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How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence

Michael Pollan (Goodreads Author)

4.27 · Rating details · 28,043 ratings · 3,092 reviews

Could psychedelic drugs change our worldview? One of America's most admired writers takes us on a mind-altering journey to the frontiers of human consciousness

When LSD was first discovered in the 1940s, it seemed to researchers, scientists and doctors as if the world might be on the cusp of psychological revolution. It promised to shed light on the deep mysteries of ...more

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Hardcover, 480 pages

Published May 17th 2018 by Allen Lane (first published May 15th 2018)

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Apr 11, 2018 David Wineberg rated it really liked it

Michael Pollan’s Brain – on Drugs

Neither LSD nor magic mushrooms harm you. They are not addictive, toxic, debilitating or destructive. They cause no illness and have no side effects. They seem to unlock receptors in the brain, causing mashups and unexpected connections (and therefore perceptions). They dissolve the ego by restricting blood flow to the Default Mode Network of the brain, which can cause users to lose the border between their persona/self/ego and everything else (eg. the universe). ...more

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Jun 04, 2018 Darwin8u rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2018, aere-perennius, american, nonfiction, science, memoir-autobiography-diary

"There is so much authority that comes out of the primary mystical experience that it can be threatening to existing hierarchical structures."
- Roland Griffiths, quoted in Michael Pollan, How to Change Your Mind

description

"To fall in hell or soar Angelic
You'll need a pinch of psychedelic"
- Humphry Osmond

description

I have family that struggle with addiction, depression, PTSD, and anxiety. The idea that one group of compounds (psychedelics) could transform how we view and treat these various challenges to the human ...more

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Jun 28, 2018 David rated it it was amazing

Shelves: religion, chemistry, nonfiction, medicine, psychology, biology

This is an epic book about the history of psychedelics, and their potential for improving the human condition. My first thought on the subject was of people tripping on LSD, and making a mess of their lives. But, this does not have to be the case at all. Many mental illnesses could be cured with "psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy".

The first half of the book is about the history of psychedelics. Before 1965, Time-Life Publications were enthusiastic boosters of psychedelics. For example, in Life This is an epic book about the history of psychedelics, and their potential for improving the human condition. My first thought on the subject was of people tripping on LSD, and making a mess of their lives. But, this does not have to be the case at all. Many mental illnesses could be cured with "psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy".

The first half of the book is about the history of psychedelics. Before 1965, Time-Life Publications were enthusiastic boosters of psychedelics. For example, in Life magazine in 1957 had an article by R. Gordon Wasson, a banker, who may have been the first white person in recorded history to eat divine mushrooms. Wasson hypothesized that some religions may have been inspired by a psychoactive mushroom. The Spanish had tried to crush mushroom cults in South America because they saw them as a "mortal threat to the authority of the church."

LSD was used in the 1950's and early 1960's to successfully treat thousands of alcoholics in Canada and the United States. Therapeutic sessions with LSD had success rates of 70% for anxiety neurosis, 62% for depression, and 42% for OCD. But sadly, this history has been all but erased. Experiments showed that success depended on the setting and environment of the treatment. Simply giving someone LSD in a sterile environment, without any discussion ahead of time or real-time guidance, is a recipe for failure.

The downfall of LSD in the 1960's was unintentionally assisted by Timothy Leary, a professor at Harvard. He did "experiments" that had little scientific value. He famously told a reporter, "Psychedelic drugs cause panic and temporary insanity in people who have not taken them."

LSD became illegal in 1966. All research was shut down, except for the large program at the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center at Spring Grove. Research there continued to explore the potential of psychedelics to treat alcoholism, schizophrenia, and the distress of cancer patients.

I thought the following anecdote was hilarious. Andrew Weill was a young doctor working in the Haight-Ashbury Free Clinic in 1968. He saw a lot of bad LSD trips and developed an effective treatment. After examining a patient and determining that it was a panic reaction, he would tell the patient, "Will you excuse me for a moment? There's someone in the next room who has a serious problem." This was an immediate cure!

So, the real question is why psychedelics can be helpful for such a wide range of mental illnesses. Brain scans (fMRI's) have shown that the default mode network is turned off in people undergoing psychedelic sessions. The default mode network is the portion of the brain that is active when not actively thinking about anything. It acts as a filter on the fire hose of sensations that the body encounters, and also acts as a filter on the subconscious. The hypothesis is that the ego temporarily loses its dominion, and the unconscious, now unregulated, comes to an observable space. Brain scans show that psychedelics rewire the brain. Whether this rewiring is temporary or permanent is not known. It is interesting that the brains of experienced meditators look very similar to those on psilocybin. Both dramatically reduce activity in the default mode network.

The problem with performing scientific research, is that it is very difficult to perform double-blind studies that have become the foundation of testing for pharmaceuticals. The reason is that both the patient and the research can know almost instantly whether the medication is a psychedelic or a placebo. In addition, it is difficult to isolate a single variable. A psychedelic/therapeutic session is not simply a matter of ingesting a chemical; it is only successful with the proper guidance, and this can be a subjective matter.

A single guided psilocybin session is sufficient to remove depression from 80% of cancer patients. The fear of death is a function of our egos, and a psychedelic can suppress the ego. The resulting journey yields a "heightened sense of purpose and consequence." The journey can shed light on "how best to live the time left."

A study of smoking cessation found that most participants stopped smoking. Those who had the most complete mystical experiences had the best outcomes. But, pharmaceutical companies might not be interested in psychedelics. The LSD patent expired long ago, and psilocybin occurs in nature. And, if a single dose/session is sufficient, there may be little profit.

