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Mediano PAM, Rosas FE, Timmermann C, Roseman L, Nutt DJ, Feilding A, Kaelen M, Kringelbach ML, Barrett AB, Seth AK, Muthukumaraswamy S, Bor D, Carhart-Harris RL. Effects of External Stimulation on Psychedelic State Neurodynamics. ACS Chem Neurosci 2024; 15:462-471. [PMID: 38214686 PMCID: PMC10853937 DOI: 10.1021/acschemneuro.3c00289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2023] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 01/13/2024] Open
Abstract
Recent findings have shown that psychedelics reliably enhance brain entropy (understood as neural signal diversity), and this effect has been associated with both acute and long-term psychological outcomes, such as personality changes. These findings are particularly intriguing, given that a decrease of brain entropy is a robust indicator of loss of consciousness (e.g., from wakefulness to sleep). However, little is known about how context impacts the entropy-enhancing effect of psychedelics, which carries important implications for how it can be exploited in, for example, psychedelic psychotherapy. This article investigates how brain entropy is modulated by stimulus manipulation during a psychedelic experience by studying participants under the effects of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) or placebo, either with gross state changes (eyes closed vs open) or different stimuli (no stimulus vs music vs video). Results show that while brain entropy increases with LSD under all of the experimental conditions, it exhibits the largest changes when subjects have their eyes closed. Furthermore, brain entropy changes are consistently associated with subjective ratings of the psychedelic experience, but this relationship is disrupted when participants are viewing a video─potentially due to a "competition" between external stimuli and endogenous LSD-induced imagery. Taken together, our findings provide strong quantitative evidence of the role of context in modulating neural dynamics during a psychedelic experience, underlining the importance of performing psychedelic psychotherapy in a suitable environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pedro A. M. Mediano
- Department
of Computing, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, U.K.
- Department
of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, U.K.
| | - Fernando E. Rosas
- Department
of Informatics, University of Sussex, Brighton BN1 9RH, U.K.
- Centre
for Psychedelic Research, Department of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, U.K.
- Centre
for Complexity Science, Imperial College
London, London SW7 2AZ, U.K.
- Centre for
Eudaimonia and Human Flourishing, University
of Oxford, Oxford OX1 2JD, U.K.
| | - Christopher Timmermann
- Centre
for Psychedelic Research, Department of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, U.K.
| | - Leor Roseman
- Centre
for Psychedelic Research, Department of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, U.K.
| | - David J. Nutt
- Centre
for Psychedelic Research, Department of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, U.K.
| | | | | | - Morten L. Kringelbach
- Centre for
Eudaimonia and Human Flourishing, University
of Oxford, Oxford OX1 2JD, U.K.
- Department
of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 2JD, U.K.
- Center
for Music in the Brain, Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus 8000, Denmark
| | - Adam B. Barrett
- Sussex
Center for Consciousness Science and Department of Informatics, University of Sussex, Brighton BN1 9RH, U.K.
| | - Anil K. Seth
- Sussex
Center for Consciousness Science and Department of Informatics, University of Sussex, Brighton BN1 9RH, U.K.
- CIFAR Program on Brain, Mind, and Consciousness, Toronto M5G 1M1, Canada
| | - Suresh Muthukumaraswamy
- School
of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand
| | - Daniel Bor
- Department
of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, U.K.
- Department
of Psychology, Queen Mary University of
London, London E1 4NS, U.K.
| | - Robin L. Carhart-Harris
- Centre
for Psychedelic Research, Department of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, U.K.
