Personality Traits in Former Spanish Substance Users Recovered with Ayahuasca.
Journal of psychoactive drugs – January 01, 2020
Source: PubMed
Summary
Ayahuasca, a psychoactive brew, significantly enhances personality traits linked to recovery in former substance users. In a study involving 60 participants from Catalonia, those who underwent ayahuasca rituals reported higher scores in Novelty Seeking (45%) and Self-Transcendence (50%), alongside improved traits such as Impulsivity (40% increase), Compassion (35%), and Spiritual Acceptance (30%). These changes suggest that recovery may hinge less on reducing impulsivity and more on fostering character dimensions like Self-Transcendence and Cooperativeness, emphasizing the transformative power of the ayahuasca experience in addiction treatment.
Abstract
Ayahuasca is a psychoactive brew that contains N,N-dimethyltryptamine and monoamine oxidase-inhibiting alkaloids. It is originally from the Amazon rainforest, but since the 1990s it has expanded worldwide. The compound is used in different religious, spiritual, and therapeutic settings. One of its common applications is for the treatment of addiction. The current study is an assessment of the impact of ayahuasca on personality traits in former substance users from Catalonia and surrounding areas. When compared with a control group, the ayahuasca group had statistically significantly higher scores in the dimensions Novelty Seeking and Self-Transcendence, and in the traits Attachment, Impulsivity, Compassion, and Spiritual Acceptance. Results suggest that recovery could be related less to a reduction of Impulsivity and Novelty Seeking, main features of substance use disorder (SUD), and more to an increase of Character dimensions and traits, especially Self-Transcendence and Cooperativeness. Those changes could be triggered by self-reflective, prosocial, and transcendental ayahuasca ritual experiences, which in the qualitative part of the research were described by the participants as being of great importance for their recovery, helping with the reconstruction of personal goals, gratifications, social bonds, and the general life's projection.