What Happens to Your Brain When You Hallucinate?

As psychedelics become more popular, with more being spoken about their medical properties, the question of hallucinations arises. After all, psychedelics are widely known for causing them. So, what are these hallucinations, and what happens in your brain when you take these drugs that makes you hallucinate?

The brain is a vast and hard-to-understand organ, and what happens in it when we hallucinate is not well understood. But research is coming out everyday to help us understand better how the drugs we take, effect our brains. We’re dedicated to covering this emerging field of psychedelics! For more articles like this one, sign up for the Psychedelics Weekly Newsletter, your #1 internet source for everything important going on in this quickly growing space.

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What are psychedelic drugs?

Psychedelic drugs are members of a group called hallucinogens, which fit under the category of psychoactive drugs. Psychedelics are associated with causing hallucinations, which are essentially the sensation of something that doesn’t actually exist. This can mean smelling something, seeing something, hearing something, feeling something, or tasting something that isn’t there.

Apart from hallucinations, psychedelics are known for causing users to have spiritual experiences, to feel more connected to those around and the universe as a whole, to bring on feelings of euphoria and wellbeing, to alter perception, cognition, and mood, and to promote what people refer to as ‘life-changing’ experiences.

While these occurrences are generally positive, psychedelics are also associated with ‘bad trips’; in which a user experiences negative hallucinations. Sometimes along with symptoms like erratic heartrate, chills, anxiety, paranoia, nausea, raised blood pressure, and dizziness. Bad trips are more often than not associated with taking too much of a drug, as well as being in bad surroundings or around the wrong people for the situation. Plenty can be done to avoid bad trips when taking these drugs.

Many different types of psychedelic drugs exist, and they can be found in nature or created in a lab. Nature-based psychedelics include peyote, psilocybin (magic mushrooms), and DMT, whereas lab made psychedelics include drugs like LSD, ketamine, and PCP. As of right now, according to the federal government, all psychedelic compounds are schedule I. This excludes ketamine, which is Schedule III, and able to be prescribed for off-label use as an antidepressant or pain medication, esketamine – a cousin to ketamine which enjoys FDA approval for depression, and DXM, which has been found in OTC cold medicines since 1958.

While the federal government holds these drugs illegal, individual states and locations like Detroit, have made their own rules, decriminalizing these compounds for recreational use, or in the case of Oregon, legalizing them for medical use. These law changes are generally related to entheogenic plants (naturally occurring psychedelics) more than their lab-created counterparts.

Who gets hallucinations?

When we talk about hallucinations, we’re not necessarily talking about drug use, or even psychedelic drug use. So before getting to what happens in the brain when we hallucinate, first let’s examine who tends to have this happen. Hallucinations can happen for different reasons outside of drug use. One of the big factors for hallucinations is medical issues, particularly neural issues like schizophrenia, Parkinson’s, or epilepsy, all of which can cause hallucinations at given times.

Schizophrenics, for example, experience hallucinations frequently, with as many as 70% reporting such occurrences. 60-90% of these say they hear voices. When it comes to Parkinson’s disease, about half of patients report seeing things at times that aren’t there. Alzheimer’s is another disorder that can come with hallucinations, generally in the more advanced cases.

Brain tumors are another reason for people to experience hallucinations. Not all brain tumors will, and the kind of hallucinations are based on where the tumor is, and what kind of a tumor it is. Some will cause visions, while others might cause the person to smell or taste something that’s not there. Epileptics similarly can experience hallucinations depending on where the seizures they have, effect their brains.

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Visual hallucinations can be experienced by those suffering from eye issues like macular degeneration, glaucoma, or cataracts. Called Charles Bonnet syndrome, it can actually be hard for those suffering the ailment to know when what they’re seeing is real or not. Even people who get migraines have experiences akin to hallucinating, though possibly in a different way. About a third of migraine sufferers have what’s called an ‘aura’, which can look like a crescent of light, sometimes multi-colored, sometimes flickering in the periphery.

What happens in the brain when we hallucinate?

According to the 2014 systematic review Pharmacology of Hallucinations: Several Mechanisms for One Single Symptom?, “Hallucinations are complex misperceptions, that principally occur in schizophrenia or after intoxication induced by three main classes of drugs: psychostimulants, psychedelics, and dissociative anesthetics.”

The study authors continue that there are three things that can happen in the brain when taking drugs to make us hallucinate: “(1) activation of dopamine D2 receptors (D2Rs) with psychostimulants, (2) activation of serotonin 5HT2A receptors (HT2ARs) with psychedelics, and (3) blockage of glutamate NMDA receptors (NMDARs) with dissociative anesthetics.” The authors further explain this:

“Psychostimulants-induced hallucinations result from increased dopamine transmission and hyperactivation of dopamine D2 receptor (D2R). Furthermore, “dissociative anesthetics” drugs induce complex schizophrenia-like clinical pictures, including hallucinations, that result from the blockade of glutamate NMDA receptors (NMDAR). Lastly, psychedelics act by stimulating the serotoninergic 5HT2A receptor (5HT2AR)”. Their review suggests:

“That if there may be common neurobiological pathways between the different pharmacological systems that are responsible for the hallucinations, there may also be unique properties of each system, which explains the clinical differences observed.”

The authors explained the three main models for hallucination.

• The Dopamine Model, which relates mainly to schizophrenia. In this model, “the hypothesis that positive symptoms may be related to an excessive transmission of dopamine has become the main pharmacological model of positive symptoms in schizophrenia.” These cases are nearly always auditory.

• The Glutamate Model, which relates mainly to dissociative anesthetics and schizophrenia. In this model, the role of NMDARs (a receptor) is looked at in both schizophrenic and dissociative-anesthetic induced hallucinations. “Currently, NMDAR hypofunction is considered by several leading researchers of the field to be a major neurobiological hypothesis for schizophrenia.”

• The Serotonin Model, which relates mainly to psychedelic drugs and schizophrenia. While there is certainly debate about what causes the hallucinations, one of the main beliefs is about the “stimulation of serotonin 5HT2AR on cortical neurons.” The authors explain, “Cortical 5HT2AR hyperactivation may affect the functioning of the cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical loops and triggers a disruption in the thalamic gating of sensory and cognitive information. It has been proposed that this process triggers a breakdown of cognitive integrity and results in the subsequent occurrence of aberrant feelings and perceptions.”

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More research on the brain when we hallucinate

In the 2009 publication On the neurobiology of hallucinations, author Patricia Boksa, PhD points out that hallucinations can be had by those without neural problems, pointing out how in times of grief or due to sensory deprivation, hallucinations are sometimes experienced. She went on to say that “it is unknown at present whether hallucinations are generated by similar mechanisms in patients and in healthy people.”

Boksa goes on to explain how patients with brain lesions who had hallucinations were studied, and that the hallucinations present were relevant to where the damage was. “For example, the complex visual hallucinations seen in Charles Bonnet syndrome are most often caused by damage to the visual system such as macular degeneration or lesions to the central nervous system pathway between the eye and the visual cortex.”

