#psilocybintherapy — Public Fediverse posts
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DATE: September 2, 2026 at 06:00PM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Psilocybin therapy shows strong potential for treating cocaine addiction
URL: https://www.psypost.org/psilocybin-therapy-shows-strong-potential-for-treating-cocaine-addiction/
Two newly published studies suggest that psychedelic compounds may offer a novel approach to treating cocaine addiction. A clinical trial published in JAMA Network Open found that psilocybin combined with psychotherapy helped people stop using cocaine. A complementary animal study published in Addiction Biology indicates that while psychedelics can help unlearn drug-seeking behaviors, pairing them with the right environmental support might be needed to prevent long-term relapse.
Cocaine use disorder is a chronic condition in which a person compulsively seeks and uses cocaine despite negative consequences to their health, finances, and personal life. Medical treatments for the disorder have long been lacking. For example, a 2021 review evaluated available treatments for cocaine addiction, highlighting that few medical options successfully help people stop using the drug.
To address this gap, researchers have begun exploring classic psychedelics. Psilocybin is the main psychoactive compound found in certain types of mushrooms, known for altering perception, mood, and cognitive processes. Recent studies have tested its potential to treat various substance use disorders by combining the drug with professional psychological support.
The results from these trials have been encouraging. For instance, a 2022 clinical trial found that psilocybin combined with therapy substantially reduced heavy drinking in people with alcohol addiction. Similarly, a 2026 trial found that the treatment helped people quit smoking cigarettes at much higher rates than standard nicotine patches.
Building on this research progression, scientists wanted to test whether psilocybin could yield similar benefits for cocaine use disorder. At the same time, preclinical researchers, who conduct studies using animal or lab models before testing in humans, sought to understand exactly how psychedelics influence the biological and behavioral mechanisms of addiction in isolation, without the influence of human psychotherapy.
The human clinical trial was led by Peter S. Hendricks at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. The team recruited 40 adults diagnosed with cocaine use disorder who wanted to quit using the drug. The participants were randomly assigned to receive either a single oral dose of psilocybin or an active placebo. An active placebo is a control substance that produces mild noticeable side effects so participants cannot easily guess they received a fake treatment. In this case, the placebo was a dose of diphenhydramine, a common antihistamine.
Both groups participated in a structured psychotherapy program that included cognitive-behavioral techniques, which are therapy methods that help people identify and change harmful thought patterns and behaviors. They attended preparation sessions before the drug administration day and integration sessions afterward to process their experiences. The researchers specifically recruited individuals from demographic groups that are often underrepresented in psychedelic research. In the final sample, 82.5 percent of participants were Black, and 65 percent reported an annual income of $20,000 or less.
The findings suggest that psilocybin paired with therapy provides a strong protective effect against cocaine use. Over the 180 days following the treatment session, participants in the psilocybin group reported substantially more days without using cocaine compared to the placebo group. During the final three months of the study, the psilocybin group had about 28 more abstinent days out of every 100 days than the control group.
Additionally, the treatment helped a portion of participants stop using the drug entirely. Over the 180-day follow-up, 30 percent of those who received psilocybin maintained complete abstinence from cocaine. By comparison, none of the participants in the placebo group achieved complete abstinence over that same period.
To understand the isolated pharmacological effects of these treatments, meaning how the drugs interact chemically with the body and brain, a related animal study was led by Isis Rita Anzel Koutrouli at the National Institute of Mental Health in the Czech Republic. The team investigated how psilocybin and a different psychedelic compound, ibogaine, alter the learning processes associated with addiction. Ibogaine is a psychoactive substance derived from an African shrub that has been historically noted for its potential anti-addictive properties, though it operates differently in the brain than psilocybin.
The researchers trained male Wistar rats, a specific and widely used laboratory strain of white albino rats, to self-administer cocaine by pressing a lever. After the rats developed a reliable cocaine habit, the researchers initiated an extinction phase. During this phase, pressing the lever no longer provided the drug. The goal of extinction training is for the subject to unlearn the association between the action and the reward.
