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But Let’s Not Have Belief in God Be That Strength! Oh, no no no no no
Pam Sakuda was 55 when she found out she was dying. Shortly after having a tumor removed from her colon, she heard the doctor’s dreaded words: Stage 4; metastatic. Sakuda was given 6 to 14 months to live.
As her fears intensified, Sakuda learned of a study being conducted by Charles Grob, a psychiatrist and researcher at Harbor-U.C.L.A. Medical Center who was administering psilocybin — an active component of magic mushrooms — to end-stage cancer patients to see if it could reduce their fear of death. Twenty-two months before she died, Sakuda became one of Grob’s 12 subjects. When the research was completed in 2008 — (and published in the Archives of General Psychiatry last year) — the results showed that administering psilocybin to terminally ill subjects could be done safely while reducing the subjects’ anxiety and depression about their impending deaths.
Grob’s interest in the power of psychedelics to mitigate mortality’s sting is not just the obsession of one lone researcher. Dr. John Halpern, head of the Laboratory for Integrative Psychiatry at McLean Hospital in Belmont Mass., a psychiatric
training hospital for Harvard Medical School, used MDMA — also known as ecstasy — in an effort to ease end-of-life anxieties in two patients with Stage 4 cancer.
Dr. Tar
April 22nd, 2012
This is ethical treatment for the terminally ill?
I wonder if there is some government agency funding this kind of research. Perhaps one of those new ones created under Obamacare – we could call it the Euthinasia Administration Agency. Or as the Nazi’s called it the Charitable Foundation for Curative and Institutional Care or Action T4 for short.
http://www.holocaustresearchproject.org/euthan/
Friend of the family
April 22nd, 2012
“Grob’s interest in the power of psychedelics to mitigate mortality’s sting is not just the obsession of one lone researcher. Dr. John Halpern, head of the Laboratory for Integrative Psychiatry at McLean Hospital in Belmont Mass., a psychiatric…”
mortality’s sting
Something I’ll never have to worry about because:
“O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?”
1 Corinthians 15:55
Keep your dope, I may be depressed and in pain on my deathbed, but I’ll also be filled a joy unspeakable and a love that goes beyond understanding right up to the moment I’m in my Savior’s arms.
MADJACK
April 22nd, 2012
Can I get some of this stuff?? I have fear of Obaama reelection syndrome.
Edith McCrotch
April 22nd, 2012
Oh man I’m havin’ a flashback….gotta go find my Pink Floyd and Hendrix.
reddecaesari
April 22nd, 2012
@friend of the family
beautifully put. death is nothing to fear.
R.Neville
April 22nd, 2012
As a Christian, while I do not wish to hasten my death, I certainly do not fear it. I am looking forward to leaving the downwardly spiraling world filled with cruelty, decadence, pain, and tears. Humans reached the low point when they began killing their own children, both in and out of the womb. The only thing more disgusting would be if they actually ate them after killing them.
May God have mercy on the legions of non-believers, but Judgement Day will come and it will not be pretty.
Sign Me,
Ready To Go
Billy Fuster
April 22nd, 2012
A few margaritas would do the same thing.
Bob M.
April 22nd, 2012
Getting STONED, to meet death – how ORIGINAL…
Ty Coon
April 22nd, 2012
Having been on a few trips myself back in the day, I know that sometimes you also can have a ‘bad trip’. One of the reasons I gave up hallucinogens was the increasing paranoia. I would hate to think what a terminally ill person would be thinking if their high became a low.
Annie
April 22nd, 2012
When this goes to Phase 1 (basically: first in man, healthy volunteers) clinical trials there’ll be a line out the door for screening.
Dianne
April 22nd, 2012
I don’t wish for death, but as a Christian, I don’t fear it either. That’s a good feeling. It liberates your brain from all kinds of dark thoughts.
Racist
April 22nd, 2012
That is incredibly irresponsible and dangerous. It has enormous potential to be another example of the Bleeding Heart Libs’ inability to consider the potential for Unintended Consequences!!! The chances that someone already experiencing anxiety over impending death, would experience a “Bad Trip” and suffer unspeakable horrors and psychological trauma, are too great to ignore. That’s just common sense.
MaryfromMarin
April 22nd, 2012
Love your title, BFH.
Love your post, FoF.
__________________________
Is anyone else getting the sneaking suspicion that we are looking at the new “end of life” protocols here? Like, “You can’t have that operation or that curative drug but, hey! How about some psychedelics?”
Roscoe P. Soultrane
April 22nd, 2012
The only real side effect was the patients’ marked increase in desire for shitty techno music and glow sticks.
Tim
April 22nd, 2012
I do not fear death, either.
Suffering, ehhh, not too crazy about.
But when it comes to death, for some … not soon enough … for others … too soon … and for an infinitesimal minority … need assistance.
Isaac Asimov
April 22nd, 2012
@Tim: “I do not fear death, either.”
Yeah, same here. It’s the transition bit that troubles me.
FreeMan - Save Me Sarah
April 22nd, 2012
Why so esoteric? I know about 100 things that will make you forget about death, right before it kills you.
Jayne
April 22nd, 2012
Like all NYT articles too damn long. They have to drag out their stupid stuff so as to pretend it’s serious enough that it takes a long time to explain.
the aardvark
April 22nd, 2012
What is this, Brave New World. As a Christian I don’t fear death either, although I want to be around as long as possible for the sake of my kids and grandkids. My Dad’s oldest brother is 93, he has another brother who is 86 and my Dad just turned 83. My Mom will be be 87 and my parents will be celebrating their 60th Anniversary in another month or so. So until God calls me I want to be here.
the aardvark
April 22nd, 2012
And I might add, without the use of hallucinogenic drugs. I had enough of that to last a lifetime in the 70′s.
mkultra
April 22nd, 2012
Aldous Huxley received an injection of LSD on his deathbed. I can’t think of a shittier way to waste your final hours.
MaryfromMarin
April 22nd, 2012
@the aardvark–
Totally O/T, but I read that you live in Spokane and work all over northern Idaho. We are considering relocating there, esp. northern Idaho. Are you happy living and working in that area? Would you recommend?
the aardvark
April 22nd, 2012
Mary, I grew up here in this area, except for one yr. in Portland, Or. and 3 yrs. in the Navy down in San Diego when I wasn’t overseas in SE Asia. You can keep both those places although I do like the weather in San Diego. This is a great place overall although our winters can be intimidating at times. Everything considered and I’m probably biased this is a great place to live. Today was absolutely gorgeous all the way to Eureka, Mt. and back, about 75 degrees today and blue skies although I hear its supposed to rain again later this wk. It is beautiful up here, especially Coeur D Alene lake and Pend Oreille lake up around Sandpoint, Id. And the people are very friendly as well. Give it a try, you have nothing to lose.
MaryfromMarin
April 22nd, 2012
@the aardvark–
Thanks for your comments! We were looking at the Priest Lake area, but Pend Oreille is close by. Montana also looks good. Serious cold weather is not my absolute favorite, but I’d rather that than die an economic and ideological death here in the SF Bay Area. No amount of good weather can offset that.
Major Mal function
April 23rd, 2012
Can I get some of this stuff?? I have fear of Obaama reelection syndrome.
How do you think Obama got elected in the first place?