Peter Hendricks Ph.D. Is Psilocybin Helpful For People Who Abuse Cocaine?
In this episode, Joe speaks with Peter Hendricks, Ph.D. and Associate Professor at the University of Alabama, currently involved in researching the effects of psilocybin on people dealing with cocaine-related substance use disorder.\xa0
He discusses the details of the pilot trial (following the Johns Hopkins model, with music created by Bill Richards), some early findings and speculations, what music might work best for these sessions, how excited he is to bring these findings to the criminal justice system, and how religion and tribalism come into play when looking at what people get out of these psychedelic experiences.
Hendricks points out that while psilocybin is currently being researched as a treatment for tobacco use (by Matthew Johnson at Johns Hopkins) and alcohol use (by Michael Bogenschutz at NYU), this is the first large study with cocaine and could lead to the first medication for major stimulants. And while there have been many studies on psilocybin in general, they\u2019ve rarely been focused on the people he\u2019s working with, who are often poorer, less educated, often out of work, and usually struggling more than those typically involved in these studies. They also talk about what research of the past has given us data-wise, and how inspirational it has been to the work being done today.\xa0
\u201cThe participants in our trial- they haven\u2019t read Michael Pollan\u2019s book or others. They\u2019re not in the know. I\u2019ll have to explain to them what the drug is, and the common reaction is, \u2018uhh, so you\u2019re going to help me stop getting high by getting me high?\u2019 and I\u2019ll try to explain how the drug might differ from others, from more addictive drugs like cocaine. And as we know, it\u2019s an ineffable experience- it\u2019s a difficult experience to put to words\u2026. I\u2019m honored and I have admiration for our participants because they have the courage to dive into this study conducted at a University by people they\u2019ve never met. It can be a very frightening experience and they say, \u2018you know what, I\u2019ve tried everything. At this point, I\u2019m desperate, let\u2019s give it a try.\u2019 I probably couldn\u2019t overstate how much courage it takes for them to do what they do. I don\u2019t know that I could do it myself.\u201d\xa0
\u201cI think for most of the world\u2019s fates, the tenants are that we\u2019re all in this together, and we\u2019re bound by love. And that really might be the message that most people get from psychedelics, but similar to religion, sometimes that message is perverted a bit and what you take from it is, \u2018my in-group is what\u2019s most important and I\u2019m going to act to preserve my own tribe, even if it means treating others in an awful, inhumane way\u2026\u2019 Sometimes experiences that are really meant to foster a connection with everybody can go haywire and we have to be aware of that\u201d
\u201cOne criticism of some of the studies conducted so far has been, how do we know that psilocybin might have these effects on a sample that isn\u2019t all college-educated or doctorates or who are Professors at Universities who make more than 100,000 dollars per year and live comfortably? How do we know that this experience would have any meaning to somebody who\u2019s making less than 10,000 per year, who has a fifth-grade education, who\u2019s unemployed and homeless? I think in large part, this study might answer that question. If we find an effect, then we can say it appears to also have an effect among those who look different and whose life circumstances are much different than some of the earlier participants.\u201d
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About Peter Hendricks PhD
Dr. Hendricks received his doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of South Florida and completed a post-doctoral Fellowship in Drug Abuse Treatment and Services Research at the University of California, San Francisco. His research centers on the development of novel and potentially more effective treatments for substance dependence, with specific areas of focus on tobacco, cocaine, and polysubstance dependence in vulnerable populations.