Acid Test

LSD, Ecstasy, and the Power to Heal

By: Tom Shroder

Narrated by: Arthur Morey

Length: 14 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

A fascinating, transformative look at the therapeutic powers of psychedelic drugs, particularly in the treatment of PTSD, and the past fifty years of scientific, political, and legal controversy they have ignited, by award-winning journalist Tom Shroder.

It’s no secret that psychedelic drugs have the ability to cast light on the miraculous reality hidden within our psyche. Following the discovery of LSD less than a hundred years ago, psychedelics began to play a crucial role in the quest to understand the link between mind and matter. Compounds such as LSD and MDMA have proved to be extraordinarily effective in treating disorders such as posttraumatic stress - yet the drugs remain illegal, out of reach of the millions of people who could benefit from them.

Tom Shroder’s Acid Test is a meticulously researched history of LSD and the controversy surrounding psychedelics, as well as a striking look at the unprecedented healing properties of drugs that have for decades been characterized as dangerous, illicit substances. Shroder covers the first heady years of experimentation in the 50s and 60s through the backlash of the '70s and '80s, when the drug subculture exploded and uncontrolled experimentation with street psychedelics led to a PR nightmare that would set therapeutic use back decades. Acid Test is a fascinating, transformative look at the therapeutic powers of psychedelic drugs, particularly in the treatment of PTSD, and the past fifty years of scientific, political, and legal controversy they have ignited.

©2014 Tom Shroder (P)2014 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved. “The Guest House” by Jalal al-Din Rumi used with permission of Coleman Barks, Maypop Books. Recorded by arrangement with Blue Rider Press, a member of Penguin Group (USA) LLC, a Penguin Random House Company.

Riveting, informative, touching

I absolutely loved this book. It's a fascinating historical recounting crossed with a raw, gripping emotional drama, laced with the odd reality bend of psychedelia. Get it. You won't be sorry.

Woah!!

Kudos to Rick for paving the way of therapeutic medicines in the future to go against all obstacles. Lots of useful information to become more aware of the beneficial potential of the substances. Thanks to all the money donated into this kind of work!

informative

this book covers a lot of territory.. there's a full biography of Rick Doblin, founder of MAPS (the group conducting scientific studies on psychedelics and therapy) a short bio on a therapist that uses mdma, a biography on a research subject from an mdma trial.. he was a young Iraq veteran. they're all told in vignettes that make it easier to see the connections between their stories.

throughout those stories the machinery of the dea, fda and scientific institutions conducting research are discussed and explained, particularly in terms of their politicized cultures.

Extremely informative and interesting book!

If you've ever once said you "love our veterans" or even claimed to have cared for the wellbeing of people suffering from PTSD (victims of sexual trauma, combat veterans, etc), this book should be a must listen! In the U.S., we have a tendency to not care about things unless they directly affect us, missing the bigger picture.

The information is shared in an interesting and compelling manner in which the author shares people's stories, which keeps the listener engaged while also learning about the content. Not familiar with the narrator, but he also did an outstanding job. Book is also very well researched and quite thorough on the topic.

If you care whatsoever about the future of combat veteran's mental health (as a citizen, you should), you should get this book and start taking appropriate actions to influence change to the absurd, draconian, laughable drug policy of the U.S., so people who deserve the help (combat vets) they need can receive it.

Suprisingly Great

Engaging life stories, interesting history of mind-altering drugs and their practical uses, thoughts on therapy for PTSD.

Very topical book given the numbers of PTSD sufferers from recent wars.

Opened my mind - without any chemical assistance :-)

Perfect narration too.

Recommend All To Read

It was well written and very in depth regarding the extensive timeline of discovery, challenges, and research. It highlights the very real struggle to get approval for ideas that are counter culture but ultimately beneficial for society. The only thing that I can note and the reason why performance isn't also five stars is the mispronunciation of some words by the reader such as corpsman (the "s" is silent).

Really nice book and the narrator's voice is great

Where does Acid Test rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Very high

What was one of the most memorable moments of Acid Test?

All the info on how politics got and still get in the way of psychedelic research, Rick Doblin's perseverance, the result the subjects had from the clinical trials.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It increased my level of determination to become a licensed psychedelic therapist in the future.

Any additional comments?

I think that everyone should have the info found in this book, this would help elevate people's understanding on emotional healing.

incredible book. Incredible Narrator.

It's very refreshing to read a book that is so relative and important to the times, while being perfectly executed, and imaginative.

Get it! Read it twice!

Fantastic book. Well written, laid out, solid performance, and the converging story lines kept me involved for hours.

I am a big fan of books like these: honest, self critical, and is in pursuit of truth over social norms.

Thank you.

Moving

What an incredible book, really goes to show how much the pharm companies control the government purse strings. If we could cure a bunch of diseases, they would lose a lot of money.