A new study reveals preliminary evidence that psychedelic drugs can improve mental health by forcing individuals to confront their issues and become more accepting of distressing experiences. The research adds to a growing body of work that suggests using psilocybin substances can result in long-term improvements in depressive symptoms.
According to the study’s author Richard Zeifman, a Ph.D. student at Ryerson University, psychedelic therapy is promising as a novel treatment for a variety of mental health conditions, including:
- Anguish associated with a life-threatening illness
- Major depressive disorder
- Substance use disorders
Zeifman explained:
In contrast with the traditional pharmacological interventions, the effects of psychedelic therapy appear to last months, and even years after treatment has ended. Understanding how psychedelic therapy leads to long-lasting mental health improvements across a range of conditions is not yet fully understood but is important for enhancing and delivering psychedelic therapy to individuals that may benefit from it.
A transdiagnostic construction known as experiential avoidance was of particular interest to the researchers. Individuals who hold experiential avoidance qualities tend to avoid unpleasant feelings or thoughts. Those who score high on the levels of experiential avoidance agree with statements such as “I go out of my way to avoid uncomfortable situations,” and “I would give up a lot not to feel bad.”
To start the study, the team collected samples from 104 individuals, via online advertisements, who plan to use psychedelic drugs and the second set of samples from 254 subjects who planned to attend psychedelic ceremonies. Both models finalized measures of experiential avoidance, suicidal ideation, and depression severity, one week before and four weeks after using their psychedelic ingredient of choice. Ayahuasca, Psilocybin/magic mushrooms, and LSD were the most commonly used substances in the study.
The results showed that the use of psychedelics in both non-ceremonial and ceremonial settings was linked with decreases in experiential avoidance, which led to reductions in suicidal ideation and depression, four weeks after psychedelic use. “Our findings suggest that one of the reasons that psychedelic therapy has positive therapeutic effects is that it helps individuals to be less avoidant and more accepting of their emotions, thoughts, and memories (even though such experiences may be distressing in the short-term),” Zeifman said.
Zeifman added:
More broadly, our results provide further support for the negative mental health effects associated with avoidance. This can be summed up with a saying that is often used in the context of psychedelic therapy, that ‘The only way out is through.’
However, this research, published in Frontiers in Psychiatry, does include its warnings too.
Zeifman clarifies:
There were important limitations to our study, including that our study was not conducted in the context of a controlled clinical trial or within a clinical sample. Accordingly, we are currently conducting research where we are comparing the effects of psychedelic therapy versus a traditional antidepressant (called escitalopram) on experiential avoidance.
The findings could help to analyze further the potential that psychedelic therapy leads to change via different mechanisms than traditional pharmacological interventions for substance use disorders or depression.
