Improving Neuroplasticity: Psychedelics and Other Approaches
By Tom Horvath, PhD
Psychedelic experiences have apparently been an aspect of Western life for a long time. It is hypothesized that the Eleusinian Mysteries, a religious rite in the ancient Greek world starting circa 1500 BCE, involved the use of an LSD-like substance. Since the synthesis of LSD in 1943, there have been waves of interest in several psychedelics (also known as hallucinogens and entheogens). The most recent wave appears to be about 20 years old, based in part on scientific investigations at prestigious universities of the positive aspects of these substances.
Recently (1/13/26) Nora Volkow, MD, the Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, released a blog arguing that:
The potential use of psychedelics in the treatment of various mental health conditions has made these drugs a hot area of scientific research, as well as growing public interest…the promise of psychedelic compounds likely centers on their ability to promote rapid neural rewiring…harnessing the brain’s natural plasticity in effecting therapeutic gains is an intuitively obvious avenue for drug development…the potential value of such research goes well beyond the prospect of new treatments. The profoundly meaningful experiences some people report following use of psychedelics could give neuroscientists valuable insights into meaning-making and the ability of the brain to change in a healthy direction after addiction or trauma.
I am not intending here to downplay the value of psychedelics, but rather to point out that we experience “neural rewiring” in various degrees all day long, and a wide range of methods will get us there. Rather than thinking that you need to run off to Oregon to do psilocybin (its use there is legal under specified conditions), or make other kinds of arrangements, you might begin with some basic approaches to “changing one’s mind.”
To begin, you could state out loud the problem you are facing. You can also consider if there are other ways to state this problem. You might generate an entire list of descriptions.
You then might state this problem to someone else (could be a therapist, but there are many options here, including AI). Ask your listener to ask questions until they thoroughly understand the problem as you experience it.
It is striking how often one or both of these initial steps will initiate “neural rewiring,” including a new view of the problem, and new views of how to address it. In future blogs we will examine other methods for changing your mind by using primarily your internal resources.