I attempted to post a comment but I don't think it saved. I apologize if this is a duplicate. I was equating this enthusiasm to the possible enthusiasm of medical researchers. If a medical researcher has personal experience with a particular treatment/drug that was successful for them, of course they would be super enthusiastic about further research! Why would it be any different for psychedelic researchers? For some, part of the excitement is seeing the rest of the community catch on to what we already personally knew about the benefits.
The concerns re bias make sense, but it's a two-edged sword. Researchers having personal experience with the substances is also a huge advantage: When you've done a good bit of psychedelics you understand them better, which helps you formulate good research questions. I've seen a few lines of study -- like trying to create "trip-less" psychedelics -- that make me wonder about the experience of those behind them.
I attempted to post a comment but I don't think it saved. I apologize if this is a duplicate. I was equating this enthusiasm to the possible enthusiasm of medical researchers. If a medical researcher has personal experience with a particular treatment/drug that was successful for them, of course they would be super enthusiastic about further research! Why would it be any different for psychedelic researchers? For some, part of the excitement is seeing the rest of the community catch on to what we already personally knew about the benefits.
The concerns re bias make sense, but it's a two-edged sword. Researchers having personal experience with the substances is also a huge advantage: When you've done a good bit of psychedelics you understand them better, which helps you formulate good research questions. I've seen a few lines of study -- like trying to create "trip-less" psychedelics -- that make me wonder about the experience of those behind them.