The author, Michael Pollan, has written another wonderful book. My attitude toward psychedelics is completely turned around. Hats off to a fascinating story! ...more

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Nov 26, 2018 William2 rated it liked it · review of another edition

Don’t expect any “nicety of style” here, to use E.M. Forster’s phrase, though the book is well organized. Nor does Pollan possess much wit, though I will not call him entirely humorless. These propensities make the reading more work than it should be. Moreover, he flattens and homogenizes his experiences with psychedelics so they’re almost nothing. He incapable of evoking moods. The opportunity is given to him to tell us about his life in the context of these psychedelic experiences. He remains Don’t expect any “nicety of style” here, to use E.M. Forster’s phrase, though the book is well organized. Nor does Pollan possess much wit, though I will not call him entirely humorless. These propensities make the reading more work than it should be. Moreover, he flattens and homogenizes his experiences with psychedelics so they’re almost nothing. He incapable of evoking moods. The opportunity is given to him to tell us about his life in the context of these psychedelic experiences. He remains guarded. As a result, this book is a missed opportunity for both the author and the reader. But we can thank him for one thing: other more daring authors shall surely follow in his path, just as he follows Huxley et al. For that he deserves our gratitude.

The book starts with background on the relatively recent resurrection of research into psychedelics after the 1960s federal suppression of it on grounds—I’m serious—of national security. Historically, psychedelics, which induce in the seeker an unequivocal belief that one has experienced nothing less than a view of the fundamental non-dualist nature of the universe, created an unprecedented generation gap.

Normally, rites of passage help societies knit together as the young cross over hurdles and through gates erected and maintained by their elders, coming out on the other side to take their place in the community of adults. Not so with the psychedelic journey in the 1960s, which at its conclusion dropped its young travelers onto a psychic landscape unrecognizable to their parents. (p. 216)

It turns out that the early suppressed research, roughly a thousand clinical papers, showed how psychedelics might be used to treat addiction, PTSD, depression, anxiety and other maladies. Most of this valid research, according to Pollan, though tainted at times by over-enthusiasm on the part of investigators, proved beyond a reasonable doubt that psychedelics could be a viable pharmacological tool. Yet out of fear and destestation of those experimenting with the drugs in those days, who were young and vehemently anti-war, the findings were suppressed so that, yes, millions might suffer without the alleviation psychedelics would surely have provided them. This suppression of science is a national disgrace and reason, as if we needed more, to heap further opprobrium on past leaders.

Pollan writes about this era of Cold War suppression, but focuses mainly on figures like Bob Jesse, Roland Griffiths and others who have been instrumental in spurring recent research into psychedelics. In addition to a description of the history, present day research, and neurological functioning of psychedelics, are the author’s own experiences with LSD-25, psilocybin, and 5-MeO-DMT, or Sonoran Desert toad venom.

In addition to the failure to use the form of memoir to explode the nonfiction constraints of this book, it becomes ever more amorphous as it winds along. The late conclusion that “children are basically tripping all the time” strikes one as specious because it’s so inadequately argued. I know writing about the brain is no simple task. But then I suppose Oliver Sacks’s too genial model has spoiled me. This book, while at times informative, doesn’t come close to serving adequately its subject matter or its reader. It is, however, a milestone in publishing terms; it’s been a great commercial success. It’s my hope more adroit writers will follow. ...more

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Jul 12, 2018 Matthew Quann rated it it was amazing

Shelves: non-fiction, audiobooks, science

A cursory glance at the cover of Michael Pollan's new book examining the science of psychedelics manages to say a lot with very little. There are no vivid colours arranged in mandalas, no kaleidoscopic landscape, no face with eyes replaced by swirls of sickening colour combinations. Instead, a black, text-laden page is only broken up by the not-quite-square dimensions of a window that looks out onto a blue sky. In one sense, this encapsulates the book perfectly: it is an attempt to reorient the A cursory glance at the cover of Michael Pollan's new book examining the science of psychedelics manages to say a lot with very little. There are no vivid colours arranged in mandalas, no kaleidoscopic landscape, no face with eyes replaced by swirls of sickening colour combinations. Instead, a black, text-laden page is only broken up by the not-quite-square dimensions of a window that looks out onto a blue sky. In one sense, this encapsulates the book perfectly: it is an attempt to reorient the reader from the counterculture, 1960s, Timothy Leary-infused legacy of LSD and psilocybin to the scientific and social future of psychedelics. It may not be of a comparable level to the cognitive expansion made possible by psychedelics, but this book certainly opened my mind to the potentials and pitfalls of this science undergoing its second go-around.

As in The Omnivore's Dilemma, a favourite of mine from last year, Pollan acts a superb narrator and a stellar scientific journalist. While reading or listening to some nonfiction and scientific journalism can feel like your most dry undergraduate course, Pollan always manages to write in a fashion that is compelling, thoughtful, and mindful of narrative. Part of what makes this book work so well is that Pollan tackles his own hopes, misgivings, and flagrant disbelief in a way that endears the reader to his quest to understand psychedelics. Additionally, I couldn't help but be excited to listen to Pollan talk about his own trips on several different psychedelics. His attempt to lay structure upon ineffable experience is admirable, interesting, and emotionally honest.

Of course, it helps Pollan that his subject matter is controversial and, at least to me, inherently interesting. If you've ever wondered about the limits of consciousness or been curious about the trips induced by psychedelics, then this book is definitely going to pique your interest. I was taken in by Albert Hofmann's discovery of LSD and its brief journey through the halls of science before being derailed and made publicly available by figures such as Timothy Leary. It was compelling to hear the accounts of researchers devastated by the public consumption of substances they were still trying to understand, and having that quest for understanding cut short by the government.

Following the account of several of Pollan's trips, the medical and neurological research ongoing into psychedelics makes for a smooth landing of a difficult to pilot vessel. I was perhaps most taken by the psychedelic experiences of palliative cancer patients, who reported decreased or absent existential dread about their death after their guided experiences on psychedelics. These and other avenues of psychedelic research are all guided by trained psychologists or physicians, which seems a far-cry from the dreadlocked, Burning Man, tie-dye psychedelic experience you might expect. It is in these chapters that Pollan makes both his most compelling argument for continuing the study of psychedelics while distancing them from their tumultuous childhood.

