N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) is a fast-acting psychedelic drug that induces a radical reorganization of conscious contents and brain dynamics. However, our understanding of how brain dynamics support psychedelic-induced conscious states remains unclear. We therefore present a repeated-measures dose-dependent study of the subjective and neural dynamics induced through DMT under naturalistic...
Interest in psychedelic therapies is booming, with hundreds of studies in process. Despite the interest, there are no approved psychedelic treatments for any psychiatric condition. Further, the one large-scale development program using MDMA that reached the FDA was disapproved by the agency for reasons that could apply to clinical trials for classical psychedelics. We review the definitions of...
The struggle with compulsive behavior has been addressed by human communities throughout history, though the frameworks for understanding and treating such struggles have varied dramatically across cultures and eras. In contemporary Western society, twelve-step programs-particularly Sex Addicts Anonymous (SA) and Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous (SLAA)-have emerged as primary resources for those...
Abstract This paper begins with humanity's universal quest for ultimate truth and proposes four core criteria for its identification: logical consistency, practical verifiability, explanatory transcendence, and existential eternity. Using these criteria, it systematically examines the contributions and inherent limitations of theistic belief, modern science, and philosophical speculation in...
The use of traditional medicinal plants in therapeutic settings has gained increasing attention for their potential in mental health and addiction treatment. This study explores the ethnomedical use of Brunfelsia grandiflora (chiric sanango) within the therapeutic framework of the Takiwasi Center in the Peruvian Amazon, where it is integrated into strict plant-based dietary regimens ("dietas")...
bioRxiv Preprint ServerJanuary 14, 2026Muad Y. Abd El Hay, Ana Cukić, Marieke Schölvinck et al.
preprint
Psychedelic substances show promise for treating psychiatric disorders including depression, anxiety, and PTSD, but the neurobiological mechanisms underlying their therapeutic effects remain poorly understood. Preclinical findings have so far been inconsistent, limiting mechanistic insights. We argue this translational gap is exacerbated by systematic disconnects between conditions thought to...
Background: Major depressive disorder (MDD) is increasingly framed as a failure of neuroplasticity. Excessive synaptic pruning in adolescence can leave circuits fragile; later stress then unmasks the weakness, whereas ketamine and related compounds can quickly rebuild critical synapses. Clinical data show that a single treatment often gives short relief, while repeated courses reduce relapse....
When the brain and body misalign, emotional experience and sense of reality can be disrupted. Although such atypical experiences are central to schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSD), interoception, processing of internal bodily signals, remains poorly understood in individuals with SSD, particularly across subjective, behavioural, and neural domains. We tested whether SSD is associated with...
ElifeJanuary 13, 2026Colin Bredenberg, Fabrice Normandin, Blake Richards et al.
Classical psychedelics induce complex visual hallucinations in humans, generating percepts that are coherent at a low level, but which have surreal, dream-like qualities at a high level. While there are many hypotheses as to how classical psychedelics could induce these effects, there are no concrete mechanistic models that capture the variety of observed effects in humans, while remaining...
Contemporary mind science has reached an impasse over the "hard prob-lem" of consciousness, facing the predicament of data-rich yet theoreti-cally fragmented. This paper proposes the "Generative Theory of the Sensation-Behavior Cycle," achieving a fundamental paradigm shift: from abstract speculation about "consciousness" to the study of life itself as a generative process of the "Youjue...