Canada authorizes psilocybin therapy for people suffering from depression

The Canadian government now allows patients who are not terminally ill to legally consume psychedelic mushrooms.

Psilocybin, the active ingredient in hallucinogenic mushrooms, is illegal to produce, possess and sell in Canada. The only exception is for approved research purposes.

But last August, the country authorized 4 terminally ill patients to use psilocybin. Then in early November, Health Canada granted Mona Strelaeff authorization to treat her depression, among other things.

«I've been suffering from anxiety, depression and addiction for years,» Mona Strelaeff wrote in an email to Vice. «During my psilocybin therapy, I went deep, far back, to when I was a little girl and where all these things happen to me. All the unresolved trauma came back and I was beyond terrified, shaking uncontrollably and crying,» she said.

From recent clinical research have shown psilocybin to be a promising treatment for depression, anxiety and PTSD. Strelaeff received treatment on November 5, alongside her therapist.

Therapsil, which supported Mona's request as well as that of the 4 previous patients, explains: «Our mission is to help Canadians in need gain access to medical psilocybin. We started with Canadians in palliative care for several reasons. The first is that you have the right to die in Canada, so you should certainly have the right to try psilocybin. The second was that they didn't have time to wait. We had identified dying Canadians who had only weeks or months to live. We had to help them first.»

The opening to medical psilocybin in Canada follows a psychedelic movement in the USA. On November 3, the’Oregon voted to legalize psilocybin-assisted therapy throughout the state, while Washington, D.C. voted to decriminalize psychedelic plants.

On the business side, a number of companies are showing increasing interest in the active ingredient derived from hallucinogenic mushrooms. Bruce Linton, ex-founder of Canopy Growth, for example, has already invested in several psychedelic medicine companies. Compass Pathways, a UK-based company, floated on the NASDAQ last September. Compass' business is based on the use of patented psilocybin derivatives to treat a range of illnesses, with a particular focus on treatment-resistant depression.