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Coping, Life Purpose, and Spirituality in Psychedelic Drug Users

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Coping, Life Purpose, and Spirituality in Psychedelic Drug Users Journal of Psychoactive Dtugs, 43 (3), 188-198, 2011 Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC Routledge Taylor & Francis Croup ISSN: 0279-1072 print/2159-9777 onlitie R DOl: 10.1080/02791072.2011.605661 Voice of the Psychonauts: Coping, Life Purpose, and Spirituality in Psychedelic Drug Users Levetite Moró, M.Sc.^ Kataliti Simon, M.Sc.''; Imre Bárd, M.Sc.'= & József Rácz, Ph.D.'' Abstract— Psychoactive drug use shows great diversity, but due to a disptoportionate focus on problematic drug use, predominant nonproblematic drug use remains an undetstudied phenomenon. Historic and anecdotal evidence shows that natural sources of "psychedelic" drugs (e.g., mescaline and psilocybin) have been used in leligious and spiritual settings for centuries, as well as for psycho- logical self-enhancement purposes. Our study assessed a total of 667 psychedelic drug users, other drug users, and drug nonusers by online questionnaires. Coping, life purpose, and spirituality were measured with the Psychological Inmiune Competence Inventory, the Purpose in Life test, and the Intrinsic Spirituality Scale, respectively. Results indicate that the use of psychedelic drugs with a purpose to enhance self-knowledge is less associated with probletns, and correlates positively with coping and spirituality. Albeit the meaning of "spirituality" may be ambiguous, it seems that a spiri- tually-inclined attitude in drug use may act as a ptotective factor against drug-related probletns. The autognostic use of psychedelic drugs tnay be thus hypothesized as a "training situation" that promotes self-enhancement by reheatsing personal coping stiategies and by gaining self-knowledge. However, to assess the actual efficiency and the speculated long-tertii benefits of these delibetately provoked exceptional experiences, further qualitative investigations are needed. Keywords — coping skills, psychedelics, quality of life, self assessment, spirituality Contemporary psychoactive drug use is considered to diversity in both individual and group patterns of eon- be a complex phenomenon not only because of the wide sutnption. As our postmodern societies show an eclectic spectrum of substances involved, but also due to the great mixture of soeiocultutally defined forms and notms, the topics of substance use and abuse are also being richly The authors wish to thank Dr. Attila Oláh, Dr. Tamas Mattos, and interwoven into virtually all areas of life, from medicine Dr. David R. Hodge for allowing using their PICI, PIL, and ISS instru- through politics to religion. However, social discourses on ments, respectively. Levente Moró wishes to thank Dr. Heikki Hatuäläinen and Brian Anderson for conmienting on and correcting the manuscript, the phenomena of illicit drug consumption predominantly and the Jenny and Antti Wihuti Foundation for grants. disregard the voices of the drug users themselves, and do "Doctoral student. Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience, University of not attetnpt to engage them in dialogue. Simultaneously, Turku, Finland. ''Doctoral student. Doctoral Program of Health Science, public attention is often targeted at only extreme cases of Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary. illicit drug use. By singling out tragic episodes or inventing '^Master student, BIOS Centre, London School of Econotiiics, UK. fictional "junkie" stories, the public media creates a notably ''Professor, Faculty of Health Sciences, Setniuelweis University, Budapest, Hungaty. disproportionate and problem-oriented view of actual drug Please address correspondence and reprint requests to Levente usage. Even so, based on sociodemographic surveys and Moró, Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Turku, treatment statistics of substance use, it can be estimated Assistentinkatu 7, Publicum building, FI-20014 Turku, Finland; phone: +358 2 333 6975, email: [email protected] that even 90% to 95% of drug users could be considered Jourtuil of Psychoactive Drugs 188 Volume 43 (3), July - Septetiiber 2011 Moró et al. Voice of the Psychonauts as nonproblematic (EMCDDA 2008; UNQDC 2006; Kraus or "coolness." However, self-enhancement of the psycho- et al. 2002). After subtracting the considerable number of logical kind tends to be a tnore cotnplex and controversial trial-only users, it still seems that there exists a relatively topic, because it is associated with such higher level hutnan large group of casual and regular drug users who can sus- needs as self-actualization, esteem, and self-ttanscendence tain their moderate consumption habits over longer time (Maslow 1971, 1943). Religious and spiritual practices, periods. creative processes, social cohesion, and self-knowledge all