Power Plants: Medicine or Drugs?
Society needs to re-evaluate beliefs about substances from an informed perspective to determine if they can be helpful or harmful.
Why does it matter what we call these substances? It matters because of the weight we have given the word “drugs.” I grew up in the D.A.R.E era, being taught that all drugs are harmful, and if I were to consume them even once, I would become addicted and possibly even die. Those are high stakes that create an extreme fear around anything with the label “drugs.” A fear that would prevent someone from even doing curious research around it.
Lumping dangerous chemical-based drugs, which can become addictive, in the same category with plant-based medicines, which are non-addictive, is not honest.
Substances like psilocybin, cannabis, ayahuasca, and other mind-altering medicines are gaining real estate in our collective conscience. These plant-based entheogens are labeled as “drugs” simply because they have the ability to shift one’s consciousness.
By that definition, alcohol should be labeled a drug. It is a widely acceptable poison that the vast majority of the population consumes. To go a step further, Michael Pollan— an American author and journalist who is currently the Knight Professor of Science and Environmental Journalism at UC Berkeley— describes coffee as a mind-altering drug.
Where do we stop? Chocolate is a well-known carrier of caffeine. Cacao was once served at weddings and intimate family gatherings because of its known heart-opening properties. Many people today still conduct cacao ceremonies. Should chocolate be considered a drug?
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Plant medicines have a way of getting you out of your head and into your heart. They will crack you open and fill those gaps with light and understanding. They can give you seven years of therapy in 7 hours.
We are all bound to the lens from which we view life. A lens crafted from our social interactions, cultural normalities, past experiences, and in some cases religious beliefs. Might we briefly take off the lens given to us and try on a new one that offers new perspectives?
Based on the healing effects of plant medicines, imagine the distortions which could be ironed out if people welcomed microdosing magic mushrooms with just as much acceptance as coffee or alcohol.