Chooper's Guide ... the Internet's most comprehensive substance abuse treatment, prevention and intervention resource directory.

SPIRIT MEDICINE - Exploring the world of psychedelic plants



Summary/Abstract

Spirit Medicine is a documentary in progress by Javier Prato that explores the role of psychedelic plants in medicine  for emotional and physical disorders.

Content

This feature-length documentary aims to bring a scientific and spiritual approach to four natural psychedelic sacraments: ayahuasca, peyote, psilocybin mushrooms and iboga.

The film also explores the cultural relevance of these plant medicines to contemporary audiences around the world who use them as aids to psychological growth and spiritual exploration.


 

About this project

Despite the incredible plethora of scientific research and evidence suggesting the efficacy of psychedelics in treating various disorders, they continue to be illegal in most countries, EVEN FOR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH PURPOSES.

This is unacceptable, and with your helpI plan on changing that

By backing SPIRIT MEDICINE, I would like to offer you a first class seat as we depart on an adventure through two continents, meeting fascinating human beings, participating in shamanic ceremonies and getting a first-hand view of the incredible power of natural psychedelic sacraments.

Film is an incredibly powerful medium to transmit ideas.

With the right story, It has the power to change lives and culture.

With the help of the Internet, the ideas contained in this documentary can reach a global audience at an unprecedented scale.

Once these ideas reach the minds of those who are ready to receive them, they will never look at psychedelics in the same light - Not to mention, many people will gain new insight into using these natural psychedelic sacraments for healing themselves.

The most exciting part about SPIRIT MEDICINE is how it can potentially affect future public policy, laws, and the field of medicine.

With the ease of distribution, and ability to present a cohesive argument in an interactive manner, a documentary is a perfect medium for this project.

I cannot tackle the monumental task of changing public misconceptions about psychedelics as a lone filmmaker because the subject matter is already frowned upon (or misunderstood) by politicians and the public at large.

This is quite clear by the insane amount of restrictions and stigma around psychedelics -- even with scientific studies showing their potential efficacy in healing people.

 

I have devoted a lot of time interviewing prominent figures in the scientific community to help corroborate my findings. 

Some of those figures are Dennis McKenna (ethnobotanist), Gabor Mate (clinical psychologist and addiction expert), Claudio Naranjo (psychiatrist and author), Ralph Metzner (psychologist and consciousness researcher), Jordi Riba (pharmacologist), Rick Doblin (founder & executive director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies—MAPS), David Jay Brown(science writer and consciousness researcher), Daniel Pinchbeck, (author & Journalist), as well as several neuroscientists, shamans and plant medicine practitioners.

While there are MANY naturally occurring psychedelic plants, SPIRIT MEDICINE focuses on exploring the potential medicinal benefits of the following 4 natural psychedelic sacraments:

  • Ayahuasca
  • Peyote
  • Psilocybin Mushrooms
  • Iboga

The central theme in SPIRIT MEDICINE is the exploration of the potential medicinal uses of natural, psychedelic plants. 

Naturally occurring psychedelic plants and fungi have been used by indigenous cultures (often in a ritualistic fashion) since the ancient times.

This theme is explored from the perspective of both indigenous cultures and modern science. 

For example, some of the questions explored in SPIRIT MEDICINE include:

  • What have we learned about these psychedelic plants from the limited amount of scientific research we have done thus far? 
  • How do these drugs function in the brain and what are the potential risks involved? 
  • What are the effects of these drugs on the individuals mind and behavior? How can we potentially use these psychedelic plants in a medical context? Can these plants be used as alternatives to dangerous pharmaceutical drugs/opiates? 
  • Can these plants be used to treat or even cure known disorders? 
  • What is the historical and cultural relevance of psychedelic plants in indigenous cultures?
  • How is this all relevant to you?

I also explore the potential benefits of treating drug addiction with ibogaine as a natural alternative to dangerous pharmaceutical drugs.

Addiction to heroin and prescription opiates is at an all-time high, yet promising natural alternatives such as ibogaine still remains under-explored and illegal in most countries.

Number of Deaths from Prescription Drugs. The figure above is a bar chart showing the total number of U.S. overdose deaths involving prescription drugs from 2001 to 2014.Number of Deaths from Prescription Drugs. The figure above is a bar chart showing the total number of U.S. overdose deaths involving prescription drugs from 2001 to 2014.

I explored the potential of using ibogaine as an alternative to opiates and Ibogaine being a potential aid in alleviating certain symptoms of Parkinson's disease.

While more research is necessary in order to develop ibogaine as a medication in the United States and elsewhere, ibogaine-assisted detox has offered thousands an opportunity to detoxify, even after countless other attempts through conventional addiction treatment programs. Programs are currently open throughout the world.

We are in an unprecedented time. For the first time since the 1970s, researchers are being (slowly) allowed to study the potential medicinal properties of psychedelic compounds. What's even more interesting is that the overall findings have been positive and compelling in treating all sorts of conditions. Yet, most of these substances remain illegal in most countries. While we are headed in the right direction, we have not yet hit a critical mass point (or "tipping point") with the public's perception of psychedelics. 

SPIRIT MEDICINE is that tipping point.

Changing the public perception of psychedelics is vital for getting public policy/laws changed.

This is a prerequisite for being able to carefully research/study the potential medicinal benefits (and dangers) of these substances by the scientific community. 

One of the major goals with SPIRIT MEDICINE is to balance the discussion about natural psychedelics with facts and scientific research without ignoring the cultural origins of how and where psychedelic use in rituals originated.

The other goal of SPIRIT MEDICINE is to become the catalyst that will educate and change the public opinion on how psychedelics can be used to benefit humanity.

SPIRIT MEDICINE is the "tipping point" that is needed right now. Help us make this a reality by backing this project and sharing it with your friends.

 

 

 

 

Comments