Psychedelic Brain Science

Alaina sits down with Dr. Neşe Devenot, a psychedelics and bioethics researcher to talk about their work with understanding different aspects of phenomenon associated with ego-dissolution and self-concept. Dr. Devenot & colleagues recent paper, analyzing outcomes and the research manual from the Johns Hopkins smoking cessation study, identifies some common themes of self-concept or identity shift. They also discuss the intersections between hypnosis, psychedelic-therapy and morality.

All content published by YBOS is solely the opinions of the authors and does not reflect the opinions of any parties affiliated with the authors or any additional third parties. 

In this weeks episode Zarmeen tackles predictive coding! She chats about what this neuroscientific framework is and how it relates to evidence in the psychedelic field. 

All content published by YBOS is solely the opinions of the authors and does not reflect the opinions of any parties affiliated with the authors or any additional third parties.

This week Alaina is joined by Dr. Natalie Gukasyan, a psychiatrist and clinical researcher at Johns Hopkins University. They discuss the common factors of psychotherapy and how they are affected in the psychedelic-assisted therapy models. From the "myth" or rationale of the treatment to the ritual of the practice, they cover all things related to the double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial. Dr. Gukasyan also discusses the risks and benefits of psychedelic-assisted therapy and provides insight on the true placebo in these studies.

CW: suicide and self-injury at 26 minutes

All content published by YBOS is solely the opinions of the authors and does not reflect the opinions of any parties affiliated with the authors or any additional third parties.

In this episode of YBOS, Zarmeen speaks with PhD candidate Jason Day about his thesis work which looks to understand the phenomenology of the psychedelic experience. Jason theorizes a change in attention as a crucial aspect of the psychedelic experience. In this episode he explains his theory and also introduces a more controversial take on attention! Listen for more and be sure to check out the adjoining blog post. 

All content published by YBOS is solely the opinions of the authors and does not reflect the opinions of any parties affiliated with the authors or any additional third parties.

In this episode of YBOS, Alaina and Zarmeen talk about harm reduction! From the origins of these programs, to different forms of harm reduction across the board, to considerations for psychedelic assisted therapy… they’ve covered it all! Do you have any tips, tricks or favorite harm reduction groups? Let us know in the comments!

All content published by YBOS is solely the opinions of the authors and does not reflect the opinions of any parties affiliated with the authors or any additional third parties.

This week on YBOS, Alaina is joined by cannabis and psychedelic patent lawyer, Graham Pechenik. Here they'll discuss the big news in the world of psychedelics, clear up some misunderstood notions of patent law, and discuss how the psychedelic industry can potentially influence policy and what it all means moving forward to legalization (whatever that means) of psychedelics. 

The content of YBOS is the opinion of the authors and does not reflect the opinion of others or author affiliations.  

This week on Your Brain on Science, Alaina is joined by two fellow pharmacologist and activists, Lindsey Galbo-Thomma and Elijah Ullman. Join them as they talk about general concerns and ongoing discussions with the space of drug policy including decriminalization, harm reduction and more. 

The content of YBOS is the opinion of the authors and does not reflect the opinion of others or author affiliations.

Join Zarmeen and Alaina as they discuss the first paper for Journal Club 2023! This is one of the first 2023 clinical trial publications and focuses on a different kind of placebo, for the randomized placebo-controlled trial of psilocybin-assisted therapy for Major Depression Disorder. This study is super cool and has a lot of results that will (we think) propel the field forward. Check out our blog post with a link to the paper and let us know what you think! 

The content of YBOS is the opinion of the authors and does not reflect the opinion of others or author affiliations.

Welcome back to the official second season of Psychedelic Brain Science with Zarmeen and Alaina! This episode we're answering some listener questions and talking about some of the latest and greatest psychedelic news. We can't wait to bring you more content and get into some interesting topics this season! Stay tuned and reach out to us via email ([email protected]) or via our website psychedelicbrainscience.com.

All content published by YBOS is solely the opinions of the authors and does not reflect the opinions of any parties affiliated with the authors or any additional third parties.