Our lab has focused on investigating the dynamic states of consciousness, we are now looking at new methods in order to change the state of consciousness to better understand it. We are using psychedelics, drugs that can alter the mind, as a way to systematically manipulate a mental state in order to unlock the key features of consciousness and develop stronger understandings of individuals’ self-experience.
Psychedelics have been shown previously to be extremely beneficial for the treatment of a variety of different mental health disorders such as depression, PTSD, anxiety, addiction and others (see reviews: Kuypers, 2020; Krediet et al., 2020; Muttoni, Ardissino, & John, 2019; DiVito & Leger, 2020). This could be due to their inherent nature to change the way we think, feel and process our self-experiences.