Psychedelic Recovery

After tripping acid in 1955, founder of Alcoholics Anonymous Bill Wilson said of the experience; “LSD. deflates the ego in order to allow the influx of Gods grace.” A pioneer in many respects, Wilson became an early advocate of LSD use to facilitate recovery from alcohol addiction. This brought scrutiny from AA as an organization, and so acid never became an accepted element of the recovery movement.

Despite efficacy (in treating alcoholism with LSD) has been shown in research, this approach has never gained an enthusiastic reception from the recovery community or the addiction treatment field. To suggest psychedelic cure for alcoholism would most likely elicit mockery and snorts of derision. However, the origin of recovery has its roots in the psychedelic experience.

A drunken stock broker making a last ditch effort to get and stay "sober”, Wilson entered Towns Hospital under the care of Dr. Silkworth. A physician who dedicated his career to helping those who were addicted to alcohol, Silkworth had developed what he called the “belladonna cure”. A concoction made of belladonna and morphine, patients at Towns hospital were administered a series of doses of this cure. As a result of the belladonna cure, Wilson found himself the recipient of a life altering spiritual experience.

Having identified as an agnostic prior to this experience, Wilson was struck suddenly by the presence of “the God of the preachers.” This experience would alter the trajectory of his life and influence the future of recovery. Well known today as a…