Despite their majority status, nonproblematic drug satisfy higher level psychological needs, and thus may users are typically not foregrounded in drug-related dis- contribute to mental well-being. In pursuing these goals, courses, presumably because they pose relatively little to no mankind has utilized a number of special psychoactive personal, social or public health risk. Whereas some stud- drugs, which will be briefly introduced next. ies demonstrate the existence of healthy, normally func- tioning adults who occasionally use psychoactive drugs PSYCHEDELIC DRUGS (Reneau et al. 2000), nonproblematic drug use remains a less charted territory within social drug research proba- The class of those psychoactive substances, which are bly also because of the underground nature of illegal drug mostly associated with transpersonal and spiritual domains, use. From a medical viewpoint, hallucinatory phenom- is termed psychedeUcs.Be.\onging to a subcategory of hal- ena have been mostly regaided as signs of mental illness, lucinogens, the major psychedelics are: (1) lysergic acid thus drug-induced hallucinations have been traditionally diethylamide (LSD); (2) psilocybin and psilocin from put into the same categoty with neuropsychiatrie disorders. Psilocybe spp. "magic" mushrooms; (3) mescaline from However, contrasting opinions state that hallucinations are cacti, such as peyote (Lophophora williamsii) and San not so qualitatively different from normal experience, but Pedro (Trichocereus spp.); (4) N,N-ditnethyltryptamine rather should be approached from a psychological view- (DMT) and preparations containing it, such as varieties point and seen as lying on a continuum with normality of the brew ayahuasca, or the snuff yopo; (5) diviner's (Alemán & Lar0i 2008). In spite of a potentially rich sage {Salvia divinorum); and (6) d-lysergic acid amide and personally interpretable phenomenal experience for the (LSA) contained in the seeds of morning glory {Ipomoea subject himself or herself, outsiders may also easily dismiss violácea) and Hawaiian baby woodrose (Argyreia ner- hallucinatory phenomena merely because the vivid per- vosa) (Halpern & Sewell 2005; Nichols 2004). In ception does not necessarily correspond exactly with any addition to these substances, listings of psychedelics "real objects or state of affairs in the real world" (Shanon may sometimes include also phenethylatnines such as 2003). Yet another reason for not touching the topic 2C-B (2,5-dimethoxy-4-brotnophenethylainine, "Nexus") could be a culturally enforced moral views that (some) and MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine, drugs would be intrinsically "evil" per se. Nevertheless, Ecstasy). Potent forms of cannabis with high THC the possibility of nonproblematic drug use—or of posi- (A-9-tetrahydrocannabinol) content, such as selectively tive drug use—should not be a priori rejected on moral cultivated hemp strains ("skunk") and cotnptessed grounds. cannabis resin (hashish), had been also reported to induce Beside the physical properties of a drug and its use hallucinations occasionally. However, hallucination- (such as dose size, route of administration, etc.), there inducing plants of the Solanaceae family (e.g., mandrake, are numerous personal-psychological and sociocultural- jimson weed, angel's trumpet, henbane) are not con- environmental factors (termed set and setting, respectively) sidered to be psychedelics but rather deliriants due to that largely determine the quality of the overall drug expe- their sleepwalking-like and toxic effects. Albeit partially rience, as well as the interpretations following it (Asaad & sharing common mechanisms with the classical LSD-like Shapiro 1986; Zinberg 1984; Faillace & Szara 1968). hallucinogens, dissociative drugs such as phencyclidine Cultural studies indicate that the purposes of psychoactive (PCP), ketamine, and nitrous oxide (N2O, "laughing gas"), drug use—both legal and illegal—may also include self- are not unanimously viewed as psychedelics. enhancement, a pursuit of an increased personal well-being Neuropsychopharmacological characteristics of many (Lerner & Lyvers 2006; Prepeliczay 2002). Depending on psychedelic hallucinogens, such as LSD and psilocybin, the primary level of action, a coarse distinction can be have already been charted since the 1950s (for cut rent made at least between neuroeognitive, social, and psy- reviews, see Passie et al. 2008, 2002). With the notable chological enhancements. For the first and second cat- exception of Salvia divinorum, major psychedelics pri- egories, plenty of substances are available to improve marily stimulate various serotonin (5-hydroxy-triptamine, btain metabolism needed for basic mental functioning, 5-HT) receptors, especially subtype 5-HT2A on neocorti- and to dissolve inhibitions hindering social interactions. cal pyramidal cells. These psychedelic hallucinogens
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