Leaving the book, I'm definitely more curious about psychedelics than I was beforehand. Pollan lays out potentials and pitfalls of the future of psychedelics. There will be a precarious balance between entrenched public perception (held by many people: most of my family and friends with whom I discussed the subject quoted myths and prejudices discussed by Pollan), the possible danger of these molecules, and their therapeutic potential. I really enjoyed this book and was impressed throughout by Pollan's ability to remain objective even when dealing with the most zealous anecdotes. This is a great one: expand your mind with a listen! ...more

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May 23, 2018 Mehrsa rated it it was amazing

I read the Pollan essay in the New Yorker about psychedelics and so I picked this up right away. And I'm convinced. I totally want to try this! Wish it wasn't illegal.

What was really brilliant about this book is his exploration of the ego and how that leads to so much stuckness and unhappiness. The book is a sober, in-depth account of a radical idea.

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May 06, 2019 David Katzman rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I knew that in the 1960s some research had been performed that demonstrated the highly successful use of a psychedelic drug called Ibogaine to disrupt alcoholism and cocaine and nicotine addiction. One of the most interesting facts that I learned from this book was how extensive the addiction research had also been using psilocybin and LSD. And these psychological studies have actually been revived legally in university settings today.

How to Change Your Mind, was an interesting journey that I knew that in the 1960s some research had been performed that demonstrated the highly successful use of a psychedelic drug called Ibogaine to disrupt alcoholism and cocaine and nicotine addiction. One of the most interesting facts that I learned from this book was how extensive the addiction research had also been using psilocybin and LSD. And these psychological studies have actually been revived legally in university settings today.

How to Change Your Mind, was an interesting journey that explored numerous aspects of the use of psychedelics and the psychedelic experience, which appears to be enjoying a resurgence in social and psychiatric use. Pollan reviews the history of psychedelic use in the history of the U.S.—with Timothy Leary looming large here but featuring other key figures as well. He explores the results as well as the challenges of past and present scientific studies, the beliefs of psychedelic users, and the diverse variety of psychedelic experiences. In this latter regard, while writing this book Pollan himself took a number of psychedelic drugs and related what occurred. He also spends some time considering how plants with psychedelic effects may have evolved with such capabilities.

He spends quite a great deal of time evaluating the idea that many psychonauts come away with (but by no means all) that they have experienced something mystical. And by mystical, I mean something “out there” rather than only “in here.” That somehow a psychedelic experience puts you in touch with something trans-personal. You touch “God.” Timothy Leary was a big proponent of this philosophy, but while some theology students have taken psychedelics to achieve a personal meeting with God, for the most part, these psychedelic experiences seem to counteract any belief in religious Fundamentalism. That is to say, the universal love and oneness that some individuals experience on psychedelics is a non-denominational ego-less state that doesn’t welcome specific doctrine or dogma. There is too much oneness-of-all-things to make room for parochial belief in written books purporting to explain what God wants. When you experience it first hand, you little need anyone else’s explanation.

I found he spent too many pages on this belief. But I suppose it’s out there and has been promoted by so many New Age crackpots, including Leary, that it was good for him to evaluate it. Debunk it is the attitude that I would have, but Pollan is far more open-minded than I am. He cites the fact that so many psychonauts come away from their experiences absolutely 100% convinced that they encountered something greater than themselves, which makes it worth evaluating. I think that point of view is no more worth evaluating than it is to set two Fundamentalists against each other, a Christian Fundamentalist who believes Jesus was God and a Muslim who believes Allah was God and let them try to convince each other that because they are 100% convinced for sure absolutely that they are correct that…well, they are correct. Is it worth the debate? It’s not. That said, he does point out some interesting reasons why it might be the case that psychonauts come away feeling that psychedelic experiences are different from dreams, relating to certain centers of the brain connected to critical thinking.

I have had several very bizarre, very intense psychedelic experiences in my life. And I never considered them to be in any way mystical nor even what I might call spiritual. They don’t connect you to a magical realm “out there” like the fantasy realms of heaven or hell or Middle Earth or the 5th dimension in spacetime. However, they can—and I say “can” carefully because they certainly don’t always—unlock increased powers of imagination and creativity. These bizarre experiences can shatter conventional thinking and allow you to achieve visions of not only artistic works but also new ways to live and be. They can make you aware of how habit and convention and social constraints and cultural struggles have entombed our species into the diverse traps laid for us by wealth and privilege and power. They encourage your mind to ask, What If and Why Not and How? It’s not hocus-pocus religious magic and god; it’s a spark or catalyst for mental empowerment. I am convinced it can produce powerful, personal insights that can be gleaned on one’s own or in a therapeutic setting. And also, because extremely powerful psychedelic journeys also initiate a dissolution of the ego, I have found that these trips can increase a feeling of empathy and sympathy for others, which can contribute to a more enlightened political view as well as richer art. Lastly, I do feel that these experiences have the capability when used in the proper context with a proper guide to improve psychological well-being and break addictions. The research isn’t conclusive but generally does show much faster and more effective recovery. Some studies have also shown that terminally ill patients come away from psychedelic experiences with much less anxiety and greater peace of mind about dying. There is value to be tapped if use and study becomes further legalized.

Although there were many times while reading How to Change Your Mind where I was frustrated and thought Pollan was reporting some ridiculous mumbo-jumbo, in the end, his evaluations were relatively reasonable. And there was much of value (and interest) throughout the book. ...more

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Mar 26, 2018 Krista rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018, nonfiction, arc

Self and Spirit define the opposite ends of a spectrum, but that spectrum needn't reach clear to the heavens to have meaning for us. It can stay right here on earth. When the ego dissolves, so does a bounded conception not only of ourself but of our self-interest. What emerges in its place is invariably a broader, more open-hearted and altruistic – that is, more spiritual – idea of what matters in life. One in which a new sense of connection, or love, however defined, seems to figure
...more

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Jun 04, 2018 Sarah Jane rated it it was ok

I thought the writing was great but the more I read, the less interested I became in this topic. One description of someone’s trip was fine, by the tenth description I was bored.

