An overreliance on medication as the first-line treatment for depression can lead some people to be labeled with treatment-resistant depression when there are other viable alternatives for relief.
Collaborative care teams will need to be established for safe treatment.
From July this year, some psychiatrists will be able to prescribe psychedelics to some patients. Responses from experts working in the field are mixed.
Psychedelics are being held up as a potential solution to the growing need for mental health treatment. But, magic mushrooms are not magic bullets.
(AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
Alberta’s new policy on psychedelic-assisted therapy for mental illness may set a precedent that moves Canadians one step closer to accepting psychedelics as medicinal substances.
Ketamine is effective for those who do not respond to traditional anti-depressants. It also shows promise for the treatment of PTSD and bipolar disorder.
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Research shows that ketamine can produce long-term reductions in symptoms of treatment-resistant depression.
The vine Banisteriopsis caapi is one ingredient in ayahuasca, a psychedelic brew that Amazonian indigenous populations have long used for spiritual purposes.
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Ayahuasca has long been used for indigenous healing and spiritual rituals. Now, a Brazilian clinical trial has confirmed that this psychoactive drink can help those with even severe depression.
The experimental technique of ‘deep brain stimulation’ has improved the lives of patients with treatment-resistant depression, despite the ‘failure’ of a large clinical trial.
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For some patients, drilling a hole in the skull and inserting an electrode into the ‘sadness centre’ of the brain offers relief from debilitating and otherwise treatment-resistant depression.