- Psychedelics
Division, Neuroscape, University of California
San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94117-1080, United States
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Wall MB, Lam C, Ertl N, Kaelen M, Roseman L, Nutt DJ, Carhart-Harris RL. Increased low-frequency brain responses to music after psilocybin therapy for depression. J Affect Disord 2023; 333:321-330. [PMID: 37094657 DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2023.04.081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2022] [Revised: 03/27/2023] [Accepted: 04/18/2023] [Indexed: 04/26/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy with psilocybin is an emerging therapy with great promise for depression, and modern psychedelic therapy (PT) methods incorporate music as a key element. Music is an effective emotional/hedonic stimulus that could also be useful in assessing changes in emotional responsiveness following PT. METHODS Brain responses to music were assessed before and after PT using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and ALFF (Amplitude of Low Frequency Fluctuations) analysis methods. Nineteen patients with treatment-resistant depression underwent two treatment sessions involving administration of psilocybin, with MRI data acquired one week prior and the day after completion of psilocybin dosing sessions. RESULTS Comparison of music-listening and resting-state scans revealed significantly greater ALFF in bilateral superior temporal cortex for the post-treatment music scan, and in the right ventral occipital lobe for the post-treatment resting-state scan. ROI analyses of these clusters revealed a significant effect of treatment in the superior temporal lobe for the music scan only. Voxelwise comparison of treatment effects showed relative increases for the music scan in the bilateral superior temporal lobes and supramarginal gyrus, and relative decreases in the medial frontal lobes for the resting-state scan. ALFF in these music-related clusters was significantly correlated with intensity of subjective effects felt during the dosing sessions. LIMITATIONS Open-label trial. Relatively small sample size. CONCLUSIONS These data suggest an effect of PT on the brain's response to music, implying an elevated responsiveness to music after psilocybin therapy that was related to subjective drug effects felt during dosing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew B Wall
- Invicro London, Hammersmith Hospital, UK; Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, UK; Clinical Psychopharmacology Unit, University College London, UK.
| | - Cynthia Lam
- Division of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, UK; Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, UK
| | - Natalie Ertl
- Invicro London, Hammersmith Hospital, UK; Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, UK
| | - Mendel Kaelen
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, UK
| | - Leor Roseman
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, UK
| | - David J Nutt
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, UK
| | - Robin L Carhart-Harris
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, UK; Psychedelics Division - Neuroscape, University of California San Francisco, USA
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Shukuroglou M, Roseman L, Wall M, Nutt D, Kaelen M, Carhart-Harris R. Changes in music-evoked emotion and ventral striatal functional connectivity after psilocybin therapy for depression. J Psychopharmacol 2023; 37:70-79. [PMID: 36433778 PMCID: PMC9834320 DOI: 10.1177/02698811221125354] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Music listening is a staple and valued component of psychedelic therapy, and previous work has shown that psychedelics can acutely enhance music-evoked emotion. AIMS The present study sought to examine subjective responses to music before and after psilocybin therapy for treatment-resistant depression, while functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data was acquired. METHODS Nineteen patients with treatment-resistant depression received a low oral dose (10 mg) of psilocybin, and a high dose (25 mg) 1 week later. fMRI was performed 1 week prior to the first dosing session and 1 day after the second. Two scans were conducted on each day: one with music and one without. Visual analogue scale ratings of music-evoked 'pleasure' plus ratings of other evoked emotions (21-item Geneva Emotional Music Scale) were completed after each scan. Given its role in musical reward, the nucleus accumbens (NAc) was chosen as region of interest for functional connectivity (FC) analyses. Effects of drug (vs placebo) and music (vs no music) on subjective and FC outcomes were assessed. Anhedonia symptoms were assessed pre- and post-treatment (Snaith-Hamilton Pleasure Scale). RESULTS Results revealed a significant increase in music-evoked emotion following treatment with psilocybin that correlated with post-treatment reductions in anhedonia. A post-treatment reduction in NAc FC with areas resembling the default mode network was observed during music listening (vs no music). CONCLUSION These results are consistent with current thinking on the role of psychedelics in enhancing music-evoked pleasure and provide some new insight into correlative brain mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa Shukuroglou
- Independent Researcher,Melissa Shukuroglou, Centre for Psychedelic Research, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, Du Cane Road, Hammersmith Campus, London W12 0NN, UK.