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Jun 10, 2018 Lou rated it really liked it

I have such a wide range of non-fiction reading interests that sometimes, until I actually see the book and its subject, not even I knew that I wanted to read it! But if it is something I am eager to know more about, I know right away.

Let me start by saying, the only drugs I have even taken are those prescribed for me by a doctor, so I have no idea about other drugs, including psychedelic ones. What I do know about is how strong painkillers (morphine, fentanyl, buprenorphine, oxycodone etc) can ...more

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Nov 26, 2018 Michael Perkins rated it it was ok

On the path to the Murti-Bing....

Pollan was born the same year I was, which makes us what I call mid-Boomers. As he says himself, we were too young to be part of Haight Ashbury, The Summer of Love and Woodstock.

But I had two older siblings who were on the front end of the Boomer generation and experienced it all. I paid close attention to what happened to their cohort. My older brother was destroyed by drugs, including psychedelics, and died at age 39.

There's a kind of evangelistic fervor in On the path to the Murti-Bing....

Pollan was born the same year I was, which makes us what I call mid-Boomers. As he says himself, we were too young to be part of Haight Ashbury, The Summer of Love and Woodstock.

But I had two older siblings who were on the front end of the Boomer generation and experienced it all. I paid close attention to what happened to their cohort. My older brother was destroyed by drugs, including psychedelics, and died at age 39.

There's a kind of evangelistic fervor in this book that I found rather slanted. Instead of taking a realistic look at the 60's, for example, he hammers Timothy Leary page after page. Meanwhile, Ken Kesey gets no more than a couple of limp paragraphs. Oddly, the author's hero is one Al Hubbard, a huckster who dresses in military fatigues and packs a sidearm. (Hubbard made me think of Walter Sobchak, the John Goodman character in the 'The Big Lebowski') Hubbard is equally hostile to Leary. To me, these rants against Leary prove nothing and are pretty weird. But this seems to be the author's way of dismissing what actually happened back then, which can't be ignored. Meanwhile, Hubbard ended up broke, living in a trailer park in the Arizona desert.

I feel I have read some version of this book several times before written by different people. As people in my Boomer generation moved away from, or out and out rejected, traditional religious structures they began searching for alternatives that continued into the 70's. This New Age quest led to distorted versions of Eastern religion and even cults. Techniques abounded. Now that Boomers are older, and staring death in the face, it's not surprising that they're returning to these questions no matter how successful or wealthy they've become. (The author is a self-described "scientific materialist," looking for more, including a kind of safe passage to death under the influence of psychedelics).

In my experience, flexible intelligence, openness to change, willingness to take risks, and to forgive others, do not require mind-bending drugs, but humility and an open heart.

------

A dark side of psychedelics that Pollan doesn't cover---how the CIA used these drugs on unsuspecting victims who suffered severe brain damage, or even death, in the agency's quest to see if the drugs could be used for mind control or to extort confessions. It didn't work, but the casualties were horrible.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/10/bo...

===============

What is the Murti-Bing?

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... ...more

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May 06, 2019 Theresa Alan rated it really liked it

I’d read Michael Pollan’s book The Omnivore’s Dilemma, so when a friend bought this book for me, I already knew that Pollan was a respected journalist. I’d read a couple news articles about how LSD and psilocybin may be able to help with addictions. Since I believe the ridiculously high rates of incarceration the United States engages in since the war on drugs began with Nixon in the ‘70s, primarily because of people who battle substance abuse but aren’t violent criminals, I’m for anything that I’d read Michael Pollan’s book The Omnivore’s Dilemma, so when a friend bought this book for me, I already knew that Pollan was a respected journalist. I’d read a couple news articles about how LSD and psilocybin may be able to help with addictions. Since I believe the ridiculously high rates of incarceration the United States engages in since the war on drugs began with Nixon in the ‘70s, primarily because of people who battle substance abuse but aren’t violent criminals, I’m for anything that can help folks get free of their addiction. It’s at least something we should study.

There were serious studies regarding these drugs in the fifties and early sixties as to how it could help folks stop smoking cigarettes or drinking alcoholically. One of the things that blew my mind was reading that Bill Wilson, a co-founder of AA, was an advocate of people taking psychedelics to help conquer alcoholism after he’d had a mystical experience on belladonna. He wanted to include it in the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, but others felt that would muddle their message of being clean and sober. Also, some AAers don’t want sober alcoholics to take any drugs, including anti-depressants or sleep aids.

Think how many lives could be saved, how many emergency room visits averted by bringing down the number of people who battle drugs and alcohol. When it comes to addiction, we need to use every tool possible and not let the cultural backlash of the free love 60s thwart research into any area that can help. There have also been studies on how these drugs, when administered in a safe environment with a doctor who is not high, can help with depression and anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder. Because LSD is a Schedule 1 drugs (along with marijuana, ecstasy, and heroin), it’s been hard to get funding for research. A serious danger is that, for people who might had a predilection for schizophrenia, it has been known to cause psychotic breaks.

In the ‘60s the flamboyant advocate for LSD Timothy Leary, as well as the free love era in which lots of our young men did not want to fight a war in Viet Nam that they did not believe in, infuriated Nixon, who wanted his young people docile and compliant.

This book has more history on magic mushrooms and LSD than I ever needed to know. Because there have been so few studies on how these drugs can help people overcome other addictions, it’s largely anecdotal. The studies that have been taking place since 2006 are limited.

It seems counterintuitive that someone battling substance abuse should take a drug. The theory is that the addicted mind keeps doing the same thing over and over. Like if you go sledding and someone went sledding before you, your sled is naturally going to want to take the same route through the snow that the other sled made. Your mind goes through the same grooves of thinking patterns that are well worn. LSD and psilocybin are not addictive, and they get you to let go of your ego and see the world differently. For some people, just doing them once had a profound change and they were able to quit smoking or drinking or shake off the worst of the depression. For others, it might be something that needs to be repeated every six months or so.

