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Pivotal Mental States

Pivotal Mental States

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Pivotal mental states (PiMS) are states of mind created by profound psychological events which shift modes of general thought patterns. PiMS serve an important evolutionary function, that is, to aid psychological transformation when actual or perceived environmental pressures demand this[1]. In nature, PiMS are primed by chronic stress and neurotic traits, whereas acute stress can be a trigger. PiMS can also be induced by certain medicines and experiences, evidence for which is presented below.

PiMS induce neuroplastic states which given the correct priming, setting and matrix guidance allows for the ability to eliminate unwanted thought patterns and the strengthening of wanted thought patterns.

Chemically induced PiMS

 
Figure 1. Pivotal mental states induced by psychedelics[2].

The quickest way to induce a PiMs is by the use of certain chemicals.

Psychedelics

Psychedelics are chemicals that when administered correctly can safely shift normal thought patterns[3] (see Figure 1). This is achieved by causing brain function to be less constrained than usual by modulating the presence or absence of underlying anatomical connections[4]. There is a common misconception of psychedelics which exhibits medically as Psychedelic Anxiety Syndrome. Instead of psychedelics being detrimental to ones health there is a huge amount of evidence to suggest the opposite[5].

Oneirogens

Whilst not considered a classical psychedelic, oneirogens, are chemicals which can induce PiMs by enhancing dream states. They are unlike psychedelics as they seem to be less potent and work unconsciously.

Non chemically induced PiMs

Near Death Experience

A Near-death-experience (NDE) is classically described as an intense psychological experience characterized by an atypical state of consciousness occurring during an episode of apparent unconsciousness and usually in life-threatening conditions[6]. NDEs in general are typically characterised by hallucinations[7][8] which are affected by set and setting much like psychedelics[9]. Some evidence suggests that dissociatives such as ketamine[10] or classical psychedelics such as DMT can induce this state[11] however historically, a defunct class of drugs called the pseudohallucinogens[12] is thought to bridge this gap. However, pseudohallucinogens do not have the same tryptamine / phenylethylamine chemical structures as the classical psychedelics instead they include drugs with a diverse range of effects which broadly are considered poisonous, these include:

  • Nutmeg / mace
  • Wisteria sinenis

Electroconvulsive Therapy

When people think of ECT they often think of the film One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, however this was a dramatisation, the modern process is far from what was depicted. Since its introduction in the 1930's, various changes to pulse width, dosing and duration, electrode placement and anesthesia have made the treatment almost unrecognisable[13]. Research has shown that 64% to 87% of patients with severe MDD respond to ECT, with response rates as high as 95% for patients with MDD with psychotic features[14]. Furthermore, in otherwise healthy patients with intellectual disability, a retrospective chart review performed at Cambridge university has shown that 79% showed a positive outcome following ECT[15]. There is some evidence to suggest that ECT causes similar long and short term effects to psychedelics in some in vivo case studies[16][17][18].

Blue Marble Effect

Leland Melvin was saying “we need to send everyone to space so they can experience this overview effect” and it was frustrating, because as great an idea as that is, it’s extremely unrealistic in the short term. Yuri Gagarin, upon his return as the first human in space, marveled at the planet from orbit in 1961. “People of the world, let us safeguard and enhance this beauty — not destroy it,” . A half-century later, ex-NASA astronaut José Hernández said that the view aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery in 2009 turned him into “an instant treehugger.” On Christmas Eve 1968, the NASA astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and William Anders were aboard Apollo 8, the first manned mission to orbit the Moon. They had spent most of the day photographing the Moon’s surface, when Borman turned the spaceship around, and Earth came into view. ‘Oh my God, look at that picture over there. Here’s the Earth coming up,’ shouted Anders. Like the astronauts themselves, the world was awestruck by the first images of the whole Earth from space, which are today widely credited with triggering the birth of the modern environmental movement.

Astronauts looking down on Earth from above for the first time see that only a fine blue line of atmosphere shelters our planet from the hostile vacuum of space — and often, they suddenly get an overwhelming responsibility to protect it. National borders disappear; the scene evokes a feeling of cosmic connection. This so-called “overview effect” has been turning astronauts into environmental advocates ever since the first person in space.

Spiritual experiences

Whilst unproven scientifically, (it would be very difficult due to the subjective nature) spiritual experiences in some cases have been able to shift modes of general thought patterns. Pharmacologically the human brain has been found to produce psychedelic compounds, the thought is that certain techniques may be helpful in unleashing its endogenous effect:

  • Holotropic breathing techniques[19][20]- 30 minutes breathing in a controlled, three-beat pattern — one sharp breath into my belly, one sharp breath into my lungs, and a sigh-like exhale to release.

Stroboscopics

Flicker light stimulation are capable of inducing visual effects with an intensity rated to be similar in strength to effects induced by psychedelic substances[21]. Whilst some visual aspects of the psychedelic experience can be replicated there is no evidence to suggest any other neurological effect occurs, click this link to see a range of psychedelic toys the strongest of which is a stroboscopic. Many of these techniques are thought to work by replicating the speed of specific brain wave patterns. It is thought that low hallucination-inducing frequencies (8 to 11 Hz) and high hallucination-inducing frequencies (19 to 25 Hz)[22].

