Category: Cancer

Treating depression in the Netherlands

[themify_box style=”light-yellow rounded” ]Depression is one of the worst disorders you can have, due to many side effects that are provoked during the depression period. Treating depression can be performed in a various ways – where some of them are traditional and some are not. But when it comes to treating depression in the Netherlands, they have a completely different approach.[/themify_box]

Psilocybin and THC as a cure for depression

While countries of Europe have not, throughout history, had that much exposure to psychoactive substances and hallucinogenic plants, some of them have embraced the culture of moderate, recreational use of these, in most other regions of the world, legally forbidden substances which include cannabis and “magic” mushrooms or psilocybin mushrooms.

Europe and mushrooms

While countries of Europe have not, throughout history, had that much exposure to psychoactive substances and hallucinogenic plants, some of them have embraced the culture of moderate, recreational use of these, in most other regions of the world, legally forbidden substances which include cannabis and “magic” mushrooms or psilocybin mushrooms.

Traditions of The Netherlands

The Netherlands is the most prominent and well-known country out of the handful of nations in the world to legalize limited cannabis and psilocybin mushrooms consumption, even though these are not plants traditionally found in Europe but in other continents like Asia and America.  Here the tradition of smoking marijuana, making “space cakes” and consuming magic mushrooms or “shrooms” has grown over the last few decades.

Smoke it in North Holland

The habit of consuming substances like these has spread across the continent, but it remains most prominent in the region of North Holland, mostly in bigger cities of the region.  They are popular mostly among young people, who consume these substances mostly as recreational drugs. However, there are certain effects of substances like magic mushrooms which can have positive effects in curing certain mental conditions, like depression.

Amsterdam cure?

A group of scientists, working on discovering positive effects of magic mushroom in medicinal use, based in Amsterdam, has a new, maybe a controversial theory – that “magic mushrooms” present a cure for depression. In the last study on the effects of psychedelic mushrooms components, it was found that about half of the respondents managed to resolve the symptoms of mental disorder and that occurred after only three months of use of psilocybin mushrooms. Colleague scientist has conflicting opinions: some considers that this is a great discovery, other dismiss the results completely and negate any healing effects of psilocybin.

The study has shown that as much as half of the test subjects went into remission in a week and stayed in remission for the following three months. As one of the scientists included in the research pointed out: “Maybe this is a new era in the treatment of depression. Maybe it’s just a powerful placebo…  But let’s not be so pessimistic.”  Interestingly enough, many of the participants come from the Red Light district of Amsterdam, where the use of psilocybin mushrooms is common among young professionals, which are especially prone to modern age psychological problems, including depression.

Depression comes as a price of long working hours, societal and parental pressure for success, alienation from family and friends and many other causes connected with a modern and fast lifestyle. It can pose a serious threat not only to the life of the person affected but to the society as a whole.

[themify_quote]For now, the whole study is but work in progress, and it will take more time, effort and money to definitively prove the positive effects of “shrooms” in the treatment of depression. It remains to be seen whether psilocybin containing plants like magic mushrooms have the potential to be accepted as a legal remedy for depression.[/themify_quote]