How Deliberate Metaphors Enable New Ways of Conceiving the Self After Psilocybin-Induced Ego Dissolution Experiences
Diego Monasterio López
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Qualitative study |
|---|---|
| Population | User-generated psilocybin reports |
| Topics | Ego dissolution Psilocybin |
| Key findings | Argues that deliberate metaphors grounded in two conceptual metaphors—SELF IS A COMPOSITE OBJECT and SELF IS A FLUID—are central to how individuals retrospectively transform ego dissolution experiences into lasting changes in self-concept. These patterns differ from the established DIVIDED PERSON model, suggesting ego dissolution recruits new source domains for construing selfhood. Proposes that deliberate metaphors may support conceptual change by recruiting high levels of Embodied Simulation, intensifying sensorimotor activation and strengthening cross-domain mappings. |
Abstract
Psychedelic experiences have shown promise in addressing mental health challenges (Doblin et al., 2019). Among these, ego dissolution is a central phenomenon associated with lasting therapeutic effects, involving a temporary disruption of the neurocognitive self-model that loosens entrenched patterns of rumination and self-reference (Kałużna et al., 2022; Letheby, 2021; Deane, 2020; Nour et al., 2016). Yet a key question remains: how do individuals retrospectively transform these profound and ineffable states into enduring changes in how they conceive the self?This thesis argues that metaphorical cognition, and specifically deliberate metaphor, plays a central role in this process. The study analyzes user-generated psilocybin reports to identify (1) the deliberate metaphors employed to conceptualize alterations in the sense of self, and (2) the cognitive mechanisms through which these metaphors support lasting reconfigurations of self-models. The findings show that narrators rely on deliberate metaphors grounded in two domain-level conceptual metaphors—SELF IS A COMPOSITE OBJECT and SELF IS A FLUID—to articulate experiences of fragmentation, dissolution, permeability, reassembly, and structural flexibility. These patterns differ from the established DIVIDED PERSON model (Lakoff, 1992; Annanieva, 2022), suggesting that ego dissolution recruits new source domains for construing selfhood.The study further elaborates the idea that deliberate metaphors potentially contribute to conceptual change by recruiting high levels of Embodied Simulation (Cuccio, 2018; Cuccio & Steen, 2019). Because deliberate metaphors require explicit attention to their source domains, they intensify sensorimotor activation, allowing narrators to re-experience properties such as fragmentation or fluidity during conceptual processing. This strengthened sensorimotor engagement enhances cross- domain mappings, enabling the projection of structural and material attributes onto the abstract domain of selfhood and potentially supporting the consolidation of revised self-models after ego dissolution.Finally, drawing on the analytical procedures developed in this study, the thesis outlines the Metaphor Reconfiguration Model (MRM), a theoretically grounded framework for examining how deliberate metaphor use contributes to conceptual change in ego dissolution narratives and potentially in other altered self-states.
Comparable studies
Other qualitative studies on ego dissolution, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clarifying and measuring the characteristics of experiences that involve a loss of self or a dissolution of its boundaries. Adults who reported an experience involving dissolution of self-boundaries or loss of... | 2024 | Cross-sectional survey with confirmatory factor analysis and qualitative thematic analysis | n = 386 |
| Health Benefits and Positive Acute Effects of Psilocybin Consumption: A Quantitative Textual Analysis of User Self-Reported Data Public online self-reports of psilocybin consumption | 2023 | Qualitative study | n = 846 |