LSD-assisted psychotherapy for anxiety associated with a life-threatening disease: A qualitative study of acute and sustained subjective effects

In patients with anxiety linked to life-threatening diseases, LSD-assisted psychotherapy produced lasting benefits. Twelve months after treatment, none of the ten participants reported adverse reactions, and significant reductions in anxiety (measured by the STAI) were sustained. Qualitative interviews revealed that most participants experienced insightful, cathartic, and interpersonal encounters; 77.8% reported reduced anxiety and 66.7% reported improved quality of life. Subjective accounts pointed to facilitated access to emotions, confrontation of unknown anxieties and resources, and intense peak experiences as key psychological mechanisms. These experiences helped restructure emotional trust, situational understanding, habits, and worldview. The findings suggest that medically supervised LSD therapy can be safe and yield enduring benefits.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Objective: A recently published study showed the safety and efficacy of LSD-assisted psychotherapy in patients with anxiety associated with life-threatening diseases. Participants of this study were included in a prospective follow-up. Method: 12 months after finishing LSD psychotherapy, 10 participants were tested for anxiety (STAI) and participated in a semi-structured interview. A Qualitative Content Analysis (QCA) was carried out on the interviews to elaborate about LSD effects and lasting psychological changes. Results: None of the participants reported lasting adverse reactions. The significant benefits as measured with the STAI were sustained over a 12-month period. In the QCA participants consistently reported insightful, cathartic and interpersonal experiences, accompanied by a reduction in anxiety (77.8%) and a rise in quality of life (66.7%). Evaluations of subjective experiences suggest facilitated access to emotions, confrontation of previously unknown anxieties, worries, resources and intense emotional peak experiences à la Maslow as major psychological working mechanisms. The experiences created led to a restructuring of the person’s emotional trust, situational understanding, habits and world view. Conclusions: LSD administered in a medically supervised psychotherapeutic setting can be safe and generate lasting benefits in patients with a life-threatening disease. Explanatory models for the therapeutic effects of LSD warrant further study.