I’ve never wanted to take acid or magic mushrooms. It sounds terrifying, even though Michael Pollan described his own personal experiences, and, for the most part, had good things to say about the experiences. If I drink too much, at least I know exactly what will happen (mostly, I’ll hate myself in the morning and feel like hell). But with both marijuana and LSD, if we can help folks with anxiety disorder or substance abuse, we need to look into every avenue that can help, and not let prejudice or ignorance stop legit research.

For more reviews, please visit http://www.theresaalan.net/blog
...more

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Dec 19, 2018 Ken rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: contemporary, finished-in-2018, nonfiction

Over 400 pages of psychedelics: its history, its big players, its experiences, its possibilities, its science. No one could do it justice, probably. No one but Michael Pollan. If you want to talk technical merit, this is a 5-star product, start to finish, even if you're only 4-star enjoying it as a read.

Chiefly Pollan deals in magic mushrooms (here referred to more technically as psilocybin), LSD, and 5-MeO-DMT (a.k.a. "The Toad," and don't ask, but it's something out of a giant gland that you Over 400 pages of psychedelics: its history, its big players, its experiences, its possibilities, its science. No one could do it justice, probably. No one but Michael Pollan. If you want to talk technical merit, this is a 5-star product, start to finish, even if you're only 4-star enjoying it as a read.

Chiefly Pollan deals in magic mushrooms (here referred to more technically as psilocybin), LSD, and 5-MeO-DMT (a.k.a. "The Toad," and don't ask, but it's something out of a giant gland that you squeeze out of a special live toad so this gunk sprays out onto a mirror, where it dries up and... er... let's hop to another topic, shall we?).

After the history and an awful lot of Timothy Leary, a happy villain to the psychonauts-that-be, we get to Pollan's trips themselves. Now there's a good journalist: sacrificing himself in the name of literature.

Pollan takes three trips on the aforementioned drugs, all under the watchful eyes of "guides" who are experts, all in controlled conditions. If you're keeping score (for him, anyway), the shroom definitely wins.

After tripping, we get some science, which brings us back to that last frontier (space, you thought?), the brain. Still, with all the science flying around, we get a lot of mysticism too. Just to keep the scientists honest and all.

Finally, Pollan chronicles how these drugs have made a long and tortured climb back to respectability (asterisk) in that researchers are now seriously working on their helpful effects for the dying, the addicted, and the depressed.

Need a change of mind? Voila. Need to take your mind off your impending death? Nothing like being detached from your ego, for no one has ever experienced ANYthing like they do when tripping. The only thing one has to fear is fear itself (even though one expert posits that man fears three things: death, other men, and their own brain).

If you're hesitant because you remember the egg in the frying pan ("This is your brain on drugs."), this book is just the ticket to loosen you up. Sure, marijuana is going recreational left and right, but that's child's play compared to where these things will take you. All you need be is careful. Real careful. And do as Pollan does. Proceed carefully and educate yourself. Leave Alice to the Dormouse.

Still (Timothy) Leary of it all? Change things up. Give the book a go. It's a long haul and not equally interesting in all sections, but it surely is...unique. I only read it because it made the New York Times's "Top Ten Books of 2018*." If that's good enough reason for you, too, "Turn off your mind, relax and float downstream...."

(* Those book lists. Such delightful trips!) ...more

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Sep 16, 2019 da AL rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: audio-books, non-fiction

Fascinating info about LSD as well as mental illness, and philosophical musings on how the mind works -- past, present, future. Moreover, a first-person account by a respected science journalist!

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Aug 23, 2018 Liza Fireman rated it liked it

Shelves: ebook, shelf-2018, read-from-shelf

This is probably the most boring book of someone telling about his experience of smoking toads and using psychedelics in general. It got a little bit better towards the end, and it was interesting to read about psychedelics therapy, but I can't say that I would be reading it again or that it was a revelation.

There was a lot of history in the book, and actually not enough science. The main thing is that were some stories, that I am sure could be told in a more engaging way. I also felt that it ...more

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Aug 22, 2018 Morgan Blackledge rated it it was amazing

What a great book. What a fun book. What a wonderful, interesting, informative and even transformative read.

I loved it, not because of the novelty of the subject, but because of the absolutely appropriate caution, charming naivety and utter lack of pretense with which the author Michael Pollan handles the subject.

I’m 50, I grew up in a university town, and my parents and our family fiends and acquaintances came of age in the swingin’ 1960’s.

So needless to say, far (far far far) too much of my ...more

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Dec 14, 2018 Jenna rated it liked it

Shelves: psychology, non-fiction

Trippy Mushroom GIF - Trippy Mushroom Psychedelic GIFs

Prior to reading this book, I didn't know much about LSD or other psychedelics. If you'd asked me about them, I'd have furrowed my brow, bit the bottom corner of my lip, and remarked, Umm..... The Grateful Dead? So of course when I saw this book, realising it's something I knew nothing about, I wanted to read it. Seeing all the raving reviews about it, I wanted to read it even more. Sadly, I didn't love it as much as I expected I would and most others do.

Some of the history of LSD and ...more

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Jun 04, 2018 Lauren rated it it was amazing

Shelves: neuroscience, drugs-substances, favorites-nonfiction, psychology, best-of-2018, health, audiobooks, own

Remarkable book. I hope this will gain the same prominence that Omnivore's Dilemma did several years ago.

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Dec 21, 2018 Science (Fiction) Nerd Mario rated it it was amazing

Shelves: pollan-michael, 0-biology

Nature's miracle products reveal many immediate healing options. Perhaps they even made the incarnation possible aka "stoned ape theory".

Please note that I have put the original German text to the end of this review. Just if you might be interested.

The pharmaceutical industry has a logical aversion to non-industrial medicines. As a result, coverage of all alternative therapies is always biased and described one-sided negative. One of the favorite arguments is the lack of exact dosing and varying ...more

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Jan 06, 2020 Gretchen Rubin added it

Fascinating. I love Michael Pollan's work. I have to say, his account made me want to try psilocybin as part of my research . I'm not sure how one goes about doing that. If you have any suggestions, email me.