When it comes to schizophrenia, Boksa referenced a comprehensive review on neuroimaging related to what happens to the brain when people hallucinate. “The most consistent finding of structural neuroimaging studies of patients with auditory hallucinations is reduced grey matter volume in the superior temporal gyrus, including the primary auditory cortex.”

She also referenced another study which made the point that “faulty frontotemporal interactions may contribute to the experience of hallucinations being involuntary”, and that “Functional activation studies of actively hallucinating participants have generally reported increased activity in language areas and in the primary auditory cortex.”

In a 2016 article for ABC News, University of Western Australia, neuropsychologist Professor Flavie Waters, posited that hallucinations are the result of something going wrong between the frontal lobe and sensory cortex, also pointing to auditory hallucinations of schizophrenics having to do with an overactive auditory cortex.

In Parkinson’s patients, overactivity is often seen in the visual cortex, which leads to mainly visual hallucinations. Professor Waters went on to apply all this to psychoactive drugs, saying it’s quite possible that some drugs can mess with how sense processors and the frontal lobe interact, in a similar way, saying “It allows the processing of images and sound that would normally be inhibited.”

One last idea

An important thing to consider, is the idea of how we interpret the world around. In a 2019 study A Hallucinogenic Serotonin-2A Receptor Agonist Reduces Visual Response Gain and Alters Temporal Dynamics in Mouse V1, researchers found that after being given a hallucinogen, that hallucinating mice had a reduction in activity in the brain’s vision center, suggesting “hallucinations happen when the brain overcompensates for a lack of information coming from the outside world.” Said study researcher Cristopher Niell of the University of Oregon in Eugene, “If you’re putting less weight on what’s going on around you but then over-interpreting it, that could lead to hallucinations.”

For the study, scientists used a compound called DOI (4-iodo-2,5-dimethoxyphenylisopropylamine), which is a serotonergic hallucinogen drug. Then they showed the mice pictures, while looking at their brains. They found that the drug lessened incoming visual information, with the implication that hallucinations come from misinterpreting the diminished information coming in from the world around.

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Said Niell of the finding, “You might expect visual hallucinations would result from neurons in the brain firing like crazy, or by mismatched signals… We were surprised to find that a hallucinogenic drug instead led to a reduction of activity in the visual cortex.” While the brain attempting to fill in blanks does sound like it makes sense, Niell stated,

“I don’t feel like we’ve necessarily found the smoking gun for the entire underlying cause of hallucinations, but this is likely to be a piece of it.”

Conclusion

The brain is a powerful and intricate piece of human machinery, and for as much as we know about it, there are tons of questions still unanswered. What happens in the brain when we hallucinate is one of them, although a growing body of research is doing more and more to shed light on this highly confusing and intriguing topic.

Hello and welcome! Thanks for making it to CBDtesters.co, your one-stop-shop for the most thought-provoking and relevant cannabis and psychedelics-related news going on globally. Join us frequently to stay up-to-date on the always-morphing universe of cannabis and medical psychedelics, and subscribe to The Psychedelics Weekly Newsletter, so you know all the important stories going on.

Disclaimer: Hi, I’m a researcher and writer. I’m not a doctor, lawyer, or businessperson. All information in my articles is sourced and referenced, and all opinions stated are mine. I am not giving anyone advice, and though I am more than happy to discuss topics, should someone have a further question or concern, they should seek guidance from a relevant professional.

The Psychedelics Weekly Newsletter

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Psychedelics and the Search For More

“Psychedelics are illegal not because a loving government is concerned that you may jump out of a third story window. Psychedelics are illegal because they dissolve opinion structures and culturally laid down models of behaviour and information processing. They open you up to the possibility that everything you know is wrong.” – Terrence Mckenna

Whilst in the Netherlands they illegalized magic mushrooms after a girl sadly did literally jump out a window, Terrence Mcknenna does bring up a few interesting points in his quote above. Psychedelic drugs have been known to open up people’s minds, see through man-made structures and make them see differently. In a world where social media and online activity is almost more prominent than real life interaction, this generation is truly living a mundane existence. The search for meaning has never been more active. Therefore, it’s no surprise that the psychedelic renaissance is here and it’s happening right now. People are looking beyond their screens and searching for more, and perhaps psychedelics are the way forward. So, are these just pointless recreational drugs? Or are they the cure for a disillusioned generation? 

For more articles like this one, remember to subscribe to the Psychedelics Weekly Newsletter, your top source for everything related to this growing and important industry. Also save big on Delta 8, Delta 9 THC, Delta-10 THC, THCO, THCV, THCP & HHC products by checking out our “Best-of” lists!

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The Disillusioned Generation

The year is 2022 and we live in a world of screens. TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and various other platforms are now the place to express personality and gain social status. Plus, with covid having dominated the last 2 years, social meet ups are at an all time low, with zoom calls usually preferred. But what has this done to us? Or, what has this done to generation Z? Centre for Mental Health writes:

“It is thought that addiction to social media affects around 5% of young people, and was recently described as potentially more addictive than alcohol and cigarettes…What is dangerous about this compulsive use is that, if gratification is not experienced, users may internalise beliefs that this is due to being ‘unpopular’, ‘unfunny’”

Social media has created an atmosphere of needed gratification. That’s not to say that this wasn’t there before. Of course it was. Human beings are social animals that want to be liked, even for an evolutionary purpose. However, rather than this gratification happening in the real world, where people look and feel themselves, it happens online instead. The world of online is a place where people can choose, edit and beautify themselves to look exactly as they want to be perceived.

It’s not real. Pictures are accentuated and changed in order to match a gender beauty ideal that has been created by pornography and media. Experiences are captured and posted online only if they’re amazing and beautiful, showing someone’s life to be far more exciting than it really is. Thoughts are crafted and shared on Twitter and Facebook in perfect sentences, unlike how real thought and conversation happen.

Ultimately, none of it is real and it’s creating an atmosphere where people feel like they’re not enough. They’re not rich enough, they’re not beautiful enough, they’re not interesting enough. According to the Centre of Medical Health, 9 out 10 women are not happy with how they look, which is a symptom of an online world that constantly makes them feel inferior. In addition, suicide rates in men are at an all time high, which is linked to men feeling it isn’t ‘manly’ to open up about their feelings.

The Generation That Wants Change

However, it would be an unfair accusation to label this generation as one that sits passively in its pit of disillusionment. There’s evidence that shows that people are fighting against the grasps of social media. The Content Strategist writes:

“Sixty-four percent of Generation Z is taking a break from at least one social media platform, while thirty-four percent is leaving permanently. This is contradictory to the image of Gen Z’ers as social media natives who grew up with the platforms and for whom social media is a strong sense of identity.”

