Thousands sign up to experience magic mushrooms as Oregon’s novel psilocybin experiment takes off
Eugene (US), Sep 15: Psilocybin tea, wind chimes and a tie-dye mattress await those coming to an office suite in Eugene to trip on magic mushrooms. For roughly six hours, adults over 21 can experience what many users describe as vivid geometric shapes, a loss of identity and a oneness with the universe.
Epic Healing Eugene – Oregon’s first licensed psilocybin service centre – opened in June, marking the state’s unprecedented step in offering the mind-bending drug to the public. The centre now has a waitlist of more than 3,000 names, including people with depression, PTSD or end-of-life dread.
No prescription or referral is needed, but proponents hope Oregon’s legalization will spark a revolution in mental health care.
Colorado voters last year passed a measure allowing regulated use of magic mushrooms starting in 2024, and California’s Legislature this month approved a measure that would allow possession and use of certain plant- and mushroom-based psychedelics, including psilocybin and mescaline, with plans for health officials to develop guidelines for therapeutic use.
The Oregon Psilocybin Services Section, charged with regulating the state’s industry, has received “hundreds of thousands of inquiries from all over the world,” Angela Allbee, the agency’s manager, said in an interview.
“So far, what we’re hearing is that clients have had positive experiences,” she said.
While psilocybin remains illegal in most of the United States, the Food and Drug Administration in 2018 designated it a “breakthrough therapy.” This summer, the FDA published draft guidance for researchers designing clinical trials for psychedelic drugs.
Researchers believe psilocybin changes the way the brain organizes itself, helping a user adopt new attitudes and overcome mental health issues.
The Oregon Psychiatric Physicians Association, however, opposed Oregon’s 2020 ballot measure legalizing psilocybin, saying it “is unsafe and makes misleading promises to those Oregonians who are struggling with mental illness.” (AP)
Princess Diana’s sheep sweater smashes records to sell for USD 1.1 million
London, Sep 15: A red sweater adorned with a flock of sheep worn by the young Princess Diana has sold at auction for USD 1.1 million, many times its presale estimate and a record for an item owned by the late royal.
The playfully patterned wool jumper featuring a single black sheep in a grid of white ones was bought by an unidentified bidder at Sotheby’s online Fashion Icons sale.
The auction house had valued it at between USD 50,000 and USD 80,000 ahead of two weeks of bidding that ended Thursday. With 15 minutes left until the sale closed, the highest offer stood at USD 190,000, but leapt to USD 1.1 million after a final flurry of bids.
The previous record for a piece of Diana memorabilia was USD 604,800 for a Victor Edelstein-designed ballgown sold by Sotheby’s in January.
The sale also smashed the existing auction record for a sweater, the USD334,000 paid in 2019 for Kurt Cobain’s green cardigan from Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged concert.
The 19-year-old Lady Diana Spencer was photographed in the eye-catching ovine garment at a polo match in June 1981, soon after her engagement to Prince Charles, who was then heir to the British throne.
Diana was already becoming a style icon – and one of the world’s most photographed women – and the moment gave a big boost to designers Sally Muir and Joanna Osborne, who made the sweater for their small knitwear label Warm and Wonderful.
A few weeks later, Muir and Osborne received an official letter from Buckingham Palace explaining that Diana had damaged the sweater and asking whether it could be repaired or replaced.
The original was returned, showing damage to a sleeve the designers thought might have been caused by snagging on Diana’s diamond and sapphire engagement ring. A new sweater was knitted and dispatched, and Diana was photographed wearing it with white jeans and a black ribbon tie at an event in 1983.
Osborne discovered the original lying forgotten in a box in an attic earlier this year. (AP)