NFL and UFC athletes try ‘game-changing’ psychedelic to treat brain injury

As the danger of head trauma in sports develops, a handful of professional fighters and soccer players are turning to a psychedelic drug called Ibogaine for treatment.

Ibogaine is derived from West African shrubs and is a Schedule 1 drug from the United States, with no legal medical use, and experts urged caution as further research is needed. However, some athletes say the result is “game-changing.”

“It saved my life,” said former NFL offensive guard Robert Gallery, who headed to Mexico to try ibogaine in 2023.

He continued: “I’m not always anxious, I’m not frustrated, I can run, thank me for being alive, not thinking about the progress I should have stepped on the half-truck.”

Psychedelic substances originate from Iboga plants, and supporters tout their ability to treat addiction, post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury or TBI.

Stanford University researchers’ observational study recommendations for 30 special forces veterans ibogaine can be very effective Reduce anxiety, depression and cognitive challenges associated with TBI.

“It’s a miracle thing,” said retired MMA fighter Tait Fletcher.

NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre even tried Ibogaine to see if it could help his Parkinson’s, a neurodegenerative disease associated with TBI.

Although athletes only found ibogaine, the drug is Well-known in the senior community This experienced higher rates of brain damage and PTSD.

At Stanford University Study the impact of ibogaine On the veterans of the Special Forces, participants had an average reduction in PTSD symptoms, an average reduction in depression symptoms and an average reduction in anxiety symptoms. They also show improvements in concentration, information processing and memory.

“No other drug can alleviate the functional and neuropsychiatric symptoms of brain damage,” said Dr. Nolan Williams, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, in a statement about the results. “The results are dramatic and we intend to study the compound further.”

To obtain federal approval, Ibogain needs to conduct multiple clinical trial phases with the Food and Drug Administration and be transferred to a less restrictive drug category by the Drug Enforcement Agency.

Schedule 1 drugs are considered to have no federally accepted medical use, are highly likely to be abused, and lack commonly accepted safety. They also include psilocybin, MDMA, LSD and marijuana.

Through exemptions to the supervised Ibogaine treatment program, states work faster than the federal government, similar to what Oregon has completed psilocybin treatment. Many states also choose to legalize marijuana for medicinal or recreational purposes.

Researchers reported that Iboga could stimulate brain healing by causing an increase in certain neurotrophic factors, said study co-author Dr. Ian Kratter, PhD., who is a co-author of the study.

“These factors signaling are signals that enhance brain cell survival and synaptic plasticity, which is the ability of brain cells to change their connection strength and even form new connections,” said Crete, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences. “This may promote the recovery and recovery process after injury.”

Dr. Kevin Bickart, a professor of neurology at UCLA, specializes in brain injuries in athletes, said Stanford’s research is “very promising” and could reasonably believe that professional athletes can experience similar results.

“This group [veterans] This is a powerful analog for retired professional athletes from high-contact sports such as football or hockey who are now dealing with ongoing cognitive and emotional difficulties. ” he said.

Dr. Ramon Diaz-Arratia, director of the TBI Research Center at Penn Medicine, said Ibogaine is “one of the most promising compounds for TBI treatment”.

But researchers at Bikater, Diaz Alastia and Stanford University have all highlighted the need for large, randomized controlled trials, demonstrating the therapeutic benefits and safety of prior use of treatment in the United States.

They also stressed that ibogaine may cause heart problems such as arrhythmia and needs to be treated under strict medical supervision. In the Stanford University study, using heart monitoring and magnesium to mitigate this risk, researchers reported that no participants experienced adverse cardiac effects.

The gallery heard about Ibogaine’s struggles resonate with their own struggles when they heard podcasts about veterans. He was at the end of the rope, willing to try anything to get rid of the dark thoughts and the loud sound of his head.

“It’s a lasting hope for me,” he said. “I’m just where noise and thoughts need to stop.”

The doctor in the gallery thinks he may Developed CTE (Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy) was caused by repeated brain injuries throughout his eight seasons in the NFL. CTE can only be diagnosed after death and is a severe neurodegenerative disease that can lead to dementia, severe mood swings, motor control, and depression.

