
UP-TO-DATE, RESEARCH BASED INFORMATION ABOUT PSYCHEDELICS.
What is the role of risk in psychedelics and spiritual practice? Are you a 3 or a 9 on the risk appetite scale?
But is there not something paradoxical or even Quixotic about the idea of making Dionysian experiences ‘safe’. Dionysus is not safe. He is the god of transgression, of ecstasy, of going beyond limits.
Misrepresentation of MDMA in the United States, 1999–2023
While users typically expected alleged MDMA samples to contain only MDMA, more than half of the submitted MDMA samples were misrepresented in some manner. Despite high levels of misrepresentation, MDMA quality has stabilized at relatively high levels in recent years.
From research to reality: Crafting an image of the current state of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapies for substance use disorders
Using the conference experience as the glue, we will attempt to mold these articles into an image of the current state of psychedelic research, one of the most interesting and potentially important areas in addiction science.
Psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy improves psychiatric symptoms across multiple dimensions in patients with cancer
PAP significantly improved anxiety, depression, interpersonal sensitivity, hostility, obsession–compulsion and somatization without inducing any lasting phobia, paranoia or psychosis. Clinical improvements were consistent between trials. Together, our findings suggest that PAP has the potential to be a comprehensive mental health treatment for patients with cancer.
The association between study design and antidepressant effects in psychedelic-assisted therapy: A meta-analysis
The antidepressant effects of psychedelics may be overestimated in studies with pre-post single-arm, non-active-drugs-as placebo, and waitlist-control designs. Restricted sample size, difficulty with establishing blinding for participants, and over expectancy limit the estimation of the antidepressant effect of psychedelic-assisted therapy.
Mechanisms of psilocybin on the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder
We explore psilocybin as a potential treatment option for PTSD by examining the neurobiology of PTSD as well as psilocybin’s mechanism of action. Based on both pharmacodynamic and psychoanalytic principles, psilocybin may be an underexplored treatment option for patients with PTSD, though further research is required.
Can psychedelic use benefit meditation practice? Examining individual, psychedelic, and meditation-related factors
Results suggest that most meditators found psychedelic use to have a positive influence on their meditation practice, with: 1) regularity of psychedelic use, 2) the setting of intentions for psychedelic use, 3) having an agreeable personality, and 4) reported use of N,N-DMT being the most likely predictors of perceiving psychedelic use as beneficial.
Meditating on psychedelics. A randomized placebo-controlled study of DMT and harmine in a mindfulness retreat
At 1-month follow-up, the meditators who received DMT and harmine rated their experience as significantly more personally meaningful, spiritually significant, and well-being-enhancing than the meditators who received placebo.
The psychotherapy in MDMA-assisted psychotherapy
The intervention (for PTSD) is composite, and its outcomes assumed to result from MDMA facilitating the effects of psychotherapy. In this Viewpoint, we argue that the psychotherapy component plays a critical role in assessing the validity of the trials.
How psychedelic drugs can aid patients at the end of life
I believe this will be one of the next conditions, if not the next condition, to be considered for the designation of innovative treatment in future psilocybin regulation in the United States
The (Psilocybin) Magic Mushroom Interaction Checker
This group of US pharmacists have started a website where they advertise: "Receive an instant, evidence-based report on psilocybin mushroom interactions with your medications and health conditions."
Endorsement of metaphysical idealism mediates a link between past use of psychedelics and wellbeing
The results indicate that Idealism specifically, not non-physicalist beliefs generally, mediate a link between the use of psychedelics and wellbeing. Future research is required to establish whether the link is causal, and to understand what the Idealism factor means.
Effects of psychedelic microdosing versus conventional ADHD medication use on emotion regulation, empathy, and ADHD symptoms in adults with severe ADHD symptoms: A naturalistic prospective comparison study
This study indicates the positive effects of microdosing psychedelics on ADHD symptoms and emotion regulation in adults with severe ADHD symptoms while lacking evidence for effects on empathy.
Validation of the imperial psychedelic predictor scale
These data suggest that the IPPS is predictive of relevant acute features of the psychedelic experience in a broad range of contexts. We hope that this brief 9-item scale will be widely adopted for improved knowledge of psychedelic preparedness in controlled settings and beyond.
Naturalistic psychedelic therapy: The role of relaxation and subjective drug effects in antidepressant response
Patients showed a significant decrease in MADRS scores, and the greatest predictor of antidepressant outcome was relaxation during the PAT session.
Amsterdam’s last Shroom Lounge (Kokopelli)
The spot is called Kokopelli, named after a North American fertility deity, and it’s low-key legendary: when it opened in 1994, it was one of the first “smart shops” to sell psilocybin mushrooms over the counter, and it remains a tripper sanctuary.
Autonomic nervous system activity correlates with peak experiences induced by DMT and predicts increases in well-being
These findings demonstrate the involvement of the ANS in psychedelic-induced peak experiences and may pave the way to the development of biofeedback-based tools to enhance psychedelic therapy.
Psilocybin bests SSRI for major depression in first long-term comparison
Psilocybin leads to a better overall outcome in the treatment of moderate to severe major depressive disorder (MDD) than the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) escitalopram, results of the first long-term comparison of the two treatments suggest.
Psychedelic-assisted therapy training: Firsthand experience of non-ordinary states of consciousness in the development of competence
An in-training PaT experience supports personal comfort, self-assuredness, and confidence supporting others in non-ordinary states of consciousness, with contemporary researchers/experts highlighting the specific challenges among therapists who lack lived experience.
Can psychedelic use benefit meditation practice? Examining individual, psychedelic, and meditation-related factors
Results suggest that most meditators found psychedelic use to have a positive influence on their meditation practice, with: 1) regularity of psychedelic use, 2) the setting of intentions for psychedelic use, 3) having an agreeable personality, and 4) reported use of N,N-DMT being the most likely predictors of perceiving psychedelic use as beneficial. Longitudinal designs and randomized trials manipulating psychedelic use are needed to establish causality.