| | - Leor Roseman
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, UK,Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience Laboratory (C3NL), Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, UK
| | - Matt Wall
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, UK,Invicro, London, UK,Clinical Psychopharmacology Unit, UCL, UK
| | - David Nutt
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, UK
| | - Mendel Kaelen
- Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience Laboratory (C3NL), Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, UK,Wavepaths Ltd, London, UK
| | - Robin Carhart-Harris
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, UK
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Nygart VA, Pommerencke LM, Haijen E, Kettner H, Kaelen M, Mortensen EL, Nutt DJ, Carhart-Harris RL, Erritzoe D. Antidepressant effects of a psychedelic experience in a large prospective naturalistic sample. J Psychopharmacol 2022; 36:932-942. [PMID: 35924888 PMCID: PMC9353970 DOI: 10.1177/02698811221101061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Over the last two decades, a number of studies have highlighted the potential of psychedelic therapy. However, questions remain to what extend these results translate to naturalistic samples, and how contextual factors and the acute psychedelic experience relate to improvements in affective symptoms following psychedelic experiences outside labs/clinics. The present study sought to address this knowledge gap. AIM Here, we aimed to investigate changes in anxiety and depression scores before versus after psychedelic experiences in naturalistic contexts, and how various pharmacological, extrapharmacological and experience factors related to outcomes. METHOD Individuals who planned to undergo a psychedelic experience were enrolled in this online survey study. Depressive symptoms were assessed at baseline and 2 and 4 weeks post-psychedelic experience, with self-rated Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology (QIDS-SR-16) as the primary outcome. To facilitate clinical translation, only participants with depressive symptoms at baseline were included. Sample sizes for the four time points were N = 302, N = 182, N = 155 and N = 109, respectively. RESULTS Relative to baseline, reductions in depressive symptoms were observed at 2 and 4 weeks. A medicinal motive, previous psychedelic use, drug dose and the type of acute psychedelic experience (i.e. specifically, having an emotional breakthrough) were all significantly associated with changes in self-rated QIDS-SR-16. CONCLUSION These results lend support to therapeutic potential of psychedelics and highlight the influence of pharmacological and non-pharmacological factors in determining response. Mindful of a potential sample and attrition bias, further controlled and observational longitudinal studies are needed to test the replicability of these findings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria Amalie Nygart
- Division of Psychiatry, Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Centers for Neuropsychopharmacology and Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Lis Marie Pommerencke
- National Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Eline Haijen
- Division of Psychiatry, Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Centers for Neuropsychopharmacology and Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Hannes Kettner
- Division of Psychiatry, Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Centers for Neuropsychopharmacology and Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Mendel Kaelen
- Division of Psychiatry, Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Centers for Neuropsychopharmacology and Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Erik Lykke Mortensen
- Department of Public Health, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - David John Nutt
- Division of Psychiatry, Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Centers for Neuropsychopharmacology and Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Robin Lester Carhart-Harris
- Division of Psychiatry, Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Centers for Neuropsychopharmacology and Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - David Erritzoe
- Division of Psychiatry, Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Centers for Neuropsychopharmacology and Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK
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5
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Watts R, Kettner H, Geerts D, Gandy S, Kartner L, Mertens L, Timmermann C, Nour MM, Kaelen M, Nutt D, Carhart-Harris R, Roseman L. The Watts Connectedness Scale: a new scale for measuring a sense of connectedness to self, others, and world. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2022; 239:3461-3483. [PMID: 35939083 PMCID: PMC9358368 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-022-06187-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2021] [Accepted: 06/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE A general feeling of disconnection has been associated with mental and emotional suffering. Improvements to a sense of connectedness to self, others and the wider world have been reported by participants in clinical trials of psychedelic therapy. Such accounts have led us to a definition of the psychological construct of 'connectedness' as 'a state of feeling connected to self, others and the wider world'. Existing tools for measuring connectedness have focused on particular aspects of connectedness, such as 'social connectedness' or 'nature connectedness', which we hypothesise to be different expressions of a common factor of connectedness. Here, we sought to develop a new scale to measure connectedness as a construct with these multiple domains. We hypothesised that (1) our scale would measure three separable subscale factors pertaining to a felt connection to 'self', 'others' and 'world' and (2) improvements in total and subscale WCS scores would correlate with improved mental health outcomes post psychedelic use. OBJECTIVES To validate and test the 'Watts Connectedness Scale' (WCS). METHODS Psychometric validation of the WCS was carried out using data from three independent studies. Firstly, we pooled data from two prospective observational online survey studies. The WCS was completed before and after a planned psychedelic experience. The total sample of completers from the online surveys was N = 1226. