Alzheimers patient gets back speech, continence and memory after 5 grams of experimental drug

What a trip.After a decade of cognitive and functional decline, an 80-year-old patient with advanced Alzheimer’s disease showed remarkable signs of recovery.All it took was a single dose of an experimental hallucinogen to get her speaking more than she had in years — and that’s just the top of the list of her improvements.Alzheimer’s, which affects millions of Americans, gradually destroys memory, thinking skills and the capacity to perform basic tasks.The degenerative disease is generally regarded as a phase of irreversible decline, marked by the patient’s loss of autonomy, communication, continence, mobility and social interaction.Current treatment strategies are mostly supportive, and functional recovery is considered highly unlikely.Psilocybin, the psychedelic component of magic mushrooms, has previously been touted as an effective treatment for depression, anxiety, addiction, and PTSD — but now researchers say it has the potential to be used in Alzheimer’s intervention as well.In this case study, published in Frontiers in Neuroscience, researchers focused on an 80-year-old Japanese American woman with Alzheimer’s.She had declined over the previous decade and was reduced to urinary incontinence, speaking in single syllables, and dependence on caregivers for mobility support and daily living.She was then given a 5g dose of magic mushrooms.During the initial phase, she was agitated, sweated profusely and entered a prolonged sleep state that suggested unconsciousness.

But around hour 19, she began speaking in full autobiographical sentences, recalling life events she had been unable to articulate for years.In the days and weeks that followed, more incredible changes emerged.She regained urinary continence, even in the evenings, and began dressing herself.

She was able to make and maintain eye contact, remember social interactions, emotionally respond to others, and hold lucid conversations.At a one-month follow-up, the patient remained continen...