S1E70 - Dr. Nolan Williams - The Brain on Psychedelics
Leading Stanford neurologist and psychiatrist Dr. Nolan Williams joined us for a deeper understanding of current scientific explorations into the growing use of psychedelics in relieving and curing mental health problems. Though not ignoring valid concerns over bad trips and underage usage, Dr. Williams demonstrated how FDA approved research with safeguards can lead to mental health cures. He spoke, too, of the history of the Controlled Substances Act, the brain's plasticity, and sacramental drugs such as Ayahuasca and Ibogaine as well as Psilocybin (magic mushrooms), MDMA (Ecstasy), ketamine, electroconvulsive therapy, EMDR and spaced learning. A renaissance in non-recreational psychedelic uses with some striking results!
Biography
Nolan Williams, MD, is an Associate Professor within the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Director of the Stanford Brain Stimulation Lab. He has a broad background in clinical neuroscience and is triple board-certified in general neurology, general psychiatry, and behavioral neurology & neuropsychiatry. Themes of his work include examining the use of spaced learning theory in the application of neurostimulation techniques, development and mechanistic understanding of rapid-acting antidepressants, and identifying objective biomarkers that predict neuromodulation responses in treatment-resistant neuropsychiatric conditions. His work resulted in an FDA clearance for the world's first non-invasive, rapid-acting neuromodulation approach for treatment-resistant depression. He has published papers in high-impact peer-reviewed journals, including Nature Medicine, Nature Mental Health, Brain, American Journal of Psychiatry, and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. Results from his studies have gained widespread attention in Science and NEJM Journal Watch and have been featured in multiple news outlets, including TIME, US News & World Report, Newsweek, Scientific American, ABC, NBC, CBS, NPR, and more. Dr. Williams received two NARSAD Young Investigator Awards in 2016 and 2018, as well as the 2019 Gerald L. Klerman Award. He was honored with the Stanford University Chairman’s Award for Advancing Science in 2019, and in 2020, he received the National Institute of Mental Health Biobehavioral Research Award for Innovative New Scientists, the One Mind Bipolar Research Award, and the BBRF Leading Research Achievements Awards in 2020, 2021, and 2022. In 2023, Dr. Williams received the V.E.T.S. Torchbearer Research Award, followed by the A.E. Bennett Award from the Society of Biological Psychiatry in 2024.
Nolan Williams, M.D.
Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
(Major Labs & Translational Neuroscience Incubator) and,
by courtesy, of Radiology (Neuroimaging and Neurointervention)
Director, Brain Stimulation Laboratory
Director, Interventional Psychiatry Clinical Research
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Stanford University
profiles.stanford.edu/nolan-williams
bsl.stanford.edu
spcl.stanford.edu
nolanrwilliams.comConversation recorded on February 9, 2024.