'Magic mushroom' drug may improve personality

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Source: USA Today

In new research that will almost certainly create controversy, scientists working with the hallucinogen psilocybin -- the active ingredient found in "magic mushrooms" -- have found that a single dose of the drug prompted an enduring but positive personality change in almost 60 percent of patients.

Specifically, tests involving a small group of patients in a strictly controlled and monitored clinical setting revealed that, more often than not, one round of psilocybin exposure successfully boosted an individual's sense of "openness." What's more, the apparent shift in what is deemed to be a key aspect of personality did not dissipate after exposure, lasting at least a year and sometimes longer.

"Now this finding is really quite fascinating," said study author Roland R. Griffiths, a professor in the departments of psychiatry and neuroscience at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore. "And that is because personality is considered a stable characteristic of the psychology of people. It's been thought to be relatively immutable, and stable across the lifespan.

"But, remarkably, this study shows that psilocybin actually changes one domain of personality that is strongly related to traits such as imagination, feeling, abstract ideas and aesthetics, and is considered a core construct underlying creativity in general," he added. "And the changes we see appear to be long-term."

Read more: http://yourlife.usatoday.com/health/story/2011-09-29/Magic-mushroom-drug-may-improve-personality-long-term-/50602264/1

---

My goodness.

There are many other links for this, such as:

Magic Mushrooms May Lead to More Open-Mindedness - ABC News

By KIM CAROLLO (@kimcarollo)
Sept. 29, 2011

"Magic mushrooms" are known to bring on an intense psychedelic trip, and psilocybin, the mind-altering chemical in the mushroom, is believed to help treat certain medical conditions. But new research suggests the drug may actually alter people's personalities for a long period of time.

Researchers from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine gave one high dose of psilocybin to 51 adult study participants and found that 30 of them underwent measurable personality changes that lasted more than a year.

The aspect of personality that changed is known as openness. Openness, the authors wrote, "encompasses aesthetic appreciation and sensitivity, imagination and fantasy, and broad-minded tolerance of others' viewpoints and values."

and for good measure

[sakabatou]

1. So... it's a muse drug?

[spooked911]

2. this is old news

but I think it's quite true-- definitely one of the better mind-altering drugs

[mistertrickster]

59. My first thought too . . . it's what the good part of 60's psychodelia was all about.

It was originally about consciousness-expansion . . . then it was taken over by the "let's party and get laid" crowd.

Not that the two are mutually exclusive, but it's a different focus.

In retrospect though, what the hell happened to Ted Nugent?

[ret5hd]

3. Well i certainly know a few that would benefit!

And before you ask, no it's not me! i'm fine! everyone else is screwed up!

[Newest Reality]

4. Where have they been?

Many people know about the benefits of the "medicine" when it is used in the right context. Calling enthogens a "drug" is actually a misnomer, to some.

So, after decades and decades of demonizing, (for various, ulterior motives) certain substances, (the war on SOME drugs) the truth is being "re-discovered".

Well, among the reasons for criminalizing some drugs is that many people, (and the state) fear open-mindedness and stepping out of this Matrix. Thought crimes are still an offense in a repressive structure and conformity takes precedence.

[Richard D]

74. +1

[Le Taz Hot]

95. +1

Nice post.

[qb]

5. Damn. I'll have to see if I can order me some! My personality could use a little fine-tuning.

:silly:

[tpsbmam]

6. Dear Mitch: Thought I'd send an early Christmas present.

Thanking you for your stealer.....um.....stellar leadership. Please do enjoy!

Sincerely,

A Teabagger Fan

:evilgrin:

Man, sending cases to Washington & ReTHUGS far and wide!

:rofl: :evilgrin:

[Dreamer Tatum]

7. More pro-drug bullshit nt

[Uncle Joe]

10. Your mind is closed, do you have any evidence this is bullshit?

[Dreamer Tatum]

12. Read the article: works "almost 60 percent of the time."

Would you buy or use a drug that is little better than random in its efficacy?

[tridim]

13. And if it doesn't work, you just have a nice trip.

Horrors!

I bet that most commercial drugs are LESS than 60% effective. Big Pharma will never admit that.

[Dreamer Tatum]

17. You "bet?"

In other words, you have nothing.

[tridim]

23. Don't use them, your loss. Problem solved.

BTW do you work for Pfizer? You sound like you do.

