Psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy combines psychedelic drugs with talk therapy to treat post-traumatic stress disorder and treatment-resistant depression. This approach more directly alters brain activity than current depression treatments, producing profound insights, emotional release, and cognitive shifts. It requires fewer sessions—often just one—and an unpublished study found sustained remission of depression 18 months after a single treatment.
It remains unclear whether the strong antidepressant effects of psilocybin seen in clinical trials can be replicated in routine care, because trials enroll highly selected patients, withdraw other medications, and follow strict protocols. Jungwirth et al. provide early evidence from everyday practice: among 19 adults with treatment-resistant depression treated with psilocybin under Switzerland's limited medical use framework, clinician-rated depressive symptoms decreased substantially—a reduction of about 11 points on the Montgomery–Åsberg Depression Rating Scale, with a large effect size (Hedges' g ≈ 1.4).
In a retrospective analysis of medical records from 19 patients with treatment-resistant depression treated with psilocybin (20–35 mg) in one to four dosing sessions at a Swiss psychiatric hospital, depression severity decreased significantly. Montgomery–Åsberg Depression Rating Scale scores dropped from an average of 30.78 before treatment to 19.89 afterward, a large effect, and Beck Depression Inventory II scores fell from 32.33 to 23.28. Response and remission rates were 33.3% and 22.2% by the MADRS, and 27.8% and 27.8% by the BDI. No serious adverse events occurred. Response and remission rates were lower than those in previous controlled trials, and no additive effect of multiple dosing was found.