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This generation wants change, just like those in the 60s did. Although the common enemy isn’t as obvious as during the first world war, second world war, or the civil rights in the 1960s, 2022 is a time of sporadic issues. In a sense, this generation has to fight on more than just one front. There is inequality everywhere we look; there are gender issues, racial issues, identity issues, poltical issues, wealth issues and climate issues. With time running out as the world begins to self-destruct, young people of today are forced to try all of these problems at once. As Naoimi Klein once said: 

“The task is clear: to create a culture of caretaking in which no one and nowhere is thrown away, in which the inherent value of people and all life is foundational.”

With all of these battles taking place, the lack of trust for the establishment is at an all time low. People are searching elsewhere for information and for meaning. It’s no surprise then that the world of drugs and, more importantly, psychedelics is going through a new renaissance. 

What are Psychedelics?

Psychedelic, also known as hallucinogenic, drugs include: LSD, Mescaline, Psilocybin, DMT and Ayahuasca – to name a few. They cause an extremely potent experience that many have labelled spiritual or even religious. On a scientific level, psychedelic drugs alter people’s state of perception. However, unlike less potent drugs, hallucinogens will often make people see hallucinations and dive into the depths of their subconscious. It is believed that psychedelic drugs have the ability to break through social structures and show users an alternative reality. A reality free of boundaries. A reality of meaning, and yet at the same, highlighting the complete lack of meaning. Federico Fellini, the Italian director, said this about his psychedelic trip:

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“Objects and their functions no longer had any significance. All I perceived was perception itself, the hell of forms and figures devoid of human emotion and detached from the reality of my unreal environment. I was an instrument in a virtual world that constantly renewed its own meaningless image in a living world that was itself perceived outside of nature. And since the appearance of things was no longer definitive but limitless, this paradisiacal awareness freed me from the reality external to myself.”

The Ego Death

This intense description of an acid trip could also be referred to as ‘ego death’. Ego death is usually caused by psychedelic experiences, and it describes when someone exists beyond the limits of the ego. The ego, in the sense of modern day society, is our own image of oneself. As previously mentioned, people look to social media as a way to express and judge their own self-worth. However, ego death destroys this idea, highlighting that we are all one and the same – consciousness is a universal thing. Revitalising Infusions explains why people are striving for ego death through psychedelic trips:

“According to new scientific research, these experiences can have a powerful and positive effect on mental health. In a recent study on ego dissolution… people who scored higher on ego dissolution tended to be more positive and have a better outlook on their life after the experience.”

Psychedelics being used to open people’s minds to the beauty of the universe and the unity of all people is nothing new. Rastafarians often use THC in their religious rituals to bring a sense of ceremonial togetherness. In addition, people travel all the way to South America to experience Ayahuasca trips to bring back meaning to their life. In fact, Pink Floyd were known to take LSD and many believe that their Dark Side of the Moon album was heavily inspired by the drug. In addition, the Beatles, too, were known to take LSD and it’s evident that this substance had huge inspirations over their music.

However, what’s especially interesting about the four Liverpool lads, is that after their dip into the world of psychedelics ended, they decided to chance their arm at transcendental meditation. The band was searching for more and, much like psychedelics, meditation allowed them to be free of man-made structures and see society on a different plane. This is a great example of those who were evidently using psychedelic drugs to quell their desire for real meaning. 

Medicinal Psychedelics

The National Institute of Drug Abuse found that 7.1 million Americans over the age of 12 are reported to have used psychedelic drugs in the year 2020. As you can clearly see, recreational use of hallucinogens is happening and perhaps the reason for this is this dogged search for meaning. However, it’s not just happening recreationally, the use of psychedelic drugs in medicine is also being rethought and changed. The NCBI states:

“In clinical research settings around the world, renewed investigations are taking place on the use of psychedelic substances for treating illnesses such as addiction, depression, anxiety and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).”

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Psilocybin, the psychedelic substance within magic mushrooms, is now being used in the US and UK to treat depression and other mental health issues. The state of Oregon actually decriminalised it in 2020. Whilst it’s early days, there is clear proof that even the medical establishment are starting to accept the benefits of hallucinogens. Whilst in the 60s and 70s psychedelic drugs were demonized and vilified for being a part of a – so called – disrupting counterculture, the world is now beginning to accept them. Michael Pollan says:

“Now the pendulum is swinging back, and the interest in their usefulness as a tool to help treat a variety of psychiatric conditions is rapidly growing”

Conclusion

The use of psychedelic drugs should not be simplified and reduced to pointless, recreational abuse. This is not always the case, and far from it. Psychedelic drugs are a part of something deeper, something ingrained into modern society: a search for more. A search for meaning. And, in this mundane, social-media dominated world we live in, it’s no surprise that people are turning to anything and everything to sprinkle meaning into their lives. Just like the Beatles, just like Pink Floyd, and just like many ancient cultures before us, people of today are using psychedelic drugs to explore a world beyond social structures. In fact, even medical practises are now beginning to trust and accept the wonders of hallucinogens to treat mental health issues. The psychedelic renaissance is truly here.

Hello readers! Thanks for joining us at CBDtesters.co, the #1 internet location for the most recent and interesting cannabis and psychedelics-related news from around the globe. Visit the site everyday to stay abreast of the quickly-moving landscape of legal drugs and industrial hemp, and sign up for The Psychedelics Weekly Newsletter, to ensure you always know what’s going on.

Disclaimer: Hi, I’m a researcher and writer. I’m not a doctor, lawyer, or businessperson. All information in my articles is sourced and referenced, and all opinions stated are mine. I am not giving anyone advice, and though I am more than happy to discuss topics. Should someone have a further question or concern, they should seek guidance from a relevant professional.

The Psychedelics Weekly Newsletter

The post Psychedelics and the Search For More appeared first on CBD Testers.

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Give It a Puff with Cannabis Inhalers

There are a ton of different ways of ingesting cannabis these days from standard smoking, to vaping, to eating edibles, to applying patches, to drinking down tinctures and oils, to rubbing creams on the skin, to sticking it up body parts, to puffing it in an inhaler. So what’s with this inhaler thing? Is it useful, or beneficial in some way? Read on to find out more about cannabis inhalers, and if they’re the right product for you.

Cannabis inhalers are a new and interesting way of getting your weed fix, whether you want it for medical or recreational purposes. We’re all about covering the world of weed, so check out The THC Weekly Newsletter to keep on track with all the important stories of the industry today, and to get exclusive access to deals on flowers, vapes, edibles, and many more products! We’ve also got great deals on cannabinoid compounds like HHC-O, Delta 8, Delta 9 THC, Delta-10 THC, THCO, THCV, THCP & HHC. Find them in our “Best-of” lists!

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What is a delivery method?

Cannabis inhalers make up one method of the many different cannabis delivery methods that exist today. A delivery method is just a fancy way of saying ‘how to get it in you’, though which delivery method you use will determine how the drug might affect you. In this way, delivery methods were not created equally.