[Lucky Luciano]

19. 60% efficacy is far better than random. It is much better than 0%. nt

:shrug:

[Dreamer Tatum]

20. 0 percent isn't random. nt

[Lucky Luciano]

24. ok fine - maybe 10% is random. nt

[Fuddnik]

53. Sounds like you need a dose.

It might improve your outlook.

[Uncle Joe]

21. A single dose working almost 60% of the time lasting up to fourteen months is quite significant.

In new research that will almost certainly create controversy, scientists working with the hallucinogen psilocybin -- the active ingredient found in "magic mushrooms" -- have found that a single dose of the drug prompted an enduring but positive personality change in almost 60 percent of patients.

(snip)

The results: repeated personality and so-called "states of consciousness" testing revealed that some critical aspects of the participants' personalities remained unchanged. In the key domains of neuroticism, extroversion, agreeableness and conscientiousness, psilocybin appeared to register little to no impact.

The exception: "openness." Not only did openness increase significantly in response to high doses of the hallucinogen, it also remained at an elevated level throughout a 14-month follow-up period.

[Maine_Nurse]

73. You really don't want to know the "effectiveness" of many prescription drugs then.nt

[ZombieHorde]

83. Aspirin only works for 70% of people.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1002181,00.html

Would you buy or use a drug that is little better than random in its efficacy?

I don't think you have thought this statement through. Perhaps your anti-some-drug bias is muting your ability to reason. When you are dismissing peer-reviewed research on the basis of nothing, then you're probably not thinking straight.

Do you really not see how illogical your posts are in this thread?

[kenfrequed]

29. This is a scientific study.

Either publish something peer reviewed or piss off.

[Enrique]

35. we need to make taking magic mushrooms mandatory

starting with you. :P

[slay]

41. More anti-drug BULLSHIT

goes both ways honey. grow up - can you not understand SCIENCE - this wasn't hippies in a field you know. what is your problem?

[Javaman]

66. Sounds like you need some yourself. nt

[LanternWaste]

69. Does "Pro-Drug" also refer to aspirin and coffee

Does "Pro-Drug" also refer to aspirin and coffee, or merely substances you yourself dislike on a personal and biased level...?

[Canuckistanian]

85. My, what a closed mind you have there

I think that's why they're doing this research.

These are not a bunch of hippies advocating free love and getting stoned all the time. They're SCIENTISTS.

[Warren DeMontague]

90. Carl Sagan says you need to mellow out, man.

:nopity:

[Uncle Joe]

8. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, mahatmakanejeeves.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

68. You're welcome. It is my pleasure.

For the record, the strongest illegal drug I ever tried was PCP. I never tried mushrooms. I never try LSD either, feeling at the time that I did not have the right temperament for it. That was surely the correct assessment for me.

Someone asked about Ted Nugent. I believe he has said that he did not use drugs.

[tridim]

9. Thousands of years of humans using natural drugs as medicine

And only recently in human history have they become illegal. Hmm, wonder why? CoughBigPharmaCough.

The evidence is becoming overwhelming, and I think we're finally reaching a tipping point. Current drug scheduling (specifically Schedule I) is completely wrong, dangerously so. We need a World summit on the issue, now.

[AndyTiedye]

11. k/r

That is why it is illegal, of course.

They don't want people to be more open-minded.

[Kolesar]

14. I dunno, but it sure improved "Return of the Jedi" eom

[tridim]

27. Hehe, it wasn't that bad sober either.

At least relative to all the prequels.

In college I saw the Animation Celebration while tripping, now THAT was amazing. There was one short called "Lazarus" that gave me the most warm and fuzzy feeling I've ever had. I've been looking for it online and it's just not available any more, a real shame.

And the crazy pattern on the carpet in the lobby after the movie was alive. :)

[DJ13]

30. There was one short called "Lazarus"

Is this it?

Lazarus (1/3) - A Short Film by Eduardo Arias-Nath

A tale of hope, Lazarus tells the story of Jeremy Callen, a man who has the power to inspire others to wake up from a languid dream and start a new journey in life.

"Lazarus is a simple story about a simple man living a simple life in a world full of irony and surprising turns. Lazarus is an urban rhapsody, a lyrical passage in the history of humankind. Lazarus transforms the ordinary life of an ordinary citizen into an extraordinary parable of hope."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O43irceanJs

[tridim]

33. Nope, it was an animated short.

Written and animated by one guy. It had nothing to do with religion.

[DJ13]

36. Well then, I got nothin

:hi:

[tridim]

42. Thanks for trying. I'm searching again.

I've probably spent 6 hours searching in the past. It was that good.

