Journeying into one’s psyche

First published in Daily Maverick Life

 “Thank you for the most meaningful and deeply magical experience of my life, I am speechless”

 

“My heart is open, my mind is quieter and I enjoy life so much more and care less about petty things”

 

“ It has helped me heal and process emotional trauma.”

 

“The experience was deep and profound. It gave me the tools for my onward journey to healing and to what it means to be purposeful and energised.”

 

These are some of the comments on the Facebook page of psilocybin proponents. 

 

Dr Makgathi Mokwena, who refers to herself as a “pilgrim in heels”,  describes her journey with magic mushrooms in a documentary series called, Pilgrim, that was broadcast on SABC 3 earlier this year. It is also available on You Tube.  Makgathi’s  journey was sparked by an insatiable desire to delve deep inside herself and discover her divine nature. She says “this longing could not be filled from outside. I could not achieve it through a relationship, food or a job.  Magic Mushrooms helped me connect with God, that is in everything and everyone. One experiences a glimpse of the unquantifiable divinity. It filled me with overwhelming euphoria. It has transformed me and brought me to a new understanding of why I am on this earth.”  Mokwena believes this sacred medicine was given to us as a gift by the One who knows us.  “It is a sacrament and not for any juicy trips at a party.” 

 

The next step for Mokwena as an arts therapist and leadership mentor, is to travel throughout Africa to explore and rediscover the deep indigenous wisdom found in Africa before colonialism. She  hopes to meet likeminded healers who can assist her in her calling to awaken humanity to our real purpose.

Magic mushrooms are categorised as a psychedelic drug, also known as entheogens. Other psychedelics include mescaline, found in some cacti and lysergic acid diethylamide or LSD which are synthesised from the ergot fungus found in rye. They were used by medicine men in North Africa and central America during religious rituals, dating back thousands of years. Today indigenous people in Central America, continue to use it for healing and religious rituals.

It was only around the 1950s that Westerners discovered their effect. In the sixties many started combining magic mushrooms with other drugs. They became the symbol of the counterculture of the 1960s and were eventually banned. 

 

Now after more than 30 years, during which very little research was done, there is a worldwide revival to find out more about these plants that show the potential to treat various mental conditions. These include opioid addiction, Lyme disease, post-traumatic stress disorder, nicotine and alcohol dependency, depression and many other ailments.

  

Dr Tiaan Schutte, a psychiatrist and head of the Dual Diagnosis Unit, (a drug and alcohol rehabilitation unit, for those with addiction and mental illness), at Sterkfontein hospital, says psilocybin is found in more than a 100 species of mushrooms. It is categorized as a psychedelic drug that has the ability to induce a mind-altering state. Early results have confirmed that the benefits of one or two doses of psilocybin are extraordinary. It has few side effects and there is no risk of dependence. If used together with psychotherapy in a controlled and safe environment it shows the potential to significantly improve those suffering from treatment resistant depression, anxiety, racial trauma and addiction. 

 

When one takes psilocybin, one’s gut converts it into another chemical called psilocybin. Once this is metabolised by the liver and released into the blood stream, it produces an altered sense of consciousness or perception. These psychedelic effects occur through stimulation of serotonin 2A receptors (5-HT2ARs). Advanced brain imaging techniques allow researchers to gain new insight into layers of the psyche that have not been explored previously. They have learnt that during the day neurotransmitters in one’s brain constantly travel well-trodden paths in order to perform routine tasks. This allows one to decide what is right and what is wrong. These paths become streamlined. Those brainwaves or paths that are not necessary to perform our routine tasks become unused.  By taking 5-30 milligrams of psilocybin the brain’s networks/paths are shaken up. The brain starts to communicate within well-trodden brain wave networks but also across unused networks. It is this shaking up of the system that allows one to perceive the world in a broader context and change one’s perceptions.  It means one is able to switch between different cognitive operations in reaction to the changing environment and not remain stuck in rigid perceptions of what is right and what is wrong.

  

Dr Rykie Liebenberg, a psychiatrist in private practice, says that although the use of psilocybin shows huge potential, the research is not conclusive. It is important for anyone wanting to try the magic mushrooms, to be screened beforehand. They are not suitable for those with a family history of psychosis or schizophrenia. Liebenberg says she won’t use it until there is more research into it.

 

Monica Cromhout is a 76 year old astrologer and former Life line director. She has been facilitating magic mushroom journeys for people in the safety of  her Western Cape home for more than 12 years. She was introduced to magic mushrooms many years ago when she battled to overcome the loss of her husband. At the time she prayed for death. Until then she had not touched alcohol or drugs. The magic mushrooms unlocked new dimensions she never imagined possible. They connected her to the wonder of the universe and cleared her of suppressed grief.  Although they are illegal, their use is growing exponentially. Her clients include rich and poor, male and female. She charges R1500 per journey. She has been arrested twice for possession and dealing in psilocybin. Her court case has been postponed several times. She believes that a court judgement isn’t necessarily the best answer. Magic mushrooms have a world-wide following and it is impossible to control it with laws. The important thing is to take them in a safe setting and not mix it with other drugs.

 

One of the lawyers defending Cromhout, Nardus Grové says they hope that the Constitutional Court will decriminalise magic mushrooms. They are currently regarded as hard drugs like mandrax, tik and heroin, yet scientific research shows they are not addictive and have real medical value.

 

Cromhout’s lawyers argue broadly that it is outdated thinking to criminally ban magic mushrooms when more harmful substances like alcohol and tobacco are legal. In light of the 2018 Constitutional Court judgement that decriminalised the personal and private use, possession and cultivation of cannabis by adults in South Africa, lawyers hope for more reasonable and rational drug policies. If magic mushrooms are given the green light this would allow for more research into an industry which shows massive potential. This could bring hope for sufferers of treatment resistant depression. 

These sentiments are supported by retired Constitutional Court Justice Edwin Cameron, now inspecting judge of  prisons, who has joined former President Kgalema Mothlanthe in calling for an end to the vicious and pointless  “war on drugs” , as well as for drug use and distribution to be treated as public health issues, not criminalised.