Many prominent athletes who committed suicide were later identified as CTEs, including New England Patriots’ tight end Aaron Hernandez, Hall of Fame guard Junior Seaau and Chicago Bears Safety Dave Duerson.

Former MMA fighter Fletcher, also an actor and stuntman, heard about Ibogain through his Navy SEAL friends.

He experienced many concussions during his combat career, but went wrong in his stunt show in 2019 and his head trauma drove him over the edge into a very dark place.

The next morning, he woke up in a state of horror. He didn’t know how to pack his luggage or leave the hotel room where he had been staying.

Fletcher spent next year in almost complete isolation, largely unable to leave his house due to light and sound sensitivity. Like the gallery, he tried many routine and experimental therapies, but nothing compared to the relief that Ibogain brought in 2023.

“We are coming up with band aids through pharmacology,” he said. “This [ibogaine] What I’m watching is just keeping people free. nothing. ”

Former UFC fighter Keith Jardine was inspired by Fletcher’s story and traveled to Mexico for treatment in person. Retired hockey player Ales Hemsky believes Ibogaine has helped him get rid of the drug dependence he struggled with after his 16-year career in the NHL.

“It’s been seven months now, and I haven’t had a drink yet,” he said. “It’s life-changing. It really starts your brain again. It gives you a new path.”

Fletcher saw dark brain damage bringing to athletes, and light ibogaine provides light. He hopes both will be part of a bigger conversation in professional sports.

“I hope these big organizations are different about these things because you can prolong your career and prolong your life,” he said. “Ibogaine is certainly part of the conversation.”

Favre also hopes to see more attention to speed up medical trials of new therapies for brain damage and related diseases. He said the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease disappeared for three days before gradually returning after taking ibogaine.

“I’m not disappointed in anything,” he said. “I hope this [conversation] Not only does it open the door for ibogaine or psychedelic drugs, it also opens the door for drugs or treatments that can generally help people. ”

Bicart said effective, approved treatments are the main gap in symptoms of persistent brain injury.

“This has left many people, including veterans and possible former athletes, with no reliable solutions that can be used for ongoing disability, cognitive difficulties, and psychiatric disorders of PTSD, depression and anxiety, which can stem from head injuries,” he said.

Inspired by his experience at Ibogaine, the gallery co-founded a nonprofit called Athlete care Provide athletes with treatment options for TBI and advocate for research on psychedelic auxiliary therapies.

“The sports community is not very good about talking about mental health,” he said. “Seeing veterans responsible and caring for their communities, I want to do that for the sports community and friends who are suffering as I know.”

The gallery, Favre, Hemsky, Fletcher and Jardine are more than a dozen retired contact competitive athletes who are treated at the Ambio Life Sciences clinic in Tijuana, a popular destination for ibogaine treatment.

Since opening in 2021, Ambio has reported managing Ibogaine to more than 3,000 patients, including 1,000 veterans.

Diaz-Arrastia, a medical professor of Pennsylvania, said he does not recommend Americans to order ibogaine online or travel abroad for treatment because it remains unregulated. UCLA professor Bickart responded to these concerns, noting that the most critical caution is safety.

“People should be wary of any unregulated treatment, because the purity dose and presence of the contaminants are often unknown,” Bicart said. “The placebo effect can also be very powerful, especially for treatments that require a lot of energy and cost.”

Ambio, a clinic where Stanford researchers collaborated with Ibogain’s observational research, highlighted it Security Agreement During treatment, it includes closely monitoring of doses and patient heart health.

In the United States, there is increasing political and scientific momentum, and more clinical research can be conducted on ibogaine.

In June, Texas approved A long-standing $50 million investment Supporting ibogaine’s drug development trials in state funding was inspired by the results of veterans.

Arizona lawmakers approved $5 million in state funding in March for clinical research on Ibogain, California lawmakers are pushing Conduct research quickly Ibogain and other psychedelics.

“To be honest, I was surprised to see how much interest Ibogain was,” said Jonathan Dickinson, co-founder of Ambio. “We started to see things that could not be imagined a few years ago.”