Consider that when you smoke or vape, cannabinoids get directly into the blood stream by way of the alveoli in the lungs. The cannabinoids bind to endocannabinoid receptors, and very little goes through the gastrointestinal tract to get metabolized by the liver. This is not the case when eating an edible or swallowing down tincture or oil.

In these cases, the cannabinoids go to the stomach, and through the digestive tract, where the THC binds to a glurononide compound to form another version of THC called 11-hydroxy-THC. 11-Hydroxy-THC is often thought of as being more intense, and certainly lasts for hours longer, while also possible having a better chance at crossing the blood brain barrier due to being more water soluble than standard THC.

What about putting it on your skin, via a patch or cream? In these cases, it also bypasses the digestive tract, much like with smoking, being absorbed directly into the bloodstream. This is also the case with suppositories which are generally inserted into a vagina or anus, and not only get medicine directly to where a problem might be, but allow for quick absorption through areas with lots of blood vessels.

What is a cannabis inhaler?

When we speak of cannabis inhalers, it’s what it sounds like, to a degree. It looks like an inhaler an asthmatic might use, and is used in the same way. When the inhaler bulb is pushed down, it creates a vapor that the user very quickly sucks into their lungs. This means it operates like a smoking or vaping delivery method, allowing the cannabinoids access to the bloodstream via the lungs.

Cannabis inhalers don’t produce smoke, but instead are more like vaporizers, producing a vapor, but without the application of heat. Unlike with standard vapes – either dry herb or oil, cannabis inhalers offer the ability for specific dosing. This is similar to, or even better than, the ability to get a specific dose by way of a needle used for oil or tinctures, which can measure in units, or a capsule with a set amount within. However, those methods compete with the idea of bioavailability, the idea of how much of the substance we’ll actually be able to absorb in the end.

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Inhalers provide very specific dosing by way of letting out a metered amount of vapor in each pull. This way, it’s always known how much medicine is being ingested. These inhalers have been pointed out as being a possibly useful treatment for people suffering from asthma, as well as a generally good way of simply delivering cannabinoids into the body, regardless of lung issues. In terms of using it as a delivery method, inhalers provide a discreet way of getting medicine or getting high, which literally masquerades as a medical device regardless of how its being used. Plus, as an added bonus, it creates absolutely no weed smell.

Are cannabis inhalers useful?

Inhalers provide a highly bioavailable way to get cannabinoids into your system, and to do it very quickly, just like smoking and vaping. How bioavailable? One study called The pharmacokinetics, efficacy, and safety of a novel selective-dose cannabis inhaler in patients with chronic pain: A randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial, investigated the Syqe inhaler. It was found by investigators that apparently tiny dose differences caused pretty big effect changes.

“Such subtle microgram dose differences potentially indicate that the ∆9-THC dose–response effects are extremely sensitive and require very high dosing precision. It is assumed the reasons for such promising drug delivery performance are the bioavailability and adherence-enhancing technologies of the Syqe Inhaler platform in addition to the electronic selective dosing capabilities.”

While an IV injection is generally considered the method with the highest bioavailability, which gets it closer to a 100% absorption rate, inhalation via smoking has shown a lower rate of closer to 30%, while oral ingestion is much lower at 4-12%. Inhalers might not produce a more bioavailable form than a standard joint or vape, but certainly are on par if not better. In one study that looked at nicotine bioavailability in short puffs vs deep inhalations (the equivalent of a joint vs an inhaler), both methods showed about the same equivalency.

Dry powder inhalers

When we think of inhalers, we generally think of an aerosol mist that’s released. This is the standard method of inhalers, although now there is a new kind being released, dry-powder inhalers. These inhalers, as it sounds, deliver medication to the lungs in powder form. These inhalers can also provide a specific dose, but sometime require a bit more work on the part of the consumer to get it correct.

The powder is typically held in a capsule which is manually loaded, or in the inhaler itself depending on the proprietary technology. Much like a regular inhaler, once it is ready to go, the consumer takes one deep inhale, and holds their breath for 5-10 seconds. Since powder can irritate the lungs in big amounts, each dose is usually not more than a few tens of milligrams.

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These inhalers generally rely on the patient very forcibly breathing in, as a way to get the powder from the device to the lungs, and to break up the particles into small enough particulates. Those who can’t sufficiently inhale, might not get the correct dose. In fact, its been shown that 50-100% of users use these inhalers incorrectly, which doesn’t say much for them. On the other hand, as they become more well known and available, perhaps how to use them will become more standardized.

Powder inhalers have been shown to be good for treating respiratory ailments like asthma, bronchitis and emphysema. These inhalers require the correct storage which involves a dry place, not more than 77 °F (25 °C), and for the package to be sealed. Any moisture can affect the powder, and the ability to use it.

Recreational or medicinal?

Truth is, when it comes to weed, nearly any delivery method can be either for recreational or medical use. The main exception here are IV administration and IM (intramuscular) administration, which are generally only administered in a medical setting, making them really only for medical use. This could change if the idea of injectable weed ever became big, but I don’t see that being the case for now.

Cannabis inhalers could prove very useful for people like asthmatics that need to get medicine directly to the lungs, and without the irritation and harm of smoking. But it doesn’t mean that others can’t benefit. Not only have they shown to be good for pain as well – likely because of the high bioavailability, but they can also just be used for fun, as a discreet way to get high in public places.

While I don’t often see people puffing on inhalers recreationally, they are being sold in this way. Case in point, EOS Labs which sells Inspire, the 100% smoke-free inhaler, offered for both CBD and THC. These inhalers can be found in dispensaries in Oregon, but are not currently sold in other states due to regulations. Hopefully in the future this will change.

Conclusion

Perhaps cannabis inhalers will remain a more medically used device. Or, perhaps the next big thing will be for everyone to walk around with what looks like asthma medication. Either way, this method of ingestion is becoming more popular, giving a smoke-free, heat-free way of getting cannabinoids like THC and CBD into the system, and to do so undercover.

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Hello readers! Welcome to CBDtesters.co, the #1 web spot for the most relevant and important cannabis and psychedelics-related news going on globally. Join us frequently to stay in-the-know on the quickly-morphing landscape of legal drugs and industrial hemp, and check out The THC Weekly Newsletter, so you’re first to get every news story.

Disclaimer: Hi, I’m a researcher and writer. I’m not a doctor, lawyer, or businessperson. All information in my articles is sourced and referenced, and all opinions stated are mine. I am not giving anyone advice, and though I am more than happy to discuss topics, should someone have a further question or concern, they should seek guidance from a relevant professional.

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Digital Money and Digital Weed? How Crypto and NFTs are Reshaping the Cannabis Industry

As mainstream, profitable, and technologically advanced as the cannabis industry has become in recent years, the struggle to access financial services is still one of the prevailing issues faced by business owners. It seems as though congress won’t provide any solutions on this front until they’re forced to do so via a federal legalization. But being the adaptive industry that cannabis is, crypto and NTFs are proving to be interesting legal alternatives to operating in all-cash.  

