Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) affects an estimated 12 million U.S. adults, and many remain symptomatic despite standard psychological and pharmacological treatments. Psychedelic compounds—including psilocybin, LSD, DMT, ayahuasca, MDMA, and ketamine—are being studied as potential therapies. This comprehensive review summarizes current PTSD treatments and their shortcomings, then examines clinical studies of psychedelic-assisted therapy for PTSD and related disorders. For each drug, the review covers history, psychological and somatic effects, pharmacology, and safety, along with proposed mechanisms for trauma treatment. It concludes with future directions to maximize therapeutic benefit and minimize risk for individuals and communities affected by trauma.
Combining six ketamine infusions with a brief exposure-based psychotherapy, written exposure therapy (WET), produced large and durable reductions in PTSD symptoms for patients with chronic, severe PTSD. In an open-label trial, 13 of 14 patients completed treatment. PTSD symptom severity, measured by the CAPS-5, dropped from an average of 41.6 before treatment to 20.8 at 12 weeks, a large-magnitude improvement. Nine patients (69%) were treatment responders, and eight (61.5%) maintained improvement up to six months. The authors suggest the combined treatment may be effective but call for larger randomized controlled trials to confirm efficacy and synergy.