Psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy: Clarifying the role of the "psychotherapy"
Medicinska istrazivanja January 1, 2026 Stefan Jerotić, Olga Čolović, Nađa Marić
Psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy (PAP) shows promise for treating major depressive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder, but the specific role of psychotherapy within PAP remains unclear. This narrative review describes the development of PAP in Western psychiatry, outlines the standard therapeutic framework of preparation, dosing, and integration, and synthesizes findings from recent randomized controlled trials with psilocybin and MDMA. Although these trials report significant clinical benefit, they vary widely in therapeutic orientation, manualization, and therapist involvement.