The cannabis industry is complicated enough as it is, add to the mix trying to figure out financing solutions, and it’s enough to make you almost want to give up. Luckily, cryptocurrency and NFTs are offering unique alternatives to what once seemed like a dead-end road. Remember to subscribe to The THC Weekly Newsletter for more articles like this one and exclusive deals on flowers, vapes, edibles, and more! Also save big on HHC-O, Delta 8, Delta 9 THC, Delta-10 THC, THCO, THCV, THCP & HHC products by checking out our “Best-of” lists!

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Without banking access, cannabis businesses are turning to crypto  

It’s relatively common knowledge that banking is a big problem in the cannabis industry. Because marijuana is still federally illegal and dealing with cannabis cash could be considered money laundering, banks are naturally reluctant about working with the industry. That means everything including loans, lines of credit, payment processing solutions, and even basic bank accounts are off limits for canna-business owners.  

A bill titled the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act, which passed the House of Representatives last year with strong bipartisan support, would have allowed banks and financial institutions to service the cannabis industry. Unfortunately, the bill hasn’t seen much action since the beginning of 2020.  

The lack of access to financial support has forced many cannabis businesses to deal in all-cash, which is not only inconvenient, but also dangerous. Thieves are aware that dispensaries have both, a lot of cash and weed on hand, and these businesses are targeted and robbed regularly. When this happens, it can be hard to file insurance claims for stolen cash and other products when the amount stolen can’t be proven.  

Additionally, everything from paying rent to managing payroll becomes highly convoluted when you’re dealing with cash, and cryptocurrency can help resolve some of these issues. Cryptocurrency is decentralized digital money that’s stored on a blockchain technology system. Because crypto transactions aren’t regulated in the same way as standard banking exchanges, and the fact that it’s impossible to physically steal cryptocurrency and difficult to hack blockchain wallets as well, it makes sense that a growing number of companies are showing interest.   

Cryptocurrency can benefit cannabis businesses in the following ways:  

• Cash-free transactions: The ability to accept Bitcoin and other digital currencies in lieu of cash payments is a major benefit for cannabis businesses trying to move away from having large sums of money on hand or in their stores, homes, etc.  
• Lower fees: Regarding the very few financial service companies that are actually willing to work with cannabis, they charge astronomical fees for being some of the only players in the game. Using crypto payments allows cannabis business owners – who are already paying ridiculous amounts of money in taxes, rent, and pretty much everything else – to at least save some money on payment processing fees.  
• International transactions: For businesses that also sell merchandise, CBD products, and other items that can be shipped internationally, digital currency offers a quick and efficient way to accomplish this.  

Automation and Technology in the Cannabis Industry

Downsides to crypto 

As with everything, there are some downsides to using cryptocurrency in the cannabis industry. For example, crypto is taxed differently than income received through standard business transactions like with credit and debit cards. This is in part because cryptocurrency is a somewhat new concept that still is not being heavily utilized by the general population, but also, because of the volatility of digital currency. 

This can make it very costly and time consuming to manage transaction records because, not only does the business owner need to keep track of every single transaction conducted, but they will also need to make note of the value of cryptocurrency against their local currency at the time of the transaction. This is something that is both time consuming when done correctly, and extremely difficult to go backwards and track if you weren’t doing so at the time the transaction was conducted.  

In addition to being an accounting nightmare, another issue with these value fluctuations is that, if you sell a large number of items for a certain price in bitcoin, then find that the value drops dramatically a short time later, that could mean A LOT of money lost. In that same vein, the opposite could be true and you could end up with way more money than expected if crypto values go up. But ultimately, it’s a gamble that most business owners are not willing to take.  

One option to remedy this issue is to use stablecoins, a type of digital currency comparable to the dollar, euro, or gold – in the sense that its price doesn’t vary so wildly. That provides a bit of stability, and business owners don’t have to worry about their livelihoods being ruined if digital currency one day ends up being worth much less than expected. Also, you can immediately convert your stablecoins into traditional currency after each transaction, so essentially you can use it simply to avoid the cash dilema and transfer it straight to useable money within minutes.  

How to Secure Funding for Your Cannabis Business

What about NFTs and digital cannabis strains? 

Now, here’s where things get a bit confusing. The concept of paying for real weed with digital money is becoming relatively understandable (although it begs the question of the true value of money when all of it can be digitalized), but what about using digital money to buy digital weed? Welcome to the complicated world of NFTs.  

To quickly explain NFTs as best as I can: Non-Fungible Tokens, or NFTs, are used to sell and grant full ownership over digital assets. Non-fungible refers to the uniqueness of the digital asset. Cash money is considered fungible because there is no difference between dollars… as in, a five-dollar bill can be easily exchanged for another five-dollar bill and no one would be the wiser. With NFTs, each one has its own unique metadata and identifier that is recorded on the blockchain, which tracks ownership and makes it impossible for one NFT to be exchanged for another.  

Let’s consider a photograph, for example. First, you upload the image to one of the many existing NFT marketplaces, akin to Amazon or Etsy but for digital products. Then, you need to certify that the asset is original, a process known as “minting” that can usually be done with just a few clicks. And finally, you link your cryptocurrency wallet to your NFT account and list the asset for sale. To buy NFTs, the consumer would convert their money into USD Coins, Bitcoins, or Ethereum and buy whatever they want and can afford from the marketplace. Now, instead of receiving a printed image or downloadable file for limited use, they would be buying complete ownership over that photo. They would even be able to turn around and sell it themselves.

Now back to ‘digital weed’. Dubbed “Lava Coin,” it was created by Jessie Grundy, founder and chief executive of Peakz, an upscale cannabis brand based in Oakland, California. Unlike regular cannabis flower, the digital buds are globally legal and available anywhere in the world. But it’s not weed that you can can actually smoke, so what’s the point? The point, for many, is ownership over something that no one else has. You wouldn’t own a bag of weed per se, but you would own rights that that strain and those particular genetics. How much that’s worth depends on the strain and value placed on it by the industry, but it’s something interesting and distinctive no less.  

“The reason why someone would want digital weed is the uniqueness,” said Grundy, adding that “blockchain-based proprietary genetics would settle at least one eternal question in the weed world: who came up with what strain, with the exact genetics identified, and who did it first.” That is also a very good point but one that applies to cultivators rather than consumers and the general public.

Back to the blockchain  

Blockchain technology is a major factor in the success of both crypto and NFTs, and it’s also beginning to play a prominent role in the cannabis industry in sectors other than finance, such as seed-to-sale tracking. But what exactly is blockchain technology? Blockchain is a system of recording and exchanging information through a digital ledger of transactions. All inputted information is duplicated and distributed across the entire network of computer systems on the blockchain. Every time new transaction is made, or every time a new step is reached in the production/distribution process, a record of that is added to each blockchain of every participant’s ledger.  