On the first and fifth days of the extinction phase, the rats were given injections of either psilocybin, ibogaine, or a saline placebo. Both psychedelics accelerated the extinction process. Rats treated with ibogaine pressed the lever less frequently starting after the first dose. Those treated with psilocybin showed a similar reduction in drug-seeking behavior following the second dose. Both drugs seemed to stabilize the animals’ behavior, helping them abandon the futile lever-pressing habit more efficiently than the placebo group.
The effects, however, did not translate to total relapse prevention. Six days after the final psychedelic dose, the researchers tested the rats by reintroducing the lights and sounds that had previously been paired with cocaine delivery. This triggers cue-induced reinstatement, a model of relapse. When faced with these triggers, the rats treated with psychedelics resumed pressing the lever just as frequently as the rats given the placebo.
These animal results highlight a nuanced reality about psychedelic treatments. The pharmacological effects of compounds like psilocybin and ibogaine appear to enhance behavioral flexibility, making it easier to break old habits. Yet, without the continuous environmental support or active psychotherapy provided in the human trial, the drugs alone did not block the urge to relapse when familiar drug cues returned.
The success seen in the human trial is in line with research covered by PsyPost in 2025, which found that a single dose of psilocybin paired with psychotherapy substantially reduced heavy drinking days in individuals with alcohol use disorder. The results also align with a 2026 study covered by PsyPost, which found that psilocybin and counseling produced higher rates of verified abstinence in cigarette smokers compared to standard nicotine patches.
As with all research, there are a few things to keep in mind. The human clinical trial featured a relatively small number of participants, which means the exact size of the treatment effect could vary in larger populations. Additionally, it is difficult to keep participants unaware of which treatment they receive in psychedelic studies, as the perceptual effects of the drug are very obvious. In this trial, 90 percent of the participants in the psilocybin group correctly guessed their assignment, which introduces the possibility that their expectations influenced their outcomes.
For the animal study, the researchers only tested male rats to avoid behavioral variations related to reproductive cycles. Testing female animals in the future will be necessary to see if the extinction-enhancing effects apply universally. The animal model also strips away the psychological and social elements of human addiction treatment. The rats did not receive the equivalent of human psychotherapy, which might be exactly why the drugs failed to protect them from cue-induced relapse.
Future research will need to test these interventions in larger, more diverse human samples to confirm the benefits. Scientists also hope to refine animal models to better understand how therapeutic environments interact with the biological changes caused by psychedelics.
The study, “Psilocybin in the Treatment of Cocaine Use Disorder: A Randomized Clinical Trial,” was authored by Peter S. Hendricks, Sara N. Lappan, Richard C. Shelton, Adrienne C. Lahti, Karen L. Cropsey, Matthew W. Johnson, Melissa Bradley, Otto Simonsson, Lori L. Davis, Daniel H. Grossman, and Cynthia E. Ortiz.
The study, “Psilocybin and Ibogaine in Cocaine-Seeking: Extinction Enhancement Without Relapse Prevention,” was authored by Isis Rita Anzel Koutrouli, Vojtěch Brejtr, Marek Schwendt, Kacper Witek, Chrysostomos Charalambous, Kristýna Aleksič, Nina Miniariková, Eva Lhotková, Martin Toman, Marek Nikolič, Radek Jurok, Petra Cihlářová, Vladimír Mazoch, Pavel Ryšánek, Martin Kuchař, Klára Šíchová, and Tomáš Páleníček.
