How Important Is a Guide Who Has Taken Psilocybin in Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy for Depression?
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs – March 23, 2022
Source: OpenAlex
Summary
Potential clients for Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy (PAT) for depression strongly prefer a psychotherapist who has personally experienced the hallucinogen. Over 800 individuals with depressive symptoms rated a guide's psilocybin use as highly important, exceeding a "somewhat important" benchmark of 50 on a 100-point scale. This Psychology and Clinical psychology insight suggests a guide's personal psychedelics experience could enhance PAT's antidepressant effects. People of color and those with prior therapy especially valued this, impacting future psychiatry protocols and complementary medicine approaches.
Abstract
Promising outcomes of Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy (PAT) for depression have generated concerted efforts to replicate, extend, and refine protocols to maximize efficacy. Psychotherapy research reveals that clients benefit most when important components of treatment align with their personal preferences. One open question related to PAT concerns the importance of the psilocybin experience of the guides (trained professionals present during acute effects). We sought to assess the importance of a guide who had used psilocybin to potential clients with depressive symptoms. Over 800 MTurk respondents with depressive symptoms rated the import of a guide who had used psilocybin relative to alternative characteristics in guides and cognitive behavioral (CBT) therapists. Importance ratings for guides who had used psilocybin significantly exceeded the "somewhat important" level (50 on a 0-100 scale), other guide-related qualities, and comparable ratings for a cognitive behavioral therapist who shared demographics, had experience with depression and received cognitive therapy personally. People of color (those who are not Caucasian) and those who had previous therapy gave significantly higher importance ratings for guides who had used psilocybin. Participants who chose to list other qualities important for guides listed very similar ones for CBT therapists, often emphasizing proper training and an empathic demeanor. Guides who have used psilocybin, who inform clients of the fact, might have advantages for facilitating PAT's antidepressant effects, as least in a subset of clients.