Blockchain Technology Creating Transparency and Boosting Confidence in the Cannabis Industry

Blockchain uses a decentralized database known as Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), and it’s managed and updated by multiple participants. So, if this technology is used to track the life of a cannabis plant, each person involved in its production cycle would be adding information to the blockchain at every step – cultivators, labs, extractors, distributors, and so on. Transactions are recorded with an immutable cryptographic signature called a hash, and everyone using the chain has access to these updates.  

This means that it would be immediately noticeable if any block in the chain is tampered with. If someone wanted to hack the blockchain, they would have to change every single block in the chain, across all recorded versions of the chain. The blockchains that are used more heavily are constantly growing and being distributed to more and more users, making them nearly impossible to corrupt as they expand.  

People are also drawn to the dispersed natured of how blockchains are managed. Most standard databases, such as an SQL database, have an individual or group of individuals in charge of data and operations. The concern is that it could lead to conflict of interests where said individuals may hack the ledgers and make changes that could give them monetary bonuses. With blockchains, no single person is running the show, and the entire system operated by the people who use it. The transparency and resiliency to hacking makes blockchains a legitimate disruptor for many industries, including cannabis.  

Automation and Technology in the Cannabis Industry

Final thoughts on cannabis, crypto, and NFTs

Pretty much all the topics mentioned in this article are relatively new concepts and industries. Cryptocurrency, blockchain technology, NFTS, and the entirety of the cannabis industry are all still in their infancy, only having been discussed with more seriousness over the last five years or so. There is a lot of room for growth in all of these sectors, and because one side of it deals with financial transactions and the other side is a metaphorical gold mine, it makes sense that cannabis and digital currency will end up expanding more together.

Hello and welcome! You made it to CBDtesters.co, the #1 internet spot for all the most thought-provoking and important cannabis and psychedelics-related news going on today. Join us whenever you can to stay aware of the quickly-expanding world of legal drugs and industrial hemp, and check out the The THC Weekly Newsletter, so you’re always first to know what’s going on.

Disclaimer: Hi, I’m a researcher and writer. I’m not a doctor, lawyer, or businessperson. All information in my articles is sourced and referenced, and all opinions stated are mine. I am not giving anyone advice, and though I am more than happy to discuss topics, should someone have a further question or concern, they should seek guidance from a relevant professional.

The THC Weekly Newsletter

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US vs EU: How Drugs Are Approved

Some drugs we get as prescription only, others we can buy over the counter (OTC). We rarely think about the whole process that exists behind the products becoming available to us, or how long, arduous, and scandalous it may be. We also rarely concern ourselves with the differences in process that occur in different parts of the world. So today let’s take a look. Here are some basics of the US VS the EU when it comes to how drugs are approved.

The US and the EU have their own processes to have drugs approved, but not everything exists within regulation. Take the new cannabinoids market in the US, which includes the likes of delta-8 THC, THCV, HHC, and more. These compounds can be bought outside of dispensaries, and even online. Make sure to subscribe to The THC Weekly Newsletter for all the latest news and industry stories, as well as exclusive deals on flowers, vapes, edibles, and other products including Delta 8, Delta 9 THC, Delta-10 THC, THCO, THCV, THCP & HHC. You can find them in our “Best-of” lists!

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The US VS EU for how drugs are approved: How does the US do it?

Most people should be aware of the organization, the FDA, or Food & Drug Administration. The FDA is a federal department that resides under the Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA regulates the food industry, the tobacco industry, all dietary supplements, all medicine – whether OTC or by prescription, vaccines, biopharmaceuticals, blood transfusions, all medical devices, anything that emits electromagnetic radiation, the cosmetics industry, animal food, and veterinary products.

In fact, the FDA is the only governing body for these things. And how much it does regulate these things can vary, often with strange laws attached. For example, the cosmetics industry isn’t actually regulated at all except for the use of ingredients for coloring. So though its under FDA regulation, there isn’t technically much of anything being regulated. Then there’s that pesky law that states that once a compound is an active ingredient in an approved medication, that it can no longer be marketed as a food or dietary supplement. Does this matter? Sure, it makes any supplement or food product containing CBD illegal federally.

The caveat to all this? States have their own rights, and these rights can go up against FDA (and general federal) policy. Take cannabis as the best example. According to the federal government, via the FDA and DEA, cannabis is federally illegal, yet 18 states (though it should be 19) have decided to implement recreational legalization policies that go against this. Realistically, states can do this with any drug if they can pass legislation within the state to change policy. Think of how Oregon legalized medical psychedelics and decriminalized recreational psychedelics use statewide. Or how Michigan and California are both floating bills for recreational psychedelics legalizations statewide.

The FDA might be the sole regulator, which holds all the power for US federal regulation on things like food, drugs, and medicines, but the ability for states to create their own functional systems at odds with the FDA, means that that regulation only holds if it matches state regulation.

The US VS EU for how drugs are approved: How does the EU do it?

The EU and the US federal government have one major similarity. They are similar in that they are both a federal entity that is composed of ‘states’ that are able to formulate their own laws. The US is one country with 50 states, whereas the EU is a union of 27 countries that all operate as their own countries, but under overall regulations set by the EU.

Regulation for the EU is a bit more complicated than the US, since the EU takes into consideration the desires of its member states, and must work to synchronize regulations that can cover 27 countries, without anyone getting mad. While the FDA was developed for consumer protection specifically, the European Commission was put together to integrate the commercial interests between member countries, while still allowing these independent countries to function on their own, and by their own rules.

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The European Commission is an organization that “promotes the general interest of the EU by proposing and enforcing legislation as well as by implementing policies and the EU budget.” It is the sole organization that is responsible for creating proposals for new legislation, and it’s tasked with overseeing the implementation of any decision put in place by the European Parliament, or the Council of the EU, two other governing bodies.

It is made up of a team of commissioners, with each member country offering one representative. It is centered in Brussels, Belgium, and is a politically independent executive arm, meaning it doesn’t support any specific party from any specific country. This means that for any policy that needs to be set by the European Commission in regards to medical drugs and devices, it must do this within a network of many centralized and decentralized agencies throughout the entire EU. Contrary to this, if the FDA wants to set a policy, it doesn’t have to check with any individual state to do so, or consider the needs of any individual location.

So, how do the US and EU have their drugs approved?

In the end, the two locations don’t have widely differing ways of actually approving drugs, and the processes are pretty similar. Here is the general process, and how it differs between the US and EU for getting drugs approved.

– The application. In the US, an investigator who wants to study a compound must submit an application to the FDA for permission to conduct the desired trials, and as a part of this, to be able to transport the compound across states. For EU countries, the application is directed at the government of the particular country where trials are being held. If they are being held in more than one country, an application must be submitted in any country where the research would take place.

