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For the first time, neuroscientists have observed a "higher state of consciousness" in people under the influence of psychedelic drugs. Although this "higher plane" has been known about for some time, the team has pinpointed an increase in neural signal diversity, used to measure the complexity of brain activity, that is higher than anything previously recorded in a waking state.
Read more: LSD doesn't just treat mental illness, 'it could actually heal the brain'
When conscious, our minds are dictated by our perceptions, thoughts and feelings. This has traditionally been thought of as splitting into two categories: consciousness level (how conscious you are) and consciousness content (the content you are aware of whilst conscious). However, the functions of the brain relating to consciousness are still areas of relative mystery.
The very definition of consciousness itself is somewhat rudimentary, described by Giulio Tononi as "what vanishes every night when we fall into dreamless sleep and reappears when we wake up or when we dream." Defining our consciousness to the boundaries of 'awake' and 'asleep' has previously dominated this field of neuroscience, in typically lowered states of neural diversity. These levels of consciousness are now being challenged and exceeded with the use of psychedelic compounds.
The latest study, led by Michael Schartner, Adam Barrett and Professor Seth of the Sackler Centre at the University of Sussex, reanalysed data that had been previously collected by Imperial College London and the University of Cardiff in which volunteers were given one of three drugs known to induce a psychedelic state. Participants were first checked to ensure they had no history of mental illness, drug dependency or other factors that may impede their safety during and after the experiment.
Participants were given intravenous doses of LSD, psilocybin, and subanesthetic doses of ketamine – drugs described by Schartner and his team as having "profound and widespread effects on conscious experiences of self and world." Furthermore, these drugs have been known to “broaden” the scope of conscious contents, with vivid changes in imagination during consciousness.
Using brain imaging technology, neuroscientists were able to measure the magnetic fields produced in the brain and found that this measure of conscious level - the neural signal diversity - was higher across all three drugs.
In particular, magnetoencephalography (MEG) neuroimaging was used to study the varying levels of brain activity in patients, starting in a resting state, alongside control groups which had taken a placebo. When the psychedelic drugs were administered, the team noted the occipital and parietal areas of the brain lit up with increased activity, indicating "a clear increase in signal diversity for all three psychedelic agents at the group level, with effects being strongest for [ketamine]." Such an increase in neural signal diversity relates to a higher state of consciousness, previously unrecorded.
The participants in the experiment were later given questionnaires to retrospectively evaluate their experiences after the effects of the drugs had subsided. Participant reactions ranged from feelings of fear to those of an almost spiritual enlightenment, with some expressing a total blurring of sensory experiences.
Dr Robin Cahart-Harris of Imperial College London, who led the original experiments, said that the clinical value of these findings is important due to the "therapeutic potential that these drugs may have when used sensibly and under medical supervision."
Control: "I feared losing control of my mind."
Past: "I saw events from my past."
Ego: "I experienced a disintegration of my ‘self’ or ‘ego’."
Merge: "I experienced a sense of merging with my surroundings."
While this "higher" state by no means equates to a "better" state of consciousness, it does provide interesting insight into the conscious functions of the human brain. The increased neural activity could explain the dreamlike hallucinations some people experience when under the influence of psychedelic substances, for example. Under normal conditions, the information we gather through sight is processed in the visual cortex, whereas after taking LSD or KET, many additional areas of the brain lit up. These findings prove increasingly relevant when related to issues of treatment for those suffering mental health issues, such as depression.
Depression is ranked by the World Health Organisation as the leading cause of disability worldwide, and while the problem is growing, there is still a stigma surrounding treatment. In the UK, men are around three times more likely to commit suicide than women, with the highest proportion being men aged 40 to 44.
Treatments for depression include cognitive behavioural therapy and antidepressant medication, in both cases with support from a medical professional. While understanding the root cause of depression is a complex and multi-faceted issue, it is a recognised chemical condition affecting the mechanisms that regulate the brain. In order to develop effective treatments, more research is needed to understand the chemical functions of the brain as a whole, so as to better comprehend how to help those in greatest need.
In carefully monitored conditions, in line with all legal and ethical requirements, the use of psychedelics could help us learn more about treating such mental conditions. But, while a hallucinogenic experience in a "higher" conscious state could be beneficial when working through mental trauma, it also poses the danger of a difficult or dangerous experience. Studies into therapeutic uses of LSD carried out by the Beckley Foundation and Imperial College London highlighted the need for carefully controlled and supervised experiments, carried out at a specialist research centre with a team of trained medical professionals, to guide subjects through the process.
With rates of self-medication and drug addiction on the rise in the UK, it is important to note that, as with any drug, there is no guarantee of a meaningful, long-term therapeutic experience if no counselling occurs alongside to guide and safeguard the patient. The psychedelic is used, in these instances, not as a cure in itself, but a means to further our understanding of human perception.
Of course, though, experiments into the use of psychedelic drugs for therapeutic purposes isn't a new avenue of psychology. In the 1950s, psychiatrist Humphry Osmond coined the term 'psychedelic' when using LSD to treat a select group of patients suffering from alcoholism and various mental health conditions. While his research was halted in the 1960s due to political and social pressures, it had shown initial promise, and the ethos of the experiments was immortalised in Aldous Huxley's The Doors of Perception, having taken the drug mescaline as part of Osmond's experiments.
Writing of his own experiences with the drug, Huxley's journey through perception noted that "...the man who comes back through the Door... will never be quite the same as the man who went out."
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