URL: https://www.psypost.org/psilocybin-therapy-shows-strong-potential-for-treating-cocaine-addiction/
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #PsilocybinTherapy #CocaineUseDisorder #PsychedelicResearch # AddictionTreatment #PsychotherapySupport #AbruptRelapsePrevention #AlcoholNicotineCocaine #ExtinctionTraining #PsyPost #ClinicalTrialResults
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DATE: August 29, 2026 at 09:00AM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Psilocybin reverses depressive behaviors and restores brain cell growth in stressed rats
Two doses of the psychedelic compound psilocybin can reverse signs of depression and anxiety in rats exposed to chronic stress. The substance appears to work by encouraging the growth of new brain cells and normalizing stress hormone levels. The research was published in Progress in Neuropsychopharmacology & Biological Psychiatry.
Major depressive disorder affects millions of people worldwide. Its core symptoms include persistent low mood, severe anxiety, and an inability to feel pleasure. The condition is associated with a loss of synaptic connections in areas of the brain responsible for regulating emotions. Current medications, such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, do not work for every patient and often take weeks to show any benefit.
Researchers are increasingly looking toward psychedelic substances as alternative therapies. Psilocybin is the active compound found in “magic mushrooms” and has shown promise in treating depression in human trials. Scientists are trying to figure out exactly how the chemical alters the brain to produce these lasting benefits.
Prolonged psychological stress can physically alter the brain by reducing the formation of new connections between neurons. Chronic stress also hyperactivates the body’s natural response to threats, leading to an overproduction of stress hormones from the adrenal glands. Over time, this hormonal flood impairs a region of the brain called the hippocampus, which handles emotion and memory.
Agnieszka Bysiek and Krystyna Gołembiowska, researchers at the Polish Academy of Sciences, led an investigation into how psilocybin might repair this stress-induced damage. They worked alongside colleagues from the Medical University of Warsaw. The team designed an experiment to track behavioral changes and biological markers of brain healing.
The researchers conducted a small study using adult male rats. They divided the animals into groups and exposed one group to a routine of unpredictable mild stressors over several weeks. These stressors included temporary food or water deprivation, tilted cages, and strobe lights.
The goal was to induce a state similar to human depression, particularly a loss of pleasure known as anhedonia. To measure this loss of pleasure, the researchers tracked how much sweetened water the rats chose to drink. The stressed animals drank substantially less sugar water than the unstressed control group.
The researchers then administered two low doses of psilocybin to the animals, spaced one week apart. Following the treatment, the stressed rats resumed drinking the sweetened water at normal levels. This behavioral shift indicated that the psychedelic compound had effectively reversed their anhedonia.
Next, the team evaluated anxiety-like behavior using specialized laboratory enclosures. One test used a box divided into a brightly lit area and a dark compartment, while another used an elevated maze with both open and enclosed walkways. Stressed rats naturally avoided the light and open spaces, seeking the safety of the dark or enclosed areas.
Following the psilocybin treatment, these stressed animals spent more time exploring the bright and open sections of the enclosures. This change in movement patterns suggested a marked reduction in anxiety. The researchers also monitored the animals for head shakes, a common physical reaction in rodents that indicates a drug is causing hallucinatory effects. Both the stressed and non-stressed rats exhibited these shakes after receiving psilocybin.
The researchers also observed the rats in a cylinder filled with water to measure behavioral despair. Rats that simply float without trying to escape are considered to be exhibiting a depressive-like lack of motivation. The psilocybin treatment reduced this immobility, causing the stressed rats to actively swim and climb the walls of the cylinder.
To ensure the animals were not simply experiencing general hyperactivity from the drug, the team placed them in a large, circular open arena. The stressed rats given psilocybin walked around and explored the center of the arena more than untreated stressed rats. The psilocybin actually reduced walking and exploration in the non-stressed control rats.
The team then examined the brains of the animals to understand the biological changes driving these behavioral shifts. They used chemical markers to identify newly formed cells in the hippocampus. The chronic stress had suppressed the creation of new neurons in this region.
The psilocybin injections reversed this cellular deficit. The drug promoted the proliferation, maturation, and survival of new brain cells in the stressed rats. This finding supports the idea that psychedelics help the brain rewire itself by physically growing new cellular architecture.
