A retrospective online survey of 160 individuals who had a psychedelic experience and a drinking habit found that the average number of drinking days per week and scores on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) decreased significantly afterward. Those who quit or reduced drinking had more severe alcohol use disorder and lower psychological flexibility before the session. The reduction in alcohol use was linked to the intensity of the mystical experience, and psychological flexibility increased more in participants who cut back on drinking. The findings suggest a naturalistic psychedelic experience may be associated with reduced alcohol use and dependency, possibly through mystical experiences and increased psychological flexibility.
Disturbances in the minimal Self—the basic, pre-reflective sense of embodied experience—are linked to episodic memory impairments in first-episode psychosis (FEP). In a pilot study using immersive virtual reality, 10 FEP patients and 35 matched healthy controls experienced a full-body illusion with either synchronous or asynchronous visuomotor stimulation to induce strong or weak embodiment. Under strong embodiment, FEP patients performed significantly worse than controls in recognizing contextual information, though their retrieval phenomenology ratings were similar. Under weak embodiment, FEP patients performed similarly to controls in contextual recognition but rated retrieval phenomenology significantly lower. Higher schizotypy in controls correlated with a diminished sense of Self and poorer episodic memory. The findings suggest that targeting minimal Self-disorders may improve episodic memory and psychosocial outcomes in schizophrenia spectrum disorders.
A French translation of the Altered States of Consciousness (5D-ASC) questionnaire was psychometrically validated using data from 777 participants who recalled a past naturalistic psychedelic experience. The 11-subscale structure showed better fit than higher-order models, though fit indices fell slightly below conventional thresholds. Internal consistency was excellent for global scores (α = 0.95) and satisfactory across subscales (α = 0.63–0.84). Measurement invariance across substance categories was confirmed, with latent factor differences aligning with known pharmacological profiles. The findings provide preliminary evidence supporting the French 5D-ASC's validity, enabling francophone research linking subjective experience to therapeutic outcomes.