In psilocybin-assisted therapy for alcohol use disorder, the intensity of mystical experiences is linked to several psychological and environmental factors. Spirituality and spiritual intentions were strongly associated with mystical experience intensity, especially during the first dosing session. Positive mindset and positive perceptions of the treatment setting were more strongly linked to mystical experiences during the second session. Mystical experience intensity increased from the first to the second session, while the precursor factors did not change significantly across sessions. The findings suggest that both internal factors (spirituality, intentions, mindset) and external factors (the treatment environment) may predict how intense a mystical experience a person has during psychedelic therapy.
In adults with alcohol use disorder, watching a nature-themed video during psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy increased nature relatedness (a subjective sense of connection to nature) more than a standard body-scan condition. Nature relatedness rose significantly in the nature-video group (median increase of 0.33 on the NR-6 scale) but not in the standard-setting group. Social connectedness did not change significantly in either group. The findings suggest that a brief nature-themed video may enhance one form of connectedness in psychedelic-assisted therapy, though the study was small and further research is needed.
Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) is associated with reduced gastrointestinal symptoms and improved quality of life in people with irritable bowel syndrome. In this single-arm intervention study, changes in specific aspects of mindfulness were linked to clinical outcomes, suggesting that cultivating particular mindfulness skills may drive the benefits of MBSR for IBS.