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Oct 09, 2018 Cathrine ☯️ rated it it was amazing

Shelves: group-challenge

5
You can’t always get what you want but you just might get what you need.
Among many others, what do Anaïs Nin, Jack Nicholson, Stanley Kubrick, André Previn, James Coburn, Aldous Huxley, Bill “W”, Ram Dass, Andrew Weil, Ethyl Kennedy, Steve Jobs, and Cary Grant have in common? Psychedelic therapy.

description

Are there other uses for mushrooms beyond sautéing them in butter, garlic, and dry sherry? Yes!
They can wipe out carpenter ant colonies, clean up pollution and industrial waste, and act as agents ...more

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Feb 14, 2019 Renee Amberg rated it did not like it · review of another edition

This was a struggle to get through. Unfortunately, it was more of a history book than a "How To Change Your Mind" book. Over half of the book is about the history of psychedelics and made me feel like I was reading a history textbook with unnecessary dates, people, and irrelevant facts. On top of that, the authors style of writing wasn't for me, there was a lot of fluff and unnecessary details in his writing. I would have liked the book better if it was actually about what psychedelics taught us ...more

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Jun 04, 2018 Elizabeth Theiss rated it it was amazing

Prepare to change your mind about the role of psychedelic drugs in western culture. Or, if you have experience as a psychonaut, get ready for a broad, expansive review of history, research, and the possibilities for public policy.

When LSD, mescaline, psilocybin, and other psychedelic drugs first became known in the 1950s and 1960s, academic and medical researchers explored their potential for relieving depression, addiction, and other mental problems. The promising research results were Prepare to change your mind about the role of psychedelic drugs in western culture. Or, if you have experience as a psychonaut, get ready for a broad, expansive review of history, research, and the possibilities for public policy.

When LSD, mescaline, psilocybin, and other psychedelic drugs first became known in the 1950s and 1960s, academic and medical researchers explored their potential for relieving depression, addiction, and other mental problems. The promising research results were abandoned when Timothy Leary, a Harvard professor, began urging young people to “Tune in, turn on, and drop out.” The federal government ultimately outlawed hallucinogenics for all uses, including research.

In the late 1990s, research on psilocybin and other mind-expanding drugs resumed and the results are rather stunning. The vast majority of subjects reported experiencing ego-shattering, transcendent trips that resulted in a deep understanding of the interconnectedness of themselves with the universe and a new openness to experience. Guided psychedelic experiences lead subjects to deep insights. For example, in a tobacco cessation program, participants describe feeling a deep realization of the destructive nature of tobacco and a powerful connection to the universe. Why would one disturb the life force that empowers them with the destructive force of tobacco? In research on the impact of LSD on existential anxiety in cancer patients was especially impressive. It allowed subjects to let go of narrow conceptions of materialistic death and embrace a more holistic sense of death as a transition to another state of being.

Confession: I am a child of the 60s who experimented with mescaline and LSD. I count these experiences as among the most formative of my life. I am a more creative, happy person because of them. I learned that humans are entirely intertwined among ourselves and every other animal, plant, and mineral on the earth. We are stardust. We are golden. Everything counts and yet nothing really matters in the context of the millennia. I read Pollan’s descriptions of his own forays into psychedelia with a sense of familiarity.

The potential of psychedelic drugs to change the world for people suffering from depression, existential anxiety attendant to life-threatening disease, and addiction seems settled. What stands in the way is Nixon-era prejudice and fear. The scientific community seems to have developed some consensus that psychedelics can play an important role in healing several resistant diseases of western civilization. Where public policy goes from here will depend on the policy community paying more attention to data and less to prejudice. ...more

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Jun 24, 2019 Kathleen rated it really liked it

Pollan’s research regarding psychedelics is all-encompassing—covering everything from the time LSD was first discovered in 1938 by Albert Hofmann, a Swiss scientist working for Sandoz; to ingesting LSD, psilocybin and the crystallized venom of the Sonoran Desert toad himself. Of note, Pollan is most interested in the medical studies of this class of drugs and their potential use in humans—and not their recreational use.

Psychedelic-aided therapy, properly conducted by trained professionals can ...more

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Jul 11, 2019 Tomas Ramanauskas rated it it was amazing

Shelves: non-fiction

The worst kind of books are self-help books:
badly researched, one sided, lazily written ten-page essays streched into 200+ pages, trying to prove that everything you know is wrong, while promising to change your life.

Pollan pulls an unbelievable trick of actually writting a self-help book which is well substantiated, believing in its own thesis, yet agreeing not to know enough, enhancing common knowledge by a wide margin and, quite possibly, significantly impacting your life.

All hippie & new ...more

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Dec 07, 2018 Daniel Chaikin rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, audio-favorites

Now that I'm using audible.com I feel some responsibility to pick good books with good narration and I spent a lot of time struggling to come with a one this time and nothing seemed quite right enough, then I listened to this oddball title and Pollan won me over with his passion in the sample - he reads this himself. And, he also completely won me over with this book.

There was a time when psychedelics were a serious medicine under serious study, especially for alcoholics. Then Timothy Leary came ...more

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Jul 27, 2018 Yaaresse rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: non-fiction, social-sciences, health-complementary-therapy, history-medical, first-read-2018

Once again I seem to be in the minority. Oh well, I'm used to that. Having read The Omnivore's Dilemma and Botany of Desire. I had fairly high expectations for this book. Those high expectations were only slightly dampened by the tidal wave of praise for this book, which these days is more often a sign of brilliant marketing and/or controversial content than a sign of brilliant writing/content.

Three are three sections to the book:
1. A very brief history of psychedelics' use through time and a Once again I seem to be in the minority. Oh well, I'm used to that. Having read The Omnivore's Dilemma and Botany of Desire. I had fairly high expectations for this book. Those high expectations were only slightly dampened by the tidal wave of praise for this book, which these days is more often a sign of brilliant marketing and/or controversial content than a sign of brilliant writing/content.

