December 21, 2022
Félix Schoeller, Abhinandan Jain, Vladimir Adrien et al.
10 citations
preprint
Aesthetic chills—shivers and goosebumps experienced during intense emotional moments—may offer therapeutic potential for depression. In an initial exploratory study, chill-inducing stimuli appeared to influence core depressive schemas, particularly shame and self-acceptance. The mechanism of action may parallel that of psychedelic and psychotherapeutic experiences, leading to similar positive outcomes. Further research is needed to assess feasibility and safety as a clinical intervention.
BMC Psychiatry
January 10, 2024
Abhinandan Jain, Vladimir Adrien, Pattie Maes et al.
9 citations
Depression affects over 300 million people globally, and current treatments have limited effectiveness. Aesthetic chills—peak emotional experiences involving shivers or goosebumps—may shift maladaptive beliefs in depression by influencing reward pathways. In a study of 96 people with major depressive disorder, chill-inducing multimedia positively influenced core self-related beliefs, as measured by the Young Positive Schema Questionnaire. The phenomenology of chills resembled altered states from psychedelics like psilocybin. These preliminary results suggest aesthetic chills could become a non-pharmacological intervention for depression, though more research on neurophysiology, practicality, and safety is needed.
Research Square (Research Square)
November 14, 2023
Félix Schoeller, Abhinandan Jain, Vladimir Adrien et al.
2 citations
Aesthetic chills—shivers or goosebumps from music, film, or art—may help shift deep-seated negative self-beliefs in people with depression. In a study of 96 patients with major depressive disorder, those exposed to a validated set of chill-inducing multimedia showed positive changes in core schemas, as measured by the Young Schema Questionnaire, and reported emotional breakthroughs similar to altered states from psychedelic substances like psilocybin. The findings suggest that the biological processes behind aesthetic chills could be developed into a non-pharmacological intervention for depression, though more research is needed on the underlying neurophysiology and on safety and effectiveness.
Frontiers in Sleep
June 24, 2026
Adam Haar Horowitz, Karen Konkoly, Michelle Carr et al.
A pilot study tested whether targeted dream incubation (TDI) at sleep onset can direct dream content into subsequent REM sleep. Eleven participants received verbal prompts about a tree and were awakened serially at sleep onset, then during a daytime nap. All 11 successfully incubated the target theme at sleep onset. Of the eight who entered REM sleep, four (50%) incorporated the tree into their first REM dream, and five (63%) did so in later REM dreams. Results suggest TDI may influence REM dream content, offering a method to explore how dream generation and function may be continuous or differ across sleep stages.