[Kolesar]

43. Like the floral carpet in "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" w/ Johnny Depp...eom

[tridim]

54. Different motion, same type of carpet.

:)

[Le Taz Hot]

96. One of the funiest movies of all time.

I kept having to hit "pause" to give myself time to take a few full breaths.

[xchrom]

15. sigh -- one of my favs. nt

[valerief]

16. Feed it to the teabaggers! nt

[zogofzorkon]

26. Would be casting pearls before swine

[dotymed]

18. I definitely believe this.

I experimented in the '70's with 'Shrooms and other psychogenic drugs. I really had some great "mind expanding" experiences. The "trips" made you experience things in ways that upon reflection, are outside of our usual range of experience. Seeing sounds, hearing sights...after that you are forced to question what we consider "normal" perceptions.

Of course, moderation in all things, is usually a good motto. I do hope that those test subjects were aware that they were being used as guinea pigs. The military "forgot" to tell most of their participants.

Now science is reporting the possibility of alternate dimensions. During my "experiments, I seemed to know and accept that. Even though my "reality" was altered. those substances made me aware of the possibilities that our accepted reality was one of many possibilities.

[tridim]

25. I shroomed three times and used LSD about five times.

Perfect moderation. I remember the numbers because I kept a journal and dated my artwork during the experiences.

The insights I gained were and are priceless 25 years later.

I read reams of research before using both drugs.

[shireen]

89. that sounds fascinating ...

it must be such a unique sensation. I don't think I'll ever have the courage to try it -- I'm too much of a chicken -- but really like hearing about other peoples' experiences.

This reminds me a bit of Jill Bolte Taylor's experience when she had a stroke. The TED talk she gave was amazing:
http://www.ted.com/talks/jill_bolte_taylor_s_powerful_stroke_of_insight.html

[Seedersandleechers]

22. Psilocybin Cubensis

can help with cluster headaches. Who would have thought?


http://www.erowid.org/plants/mushrooms/mushrooms_medical1.shtml

[provis99]

28. so there's an antidote to the republican lizard brain!

All that conservatives need is a few magic mushrooms, and they'll stop being such ninnies!

[Zorra]

47. It has been my experience that conservatives

generally cannot handle the mind/reality altering effects of hallucinogenics.

It's very often a "bad trip" for them.

They freak out and get overcome with fear and paranoia and have to be comforted and "talked down", often for several hours.

I don't know, but I firmly believe that conservatives almost universally live in a nervous state of semi-controlled constant anxiety, fear, and paranoia that makes them unable to handle the lack of control they experience after ingesting hallucinogenic substances.

IMO, anyone that is afraid that they will not be able to handle the effects of ingesting hallucinogenic substances should not use them, and anyone ingesting them for the first time should be prepared by an intelligent and experienced person and should ingest the substance with the experienced person in a calm, quiet, comfortable setting.

Anyway, this has been my experience, for what it is worth.

[dotymed]

61. I agree, but it would have been great

if Grace Slick had been successful at dosing Nixon w/acid; as long as he couldn't get to the bombs...:bounce:

[War Horse]

79. A thousand times this

I've done the "talking down" bit. One time I had an absolute nightmare of a trip and was even able to "talk myself down", in a matter of speaking.

A "bad trip" can be a growth experience too, of course, but it can also exacerbate preexisting issues.

I don't think people should be introduced to entheogens unless they're prepared for it.

But can they be a useful tool? Hell yes.

[CoffeeCat]

87. I'm betting that drugs like this...

...open up the subconscious.

Can you imagine the dark, insidious, pathological horrors that reside in the mental basements of
people like Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck? They abuse drugs and alcohol to shut down and
repress what's in their subconscious.

A drug that opened up these deep levels of the mind--would probably cause a psychic break.

[LooseWilly]

91. Or maybe it would just help them to embrace their "inner fascist"?....

After all... it's not the neuroses that get you when you're tripping... it's the fear and denial... or perhaps Fear and Loathing is a better description?

Once one can accept one's own fascist tendencies (or whatever tendencies)... then hallucinogens will just take one's "consciousness-bucket like trough of neurotic snowflake-esque uniqueness" on a little roller coaster ride of not-usualness...

It's a different "ride" than alcohol or oxycontin... one that requires a little more intellectual honesty... but I don't know that I buy that any of them are as useful for "repression" as popular psychology would have the public think. (Though, I am open to the possibility that I'm just plain wrong...)

[Control-Z]

93. My son's best friend died

doing lsd two years ago. He called his mom, scared - having a bad trip, and she was on her way to him. Before she could get to him he dove into the local (fake) lake. He could not swim. Someone in the neighboring homes saw him come up, then go back under. It took about 4 hours for divers to find him.

I don't think any of our community has recovered from Chris's death yet. His mother is suffering. My son has changed. I feel somewhat helpless.

So I definitely have a problem with lsd. I've never done it because it has always scared me, but my experience with mushrooms was completely different and amazing. I've been a somewhat negative, depressed person for much of the last few years. I could use a little altering and wouldn't say no to the opportunity. I believe something like would absolutely help me out of the funk I've been in.

My kids are another story, though. I'm not sure how I feel about it for them, especially after Chris.

[yodermon]

98. My god, Control-Z

:hug:

[Zorra]

31. So, like, what happens if you do hundreds of high doses over a period

of several years?

"Commit Random Acts Of Kindness And Senseless Beauty"

[slay]

44. Didn't hurt me

i can't say i've done mushrooms over 100 times (more like 30), but i have done lsd a little over a hundred times. probably a bit unnecessary, but hey, i was young. never had a flashback and no long term negative effects that i know of. it's been many years since i've done either. just my personal experience.

[Zorra]

50. Yeh. Got a similar T-shirt too.

Did shrooms, acid, and medicine probably over a hundred times each over a 10 year period when I was young.

Yes, I agree, probably unnecessary after a point, but the experiences were overwhelmingly positive and if there were any negative effects I am unaware of them.

[eppur_se_muova]

32. So ... who's going to add psilocybin to the Kool-Aid ? nt

[byronius]

34. When I used to grow them...

... we used a text by 'Oss and Oeric', presumably the fungi experts Wasson and Hoffman. The book put forth a theory that cubensis spores can survive deep space, and were the method used by aliens to spread consciousness to other worlds.

They also suggested that the secret to faster than light travel would be divined by a scientific person experiencing the effects.

It was well-reasoned, and I've carried the idea with me forever.

Oh, we grew such beautiful little guys.

[Lucky Luciano]

40. Haha - looks like you ate too many! All good! nt

[tridim]

58. I wish some spores would land on some cow patties in my city.

So far, nothing.

I have a few different reliable mycelia in my neighborhood, but they're all non-psychoactive, though one is edible.

[Richard D]

75. There have already been some amazing discoveries linked to entheogens

And, well, music would just suck.

[Newest Reality]

77. I thought that

Terrence Mckenna and his Brother Dennis eventually owned-up to writing that guide under the pen-names, Oss and Oeric.

Actually, the introduction, the Mushroom Speaks, indicated that the mushrooms themselves were the alien life form that enjoyed trading its knowledge for having a symbiotic experience with intelligent, sentient lifeforms.

[Dragonfli]

84. Not sure, but at a workshop Terrence put on at a pagan festival in the 90's

that I attended he rather strongly hinted at it and even signed a few.

[LynneSin]

37. Who here wants to work as a softdrink/beer vendor at the next RNC Convention

:hide:

( I jest I jest)

[byronius]

38. Couldn't hurt.

They need more cowbell.

[slay]

45. rofl

:rofl:

[Fuddnik]

55. I live in Tampa, and could use a part-time job.

I jest too.

The stoopid would be overwhelming. I feel sorry for all the strippers who'll get stiffed that week. They're tightwads too.

[slay]

39. I've taken mushrooms

and found the experience highly enriching most of the time. i feel i gained quite a bit of insight into myself and my place in the universe from experiments with mushrooms and lsd. *just a personal experience, not a recommendation*

[TK421]

88. to me, shrooms and LSD were two totally different highs

the acid trip was more of a body rush kind of "I GOT TO DO SOMETHING NOW, LIKE COOK EGGS WITH EVERY INGREDIENT IN THE FRIDGE"!!Don't get me wrong, I love acid and had lots of fun with it, where as shrooms were kind of like "You have eggs in the fridge..why not just scramble them up and watch the beauty of them as they curdle with the spatula"? and what a process that was to behold!

[elleng]

46. Heading to Baltimore!!!

:hi:

[tabasco]

48. Noooooo!!!!!! It's "drugs."

We must expend massive resources to eliminate it from the planet and imprison anyone who possesses it!*

*Official US government policy.

[mwooldri]

51. Unless it's "Big Pharma".

Tack on a molecule or two, call it a cute name and charge people plenty of money to get a prescription from your doctor for this.

That I think is official government policy too.