Optical Illusions

Whilst one of the weakest ways to induce of PiMS, optical illusions can provide a gateway for people to start to ask elementary questions about their perceptions.

References

  1. ↑ Brouwer A, Carhart-Harris RL. Pivotal mental states. Journal of Psychopharmacology. 2021;35(4):319-352. doi:10.1177/0269881120959637
  2. ↑ Kolp, E., Friedman, H. L., Krupitsky, E., Jansen, K., Sylvester, M., Young, M. S., & Kolp, A. (2014). Ketamine psychedelic psychotherapy: Focus on its pharmacology, phenomenology, and clinical applications. International Journal of Transpersonal Studies, 33(2), 84–140.
  3. ↑ Kettner H, Gandy S, Haijen ECHM, Carhart-Harris RL. From Egoism to Ecoism: Psychedelics Increase Nature Relatedness in a State-Mediated and Context-Dependent Manner. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019 Dec 16;16(24):5147. doi: 10.3390/ijerph16245147. PMID: 31888300; PMCID: PMC6949937.
  4. ↑ Andrea I. Luppi, Robin L. Carhart-Harris, Leor Roseman, Ioannis Pappas, David K. Menon, Emmanuel A. Stamatakis, LSD alters dynamic integration and segregation in the human brain, NeuroImage, Volume 227, 2021, 117653, ISSN 1053-8119, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.117653. (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1053811920311381)
  5. ↑ Adverse effects of psychedelics: From anecdotes and misinformation to systematic science. Anne K Schlag, Jacob Aday, Iram Salam. First Published February 2, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1177/02698811211069100
  6. ↑ The phenomenology of near death experiences. Am. J. Psychiatry 137, 1193–1196. Greyson, B., and Stevenson, I. (1980).
  7. ↑ Near-Death Experiences are Hallucinations. Keith Augustine. In Keith Augustine & Michael Martin (eds.), The Myth of an Afterlife: The Case against Life After Death. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 529-569 (2015)
  8. ↑ Three cases of near death experience: Is it physiology, physics or philosophy? Purkayastha M, Mukherjee KK.  Ann Neurosci. 2012 Jul;19(3):104-6. doi: 10.5214/ans.0972.7531.190303. PMID: 25205979; PMCID: PMC4117086.
  9. ↑ Comparison of psychedelic and near-death or other non-ordinary experiences in changing attitudes about death and dying. Mary M. Sweeney ,Sandeep Nayak,Ethan S. Hurwitz, Lisa N. Mitchell,T. Cody Swift,Roland R. Griffiths. Published: August 24, 2022. Accessed on 26th August 2022 via https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0271926
  10. ↑ The Ketamine Model of the Near-Death Experience: A Central Role for the N-Methyl-D-Aspartate Receptor. Jansen, K.L.R. Journal of Near-Death Studies 16, 5–26 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1025055109480
  11. ↑ DMT Models the Near-Death Experience. Christopher Timmermann1,2*, Leor Roseman1,2, Luke Williams1, David Erritzoe1, Charlotte Martial3, Héléna Cassol3, Steven Laureys3, David Nutt1 and Robin Carhart-Harris. Front. Psychol., 15 August 2018 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01424
  12. ↑ Schultes, Richard Evans (1976). Hallucinogenic Plants. illus. Elmer W. Smith. New York: Golden Press. ISBN 0-307-24362-1.
  13. ↑ Electroconvulsive therapy: a selected review. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. Greenberg RM, Kellner CH. 2005;13(4):268–81.
  14. ↑ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4193538/
  15. ↑ https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/the-psychiatrist/article/use-of-ect-in-patients-with-an-intellectual-disability-review/B2CD9151E5A2B9462BD80175E63A9CB0
  16. ↑ Psychotic symptoms as a complication of electroconvulsive therapy – a case report Anna Antosik-Wójcińska, Magdalena Chojnacka, Łukasz Święcicki Affective Disorders Unit, Second Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry and Neurology in Warsaw
  17. ↑ Janakiraman, R., Wildgoose, K. & Seelam, K. ECT associated musical hallucinations in an elderly patient: a case report. Ann Gen Psychiatry 5, 10 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1186/1744-859X-5-10
  18. ↑ LSD-Like Flashbacks Associated with ECT. Convuls Ther. Russ MJ, Gold JM. . 1987;3(4):296-301. PMID: 11940932. Accessed on 4th July 2022 via: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11940932/
  19. ↑ https://maps.org/news-letters/v23n1/v23n1_24-27.pdf
  20. ↑ https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnhum.2018.00353/full
  21. ↑ Altered states phenomena induced by visual flicker light stimulation. Marie Therese Bartossek,Johanna Kemmerer,Timo Torsten Schmidt. Published: July 1, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0253779
  22. ↑ The hodology of hallucinations. FFYTCHE, D. (2008). Cortex, 44(8), 1067–1083. doi:10.1016/j.cortex.2008.04.005
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