The researchers also analyzed the genetic expression of a molecule called brain-derived neurotrophic factor. This protein helps neurons grow and form new synaptic connections. They found that psilocybin boosted the genetic instructions for producing this growth protein in both the hippocampus and the prefrontal cortex.
This boost in genetic signaling was apparent just two hours after the first dose. The elevated signals persisted for two weeks after the second dose in the stressed animals. Finally, the researchers measured corticosterone, a major stress hormone in rodents.
The chronically stressed rats had elevated levels of this hormone in their blood. A single dose of psilocybin brought these hormone levels back down to normal within two hours. Fourteen days after the second dose, the stressed animals still maintained lower, healthier hormone levels.
The study comes with a few limitations that provide context for the results. Animal models of depression do not perfectly map onto complex human psychological conditions. The testing environment also heavily influenced the behavior of the rodents, as the animals reacted differently depending on whether they were in an open arena or an enclosed box.
The biological measurements also require a measured interpretation. The research team measured the messenger RNA for the brain growth protein rather than the actual protein itself. Messenger RNA acts as a temporary set of genetic instructions translated from DNA. An increase in these instructions does not always guarantee a proportional increase in the final functional protein product within the brain’s cells.
Future research will need to measure the actual protein levels in the brain to confirm that the biological building blocks were fully assembled. Scientists also plan to investigate how long these cellular changes last after the psychedelic compound leaves the body.
The research provides a foundation for understanding how psychedelic therapies might repair the physical toll of chronic stress. The study, “Psilocybin restores behavioral and neuroplastic deficits induced by chronic stress in rats,” was authored by Agnieszka Bysiek, Izabela Szpręgiel, Adam Wojtas, Marzena Maćkowiak, Agnieszka Wawrzczak-Bargieła, Monika Leśkiewicz, Ewa Trojan, Katarzyna Kamińska, Weronika Kumorek, Wiktor Bilecki, and Krystyna Gołembiowska.
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #PsilocybinTherapy #PsychedelicResearch #DepressionTreatment #Neuroplasticity #HippocampusHealing #StressHormones #BrainBDNF #AnimalStudy #MentalHealthScience #InnovativeNeurology
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DATE: August 7, 2026 at 08:00AM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Psilocybin therapy sessions for PTSD are mostly silent, study finds
URL: https://www.psypost.org/psilocybin-therapy-sessions-for-ptsd-are-mostly-silent-study-finds/
A recent study published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology indicates that during high-dose psilocybin treatment sessions for post-traumatic stress disorder, participants and support staff spend the vast majority of their time in silence. The research suggests that the support provided during these sessions relies primarily on quiet, unobtrusive presence rather than active talk therapy. This offers an updated perspective on how the clinical administration of psychedelic compounds actually functions.
Psilocybin is a psychoactive compound found in certain species of “magic” mushrooms. In recent years, it has gained attention as a potential medical treatment for various mental health conditions, including post-traumatic stress disorder, commonly known as PTSD. PTSD is a mental health condition triggered by experiencing or witnessing a terrifying event, often leading to severe anxiety, flashbacks, and uncontrollable thoughts. In clinical trials, psilocybin is typically administered in a controlled setting with trained support staff present to ensure safety.
A common misconception is that patients undergo traditional talk therapy while actively under the influence of the drug. This idea partly stems from the structure of other experimental treatments, such as trials involving MDMA, which often feature active, verbal psychotherapy during the drug session. Because high doses of psilocybin induce intense, internally focused altered states of consciousness, carrying on a regular therapeutic conversation is often impractical.
“There was a general misunderstanding around the term ‘psychedelic assisted psychotherapy’. It implies that a psychedelic drug is administered to boost a form of psychotherapy, which most people understand as verbal to and fro between a patient and a therapist,” said Guy M. Goodwin, chief medical officer at Compass Pathways and emeritus professor of psychiatry at the University of Oxford.
