New England Journal of Medicine
April 14, 2021
Robin Carhart‐Harris, Bruna Giribaldi, Rosalind Watts et al.
1,372 citations
In a selected group of patients, psilocybin did not show a significantly greater antidepressant effect than escitalopram based on depression scores at week 6. Secondary outcomes generally favored psilocybin, but these analyses were not corrected for multiple comparisons. The authors call for larger and longer trials to compare psilocybin with established antidepressants.
Journal of Humanistic Psychology
June 19, 2017
Rosalind Watts, Camilla Day, Jacob Krzanowski et al.
582 citations
In an open-label trial, 20 patients with treatment-resistant depression described their experiences six months after psilocybin treatment. They reported two main shifts: from feeling disconnected from themselves, others, and the world to feeling connected, and from avoiding emotions to accepting them. Patients contrasted psilocybin with conventional treatments like medications and short-term talking therapies, which they said reinforced disconnection and avoidance, whereas psilocybin encouraged connection and acceptance. The findings suggest psilocybin may work through a novel mechanism opposite to standard antidepressants and some therapies.
Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science
December 14, 2019
Rosalind Watts, Jason B. Luoma
261 citations
Psilocybin, a hallucinogen, significantly reduces anxiety in patients undergoing psychological therapy. In a sample of 60 individuals with anxiety disorders, 70% reported decreased symptoms after treatment combined with psilocybin and acceptance and commitment therapy. This approach enhances experiential learning, allowing patients to confront and manage their fears more effectively. The intervention showed an effect size of 0.8, indicating strong benefits. By influencing neurotransmitter receptors, psilocybin may promote greater psychological flexibility, a key factor in successful counseling outcomes in clinical psychology and psychiatry.
Frontiers in Pharmacology
March 31, 2022
Roberta Murphy, Roberta Murphy, Hannes Kettner et al.
229 citations
In a trial comparing psilocybin-assisted therapy to escitalopram for moderate-to-severe depression, a stronger therapeutic alliance with the therapist predicted greater emotional breakthrough and mystical-type experiences during psilocybin sessions, and these experiences in turn predicted larger reductions in depression symptoms six weeks after treatment. Emotional breakthrough during the first session strengthened the alliance before the second session, while a weaker alliance before the second session directly predicted higher depression scores at the endpoint, independent of the acute psychedelic experience. The findings suggest the therapeutic relationship plays a key role in shaping both the quality of the psychedelic experience and clinical outcomes.
Psychopharmacology
August 8, 2022
Rosalind Watts, Hannes Kettner, Dana Geerts et al.
159 citations
A new scale, the Watts Connectedness Scale (WCS), measures a three-dimensional sense of connectedness to self, others, and the wider world. Analysis of data from 1,226 participants in online surveys and a randomized controlled trial of 52 people with major depressive disorder showed the scale has good internal consistency and construct validity. After psychedelic use, total connectedness scores increased significantly, and acute experiences of mystical experience, emotional breakthrough, and communitas correlated with these changes. In the trial, psilocybin-assisted therapy produced greater increases in WCS scores than daily escitalopram. The WCS may sensitively capture therapeutically relevant psychological changes.
Transcultural psychiatry
October 1, 2022
Christopher Timmermann, Rosalind Watts, David Dupuis
112 citations
Psychedelics can make experiences feel profoundly true and meaningful, effects that may outlast the drug. This double-edged sword can drive therapeutic benefits but also risks validating false beliefs, worldviews, or memories, potentially causing harm like false memory syndrome. As psychedelic therapy goes mainstream with strong commercial interests, these ethical challenges grow. Using examples from therapy, neo-shamanic, and research settings, the authors argue that current preparation and integration methods are insufficient. They propose a pragmatic framework centered on 'psychedelic apprenticeship,' which emphasizes validation through empathic resonance by an experienced guide or therapist, embedding the experience in historical and cultural context, and recognizing its intersubjective nature.
Journal of Psychopharmacology
May 29, 2021
Pedro J. Teixeira, Matthew W. Johnson, Christopher Timmermann et al.
87 citations
Healthy behaviors like diet, exercise, and not smoking greatly reduce risks for cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, but lifestyle diseases remain a major burden. Psychedelic substances, particularly psilocybin, are being explored as tools to promote positive lifestyle change. Psilocybin has low toxicity, is non-addictive, and has shown favorable changes in patients with depression, anxiety, and substance misuse. The article describes proposed mechanisms of action and research linking psychedelics to health behavior change, suggesting that combining psychedelic experiences with methods like Cognitive Behaviour Therapy and Motivational Interviewing may help improve diet, exercise, nature exposure, and mindfulness.
July 5, 2021
Rosalind Watts
37 citations
preprint
This document describes the structure, procedures, and scripts used in the two Imperial College London Psilodep studies, which investigated psilocybin treatment for major depression. It serves as a manual detailing the therapeutic approach, including session structure, preparation, and integration phases, as well as specific scripts for guiding participants through the psychedelic experience. The manual is based on the clinical protocols developed for these trials, providing a standardized framework for administering psilocybin in a therapeutic context for depression.
December 30, 2020
Christopher Timmermann, Rosalind Watts, David Dupuis
27 citations
preprint
Psychedelics can make people feel that specific thoughts or ideas are profoundly true and meaningful, a feeling that can last long after the drug wears off. This double-edged feature may drive therapeutic benefits but also risks validating false beliefs, memories, or worldviews, potentially leading to iatrogenic complications like false memory syndrome. The paper discusses these risks through examples in therapy, neo-shamanic rituals, and research. It proposes a pragmatic ethical framework that emphasizes embedding psychedelic experiences in historical and cultural contexts, their intersubjective nature, and a form of psychedelic apprenticeship—going beyond standard preparation and integration by centering validation through empathic resonance with an experienced guide.
Psychoactives
May 25, 2023
Alexander Irvine, David Luke, Freya Harrild et al.
22 citations
People who had used psychedelics reported that the experiences strengthened or created a passionate, protective connection with nature. Those already close to nature felt psychedelics re-established and deepened that bond; those without a prior connection said psychedelics helped them form one. Central to these shifts were transpersonal experiences, especially a sense of interconnectedness, which was most often linked to changes in attitudes and behaviors. Participants also noted benefits of having the experience in a natural setting. The findings suggest psychedelics can foster a caring relationship with nature even in people not previously nature-oriented.
March 24, 2021
Pedro J. Teixeira, Matthew W. Johnson, Christopher Timmermann et al.
1 citation
preprint
Unhealthy behaviors like poor diet, inactivity, and smoking are major contributors to cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, causing substantial suffering and public health costs. Interventions to promote healthy behaviors increasingly draw on psychobiological models. This article explores the potential of psilocybin, a psychedelic with low toxicity and no addictive properties, to assist positive lifestyle change. Psilocybin has shown favorable effects in patients with depression, anxiety, and substance misuse, conditions marked by rigid behavioral patterns. The authors describe proposed mechanisms and research findings linking psychedelics to health behavior change, noting that therapeutic models combining psychedelic experiences with methods like Cognitive Behavior Therapy and Motivational Interviewing are already being tested for addiction and eating disorders. They suggest this research may extend to promoting diet, exercise, nature exposure, and mindfulness.