...One of these people is Pollan, whose book How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression was published in 2018. (Clearly this is a good time for LSD-based literature.) The book is extensively researched, charting the many potential benefits of substances like ayahuasca and, memorably, a hallucinogenic toad. The book proselytizes for psychedelics (rebranded as entheogens) as being very nearly cure-alls, which can apply to the ill along with the well. Terminally ill people trying to come to terms with death, sufferers of depression or addiction, people with eating disorders, artists seeking an extra spark of inspiration, or engineers trying to break through a thorny work problem…all are made to seem like possible congregants in the church of psychedelia.

I read these accounts with a healthy dose of skepticism. Enthusiasts rave about acid the way colonial explorers must have enthused about the Fountain of Youth. They want so badly to believe that it’s hard not to imagine their desire coloring their results.

How to Change Your Mind points out a paradox when it comes to the science vs. spirituality debate: “The same phenomenon that pointed to a materialist explanation for spiritual and religious belief gave people an experience so powerful it convinced them of the existence of a nonmaterial reality — the very basis of religious belief.” For many users, it might not be appropriate to keep that firm barrier between the spiritual and the scientific. For the rest of us, this sounds suspiciously like a prescription of faith.

To learn what the latest Michael Pollan book, How to Change Your Mind, is about just check out its subtitle: The New Science of Psychedelics. Pollan creates an epic book. It’s part memoir, part history, and part science and medicine text.

Pollan interweaves each of these elements seamlessly. He uses this style often and it should be familiar to fans of The Omnivore’s Dilemma, for one. But don’t expect it to be studious or boring. The fabric of this book is just as colorful as 1960s tie dye. It spins and wiggles. Most of all, now I think completely differently about the positive potential of psychedelic drugs.

History
You might think LSD or Magic mushrooms began with Timothy Leary and “Turn On, Tune in, Drop out.” In fact, mushrooms with psychoactive capabilities have been used since ancient times. And LSD was developed decades before Leary in a completely scientific setting. Pollan explains both origin stories thoroughly.

Through the last 50-60 years, public perception of psychedelics has shifted back and forth. Of course, they’ve been illegal in the U.S. since 1966. But people also use them to assist in spiritual and emotional journeys, both before and since then. Originally the psychological community embraced their potential. And now that same group is also contributing to the future of psychedelics.

Many other types of scientists have investigated the role of psychedelics in life as we know it. For example, one theory aims to prove that apes ingesting psilocybin led to changes in the hominid brain, including societal bonding and analytical thinking. It’s called the Stoned Ape Theory. Psilocybin is the psychoactive drug compound found in over 200 types of mushrooms.

Science and Medicine
Researchers are studying various psychedelics for medical purposes, according to Pollan. Multiple respected institutions have conducted drug trials to investigate these possibilities. One example is giving psilocybin “to terminal cancer patients as a way to help them deal with their “existential distress” at the approach of death.”

Additionally psychedelics are being tested for use with patients whose depression is both major and intractable. Pollan intersperses research information with stories from study participants, which adds both relevance and gravitas.

Memoir
Pollan also tries mightily to describe his own various experiences with psychedelics. All the while he says that words fail to adequately describe his experiences. His explorations explain the advantages of “guided journeys” for introspection and spiritual advancement. Rather than randomly ingesting psilocybin, there’s a lot of logic to creating some ceremony and having other (non-ingesting) people around to keep you safe. Those “guides” also serve to help “ingesters” to emotionally process and integrate their psychedelic journeys. This structure harkens back to the way hallucinogenic substances have been used for centuries.

My conclusions
I had many laughs at Pollan’s stories. In one, he’s with an expert hunting for a certain type of mushrooms called azzies. “We’re obviously not the first people to hunt for azzies in this park, and anyone who picks a mushroom trails an invisible cloud of its spore behind him; this, he believes, is the origin of the idea of fairy dust. At the end of many of those trails is apt to be a campsite, a car, or a Winnebago.” Having ready many fantasies set in the fairy world, this seems oddly logical to me.

More than the laughs, I gained true insight into the nature of these psychedelic journeys. Pollan balances the science and history expertly with the more groovy aspects of his book.

Acknowledgements
I received a digital advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for this honest review. Many thanks to NetGalley, Penguin Press, Penguin Random House, and most importantly, Michael Pollan for the opportunity.

I have many thoughts about this book! An extremely well-researched study of psychedelics, research into their effects and uses, plus a first person account of three different types. Fascinating and useful book. Longer review at crookedroadbooks.com

I'm been a fan of Michael Pollan for awhile. I really enjoy his subjects on exploring the food world. This book was a fascinating look at something that was totally out of my wheelhouse. I totally enjoyed the subject matter.

Entering a narrowly open door, Michael Pollan explores the history--and current state--of psychedelics in mental health and brain science. Pollan brings his signature style of deep research, developing interpersonal connections with specialists, pressing his subjective experience for deeper understanding, and carefully constructed speculation. Personally, while the history sections and the memoir portions were interesting and necessary to get a grasp on the topic, I found the brain science sections most interesting. Pollan wisely stays within the parameters of how psychedelics work, or at least appear to work, on portions of the brain. He mostly stays there, anyway. The material is very exciting, the changes in social and medical perceptions of psychedelics, combined with contemporary discoveries in neuroscience make it difficult to resist the urge to make hopeful extrapolations about how these chemicals can help the wounded, the fearful, the addicted, and even those whose only problem is a mundane existence in a solitary life.

This is a surprising departure from Pollan's previous explorations into health. A comprehensive overview of psychedelics, How to Change your Mind is a thorough and entertaining exploration of the use of drugs that have been present in many cultures for centuries .

A fascinating, profound, and scholarly exploration of the history of psychedelics and the maddening chokehold placed on their research and use. Plus, exploding ant heads — who knew?

Going into the past, present, and future of the research into the use of psychedelic drugs and their potential to solve many vexing scientific problems, Michael Pollan reframes these issues in a way that is sure to change many readers' minds. What makes the book compelling, is that the author is convinced by his own research to experiment with psychedelics. His experiences are deeply touching and fun to read about it. This book will give you a lot to think about.