Br J Pain
September 4, 2025
Mauro Cavarra, Nadia R. P. W. Hutten, Jan Schepers et al.
A single 15 μg dose of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) did not significantly alter pain perception in healthy volunteers compared to placebo in a randomized controlled trial. The study used a double-blind design to test whether a microdose of LSD would produce analgesic effects, but found no meaningful difference between the LSD and placebo conditions on measures of pain tolerance or threshold.
Journal of Psychedelic Studies
September 4, 2025
Giordano Novak Rossi, Rishma S. I. Khubsing, Eline Haijen et al.
Both a single ayahuasca ceremony and a single breathwork session led to lasting improvements in cognitive flexibility, emotion regulation, positive affect, and sleep quality over three months. Improvements in cognitive flexibility appeared before changes in emotion regulation, partially supporting the idea that cognitive shifts may drive later emotional gains. The two treatments did not differ in their overall benefits, and the role of participants' experience and motivation remains unclear. The findings suggest that both practices can promote psychological well-being, but further research is needed to clarify the mechanisms and temporal order of these effects.
July 3, 2025
Natasha L. Mason, Pablo-Alexandre Mallaroni, Attila Szabo et al.
preprint
The long-term antidepressant effects of classic psychedelics may arise from changes in behavioral processes (decreased rumination, enhanced cognitive flexibility), central processes (downregulation of the hippocampal-prefrontal cortex axis, normalization of glutamate concentrations, increased neuroplasticity), and peripheral processes (downregulation of inflammatory markers). These interconnected changes collectively trigger a sustained therapeutic response, with the glutamatergic system serving as the main interface orchestrating them. The proposed Syner-G model emphasizes glutamatergic-dependent signaling as the primary unifying and synergizing interface between these processes. Future research avenues are suggested to advance understanding of psychedelic mechanisms and neuropsychiatric disease.
Psychedelic Med (New Rochelle)
March 12, 2024
Jacob S. Aday, Natasha L. Mason, Bo Jarrett Wood et al.
Early-career researchers in psychedelic science discuss the challenges and opportunities of building a career in this emerging field. They describe obstacles such as stigma, funding hurdles, and professional uncertainty alongside the potential for innovation and profound impact. The roundtable highlights the need for mentorship, interdisciplinary collaboration, and perseverance to advance the field and develop sustainable professional paths.
August 25, 2023
J. Neubert, Katie Anderson, Natasha L. Mason
preprint
Classic psychedelics can promote interactional intimacy in romantic couples through shared altered states of consciousness. Interviews with six couples aged 19 to 29 who had used psychedelics together revealed three main themes: navigating anxiety (including novelty, preparation, shifting environment, and calming presence), reshaping practices (excessive worrying, spirited discussions, and straight talking), and encountering bliss (meeting the unexpected, the beauty around us, leaving the everyday behind, and breaking through). These experiences align with criteria for interactional intimacy—self-exposure, positive involvement, and shared understanding—but their distinct nature suggests a novel definition of psychedelic intimacy that could inform psychedelic-assisted couple's therapy.
Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews
July 1, 2022
Drummond E-Wen Mcculloch, Gitte Moos Knudsen, Frederick Streeter Barrett et al.
A large group of psychedelic imaging researchers reviewed 42 articles from 17 unique studies that used resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) to examine psychedelic effects. They found that nearly all studies varied in data processing and analysis methods, two datasets underpin over half of the published literature, and key outcome terms are used ambiguously. The authors recommend guidelines to improve consistency and replicability in future research, arguing that the field must balance novel methods with standardized approaches to reliably understand the neural mechanisms of psychedelics.
medRxiv
March 2, 2022
Maggie Kiraga, Kim P. C. Kuypers, Malin V. Uthaug et al.
preprint
In a group of 52 healthy volunteers attending psilocybin ceremonies, consuming an average of 27.1 mg of psilocin led to medium to large reductions in both state and trait anxiety that persisted for at least one week. One week after the ceremony, participants showed increased non-judging mindfulness and decreased neuroticism. The strongest predictors of reduced trait anxiety were lower neuroticism, and for state anxiety, higher ego dissolution during the experience. The findings suggest rapid and lasting anxiolytic effects of psilocybin in a supportive setting, but further research is needed to confirm these effects in clinical populations.
Nature reviews. Neuroscience
July 1, 2021
Johannes G. Ramaekers, Natasha L. Mason, Lilian Kloft et al.
Acute cannabis intoxication can impair neurocognitive function, potentially leading to human error, injury, and psychological distress. However, the impairing effect varies among individuals and may not occur in all users. The neurocognitive response is driven by changes in mesocorticolimbic and salience network activity and can be exacerbated or mitigated by biological and pharmacological factors, product formulations, and frequency of use, and it can differ between recreational and therapeutic use. These determinants should be considered when defining cannabis impairment in legal contexts, prescribing cannabis therapeutically, and informing the public about safe and responsible use.
European neuropsychopharmacology : the journal of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology
December 1, 2019
Natasha L. Mason, Eef L. Theunissen, Nadia R. P. W. Hutten et al.
THC increases striatal glutamate concentrations and reduces functional connectivity between the nucleus accumbens and cortical areas, indicating increased dopaminergic activity. These changes were dose dependent, occurring in the full dose group where THC serum concentrations exceeded 2 ng/ml at T-max. Average glutamate changes correlated strongly with functional connectivity alterations. THC-induced changes in functional connectivity correlated with feelings of subjective high and decreased performance on an attention task. The findings suggest THC elicits subjective and cognitive alterations via increased striatal dopaminergic activity and loss of corticostriatal connectivity, associated with increased striatal glutamate.