Psychedelic Harm Reduction

Scientific interest in classic psychedelics such as psilocybin, LSD, and 5-MeO-DMT has resurged, with promising results for the treatment of mental health conditions including depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders. At the same time, public interest in those substances has increased, giving rise to what has been labelled as a "psychedelic renaissance". Although it has been repeatedly emphasized that psychedelics are not addictive and exhibit very low toxicity, their use is nevertheless associated a range of rare, but considerable risks and potential harms which may even occur after sporadic use. To date, these risks remain underrecognized and underresearched, and many clinical psychiatrists and psychologist are insufficiently informed about their pathophysiology, differential diagnosis and clinical management. This book addresses this gap by providing health care professionals and researchers with foundational information on the risks and adverse effects associated with the use of classic psychedelics. The chapter "Classifying Psychedelic-Related Complications" is available open access under the Creative Commons AttributionNonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.