Psychopharmacology
October 17, 2026
Sean P. Goldy, Kelcy A Klein, David B. Yaden et al.
MDMA is increasingly being studied for therapeutic applications, yet the prevalence and characteristics of post-acute negative effects remain debated. We aimed to characterize MDMA's post-acute negative effects, including prevalence and symptom profile among recreational users. Given preclinical work and limited human evidence suggesting that certain supplements and antidepressants may mitigate...
Psychiatry Research
February 13, 2026
Sean P. Goldy, Nathan D. Sepeda, Samantha Hilbert et al.
1 citation
Psychedelics' characteristic acute subjective effects predict therapeutic benefits, such as decreases in depression and anxiety. Thus, optimizing treatment involves better understanding which factors shape subjective effects. Session facilitators, who support participants before, during, and after psychedelic administration sessions, form an important part of the setting of these experiences....
Journal of Psychopharmacology
May 1, 2025
Sean P. Goldy, Benjamin A Du, Julia S Rohde et al.
15 citations
As classic psychedelics' therapeutic potential is studied and their popularity continues to rise, it is important to establish their relative risks and benefits. Previous surveys have tended to use convenience sampling on social media, select participants who have had either extremely positive or negative effects, and have not compared the risk/benefit profile of psychedelics to other...
International Review of Psychiatry
December 1, 2024
Sean P. Goldy, Peter S. Hendricks, Dacher Keltner et al.
8 citations
In this review, we discuss psychedelics' acute subjective and persisting therapeutic effects, outline the science of positive emotions, and highlight the value in considering distinct positive emotions in psychedelic science. Psychedelics produce a wide variety of acute subjective effects (i.e. the 'trip'), including positive emotions and affective states such as awe and joy. However, despite a...
BMC Psychology
July 1, 2024
Julia S Rohde, Sean P. Goldy, Marianna Graziosi et al.
2 citations
Despite widespread engagement in contemplative religious practices, comparatively little research has been conducted on their potential effects on well-being. Furthermore, few studies have focused on how an explicitly religious framing may impact the outcomes of such practices. In this online randomized controlled trial (N = 702), we tested the well-being effects of a contemplative prayer...