Anorexia nervosa (AN) has high mortality and treatment costs, and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) achieves remission in at most 50% of adults. Drop-out and relapse rates are high, and no approved pharmacological treatments exist. Over the past two decades, research into classic psychedelics (LSD, 5-MeO-DMT, DMT, and psilocybin) shows that one or two exposures can produce lasting reductions in anxiety and depression, which are the most common co-morbid psychiatric symptoms in AN. The authors suggest that classic psychedelics, especially psilocybin, may normalize dysfunctional neurobiological systems in AN and offer a novel intervention, particularly for treatment-resistant patients.
Visual experiences that occur when the brain is less open to the environment—such as during dreaming, meditation, coma, or under psychoactive substances—are termed brain-mind visual experiences, distinct from ordinary waking vision. A dissipative many-body model proposes that enhanced criticality in these low-openness brain states generates movie-like sequences of images. Chaotic trajectories through memory space account for abrupt shifts between image patterns. The felt truthfulness and realism of these experiences are explained using an algebraic doubling of degrees of freedom. The discussion applies this framework to a subject's visual experiences during an Amazonian Ayahuasca ceremony.
Mindfulness training reduced anxiety and improved social engagement in a 17-year-old adolescent with schizophrenia who experienced social isolation and severe anxiety. The intervention consisted of 12 individual sessions, each 10 to 15 minutes long, incorporating techniques such as breathing meditation, body scanning, and nonjudgmental awareness. After the training, the adolescent showed better emotional regulation, reduced anxiety, and increased willingness to interact with others. These results come from a single-case study without standardized measurements, so they should be interpreted cautiously.