Les promesses des thérapies psychédéliques : hier, aujourd'hui, demain

A seminar organised by Héloïse Athéa, postdoctoral researcher, IHPST, Gustave Roussy, and Denis Forest, university lecturer, IHPST, Université Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne, with the support of the Paris IAS. 

Presentation 

After a period of decline, psychedelics are now attracting renewed interest within the scientific community as innovative therapeutic tools for psychiatry. To date, numerous clinical studies point to their potential effectiveness in treating a wide range of conditions, such as anxiety and depressive disorders, as well as certain addictions. One of the distinctive characteristics of these substances lies in the unique, often disconcerting, subjective states they induce. According to some specialists (see Yaden and Griffiths, 2021), these states play a central, even decisive, role in their therapeutic success.

Despite the encouraging results obtained so far, a number of questions remain unanswered. These include, in particular, the precise neurobiological and psychological mechanisms of action of psychedelics, the true potential of these substances on a large scale, and the difficult distinction between their therapeutic uses and their non-medical, sometimes recreational, uses. Furthermore, the continuities and breaks between current psychedelic medicine and its previous historical incarnations remain largely to be explored. A better understanding of these issues would, however, help to inform current debates on their regulation and their potential integration into healthcare systems.

It is against this backdrop of scientific excitement that this interdisciplinary study day aims to provide a unique platform for taking stock of contemporary research. By bringing together the perspectives and expertise of researchers in fields such as medicine, the history of science and medicine, law and philosophy, this event aims to identify the current challenges facing psychedelic medicine and to reflect on the relevance and practicalities of its future integration into therapeutic practice.

Program 

9.30.am: Welcome 

9.50.am : Introduction  
Héloïse Athéa (Gustave Roussy, IHPST) and Denis Forest (Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne- IHPST)

10.am : Dangereux et sans intérêt thérapeutique !
Bertrand Lebeau Leibovici, addiction specialist

10.45.am : Ce que les usages "do it yourself" des psychédéliques font aux frontières du soin 
Margot Morgiève (Inserm, Cermes3, Paris)

11.30.am : Plasticité sous psychédéliques : une fenêtre à saisir, un comportement à mesurer
Luc Mallet (Université Paris-Est Créteil, DMU Impact, AP-HP, Créteil) and Eric Burguière (Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon, team "Neurophysiology of Repetitive Behaviors")

12.30.pm : Lunch break 

2.00.pm : Mind introspection and the therapeutic relationship in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy: the metaphorical path 
Emiliano Loria (Università degli Studi del Piemonte Orientale “Amedeo Avogadro)

2.45.pm : The Legitimacy of a Late Modern Psychedelia in Relation to Indigenous Knowledges 
Nicolas Langlitz (The New Schhol for Social Research, Etats-Unis)

3.30.pm : Les effets indésirabkes des psychédéliques et leur accompagnements communautaires 
Alexandre Peyré (CHU de Bordeaux, Société psychédélique française)

4.15.pm : Conclusion

Organisers and organisations involved

Seminar organized by Héloïse Athéa, postdoctoral researcher, IHPST, Gustave Roussy et Denis Forest, university lecturer IHPST, Université Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne.

With the supprot of IRESP, INSERM and the Paris IAS. 

Practical details

Event on-site, at the Paris IAS (Gardes Room, 1st floor, 17 quai d'Anjou, Paris 4). 

Open to the public, registration required via the following link: https://forms.gle/c59Fy2pe7Mfpz74Y8