[tcaudilllg]

49. So magic mushrooms make you... an ENFJ? an INFP? What?

[saras]

52. Yet another area where America is largely in the dark ages, trying to move backwards.

http://www.maps.org/">The Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, doing the boring work with the law and the funding so that the researchers can get on with their work.

DEFINITELY a worthwhile charity for progressives. I'd put them up there with the Southern Poverty Law Center.

I have no connection to either group except for both supporting their work and having benefited from it.

As for this particular research, I think they will eventually find that this beneficial personality change actually only happens to those who want it. America has been doing pretty extensive, if informal, research with psychedelics for some fifty years, and one thing that's clear is that they don't magically, permanently change people. Poorly made, contaminated psychedelics DO permanently change people, for the worse, but that's another thing entirely. And people who always have access to well-made chemicals seem to be able to use them as often as once a week for decades and still function as competent professionals, with relatively *normal* personalities.

One year isn't permanent - it's just a long time. This is why some people take psychedelics about once a year, or perhaps not every year.

"Working with 51 psychologically healthy volunteers, the study authors conducted baseline personality tests before engaging the participants in a total of two to five experiment sessions, each lasting about eight hours.

The researchers said that almost all of the study participants deemed themselves to be "spiritually active." Roughly half had completed a post-graduate education."

Note also that the tests were NOT done on "ordinary people". These - spiritually active, postgrad, "psychologically healthy" i.e. not visibly insane - are the people most likely to benefit from psychedelics. This is why Aldous Huxley, the Luces, and other influential early users thought that they should be reserved for the upper classes - by education and aesthetics for Huxley, by income and family for the Luces.

From slate.com, http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/press_box/2010/06/the_time_and_life_acid_trip.html">How Time and Life magazines helped turn America on to LSD.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlS_DopvoZc">And, just for fun, the band that did the best job of making music to trip to

[closeupready]

56. Yes, but does it cure cancer?

nt

[Fuddnik]

57. I wondered why I was so wonderful.

Back in the early 80's, you could still buy growing kits, legally, through the mail. I started a few in my apartment. In the mean time, I had a pretty bad motorcycle accident, and was hospitalized for 6 weeks.

While I was in there, my mother took it upon herself to go and clean my apartment. She said, "I saw some jars laying around. It looked like they had mushrooms growing in them, so I threw them out".

Thanks mom.

[deutsey]

60. I'd be interested in trying shrooms, I'm just not sure how to go about acquiring them

In college I could've done them because I knew guys who were into them. These days, not so much.

[leveymg]

64. Meet you at the record store next to the Pink Floyd section at 5 this afternoon.

See you on the Dark Side of the Moon.

[deutsey]

65. LOL...I'll be there, man.

:hi:

[leveymg]

67. I'm still there, even after it closed in 1999. I'll be the man on the inside looking outside.

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_y-Qon5Eq6DE/TL23NRr94pI/AAAAAAAABS8/m8KpASBlv2w/s1600/pink+floyd+meddle.jpg

[BeHereNow]

72. Visit with some young people, artists in particular.

The shroom culture is alive and well there.
I encourage you to try some if you never have.
You've known me for years here on DU.
Trust me on this one...
BHN

[True Earthling]

81. Here you go...

MAGIC MUSHROOM GROW KIT
<3200> 49.00€

All the work has been done for you.

Just unpack the box, water it and keep the temperature around 24 degrees Celsius (see info pages). Within a few weeks you can harvest between 250 and 300 gram of your own magic Mushrooms (Stropharia cubensis). We do not ship the Grow Box COD (Pay the Postman).

http://www.amazing-nature.com/magic-mushroom-grow-p-53.html

The import and possession of spores is legal except in GA, CA and Idaho...

United States
In the United States, possession of psilocybin-containing mushrooms is illegal because they contain the Schedule I drugs psilocin and psilocybin. Spores, however, which do not contain psychoactive chemicals, are only explicitly illegal in Georgia, Idaho and California. Additionally spores are illegal to import, buy, sell, trade, or give away in California if intended to be cultivated.<28> In the rest of the country, it's not illegal to just sell the spores, but selling them with the purpose of producing hallucinogenic mushrooms is illegal.<29><30>

The Florida Supreme Court in 1978 ruled that possession of wild psilocybin mushrooms is not illegal;<31> however, whether knowingly gathering wild psilocybin mushrooms for later use is illegal was not addressed in the decision.<32>

In all states, except New Mexico, growing psilocybin-containing mushrooms from spores is considered manufacture of a controlled substance.<31> In New Mexico, on June 15, 2005, the New Mexico appeals court ruled that growing psilocybin mushrooms for personal use is not manufacture of a controlled substance.<33><34>

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_status_of_psilocybin_mushrooms

[NashVegas]

62. Anyone Who Imagines Government-Approved Administration of Recreational/Mind Altering Drugs ....

Is for any individual's benefit, is a stooge.

