True, but that doesn't mean that the DIY environment couldn't be brought closer to the therapeutic one.
I strongly recommend James Fadiman's Psychedelic Explorer's Guide[1]. It has lots of great advice on how to use psychedelics therapeutically.
[1] - https://www.amazon.com/Psychedelic-Explorers-Guide-Therapeut...
Absolutely. Psychedelics are incredibly powerful substances and they need to be treated with respect. Everyone considering doing them should educate themselves thoroughly beforehand and use them in maximally safe, constructive ways. James Fadiman's Psychedelic Explorer's Guide[1] has lots of great advice on how to do this.
"The afterglow wears off pretty quick."
It really depends on the substance and how it's used. Ketamine, for example, commonly needs to be readministered relatively frequently (though some people have lasting effects), while many people get very long lasting effects from between one to three therapeutic MDMA or psilocybin sessions (sometimes lasting for years).
It's people who tend to use psychedelics outside of a therapeutic context, to "party" and/or without constructive intention or post-trip integration that tend to lack lasting effects.. but even then it's not at all uncommon for the experiences to be life-changing.
[1] - https://www.amazon.com/Psychedelic-Explorers-Guide-Therapeut...
Still, there are ways that you can maximize your chances of getting therapeutic benefit out of psychedelics.
Doing psychedelics with a trained psychedelic therapist that you like, respect, and trust is probably the most effective way.
Something else you can do is read some good guides like James Fadiman's The Psychedelic Explorer's Guide[1] and the MAPS Treatment Guide for MDMA Assisted Psychotherapy[2]
[1] - https://www.amazon.com/Psychedelic-Explorers-Guide-Therapeut...
[2] - https://maps.org/research-archive/mdma/MDMA-Assisted-Psychot...
People with pre-existing health and psychiatric conditions, and young people should be doubly careful. The physical and sometimes psychological effects of some substances can be dangerous, especially when mixed with other drugs (alcohol is a particularly bad one to mix with).
Psilocybin mushrooms are some of the safest psychedelics around, but at the very least be absolutely sure you got the right kind (have them identified by experts or grow your own)... and starting with lower doses, in a good set and setting, with someone more experienced than you who you like and trust is prudent. Have some quiet days to integrate the experience afterwards, maybe with a therapist.
[1] - https://www.amazon.com/Psychedelic-Explorers-Guide-Therapeut...
[2] - https://erowid.org
This is why it's incredibly important (especially for super powerful psychedelics) to prepare properly, take them in a safe place with an experienced person you like and trust, and integrate the experience afterwards in to your life.
That said, even difficult experiences might ultimately benefit you, if you try to learn from them and integrate them properly (perhaps with the aid of a therapist).
James Fadiman's Psychedelics Explorer's Guide[1] has a lot of great information on making the most of one's psychedelic experience, and doing so safely and constructively.
You could also maximize the chance the experience will be a good and constructive one by doing it in a therapeutic, shamanic, or sacred context.
But make sure to vet whoever you do it with thoroughly, as there have been some abuses by people in power in these contexts before (I'm particularly thinking of reports of rapes by shamen in Peru, and other reports of DMT facilitators shocking users with tazers or forcing water or tobacco snuff up their nose/mouth during the experience).
Be safe people!
[1] - https://www.amazon.com/Psychedelic-Explorers-Guide-Therapeut...
Mushrooms and other psychedelics have great potentials to improve mental health, if used wisely. There have been studies that show psychedelics successfully being used to treat depression, PTSD, and addiction. This kind of use is the opposite of abuse.
It is possible to abuse psychedelics, but it is rare, and one can minimize the risk by educating oneself thoroughly about them and by using them with a clear, constructive intention, in a quiet and safe setting, with an experienced person you like and trust, and with confidence in the identity of the substance and that you're taking the proper dose. I'd strongly recommend reading James Fadiman's Psychedelic Explorer's Guide[1] for more detailed suggestions.
Like the Prohibition of the 1920's, decades of the War on Drugs has utterly failed to make us safer. In fact, it makes us less safe because people have and will continue to use drugs, but because of the drug war they often are mistaken about the identity of the drugs they're using or the drug's dosage, leading to overdoses and other adverse effects. The War on Drugs also encourages and makes organized crime more profitable and leads to great violence, not to mention the effect of arrests, imprisonment, and killings by police on non-violent drug users and their families.
A tragedy and an outrage is the only way to describe the War on Drugs, and I have a very hard time understanding why anyone who's educated themselves on these issues would support it.
[1] - https://www.amazon.com/Psychedelic-Explorers-Guide-Therapeut...
Also, keep an eye out for upcoming legislation on legalizing psilocybin and/or mushrooms in your local area. Vote and put pressure on your politicians to make this happen, if you believe it should.
To have the best, most constructive experience, I'd strongly recommend reading The Psychedelic Explorer's Guide by James Fadiman.[2]
No brief summary can do this book or the subject of having a good trip justice, but at the very least be sure to have an experienced person you like and trust sit with you during the entire time you're on the substance, and try to carefully prepare for the experience and don't just do it on a whim at a party or a concert. Though such settings could work out, you will maximize your chance of having a good experience by choosing a safe, quiet space, where you won't be disturbed.
Be sure you don't have any other responsibilities for the day of the trip and perhaps the day after as well. Eat lightly the day before and day of the trip. Some people like to fast a bit, though make sure to stay hydrated. Have a clear, specific intention for the trip, and try to take something you've learned from the trip and make it a concrete part of your life afterwards. Depending on what you want to get out of the experience, you might also want to have some pictures of people you care about and maybe a rose to look at near the peak of the trip. There's a lot more to be said about this, and I'd really recommend you read the guide for more. The Secret Chief Revealed, about an underground psychedelic therapist, is another great resource.[3]
If it is going to be your first time, make it really special. You'll never have a first time with this substance again, and you really don't want to squander the opportunity. Some people spend a lot of time later in life chasing the magic of that first time, and it's never the same.
[1] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcL-7u80kjs
[2] - https://www.amazon.com/Psychedelic-Explorers-Guide-Therapeut...
[3] - https://www.amazon.com/Secret-Chief-Conversations-Undergroun...
Then, if you decide to try it, prepare yourself for a very special journey -- one that you'll only be able to go on once in your life (as you'll never again have a first time with that particular substance.. an experience many chase over and over again later in life, but few ever manage to recapture it). You'll want to be in a safe, supportive environment, ideally with an experienced trip sitter you like and trust, and without any prior commitments for that day and ideally the next. The Psychedelic Explorer's Guide has more specific advice on how to prepare.
[1] - https://www.erowid.org/chemicals/lsd/lsd.shtml
[2] - https://www.amazon.com/Psychedelic-Explorers-Guide-Therapeut...
[3] - https://www.amazon.com/LSD-Spirituality-Creative-Process-Gro...
This book is often recommended:
https://www.amazon.com/Psychedelic-Explorers-Guide-Therapeut...
Unfortunately there's not yet enough known about these substances to predict whether they'll work for a rare condition.. besides, everyone's different, and everyone reacts to these substances differently. They're pretty unpredictable. So it might work for you, it might not.
A lot also depends on how they're used, where, and with whom -- what's known as "set and setting". I'd recommend reading James Fadiman's Psychedelic Explorer's Guide[1] for lots of good advice on this subject.
[1] - https://www.amazon.com/Psychedelic-Explorers-Guide-Therapeut...