Psychedelics have long been thought to enhance autobiographical memory, and revisiting personal memories may be key to their therapeutic effects, yet modern research has largely overlooked this topic. This paper presents six open questions: whether psychedelics boost autobiographical recall, whether recalling significant or traumatic memories commonly occurs during psychedelic experiences, whether they can produce false or inaccurate memories, how memories change when recalled and reconsolidated under their influence, what memories of psychedelic experiences are like, and whether autobiographical experiences under psychedelics are especially important for therapeutic outcomes. The authors review limited evidence for each question and suggest how future studies could address them, emphasizing relevance for developing effective and safe psychedelic-assisted therapies.
Psilocybin acutely impairs executive functions, primarily by slowing reaction times without significantly affecting accuracy. A meta-analysis of 13 studies (42 effect sizes) found that psilocybin increased reaction times (Hedges' g = 1.13) but did not change accuracy. The slowing of reaction time depended on dose and was more pronounced for tasks sensitive to executive functions. The findings suggest that psilocybin disrupts cognitive processing speed during the acute phase, with implications for its safe use in clinical and experimental settings.
A single 100 µg dose of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) improved offline motor learning the next day and, one week later, reduced perceived stress and increased aspects of cognitive flexibility in 45 healthy adults. Electroencephalography showed that LSD acutely decreased N1 and P2 auditory event-related potential amplitudes, with P2 still modulated after one week. Transcranial magnetic stimulation revealed increased motor-evoked potential amplitude and faster latency under LSD. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor levels were unchanged. The findings suggest lasting effects of LSD on learning and neural signals, while highlighting challenges in measuring long-term potentiation in humans.
Psychedelics have long been thought to enhance autobiographical memory, and revisiting such memories may be key to their therapeutic effects, yet modern research has largely overlooked this area. This review identifies six open questions: whether psychedelics boost autobiographical recall; whether recalling significant or traumatic memories is common during psychedelic experiences; whether they can produce false memories; how memories change when recalled and reconsolidated under psychedelics; what memories of the psychedelic experience itself are like; and whether autobiographical experiences under psychedelics are especially important for therapeutic outcomes. The authors present the limited current evidence for each question and propose how future studies could address them, emphasizing relevance for optimizing psychedelic-assisted therapies and avoiding harm.