Frontiers in psychiatry
January 1, 2024
Pablo Sabucedo, Oscar Andión, Robert A Neimeyer et al.
4 citations
A protocol describes a clinical trial testing whether ayahuasca-assisted Meaning Reconstruction therapy reduces prolonged grief symptoms more than therapy alone or no treatment. At least 69 people who lost a first-degree relative within the prior year and scored 40 or higher on the Texas Revised Inventory of Grief will be assigned to one of three groups: ayahuasca-assisted therapy, therapy alone, or no treatment. The therapy involves nine online sessions; the ayahuasca group also attends two group sessions with the substance. Grief severity, quality of life, post-traumatic growth, and other measures will be assessed at baseline, after treatment, and at three months. This is the first trial to empirically examine psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy for grief.
Scientific reports
September 1, 2025
Oscar Soto-Angona, Oscar Andión, Pablo Sabucedo et al.
3 citations
A three-arm, open-label study compared ayahuasca-assisted meaning reconstruction therapy (A-MR) with meaning reconstruction therapy alone (MR) and a no-treatment control (NT) for 84 adults who had experienced severe grief within 12 months of losing a first-degree relative. All groups showed significant reductions in grief severity, with the largest effect in A-MR (d = 2.44), followed by MR (d = 1.84) and NT (d = 0.74). A-MR led to greater reductions than MR (d = 0.86) and NT (d = 1.07), and also improved prolonged grief symptoms, post-traumatic growth, and quality of life with medium-to-large effects. Ayahuasca was well tolerated with no serious adverse events. Replication in larger randomized trials is needed.
Frontiers in psychiatry
January 1, 2025
Pablo Sabucedo, Oscar Andión, Robert A Neimeyer et al.
correction
A three-arm, non-randomized controlled trial protocol compares Ayahuasca-assisted Meaning Reconstruction therapy (A-MR) with Meaning Reconstruction therapy alone and a no-treatment control for people who lost a first-degree relative within the prior 12 months. The authors hypothesize that A-MR will produce greater reductions in normal and pathological grief symptoms, and greater improvements in quality of life and posttraumatic growth, than either control condition. The rationale draws on neurobiological evidence that ayahuasca stimulates neuroplasticity and on psychological evidence that psychedelic experiences can facilitate meaning reconstruction and cognitive reappraisal. No controlled studies have tested psychedelic-assisted therapy for prolonged grief disorder.