Goodwin added, “In fact, as our paper shows, the vast majority of the time there is silence when a patient has taken a 25mg dose of COMP360 psilocybin. There is no psychotherapy going on. So, it makes more sense to call this a ‘psychedelic treatment’, which clearly places the emphasis on the drug’s effect.”
To explore these interactions, the scientists analyzed data from an open-label clinical trial involving 22 adult participants. All the participants had been diagnosed with PTSD and had a baseline score on a standard diagnostic scale indicating moderate to severe symptoms. Each person received a single 25-milligram dose of a synthetic psilocybin formulation known as COMP360.
The clinical outcomes for these participants provided important context for understanding the treatment’s impact. “This particular study was in patients with PTSD. Most of the patients experienced a clinically significant reduction in symptoms after a single 25mg dose of COMP360 psilocybin,” Goodwin noted. “Most described the treatment as preferable to either the drug or psychotherapy they had previously received.”
The rapid onset of these improvements stood out to the researchers. When asked about unexpected findings, Goodwin highlighted “[t]he immediacy of the therapeutic benefit, which had not been seen before for PTSD.”
The treatment process involved three distinct phases. First, participants attended three preparation sessions with two trained support providers. Next came the administration session, which lasted six to eight hours, during which participants lay in a dimly lit room, wore eyeshades, and listened to a standardized music playlist. Finally, participants attended three follow-up sessions to discuss their experiences.
The researchers recorded audio from all the sessions and transcribed the conversations. They then calculated the speech rate, measured in words per minute, for both the participants and the support providers. When analyzing the data, the authors controlled for the fact that each participant had multiple sessions and that some participants shared the same support providers. This mathematical control helped ensure the models accurately reflected the underlying speech patterns without falsely inflating the confidence of the estimates.
In addition to calculating word counts, the researchers conducted in-depth interviews with the participants the day after the administration session. These interviews provided qualitative data about how the participants felt regarding the support they received. The researchers also asked participants to complete a questionnaire measuring the intensity of their altered state of consciousness at the end of the psilocybin session.
The analysis of the audio transcripts showed a stark contrast in speech rates between the different phases of the trial. During the psilocybin administration sessions, an average of 78 percent of the time passed without any talking. In comparison, silence accounted for only 25 to 30 percent of the total time during the preparation and follow-up sessions.
During the preparation phase, the words spoken per minute were generally balanced between the participants and the support staff. In the follow-up sessions, the participants spoke at a much higher rate than the providers. During the administration session itself, the speech rates for both groups dropped to very low levels. The talking that did occur mostly took place at the very beginning and the very end of the six-to-eight-hour window.
The researchers also found a negative correlation between the intensity of the psychedelic experience and the amount of talking. Participants who reported more intense feelings of boundlessness and ego dissolution tended to speak even fewer words per minute. This suggests that more immersive drug effects naturally limit the capacity or desire for verbal communication.
The post-session interviews provided evidence that participants appreciated the quiet approach of the staff. Many individuals reported that the support was unobtrusive but highly impactful. The quiet presence of the staff allowed participants the freedom to focus inwardly and autonomously navigate their own thoughts.
This internal focus is central to how the authors view the treatment’s mechanisms and future applications. Goodwin explained the team’s hope “that psychedelic treatment will be available for depressed patients who have not responded to conventional treatments next year and that it involves an inwardly directed intrapersonal experience, not psychotherapy.”
When participants did need support, it typically took the form of brief reassurance or validation. This included a staff member briefly holding a participant’s hand or offering a short verbal reminder of their physical location. Participants indicated that these small gestures provided an anchor of safety during periods of emotional intensity.
A small sample size is a primary limitation of this study, as it only included 22 individuals. The trial was also open-label, meaning both the researchers and the participants knew they were receiving psilocybin. Additionally, the measure of words per minute is a relatively simple metric for capturing the complexity of human language and clinical interaction.