Three are three sections to the book:
1. A very brief history of psychedelics' use through time and a less brief history of research on psychedelics (mostly LSD and psilocybin, less on MDMA and others.) I thought this was the most interesting and best organized part of the book, but it was still fairly bare bones. And for someone who claimed they weren't going to spend a lot of time talking about Timothy Leary, he spends a hell of a lot of space on Timothy Leary.
2. Descriptions of Pollan's experiments with LSD, mushrooms, and toad venom. The actual descriptions are fairly brief. Most of the time is spend with him freaking out about preparations and worry about not being able to control every aspect of the experience, then later lamenting how it was all so much less than he expected. This was my least favorite part of the book. His "I paid my money, and I want my safe, easy, permanent instant enlightenment right NOW...even though I don't believe in any of that nonsense." Typical western attitude: I want it all, I want it now, and I don't want to have to put in any time or effort to get it. OK, I get it. He's a content atheist. But the constant snark about all things religious or with what he felt had any religious-spiritual trappings got old fast. The more he snarked, the more peevish and arrogant he seemed.
3. Current research on use of psychedelics to treat addiction and depression, also to treat anxiety in end-of-life. He said he was going to talk about the neuroscience in this section, but there's very little of that. Most of it is anecdotes, which get repetitive quickly. This section had the most potential given our society's near-epidemic of opioid addiction and long-term use of anti-depressants. Unfortunately, it didn't really deliver much hard information. I suspect he has subscribed to the Gladwellian formula of "keep the science light and shove in a lot of anecdotes that that support your pet points."

The book is a defense for the use of psychedelics, so don't expect objectivity or balance. Pollan is clearly a fan of the stuff. And that's fine except it puts the book squarely in the "preaching to the choir" club. Those inclined to agree with him will praise it. Those who don't agree will probably not bother to read it.

Pollan does make one depressingly good point -- although it's made almost in passing and he doesn't explore it at all -- when he notes that no drug company is going to invest in psychedelics as treatment because there is no money in it for them. The patent on LSD has long expired. Mushrooms can be grown by almost anyone with a little training. Most of all, drug companies are far more interested in maintenance drugs than single or rare-use treatments. If Pfizer (or Lilly or Glaxo) can keep people on a med for life, they have no interest in interrupting that revenue stream.

Basically, this book was just interesting enough to make me realize how much better it should have been and just informative enough to make me want to read something more in-depth (and far more objective) on the subject. ...more

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Jan 06, 2019 Numidica rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Additional comment 1/9/2019: I've shared this review with non-Goodreads friends and got a bit of side eye. So I'd like to share some context. I have never taken LSD or mushrooms, or for that matter any non-prescribed drug other than a minuscule amount of pot in college. So my point here is not to promote psilocybin because I use it, because I never have, but rather to provide a review of a very interesting book.

How to Change Your Mind is an investigation by journalist and writer Michael Pollan Additional comment 1/9/2019: I've shared this review with non-Goodreads friends and got a bit of side eye. So I'd like to share some context. I have never taken LSD or mushrooms, or for that matter any non-prescribed drug other than a minuscule amount of pot in college. So my point here is not to promote psilocybin because I use it, because I never have, but rather to provide a review of a very interesting book.

How to Change Your Mind is an investigation by journalist and writer Michael Pollan (The Omnivore’s Dilemma, The Botany of Desire) into the history, use, and benefits of psychedelic compounds. I probably would have passed over this book had I not previously read Omnivore’s Dilemma; I know the quality of Pollan’s research and writing, and that convinced me to give this book a try. I’m glad I did! It turns out that most of what I thought I knew about psilocybin (magic mushrooms) and LSD (the pharmaceutical version of the mushroom) is wrong.

LSD and psilocybin have been illegal in the US since the ‘60’s, and are classed (along with heroin) as a Schedule 1 illegal drug. As Pollan describes in his book, the idea of LSD or psilocybin as dangerous is mostly an artifact of ‘60’s anxiety about the counterculture rather than being based on actual evidence of danger from the drug / mushroom. Psilocybin is not addictive, and the number of “bad trips” resulting in injury or death is vanishingly rare. The major concern about psilocybin use is for people who have psychotic tendencies or schizophrenia, because in a few cases the drug may further unhinge them. Many of the reasons that were cited to categorize LSD / psilocybin as a Schedule 1 illegal drug are simply without factual basis. For instance, one claim, which I remember from my youth, is that LSD “damages chromosomes”; there is simply no evidence for this.

Pollan reviews, at length, the history of the drug, and the research done on LSD in the 1950’s and ‘60’s, and he shows that scientists then believed that LSD was a promising treatment for depression and addiction. Unfortunately, most of this research was filed away or flushed when the government made LSD illegal and cut off research funds, and even before that scientists were becoming increasingly uncomfortable with the promotion of LSD by Timothy Leary and others as a recreational “consciousness-expanding” drug. And yet, expansion of consciousness is apparently one of the real values of psilocybin / LSD.

Pollan describes the experiences of many, many peoples’ “trips”, including his own, and the words various people use to describe the experience are remarkably similar: a description of diminution or elimination of the ego; a visual review of their lives, sometimes meeting long-dead relatives or friends; an overwhelming feeling of love and empathy toward other people as well as toward plants and animals; and in some cases the feeling of meeting or being one with “God”. Pollan delves deep into the biological basis for this effect, and the general sense is that the drug increases neuroplasticity on a temporary basis, though some of the effects last for months or longer. Pollan expands upon this later in the book, explaining that the default mode network (DMN) of the brain, which allows rapid processing of new information based on prior experience, is temporarily off-line, and so each new experience, whether it is seeing a leaf, or an insect, or a person, seems as new and wonderful or strange as it would to a young child. Hallucinations also occur, as is well known.