[leveymg]

63. I'm open to that idea. ;-)

[riverwalker]

70. Terence McKenna

was a pathfinder of sorts on this.

[DirkGently]

71. Bill Hicks ... right again. (nt)

[Habibi]

76. Get a dose to my mother-in-law,

stat!

[sarcasmo]

78. A few of my in laws could use that drug.

[struggle4progress]

80. Today's ABC news report links a 2008 study:

September 29, 2011 11:18 AM
Magic mushrooms improve personality? What study says
By David W Freeman
... The study - published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology - showed that nearly 60 percent of 51 participants given psilocybin exhibited greater openness upon completing two to five eight-hour sessions with the hallucinogen. During each session, participants were encouraged to lie on a couch, listen to music through headphones, and wear an eye mask to block visual stimulation - and to direct their thoughts inward ...
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-20113333-10391704.html

Published online before print July 1, 2008, doi: 10.1177/0269881108094300
J Psychopharmacol August 2008 vol. 22 no. 6 621-632
Mystical-type experiences occasioned by psilocybin mediate the attribution of personal meaning and spiritual significance 14 months later
RR Griffiths
http://jop.sagepub.com/content/22/6/621.abstract

[Qutzupalotl]

82. Gordon Wasson et al believed a form of psilocybin was used in Eleusinian mysteries.

Not much is known about the ceremony, but they believe it involved fasting then imbibing wine made from ergotized rye, which contained psilocybin.

Plato said that the ritual was life-changing.

[drokhole]

86. Oh, the MANY wonders of entheogens (some interesting links included)...

...it's my opinion that not only should they be legal, but, if an individual were to so choose, there should thoroughly trained and sanctioned professionals to help guide them through their experience. Either way, in addition to legalization, a concentrated effort should simultaneously be made to help people understand these substances for the sacraments that they are (to help ensure Leary's proper "Set and Setting"). We spend mounds of cash exploring outer-space, while we've completely neglected exploring inner-space (make fun all you want for the "hippy" talk, I can't think of a better way of expressing it...oh, and it's also a shit ton cheaper). I honestly believe this could improve society by leaps and bounds.

Here's a short TED lecture by the doctor cited in the OP's study - Dr. Roland Griffiths, Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Neurosciences at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine - on psilocybin:

TEDxMidAtlantic - Roland Griffiths - 11/5/09
'Magic Mushrooms' Can Improve Psychological Health Long Term

And then there's this similar study done by Dr. Rick Strassman on the compound DMT:

DMT: The Spirit Molecule: A Doctor's Revolutionary Research into the Biology of Near-Death and Mystical Experiences
DMT: The Spirit Molecule Documentary (WELL WORTH THE WATCH)

And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Aldous Huxley's wonderful account of his experience on mescaline:

The Doors of Perception

Then you have studies/circumstances that have shown these substances to help cure folks of actual dangerous addictions to harder "drugs" - like Ibogaine's effect on heroin users after one administration:

IBOGAINE IN THE NEWS

Or LSD's promising ability in helping treat alcoholics:

LSD Treatment For Alcoholism Gets New Look

And, finally, Alan Watts masterfully discusses the issue in this FANTASTIC talk (consider the very first line: "The first thing we must be clear about is that the word 'drugs' is very misleading."):

Drug Abuse Law & Sin ∞ Alan Watts (1/5)
(there are links to parts 2-5 on the same page...the entire talk is well worth a listen)

"Let us declare nature to be legitimate. The notion of illegal plants is obnoxious and ridiculous in the first place." - Terence McKenna

[Dragonbreathp9d]

92. True for me, they have helped me through my hardest times

If you want details, I am more than willing to share.

[Modern_Matthew]

94. How soon can we mandate these? Start with the red states! nt

[Le Taz Hot]

97. Fascinating.

That's a damned powerful substance, but then again, psychedelics always have been. I do miss them (sigh) but the last time I tried 'shrooms, they fucked with my stomach and I spent a good part of the journey on the bathroom floor watching all the interesting patterns on the linoleum in between spewing my guts out. Other psychedelics are easier on my stomach.

[TheManInTheMac]

99. I think a poisonous mushroom would improve more personalities

than this.