A lack of conversation during therapy might outwardly resemble an absence of emotional support. However, the interview data suggests the quiet presence of staff members actively provided a strong sense of safety. The findings do not imply that verbal engagement is unimportant in mental health treatment as a whole. Instead, the research indicates that high-dose psilocybin sessions function differently than conventional talk therapy, relying on passive monitoring rather than active dialogue.
Future research could expand on these findings by studying larger groups of patients undergoing psychedelic treatments. Scientists might use natural language processing software to analyze the emotional tone and semantic content of the speech during these sessions.
The authors are already looking ahead to broader applications of their work. “We are in the process of submitting data to FDA in pursuit of an approval for the treatment of difficult to treat depression with COMP360 psilocybin. We are also starting a major late-stage study in PTSD,” Goodwin stated. He concluded, “We are not surprised by the findings of this study and we are very proud of COMP360’s differentiated clinical profile that has the potential to help the many millions of patients in need of new and effective options.”
The study, “Silence is golden: Documenting the speech production of participants and support providers in psilocybin administration sessions for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder,” was authored by Robert F. Dougherty, Nadav Liam Modlin, Niall M. McGowan, Patrick Staples, Ella Williams, Patrick Clarke, Mario Shafiei, Carly Leininger, Merve Alti, Megan Croal, Lindsey Marwood, Namik Kirlić, Gregory A. Ryslik, and Guy M. Goodwin.
URL: https://www.psypost.org/psilocybin-therapy-sessions-for-ptsd-are-mostly-silent-study-finds/
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #PsilocybinTherapy #PTSDTreatment #PsychedelicResearch #COMP360 #SilenceInTherapy #PsychedelicAssistedTherapy #PTSDRecovery #MentalHealthInnovation #ClinicalTrials #OxfordResearch
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Psychedelic Research Edges Toward Nuance, Moving Beyond Broad Strokes
New research shows low sensory changes from psychedelics like psilocybin may improve therapy for depression and PTSD. Learn how.
#PsychedelicResearch, #PsilocybinTherapy, #MentalHealth, #PTSD, #Depression
https://newsletter.tf/psychedelics-low-sensory-changes-therapy-outcomes/
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Scientists now believe small sensory changes from psychedelics are key to therapy, not just side effects. This is a big shift from older ideas.
#PsychedelicResearch, #PsilocybinTherapy, #MentalHealth, #PTSD, #Depression
https://newsletter.tf/psychedelics-low-sensory-changes-therapy-outcomes/ -
Psilocybin therapy offers relief from multiple psychiatric symptoms in cancer patients https://www.psypost.org/psilocybin-therapy-offers-relief-from-multiple-psychiatric-symptoms-in-cancer-patients/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=mastodon #PsilocybinTherapy #Psychotherapy #CancerPatients #PsychiatricSymptoms #MentalHealth
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Majority of Americans support supervised use of psilocybin for mental health and well-being https://www.psypost.org/majority-of-americans-support-supervised-use-of-psilocybin-for-mental-health-and-well-being/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=mastodon #PsilocybinTherapy #MentalHealth #WellBeing #PersonalGrowth #Psychedelics
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https://psychedelictherapy.institute/ketamine-research-1/esketamine-psiclybin-number-to-treat-depression A comparison between #psilocybin and #esketamine in treatment-resistant depression using number needed to treat (NNT): A systematic review (Wong, et al, 2024) suggests safety and efficacy for #depression #numbertotreat #psychedelics #ketaminetherapy #psilocybintherapy #psychedelicassistedtherapy #psychedelics
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Unique Psychological Mechanisms Underlying Psilocybin Therapy Versus Escitalopram Treatment in the Treatment of Major Depressive Disorder (Weiss, et al, 2024)
https://ketaminetherapypalmsprings.com/psilocybinassisted-therapy/psilocybin-therapy-psychedelic-experience #psilocybin #psychedelic #thepsychedelicexperience #egodeath #mysticalexperience #psychedelics #psychedelicresearch #psilocybintherapy #psychedelicassistedpsychotherapy