– Clinical Trials. This is when the drug is tested in a study for safety and efficacy. This step is exactly the same whether it’s the US or the EU trying to have drugs approved. It consists of these stages:

1. Phase 0 and 1 Trials – A small number of healthy subjects are tested to understand pharmacology and dosing.
2. Phase II – Hundreds of patients with the specific condition the medication is being made for, are tested to establish responses to different doses.
3. Phase III – Hundreds or thousands of patients are tested to establish overall safety and efficacy.

– Emergency use and orphan drugs. In the US, an application for an ‘orphan drug’ indicates a special approval process for a drug that may help with a lesser-known illness that fewer than 200,000 patients in the US have. In the EU, an orphan drug application is for special consideration of a compound that could be useful for medical conditions that no more than one in 50,000 patients have yearly.

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Along with this are emergency drug applications. In the US, an ‘emergency drug application’ (EIND) provides for a shorter application process in the interest of getting an approval in a life-threatening situation. In these instances, full approval of a final product is not necessary, as treatment can be initiated upon approval of the application. In the EU, the use of an emergency drug in a life-threatening situation can start as long as clinical trials for the drug are underway.

– Drug approval. The US and EU are very different when it comes to the part of actually having drugs approved. In the US, following clinical trials, a ‘new drug application’ is submitted to the FDA, and the FDA is tasked with making a judgement as to whether to approve the medication or not.

In the EU, it’s a bit more complicated at this step, with four possible avenues that are used depending on the kind of drug, and what the manufacturer prefers. These four options are:

1. A centralized process through the (EMA) European Medicines Agency, for use with designated drugs. This process must be taken in some circumstances, like for HIV/AIDS medications, cancer treatments, drugs for neurodegenerative diseases, drugs for autoimmune diseases, and drugs for viral diseases.
2. A process that occurs within a member state by applying to the relevant national agency within the specific country. These measures may be different than standard EMA requirements.
3. Through mutual recognition, which allows a drug that has been approved in one country, to be applied for approval by another member state, or to the EMA for approval throughout the EU.
4. A decentralized process in which applications are submit simultaneously within different countries in the EU for the same drug, by the same manufacturer. In the past this has been the most-traveled avenue for approval, and though these numbers go back a bit, in 2008, 1,400 applications came through this way, vs 100 through the centralized process.

A few things to be aware of

I think we know by now that there are tons of things to be wary of when it comes to big pharma and drugs. Here are some things to know between both the US and the EU about these processes.

• While these drugs merely fill a space where perhaps nothing existed, they are often treated as so detrimentally important that not all data collected is peer-reviewed, or released to the public, meaning the public is given approved medications, based on research which could be quite faulty.

• Pharmaceutical companies often pay for their own research, or pay for it to be done, creating a massive conflict of interest. Adding onto that, the governments often fund such research making the idea of being objective practically impossible.

• Supposedly, the FDA makes nonpublished data on new drug applications available online (begging the question of why its not just released to the public), whereas the EU’s EMA will not release such information, even if products are being based on the research.

• It has been proposed in both places to allow drugs to be released after Phase II trials, with surveillance kept on patients afterwards to ensure safety. This is meant to quicken necessary drugs to market, but the question should really be asked, if this is to the benefit of pharmaceutical companies, or to individuals, as these trials are literally there to establish safety, and there is a long track record of unsafe medications being recalled.

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• And let’s remember, that one of the biggest pharma-induced travesties of today is the constant and growing opioid epidemic in the US and abroad. More relevant than it existing, is that it exists because of regulation by these governmental bodies, allowing wide and continued use of these dangerous substances, even despite knowing the risks.

• The regulations put in place often make very little sense, which implies other interests besides the well-being for consumers. Consider that while psychedelics have been constantly talked down, that DXM has been in products on US shelves since 1958, and has maintained OTC status despite being known for abuse. DXM is in dozens of products that can be accessed by children.

• Western medicine has repeatedly ignored anything derived by Eastern medicine, regardless of the thousands of years of use of some compounds, and the extensive written information on them that often traverses many different cultures over many centuries of time. This seems to be uniformly done in favor of today’s pharmaceutical companies.

Conclusion

In the end, the processes are close enough, with both leaving plenty of room for both good and useful work to be done, as well as corruption to be had. How much should these medications or these agencies be trusted? Well, you can decide for yourself. But in order to do that, you’ll probably want to check legal suits against these entities, drug recalls, and the numerous reports in both the US and EU for safety issues related to drugs that the public was told were tested and safe.

Welcome readers! Thanks for dropping by CBDtesters.co, the #1 web source for the most important and necessary cannabis and psychedelics-related news relevant to today. Join us whenever possible to stay in-the-loop on the ever-changing universe of legal drugs and industrial hemp, and check out The THC Weekly Newsletter, so you’re first to find out what’s going on.

Disclaimer: Hi, I’m a researcher and writer. I’m not a doctor, lawyer, or businessperson. All information in my articles is sourced and referenced, and all opinions stated are mine. I am not giving anyone advice, and though I am more than happy to discuss topics, should someone have a further question or concern, they should seek guidance from a relevant professional.

The THC Weekly Newsletter

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Why the Government Legalized Esketamine and Not Ketamine

The psychedelics boom is underway, and the first federal government legalized psychedelic (other than DXM) is esketamine, a half-brother to the well-known drug ketamine. So why this drug in particular, and why so quietly, when every other drug legalization is debated in the press? Perhaps the answer has to do with ketamine itself. Here’s a little bit to answer the question of why the federal government legalized esketamine for depression, and not ketamine.

Esketamine was legalized a few years ago, but why would the US government do that instead of legalized ketamine, the already popular half-brother? Good question, unfortunately we can only speculate for now why one was chosen over the other. Regardless of why, it makes clear that the psychedelics boom is clearly underway! We’re dedicated to covering this new industry, so for more articles like this one, remember to subscribe to the Psychedelics Weekly Newsletter, your #1 internet source for everything related to this new and growing market.

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First off, what are ketamine and esketamine?

While the population at large might think of ketamine as a party drug originating in 1980’s dance clubs, the reality is that the drug has been around longer than that. Ketamine was discovered in 1962 at the pharmaceutical company Parke-Davis. The idea was to find a strong anesthetic, and ketamine fit the bill with its “cataleptic, analgesic and anesthetic action but without hypnotic properties.” The government legalized ketamine in 1970 for medical use, but only as an anesthesia, even as it had been found to work well to calm negative behaviors in prisoners in the 60’s.

Ketamine, with the chemical formula C₁₃H₁₆ClNO, has been described as a ‘dissociative anesthetic’, as users will describe the experience as feeling like different parts of their brain are being disconnected from each other. Though it has been found useful for dealing with psychological issues like depression, as well as pain issues, it has only been officially cleared as an anesthetic in people and animals.

