Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy: Potential Benefits and Challenges in Mental Health Treatment
Medical Science Monitor June 30, 2025 Andrzej Silczuk, Robert Madejek, Tytus Koweszko et al. 4 citations
Psychedelics, meaning 'soul-revealing', are classified into hallucinogens (LSD, psilocybin, mescaline), entactogens (MDMA), and dissociatives (PCP, ketamine). The idea of using them in psychotherapy emerged in the 1940s, and after a period of restricted research, modern investigations resumed about 20 years ago. This review of the last decade finds that psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy remains experimental. Preliminary studies suggest potential benefits for depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and substance use disorders, but a definitive assessment is limited by a scarcity of large-scale, rigorous clinical trials. Psychedelics should be viewed as components of broader therapeutic frameworks, not standalone treatments. Their effect on neuroplasticity may address treatment gaps for patients unresponsive to conventional methods, but this requires validation through larger, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials.