogens in Cluster Headache: Results of the Clusterbusters Medication Use Survey, Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 47(5),pp. 372-381. DOI: 10.1080/02791072.2015.1107664

Iboga/lbogaine for Addiction Therapy

Alper, K., et al. (1999). Treatment of acute opioid withdrawal with ibogaine.American Journal of Addictions, 8(3), 234-242. doi:10.1080/105504999305848

Brown, T. K. (2013). Ibogaine in the treatment of substance dependence. CurrentDrug Abuse Reviews, 6(1), 3-16. doi: 10.2174/15672050113109990001

Brown, T. and Alper, K. (2017): Treatment of opioid use disorder with ibogaine:detoxification and drug use outcomes. The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse. DOI: 10.1080/00952990.2017.1320802

Luciano, D. (1998). Observations on treatment with ibogaine. American Journal of Addictions, 7(1), pp. 89-89. doi:10.1111/j.1521-0391.1998.tb00472.x

Mash, D., et al. (2001). Ibogaine in the treatment of heroin withdrawal. In K. Alper, & G.A. Cordell (Eds.), The alkaloids: Chemistry and Biology (1st ed., Vol. 56, pp. 155—171). London: Academic Press/Elsevier.

Mash, D., et al., (2018) Ibogaine Detoxification Transitions Opioid and CocaineAbusers Between Dependence and Abstinence: Clinical Observations and treatment Outcomes. Frontiers in Pharmacology. 9:529. doi:10.3389/fphar.2018.00529

Sheppard, S. G. (1994). A preliminary investigation of ibogaine: Case reports and recommendations for further study. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 77(4),379-385. doi: 10.1016/0740-5472(94)90049-3

Ayahuasca for Addiction Therapy

Barbosa, P. et al. (2018) Assessment of Alcohol and Tobacco Use Disorders AmongReligious Users of Ayahuasca. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 9 (136).doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2018.00136

Brierley, D., and Davidson, C. (2012). Developments in harmine pharmacology –Implications for ayahuasca use and drug-dependence treatment. Progress in Neuropsychopharmacology & Biology 39(2), pp. 263-272.

Liester, M. and Prickett, J. (2012) Hypotheses Regarding the Mechanisms of ayahuasca in the Treatment of Addictions. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 44 (3),pp. 200-208. DOI: 10.1080/02791072.2012.704590

Loizaga-Velder, A. and R. Verres (2014). Therapeutic effects of ritual ayahuasca use in the treatment of substance dependence-qualitative results. Journal of psychoactive drugs 46(1), pp. 63-72.

Mabit, J., et al. (1996). Takiwasi: The Use of Amazonian Shamanism to RehabilitateDrug Addicts. Yearbook of Cross-Cultural Medicine and Psychotherapy. W.Andritzky. Berlin, International Institute of Cross-Cultural Therapy Research.

Talina, P., and Sanabriab, E. (2017). Ayahuasca’s entwined efficacy: An Ethnographic study of ritual healing from addiction. International Journal of DrugPolicy 44, pp. 23-30.

Thomas, G., et al. (2013). Ayahuasca-assisted therapy for addiction: results from a preliminary observational study in Canada. Current Drug Abuse Review 6(1), pp. 30-42.

Ayahuasca and Depression

Anderson, B. (2012). Ayahuasca as Antidepressant? Psychedelics and Styles of Reasoning in Psychiatry. Anthropology of Consciousness, 23(1), pp. 44-59.

de L. Osorio, F., et al. (2015). Antidepressant effects of a single dose of ayahuasca inpatients with recurrent depression: a preliminary report. Revista Brasileira dePsiquiatria 37(1), pp. 13-20.

Palhano-Fontes, F., et al. (2014). The Therapeutic Potentials of Ayahuasca in the treatment of Depression. The Therapeutic Use of Ayahuasca. B. C. Labate andC. Cavnar, Springer: Berlin, Heidelberg, pp. 23-39.

dos Santos, R., et al. (2016). Anti-depressive, anxiolytic, and anti-addictive effects of ayahuasca, psilocybin and lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD): A systematic review of clinical trials published in the last 25 years. Therapeutic Advances in psychopharmacology, 6(3), pp. 193-213. doi:10.1177/2045125316638008