Psychedelics

3 credits · Graduate

This course will provide a comprehensive overview of psychedelic drugs. We will examine their pharmacological, biochemical, synaptic, behavioral, and clinical effects, with a focus on the neurobiological framework. Drugs in this category (e.g. ketamine, PCP, LSD, Psilocybin, DMT, Mescaline, MDMA, Ibogaine) will be contrasted with psychoactive drugs that are not psychedelic (e.g. cocaine, fentanyl, marijuana) and compared with non-drug practices with overlapping phenomenological mechanistic or therapeutic effects (breathwork, EMDR, deprivation, meditation). While much of the course will focus on the neurobiology of psychedelics, historical and anthropological uses will be explored where appropriate.