A study of young people’s use of psychedelic substances as a form of selfcare at the edge of or outside the public healthcare system.

Aims

The aim of the project is to examine:

1. How psychedelics are discussed in Danish online forums
2. The role of online communities in young people’s understanding and uses of psychedelics
3. The social and health-related consequences experienced by young people seeking self-development and/or self-treatment via psychedelics.

With this project, we aim to contribute with new knowledge on so-called ’therapeutic drug use’, young people’s individual and collective strategies of self-care, and the role of the internet in shaping young people’s attitudes to mental health and mental health improvement. Furthermore, we want to inform and qualify drug prevention and treatment practices by including young people’s perception of and relationship to the Danish public healthcare system.

Background

Psychiatric research is experiencing a ”psychedelic renaissance”, with clinical trials indicating the potential of psychedelics such as LSD and psilocybin in the treatment of mental illness. However, it seems that many (especially young) people are pursuing these aims on their own. Membership in Danish online forums related to psychedelics has increased significantly in the last two to three years. At the same time, municipal drug treatment practitioners are experiencing an increase in young people seeking help after problematic experiences with psychedelics. We know very little about how psychedelics are perceived and used in Denmark, and how young people are affected by the discussions and the knowledge they find online.

The study

The project focuses on young people between 16 and 26 years in Denmark and consists of three sub-studies.

• In the first sub-study, we examine a Danish online discussion forum, in order to map out and understand the attitudes to and experiences with psychedelics which are discussed and exchanged by the forum users in each forum.
• The second sub-study is an international survey focusing on young people’s attitudes to, use of, and experienced effects of psychedelics in relation to self-development and self-treatment.
• The third sub-study consists of 30 qualitative interviews, 15 with young people who have sought help after problematic experiences with psychedelics, and 15 with young people who do not need/want (official) help.

The project period is September 1 2021 to August 30 2023.

Funding

The project is funded by Helsefonden and is conducted by Centre for Alcohol and Drug Research in collaboration with Søren Holm from Aarhus Municipality.