Psychedelic Drugs, Hippie Counterculture, Speed and Phenobarbital Treatment of Sedative-Hypnotic Dependence: A Journey to the Haight Ashbury in the Sixties

Abstract

The 1960s were a time of social upheaval, wars, vibrant creativity and missed opportunity. Mainstream culture and a psychedelic drug-using counterculture shared a belief in “better living through chemistry,” but they disagreed about the particular chemistry. The Vietnam war and the cold war with the Soviet Union, racial discrimination, and gender roles fueled political activism. “Yes we can” was not a slogan of the time but political activists clearly believed they could change the beliefs, attitudes and behavior of mainstream culture; and they did. Hippie counterculture on the other hand was largely alienated and strove primarily to develop a separate culture with its own mores, beliefs and lifestyles. Although there was some overlap between hippies and activists, hippies didn't generally have the same sense of political empowerment. Hippie enclaves developed in New York; Boston; Seattle; Austin, Texas and elsewhere; but the epicenter was arguably the Haight-Asbury District of San Francisco. Psychedelic drugs, marijuana and the Vietnam war were among many wedge issues. This paper conjures up a personal history related to the evolution of the hippie counterculture, changing drug use patterns in the Haight-Ashbury, and the origins of a technique of withdrawing patients from barbiturates and other sedative-hypnotics using phenobarbital variously known as the “Phenobarbital Withdrawal Protocol, or the “Smith and Wesson Protocol.”

Keywords:

• barbiturate
• drug treatment
• Haight Ashbury Free Clinic
• LSD
• methamphetamine
• prohibition

Acknowledgments

The author would like to thank Sarah Calhoun for reviewing successive drafts of this paper and providing many helpful comments.

Notes

1. The Benzedrine® inhaler contained methamphetamine, unlike its later replacement Benzedrix®, which contained phenyl-propanolamine.

2. Flagyl® (Sanofi-Aventis) is the trade name of metronidazole a medication used for treatment of trichomoniasis and some other infections.

3. The version of this book consulted in preparation of this paper was Huxley, A. 2009. The Doors of Perception. New York: Harperperennial Modernclassics. a paperback edition that bundles Doors of Perception, Heaven and Hell (1956) and several of Huxley's essays.

4. The deferment was known as “the Berry Plan.” A history of the Berry plan is available at http://jama.ama-assn.org/content/175/1/57.full.pdf .

5. A facsimile compilation of all 12 issues with the addition of historical notes has been published in an beautiful oversized book edition (Cohn 1991). The pages in the book are numbered sequentially and do not conform to page numbering of the newspaper. Also see http://www.regentpress.net/oracle/index.html

6. See http://www.stanislavgrof.com.

7. STP is a street name for 2,5-dimethoxy-4-methyl-amphetamine, a long acting hallucinogen documented at the Haight-Ashbury Medical Clinic in November, 1967 (see Smith 1969b). STP was widely said to stand for Serenity, Tranquility and Peace, but Alexander and Ann Shulgin relate that it was also reported to stand for Super Terrific Psychedelic or Stop The Police. They claim that the term “STP” was actually taken from the initials of a motor oil additive, with which it was not related chemically (Shulgin & Shulgin 1991).

8. Birch Bayh, Senate Subcommittee Hearing on Juvenile Delinquency (December 15–16, 1972).