LSD, madness and healing: Mystical experiences as possible link between psychosis model and therapy model.
Isabel Wießner, Marcelo Falchi, Fernanda Palhano-Fontes, Amanda Feilding, Sidarta Ribeiro, Luís Fernando Tófoli
Psychological Medicine March 1, 2023 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291721002531 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover design Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 24 |
| Population | Healthy volunteers |
| Intervention | d-lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) |
| Dose | 50 μg |
| Topics | Ego dissolution LSD Meditation Mystical experience |
| Keywords | Aberrant salience Mystical experiences Psychedelics Psycholytic therapy Psychosis model Suggestibility |
| Citations | 53 |
| Key points | LSD increased aberrant salience and suggestibility but not mindfulness, and LSD-induced aberrant salience correlated with mystical experiences and ego-dissolution. |
Abstract
For a century, psychedelics have been investigated as models of psychosis for demonstrating phenomenological similarities with psychotic experiences and as therapeutic models for treating depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders. This study sought to explore this paradoxical relationship connecting key parameters of the psychotic experience, psychotherapy, and psychedelic experience. In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover design, 24 healthy volunteers received 50 μg d-lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) or inactive placebo. Psychotic experience was assessed by aberrant salience (Aberrant Salience Inventory, ASI), therapeutic potential by suggestibility (Creative Imagination Scale, CIS) and mindfulness (Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire, FFMQ; Mindful Attention Awareness Scale, MAAS; Experiences Questionnaire, EQ), and psychedelic experience by four questionnaires (Altered State of Consciousness Questionnaire, ASC; Mystical Experiences Questionnaire, MEQ; Challenging Experiences Questionnaire, CEQ; Ego-Dissolution Inventory, EDI). Relationships between LSD-induced effects were examined. LSD induced psychedelic experiences, including alteration of consciousness, mystical experiences, ego-dissolution, and mildly challenging experiences, increased aberrant salience and suggestibility, but not mindfulness. LSD-induced aberrant salience correlated highly with complex imagery, mystical experiences, and ego-dissolution. LSD-induced suggestibility correlated with no other effects. Individual mindfulness changes correlated with aspects of aberrant salience and psychedelic experience. The LSD state resembles a psychotic experience and offers a tool for healing. The link between psychosis model and therapeutic model seems to lie in mystical experiences. The results point to the importance of meaning attribution for the LSD psychosis model and indicate that psychedelic-assisted therapy might benefit from therapeutic suggestions fostering mystical experiences.