How Psychedelics Work

From the trailblazing, world-leading expert on psychedelic research, a groundbreaking exploration of how psychedelics may unlock long-held mysteries of the mind, and how these revelations can be used to treat the most crippling of mental illnesses

We are living through a psychedelic renaissance when scientists are uncovering the true transformative power of drugs that have long been marginalised and stigmatised. From depression and anxiety to chronic pain and eating disorders, psychedelics are providing people with relief from suffering in cases where all other treatments have fallen short. But what exactly are these substances doing to our brains? And what can they teach us about how the brain works and how mental illness takes hold?

Written by a scientist at the forefront of this research, How Psychedelics Work weaves together stories from the lab, cutting-edge neuroscience, and patient accounts to illuminate how these substances work and why they can be so life-changing. Drawing on decades of research, including his own landmark clinical trials, Robin Carhart-Harris explains how psychedelics liberate the brain from rigid and repetitive patterns of thought and perception that can trap us, and instead help us see new perspectives and insights.

Beyond their therapeutic potential, psychedelics may also hold the answer to some of the most deep, vexing questions we have about consciousness, the self, and subjective experience. Bold, practical and profound, How Psychedelics Work invites readers to reconsider how we construct suffering, healing and meaning in our lives.