Half-brother esketamine shares the same formula, but is much newer to the world, having been discovered in 1997. This happened in Germany, where it first came out as an anesthetic as well. It was discovered while being used in this way, that it can also provide anti-depressant effects.

This, of course, was already realized with ketamine, so the discovery isn’t shocking, and might have even been looked for. In the US, trials for treatment-resistant depression were finished in 2017, and Johnson & Johnson filed for a new drug application, which was subsequently approved. The first esketamine drug to hit the market for this purpose was Spravato, which came out on March 5^th, 2019.

A thing to understand about this approval, is that it doesn’t allow the direct prescription of only esketamine, but actually continues to promote the standard monoamine antidepressant industry (think Prozac and Zoloft) by requiring use of one of these in conjunction with the esketamine. Meaning you can’t actually get esketamine treatment without use of another pharma antidepressant. Kind of odd since the whole idea of psychedelics for this purpose is to get away from the standard anti-depressant field, with a better working product.

As a testament to how well esketamine works, it was also cleared for use with suicidal thoughts in 2020, a designation that requires a very fast-acting medication, as suicidal thoughts often lead to suicide. While ketamine is administered via IV generally, esketamine was approved as a nasal spray.

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How can ketamine be prescribed legally?

Now we know that esketamine and ketamine are closely related, and do the same general things. And this brings up the question of why the government legalized esketamine, but not ketamine, even though it was already known that ketamine worked for the same things, while also having name recognition value. My guess? It was probably as a way of trying to combat the ketamine gray market that had already sprouted up (and continues to grow), in the form of treatment clinics offering ketamine for off-label uses like help with depression and chronic pain.

How does this work? Remember, ketamine is a legal drug, and can be used legally as an anesthetic, as it’s a Schedule III compound. Of course, this is wildly different from being used as an anti-depressant, which it is not approved for. So how are clinics using it in this way not being shut down? By prescribing it for ‘off-label’ use. Off label use is defined as:

“The use of pharmaceutical drugs for an unapproved indication or in an unapproved age group, dosage, or route of administration. Both prescription drugs and over-the-counter drugs (OTCs) can be used in off-label ways, although most studies of off-label use focus on prescription drugs.” And it’s perfectly legal, even if it means entering the gray market.

How so? Well, as the FDA states: “Once the FDA approves a drug, healthcare providers generally may prescribe the drug for an unapproved use when they judge that it is medically appropriate for their patient.” So if a doctor with prescribing ability sees fit, they can prescribe ketamine for other uses like for pain management and depression control.

Which means, even though ketamine has not been cleared officially for these purposes, the clinics that offer treatment are not technically operating outside the law, creating what is essentially a ketamine loophole. This is unlike other psychedelics like MDMA, LSD, or psilocybin which are Schedule I, and therefore not able to be utilized in this way.

What’s the difference in getting ketamine vs esketamine?

Interestingly, this makes ketamine the better choice for getting around regulation, as esketamine must be administered according to very strict guidelines. Ketamine, technically doesn’t, as its uses for these purposes are not regulated by the federal government. No states have regulation set up for ketamine clinics either, meaning it fully operates as only an off-label use item, and without government interference.

Want Ketamine or Esketamine Therapy? Here’s What to Do…

To be clear, these clinics are still legitimate medical clinics, and as such, must operate under general regulation for such operations. This can include standards of cleanliness, capacity requirements, or other such protocols. But it won’t include patient safety regulations specifically related to ketamine, as none exist.

Since a prescription must be obtained for esketamine by a specialist (and won’t likely be given by a primary care physician), this means the doctor does have to agree with use of the medicine. So if a doctor is anti-psychedelics, for whatever reason of old-school fear tactics winning out, it means a person might have to go to different doctors to find one on-board.

Conversely, as no guidelines exist for ketamine to be used in these ways, a patient can get a prescription from any doctor willing to give it, or simply go to a ketamine clinic where the doctors can do an evaluation and directly provide the prescription. It should be remembered that off-label or not, ketamine is still being used medically, and does require a doctor’s approval. This is not for recreational use.

Why the government legalized esketamine and not ketamine?

So why did the US government seemingly randomly legalize esketamine and not ketamine? Is it possible that it foresaw the inability to get the already existent ketamine market under control, and didn’t want to risk another fiasco like with cannabis, where legal markets can’t compete well with black markets (which has already led to the need for a bailout in California)?

It’s impossible for me to say, but it is an interesting question. And the US government legalization does come with one factor that could make it appealing for those who want therapy. Because it’s an approved medication, it can be covered by insurance. And this can drastically reduce the cost. Ketamine therapy might be gaining popularity of late, but it sure ain’t cheap. If you can shell out hundreds of dollars per treatment session, it could be a great answer, but how many people can do that?

Esketamine can be obtained for much more reasonable prices with medical coverage, making it a more financially viable option. Plus, it does come with the (possible) benefit of regulation for safety issues, though I stipulate ‘possible’ because the pharmaceutical industry really isn’t known for its overall caring about safety, and considering the opioid epidemic, neither is the government.

New Psychedelic Anti-Depressant Esketamine: What the Patients Have to Say

Apart from these benefits, it does come with the major detraction of requiring a doctor to be cool with prescribing it (which a lot won’t be due to decades of smear campaigns), and even worse, the need to be on an antidepressant to access it, even though the two are unrelated. Kind of seems like the government threw that one in to help out big pharma, probably with the understanding that it was up against a lot with the already-existing ketamine gray and black markets.

Conclusion

In the end, I expect the government legalized esketamine because it saw that it worked better than monoamine antidepressants and knew that’s where people would go. It probably didn’t want to compete directly with (and likely lose to) the market that already exists, and so released a tweaked version instead. Of course, the government is made up of people who care more about their own interests and those of large corporations, so rather than be smart about it to really compete, it made a lot of wonky rules that will probably do to a possible esketamine industry, what high taxes did to legal cannabis markets. Tank it out!

If you think ketamine might work for you, and don’t want the government telling you how to take it, get yourself to a clinic, and ask about dose sizes and frequency. Perhaps you can find a clinic that provides bigger doses and fewer of them, which might make it more cost effective. This directory should help you get started. On the other hand, if you think esketamine is the better way to go, you can find centers that administer it here.

Hello to all! Welcome to CBDtesters.co, your best internet source for the most thought-provoking and relevant cannabis and psychedelics-related news going on in the world today. Join us daily to stay in-the-know on the constantly-changing universe of cannabis and medical psychedelics, and sign up for the The Psychedelics Weekly Newsletter, to ensure you can impress at any social gathering.

Disclaimer: Hi, I’m a researcher and writer. I’m not a doctor, lawyer, or businessperson. All information in my articles is sourced and referenced, and all opinions stated are mine. I am not giving anyone advice, and though I am more than happy to discuss topics, should someone have a further question or concern, they should seek guidance from a relevant professional.

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