And all of the above might be interesting reading with a sort of “so what?” conclusion, if not for the evidence of some truly astounding results in improving outcomes in a number of otherwise intractable conditions. In a study involving smokers who wanted to quit, use of psilocybin resulted in an 80% cessation rate. For those of you who have known smokers trying to quit, this is amazing, to say the least, and it is a better result than any other known approach. Among people suffering from “treatment-resistant-depression”, results appear to be equally high compared to other treatments. A preliminary study of alcoholics treated with psilocybin showed >50% success. One of the most moving stories in the book is about the use of psychedelics to treat anxiety among those with cancer. In many cases, people simply lost their fear of death, and in others it was greatly reduced, and this allowed the cancer patients to have a much better and loving engagement with loved ones, and an improved quality of life as the end grew near.

And why does this happen? It appears that the experience of ego dissolution allows people, during, and for a while after their trips, to view themselves truly objectively, while enhancing their love and empathy toward others. The answers people gave to the question, “what happened?”, seem banal or obvious, but they gain profundity through the changed behavior of the post-psilocybin-using patients. When one person who quit smoking was asked how she could do it, she said, “Smoking was no longer relevant”. Others said things like: “I could see now that this was bad for me – so why would I continue?” All these were things that they knew intellectually prior to their trips, but after the trips they knew and they believed. Other effects cited by Pollan, though harder to quantify, are increased creativity, renewed interest in one’s career, and increased love and empathy for others.

Pollan makes an enlightening comment about some of the more obscure assertions of 18th & 19th Century writers about transcendence, trance-like states, etc. – maybe they were achieving an ego-less state via meditation, breathing exercises, or some other trance-inducing mechanism; perhaps even psychedelic substances. The same goes for some of the more obscure statements in the Bible, like God speaking from the burning bush. This could have been a psychedelic experience. Almost all cultures have some sort of substance that brings on psychedelic experiences.

As the NYT points out: “You don’t necessarily need drugs to enter this strange, egoless realm of consciousness: Near-death experiences, meditation and fasting can get you there, too.” But the psychedelic drugs get people there reliably. Many people, after their trips, begin a meditation regimen which allows them to partly regain the ego-less state and some of its benefits. Experienced meditators, observed in scientific studies, exhibit similar brain function as people who take psilocybin.

All in all, this is a very interesting book, highly recommended. Psychedelics are beginning to be studied again at various universities, so I expect we will hear more on this subject in the coming years.

P.S. The only reason I did not give this five stars is that Mr. Pollan, god bless him, really does go on at length about certain things that could be dealt with more succinctly. But I love that he has obviously done his research. ...more

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May 26, 2018 Benjamin Siegel rated it really liked it

I feel lucky to live in a world where Michael Pollan has now written, sometimes quite beautifully, about tripping.

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Nov 08, 2019 Ross Blocher rated it it was amazing

How to Change Your Mind is a great book, addressing psychedelics from a variety of angles and demystifying a topic with a whole bunch of mystery surrounding it. Michael Pollan, best known for his books about food and farming, delves first-hand into the world of LSD, psilocybin, DMT, ayahuasca, and a number of other well-known and more obscure drugs (5-MeO-DMT, anyone?). He describes the historical context, when these compounds were discovered, their stigmatization and eventual outlawing, the How to Change Your Mind is a great book, addressing psychedelics from a variety of angles and demystifying a topic with a whole bunch of mystery surrounding it. Michael Pollan, best known for his books about food and farming, delves first-hand into the world of LSD, psilocybin, DMT, ayahuasca, and a number of other well-known and more obscure drugs (5-MeO-DMT, anyone?). He describes the historical context, when these compounds were discovered, their stigmatization and eventual outlawing, the practices and ritual surrounding them, early pioneers of research, the influence of polarizing figures like Timothy Leary, the conflation with 60s counter culture, the current figures advocating for further research, churches and individual guides who licitly and illicitly administer them, the physical mechanisms of neural pathways and blocked (or activated) receptors in the brain, and the personal experience of being turned on, tuned in, and dropped out.

This latter challenge remains the unattainable goal: putting into words precisely that which defies and often bypasses the language centers of the brain. Pollan does an admirable job of this. Having tried ayahuasca myself, I found a lot of truth and overlap in Pollan's description of a psychedelic experience, such as how an oft-repeated truism like "all you need is love" or "we are all connected" suddenly takes on an all-consuming, powerful sensation of conviction and reality, which continues to resonate in the sober aftermath of the days and even years that follow. Pollan also outlines many possible benefits these compounds might impart, from dealing with depression and end-of-life angst or addiction (ironically, this class of drugs might help with quitting other drugs) to, as the title suggests, literally changing our minds to think in new and creative ways and be less factional and competitive. The common sense case for reclassifying many of these drugs (almost all are schedule 1), funding further research, and opening up avenues for recreational use is well made, with equally common sense provisos about some unexpected effects, overdoses and bad trips. Pollan's accounts make me curious to try some of these other compounds, but I'll have to work on getting my wife's permission first. ...more

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About Michael Pollan

Michael Pollan

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Michael Pollan is an American author, journalist, activist, and professor of journalism at the University of California, Berkeley, where he is also the director of the Knight Program in Science and Environmental Journalism.

Excerpted from Wikipedia.

Books by Michael Pollan

The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals

In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto

The Botany of Desire: A Plant's-Eye View of the World

Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation

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“Normal waking consciousness feels perfectly transparent, and yet it is less a window on reality than the product of our imaginations-a kind of controlled hallucination.” — 19 likes

“You go deep enough or far out enough in consciousness and you will bump into the sacred. It’s not something we generate; it’s something out there waiting to be discovered. And this reliably happens to nonbelievers as well as believers.” Second, that, whether occasioned by drugs or other means, these experiences of mystical consciousness are in all likelihood the primal basis of religion. (Partly for this reason Richards believes that psychedelics should be part of a divinity student’s education.) And third, that consciousness is a property of the universe, not brains. On this question, he holds with Henri Bergson, the French philosopher, who conceived of the human mind as a kind of radio receiver, able to tune in to frequencies of energy and information that exist outside it. “If you wanted to find the blonde who delivered the news last night,” Richards offered by way of an analogy, “you wouldn’t look for her in the TV set.” The television set is, like the human brain, necessary but not sufficient.” — 16 likes

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