Psilocybin Shows Promise for OCD Treatment

Lucid News just published a helpful article overviewing psychedelic treatment for OCD. They write "Psilocybin, the psychoactive compound in magic mushrooms, is being explored for its therapeutic potential in treating anxiety, depression, and addiction, among other mental illnesses. However, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), a condition that affects over 2% of the American population, has received little clinical attention. 

Eddie Jacobs, the author of a new review article published in the Journal of Psychedelic Studies, feels that existing evidence shows psilocybin might be an effective treatment for OCD, and deserves further investigation.

Those suffering from OCD are plagued by “anxiety-laden” intrusive thoughts, images, and compulsions, and engage in repetitive behaviors to temporarily alleviate that anxiety. The obsessive, all-consuming nature of this illness can profoundly disrupt one’s ability to function, and is “associated with significantly compromised quality of life,” writes Jacobs. 

In the review, Jacobs, a neuroethicist from King’s College London and the University of Oxford, examines the existing evidence supporting psilocybin’s potential for treating OCD. He writes that evidence from multiple sources (including preclinical investigations, case studies, and one open-label trial), along with what we already know about how psilocybin affects the brain, “lend support to its plausibility as treatment.”