Current Addiction Reports
August 18, 2026
Michael J. Broman, Jhuma N. Acharya, Kaltum Ahmed et al.
Abstract Purpose of Review We highlight key findings and methodological issues from recent research on the abuse liability of classic psychedelics, utilizing a GRADE to assess the quality of the evidence. Recent Findings Studies using various designs suggest that classic psychedelics (e.g., psilocybin, LSD) have low abuse potential and less dependence liability than other drugs. However, public...
Communications medicine
July 30, 2026
Stacey B Armstrong, Adam W Levin, Nathan D Sepeda et al.
Psilocybin-assisted therapy (PAT) shows promise for treating PTSD in adults but hasn't been studied in U.S. military Veterans, who face higher symptom severity and suicide risk. This open-label pilot trial evaluated the safety and feasibility of PAT in Veterans with severe, treatment-resistant PTSD. The clinical trial was pre-registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05554094). The eligibility...
Journal of Psychedelic Studies
May 28, 2026
Rafaelle Lancelotta, Paul Nagib, Stacey B. Armstrong et al.
Abstract Background and Purpose Music plays a central role in psychedelic-assisted therapy, yet few methodologies exist to create and assess therapeutic playlists. This study aimed to illustrate a methodology for developing and evaluating a music playlist for a clinical psilocybin trial using an integrative framework grounded in theory, intentionality, and metrics. Methods A playlist was...
Psychedelic Medicine
May 9, 2026
Yitong Xin, Alan K. Davis, Susan Yoon et al.
Background and Purpose: Ayahuasca can produce a dynamic set of both positive and negative acute effects. Commonly reported challenges include physical symptoms (e.g., nausea, vomiting) and emotional distress (e.g., frightening hallucinations, paranoia). Despite these difficulties, many individuals describe their challenging experiences as contributing to personal healing and beneficial...
Psychedelics
March 7, 2026
Skylar J. Gaughan, Jae Sevelius, Rafael Lancelotta et al.
Psychedelics have long histories of use in Indigenous communities for healing, spiritual, and ceremonial purposes. In contrast, Western psychedelic science has emerged through frameworks shaped by colonization, racism, and medicalization. These systems often marginalize and exclude the very communities most impacted by trauma, including transgender and gender-expansive (TGE) individuals,...
January 8, 2026
Michael Esposito, Ana M Ortiz Bernal, Alan K. Davis et al.
preprint
Clinical trials using 5-MeO-DMT to treat various mental health conditions are currently underway, however research on 5-MeO-DMT use in humans is limited. To date, no scoping review of the published, peer-reviewed literature exists. The purpose of the present analysis is to examine the extent, range, and nature of peer-reviewed research on the use of 5-MeO-DMT in humans and, ultimately, to...
Psychedelics
December 23, 2025
Esenia K. Cassidy, Alan K. Davis, Smitha Rao
Attachment theory suggests that early-life interactions with caregivers define lifelong outcomes, including mental and physical health, problematic substance use, and well-being. However, little is known on how the resulting attachment orientations interact with outcomes of a novel treatment approach, psychedelic-assisted psychotherapies, or non-clinical psychedelic use. This critical...
Psychedelics
November 15, 2025
Meghan DellaCrosse, Shoval Gilead, Rafael Lancelotta et al.
Serotonergic psychedelics like psilocybin and LSD have shown potential therapeutic benefits for mental health conditions, including depression, PTSD, and addiction. However, research remains limited due to regulatory barriers and a lack of diversity in study populations. Spanish-speaking individuals, despite their significant global and U.S. presence, are underrepresented in psychedelic...
Journal of Psychedelic Studies
September 4, 2025
Alan K. Davis, Meghan DellaCrosse, Nathan D. Sepeda et al.
4 citations
Abstract Background Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is a leading cause of disability and economic loss, with high recurrence and treatment resistance. Psilocybin-assisted therapy (PAT) shows promise in reducing depressive symptoms, but long-term effects are unknown. We aimed to determine the long-term safety and efficacy of PAT for MDD over a five-year follow-up period. Methods Individuals who...
Therapeutic Advances in Psychopharmacology
September 1, 2025
Stanley Wong, Gray Meckling, Nicholas Fabiano et al.
6 citations
Background: Suicidal ideation, attempts, and deaths present a major and tragic public health concern. Recent trials of psilocybin therapy (PT) have shown promise in treating treatment-resistant depression and have found a reduction in suicidal ideation. Given the growth of PT research, there is a need to further understand its effect on suicidal ideation, attempts, and deaths. Objective: To...
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
June 18, 2025
Rafaelle Lancelotta, Meghan DellaCrosse, Diana Quinn et al.
7 citations
This study investigated subjective psychedelic experiences in the global LGBTQIA+ population. Using validated measures of acute psychedelic effects, psychological flexibility, gender and sexual identity attitudes, adverse experiences, and mental health, we examined self-reported changes in identity and mental health outcomes following psychedelic use. A total of 346 individuals completed the...
Expert Review of Clinical Pharmacology
June 11, 2025
Victor Pablo Acero, Taylor A Flatt, Peter M. Gooch et al.
Psychedelic compounds are emerging treatments for depression, capable of producing rapid and lasting symptom reduction after 1-2 administrations in the context of psychotherapy - a stark contrast to traditional antidepressants. Despite promising outcomes, the mechanisms underlying psychedelics' reported antidepressant effects remain poorly understood and are often framed in fragmented ways....
Nature Medicine
June 3, 2025
Chloé Pronovost-Morgan, Kyle T. Greenway, Leor Roseman et al.
