Journal of Neuropsychiatry
May 17, 2022
Matthew Butler, Mathieu Seynaeve, Abigail Bradley‐Westguard et al.
6 citations
Almost half of people with functional neurological disorder (FND) report having tried legal psychoactive substances—nicotine, alcohol, and cannabidiol—to manage their symptoms, finding them modestly effective. Fifteen percent have used illicit substances, mostly cannabis, reporting moderate effectiveness and minimal side effects. Many respondents (46%) would be willing to try medically supervised psychedelic therapy if proven safe and effective. The findings highlight that people with FND often seek alternative symptom management outside usual medical care and suggest that further research into novel treatments, including psychedelics, may be warranted.
Wellcome Open Research
January 1, 2024
Matt Butler, Catherine Bird, Carolina Maggio et al.
4 citations
Functional neurological disorder (FND) causes seizures and movement disorders, is debilitating, and often has a poor prognosis. Brain imaging suggests FND involves multiple networks, and mechanisms like dissociation and abnormal motor agency may play a role. Psychedelics disrupt brain networks and are being tested for neuropsychiatric disorders. This open-label neuroimaging study will give 25 mg oral psilocybin with psychological support to 24 people with chronic FND. Resting-state and task-based fMRI, plus measures of interoception, somatisation, and dissociation, will be collected before and after psilocybin, with three-month follow-up. The study aims to probe FND mechanisms and assess safety and feasibility of psychedelic administration in this population.
Wellcome Open Research
April 22, 2025
Matthew Butler, Catherine Bird, Carolina Maggio et al.
3 citations
Functional neurological disorder (FND) is a common, debilitating condition linked to abnormal brain networks, dissociation, interoception, and motor agency. This open-label neuroimaging protocol will administer 25 mg of oral psilocybin with psychological support to 24 people with chronic FND. Resting-state and task-based functional MRI sequences will be compared before and after psilocybin. Additional measures include interoception, somatisation, illness perceptions, suggestibility, and dissociation. Participants will be followed for three months. The study aims to probe mechanisms underlying FND and assess the safety and feasibility of psychedelic administration with psychological support in this population.
Translational Psychiatry
April 24, 2026
Matt Butler, Ellen Moore, James Rucker et al.
1 citation
Hallucinogen persisting perception disorder (HPPD) involves episodes of altered perception after past psychoactive drug use, causing distress and impairment. In a large retrospective cohort study using electronic health records from 25,778 individuals diagnosed with HPPD, high rates of prior comorbidities were found, including depressive episodes (29.2%), anxiety disorders (26.2%), chronic pain (15.9%), headache syndromes (14.7%), post-viral fatigue (12.3%), ADHD (6.6%), and fibromyalgia (6.7%). Anxiety and functional somatic syndromes were more common in HPPD patients than in psychedelic-using controls. Anxiety (odds ratio 1.5) and post-viral fatigue (odds ratio 1.9) predicted HPPD development among psychedelic users. After diagnosis, HPPD was associated with increased risk of subsequent functional somatic syndromes (odds ratio 2.0) and psychiatric disorders (odds ratio 1.4) compared to psychedelic-using controls.