According to a new study on the therapeutic effects of the psychedelic, psilocybin can ease psychological distress for people who experienced adverse childhood experiences. Researchers found that psilocybin seemed to have “particularly strong benefits for those who experienced more severe childhood adversity.”
The study included 1,249 Canadians aged 16 or older who filled out a questionnaire to assess their experiences with childhood trauma. The study also asked them about their psilocybin usage, such as when they consumed it last, how often and at what strength.
The study found that those who used psilocybin experienced less psychological distress than those who did not. This suggests that psilocybin may be beneficial in treating the psychological effects of adverse childhood experience.
The effect of negative childhood experiences on mental distress was lower in people who had used psilocybin recently.
The authors stated that their findings were in line with other published studies, including a study that included more than 213,000 U.S. adult participants and found that lifetime psilocybin use was associated with a lower risk of experiencing a major depressive episode within the past year.
The report states that “Our results, along with the literature available at the time, point to the positive therapeutic potential of Psilocybin.” While naturalistic use is different from therapeutic trials. Our findings are in line with the emerging evidence from clinical studies and suggest there may be benefits to use outside of therapeutic environments.
Nearly half of the respondents (49.9%) said that they frequently or always use psilocybin in order to deal with mental health issues or emotional challenges. Another 32.2 percent stated they occasionally used it for this purpose. People with high scores for adverse childhood experience were more likely to use Psilocybin to improve their mental health. However, high scores for adverse experiences weren’t related to increased likelihood of using psilocybin to increase senses, connect with others, relieve boredom, or for spiritual purposes.
Researchers wrote that “there appears a dose-response effect” with higher exposure to psychedelics associated with greater mental effect and improved psychological well-being.
“Psilocybin may…help in supporting survivors who have experienced adverse childhood experiences, with particular benefits for those with more serious childhood adversity.”
The authors also stated that “feasibility study results suggest that psilocybin is safe and has low addiction potential. This is true even for those with complex mental needs and at low doses.”
They wrote that “psilocybin usage outside of the care and supervision of a provider may result in adverse experiences”, such as psychotic events or bad trips marked by anxiety or paranoia.
People who have not used psilocybin within the last 12 months cite a variety of reasons, including not knowing where they can get it (41.5%), fearing legal consequences (82.9%), or being concerned about having a negative experience.
The article was published in the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs last week. It was written by researchers from Simon Fraser University and Athabasca University.
The results of the team add to an expanding body of research that shows psilocybin, and other entheogens, can be used to treat a variety of mental conditions.
Researchers at Johns Hopkins University Ohio State University and Unlimited Sciences have published findings that show an link between psilocybin and “persisting decreases” in anxiety, depression and alcohol abuse, as well as increased emotional regulation, spiritual wellness and extraversion.
The authors of the study stated that these results “were highly consistent with an increasing body of clinical trials, behavioral pharmacology and epidemiological data about psilocybin.” These data are a valuable window into the resurgence in public interest for classic psychedelics, and the results of concurrent increases in naturalistic use of psilocybin.
A separate study by the American Medical Association (AMA), showed that people with depression suffered a “clinically significant sustained” reduction in symptoms after only one dose of psilocybin.
The findings don’t limit themselves to psilocybin. A peer-reviewed Nature study found, for example, that patients with moderate-to-severe PTSD experienced fewer symptoms after being treated with MDMA. These results could lead to FDA approval as early as next year.
A study published in August showed that administering small doses of MDMA with psilocybin or LSD appeared to reduce feelings like guilt or fear, which are often side effects when consuming magic mushrooms or LSD.
The first of its kind analysis, released in June, provided novel insights into how psychedelic assisted therapy may help people who struggle with alcoholism.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse at the federal level has recently begun soliciting proposals to support a series research initiatives that aim to investigate how psychedelics can be used to treat addiction.
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