26 citations
Psychedelic substances exhibit complex interactions with the 'set and setting' of use, that is, the mental state of the user and the environment in which a psychedelic experience takes place. Despite these contextual variables' known importance, psychedelic research has lacked methodological rigor in reporting extra-pharmacological factors. This study aimed to generate consensus-based...
Social Work
April 1, 2025
Maha N. Mian, Jordan Horan, Taweh Hunter et al.
1 citation
Given the widespread interest and ongoing study on MDMA-assisted therapy (MDMA-AT) for PTSD, its implications for unique populations-such as adolescents-require further understanding. Social workers will likely play a crucial role in the potential implementation of this intervention, but their perspectives remain unknown. The study includes 222 social workers randomized to read one of two...
International Journal of Transgender Health
March 19, 2025
Skylar J. Gaughan, Angie R. Wootton, Daphne Krantz et al.
6 citations
Background: While psychedelic medicines have increasingly been studied for their utility as an adjunct to psychotherapy, transgender and gender-expansive (TGE) individuals have rarely been the focus of psychedelic research. This study examines TGE people's naturalistic, non-clinical psychedelic experiences to explore how TGE people use psychedelics and how they describe relationships between...
Frontiers in Pain Research
March 18, 2025
Jenna McAfee, Avinash Hosanagar, Vijay Tarnal et al.
18 citations
Introduction Fibromyalgia (FM) is the prototypical nociplastic pain condition, characterized by widespread pain and issues with cognition, mood, and sleep. Currently, there are limited treatment options available that effectively treat FM symptoms. Psilocybin-assisted therapy (PAT) is an emerging combined drug-therapy intervention, but no studies to-date have investigated PAT for FM. Methods...
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
February 13, 2025
Yitong Xin, Roland R. Griffiths, Alan K. Davis
1 citation
An interesting aspect of entity encounters during psychedelic experiences is their ability to transform one's religious beliefs. However, little is known about sex differences in these transformations. This study investigates sex differences in changes in religious beliefs before and after an entity encounter among ayahuasca users. Data were collected via an anonymous Internet-based survey (N =...
Psychedelic Medicine
January 20, 2025
Marianna Graziosi, Gabrielle Agin-Liebes, Mary P Cosimano et al.
9 citations
Introduction: Serotonergic psychedelics, serotonin 2A receptor agonists such as psilocybin that can result in substantially altered states of consciousness, are used in recreational and research settings. The safety of psychedelic experiences in research settings is supported by controlled physical environments, presence of clinical and medical staff to address emergent issues, screening for...
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
2025
Jacob S. Aday, Emily K. Bloesch, Alan K. Davis et al.
16 citations
Qualitative studies and anecdotal reports suggest that experiences with ayahuasca, a psychedelic brew found in Central and South America, may be followed by individuals enduringly feeling more grateful and connected to nature. Yet, to date, these changes have been understudied. Here, participants (N = 54) completed validated surveys related to gratitude, nature relatedness, and nature...
Science
September 19, 2024
Stacey B. Armstrong, Alan K. Davis
6 citations
There is an urgent need to develop better treatments for mental health conditions that affect one in every eight people in the world. To combat this concern, psychedelic drugs have been combined with psychotherapy and studied in clinical trials in the United States and Europe. Psychedelics are hallucinogenic drugs that alter brain activity and facilitate altered states of consciousness. The...
Journal of Psychedelic Studies
September 17, 2024
Adam W. Levin, Aryan Sarparast, Paul Nagib et al.
This study sought to identify patterns of psychedelic use among American psychiatrists, to compare the demographic variables across categories of social proximity and personal use, and to determine how these categories influenced psychiatrists' attitudes towards drugs and people who use drugs.Respondents (N = 180; mean age = 48.4 [SD = 16.2]; male = 65.5%; trainees = 24.1%) were recruited via...
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
September 12, 2024
Katinka Hooyer, Rachel Yehuda, Alan K. Davis et al.
4 citations
We sought to identify patterns of psychedelic use among United States military veterans, compare demographic variables and perspectives of those who did and did not report use, and characterize benefits and adverse outcomes associated with use. Respondents (N = 426) were recruited to complete an online cross-sectional survey. Approximately one-half (51%) reported using psychedelics. Most did so...
Journal of Psychedelic Studies
June 5, 2024
Meghan DellaCrosse, Albert Garcia‐romeu, Alan K. Davis
4 citations
Despite growing interest in psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT) research, there remains a lack of consensus about key issues relevant to difficulties in predicting acute drug effects, and the role of therapeutic support in clinical trials. In the absence of a clear theoretical model to conceptualize multifaceted components in PAT research, dialogue across contexts (e.g., popular media, peer...
PLoS One
March 14, 2024
Adam W. Levin, Rafaelle Lancelotta, Nathan D. Sepeda et al.
65 citations
We examined if the therapeutic alliance between study participants and intervention facilitators in a psilocybin-assisted therapy (PAT) trial changed over time and whether there were relationships between alliance, acute psilocybin experiences, and depression outcomes. In a randomized, waiting list-controlled clinical trial for major depressive disorder in adults ( N = 24), participants were...
Journal of Humanistic Psychology
February 27, 2024
Jacob S. Aday, Emily K. Bloesch, Alan K. Davis et al.
5 citations
Psychedelic drugs are currently being investigated for their potential to facilitate a variety of long-lasting psychological changes. One area that has yet to be systematically investigated in psychedelic research, however, regards changes in aesthetic experience (i.e., one’s attitudes, perceptions, and expression of art). This is surprising given the wealth of anecdotes directly noting...