As I understand it, Thomas Szasz is not saying that some people don’t have problems in living, or don’t feel sad all the time, or don’t feel so anxious that they have trouble relating to other people. He is saying that these are not medical conditions, and that medicalizing them has led to the creation of an oppressive social system he calls the Therapeutic State.

So, I am not troubled by taking out all the references to psychopathology in the post and instead talking about unusually high levels of sadness, crying, minor physical ailments, anxiety, or inability to enjoy life. The important fact, I think, is that higher levels of ayahuasca consumption are associated with fewer reports of these problems.