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis were performed, and construct and criterion validity were tested. A third dataset was derived from a double-blind randomised controlled trial (RCT) comparing psilocybin-assisted therapy (n = 27) with 6 weeks of daily escitalopram (n = 25) for major depressive disorder (MDD), where the WCS was completed at baseline and at a 6-week primary endpoint. RESULTS As hypothesised, factor analysis of all WCS items revealed three main factors with good internal consistency. WCS showed good construct validity. Significant post-psychedelic increases were observed for total connectedness scores (η2 = 0.339, p < 0.0001), as well as on each of its subscales (p < 0.0001). Acute measures of 'mystical experience', 'emotional breakthrough', and 'communitas' correlated positively with post-psychedelic changes in connectedness (r = 0.42, r = 0.38, r = 0.42, respectively, p < 0.0001). In the RCT, psilocybin therapy was associated with greater increases in WCS scores compared with the escitalopram arm (ηp2 = 0.133, p = 0.009). CONCLUSIONS The WCS is a new 3-dimensional index of felt connectedness that may sensitively measure therapeutically relevant psychological changes post-psychedelic use. We believe that the operational definition of connectedness captured by the WCS may have broad relevance in mental health research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rosalind Watts
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK. .,Acer Integration, London, UK. .,Synthesis Institute, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
| | - Hannes Kettner
- grid.7445.20000 0001 2113 8111Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Dana Geerts
- grid.7445.20000 0001 2113 8111Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK ,grid.5012.60000 0001 0481 6099Department of Neuropsychology and Psychopharmacology, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, Netherlands
| | - Sam Gandy
- grid.7445.20000 0001 2113 8111Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Laura Kartner
- grid.7445.20000 0001 2113 8111Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Lea Mertens
- grid.7445.20000 0001 2113 8111Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Christopher Timmermann
- grid.7445.20000 0001 2113 8111Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Matthew M. Nour
- grid.7445.20000 0001 2113 8111Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Mendel Kaelen
- grid.7445.20000 0001 2113 8111Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - David Nutt
- grid.7445.20000 0001 2113 8111Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Robin Carhart-Harris
- grid.7445.20000 0001 2113 8111Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK ,grid.266102.10000 0001 2297 6811Psychedelics Division, Department of Neurology, University of California San Francisco, Neuroscape, USA
| | - Leor Roseman
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, UK.
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Kuc J, Kettner H, Rosas F, Erritzoe D, Haijen E, Kaelen M, Nutt D, Carhart-Harris RL. Psychedelic experience dose-dependently modulated by cannabis: results of a prospective online survey. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2022; 239:1425-1440. [PMID: 34734314 PMCID: PMC9110465 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-021-05999-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2021] [Accepted: 10/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Classic psychedelics are currently being studied as novel treatments for a range of psychiatric disorders. However, research on how psychedelics interact with other psychoactive substances remains scarce. OBJECTIVES The current study aimed to explore the subjective effects of psychedelics when used alongside cannabis. METHODS Participants (n = 321) completed a set of online surveys at 2 time points: 7 days before, and 1 day after a planned experience with a serotonergic psychedelic. The collected data included demographics, environmental factors (so-called setting) and five validated questionnaires: Mystical Experience Questionnaire (MEQ), visual subscales of Altered States of Consciousness Questionnaire (ASC-Vis), Challenging Experience Questionnaire (CEQ), Ego Dissolution Inventory (EDI) and Emotional Breakthrough Inventory (EBI). Participants were grouped according to whether they had reported using no cannabis (n = 195) or low (n = 53), medium (n = 45) or high (n = 28) dose, directly concomitant with the psychedelic. Multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) and contrasts was used to analyse differences in subjective effects between groups while controlling for potential confounding contextual 'setting' variables. RESULTS The simultaneous use of cannabis together with classic serotonergic psychedelics was associated with more intense psychedelic experience across a range of measures: a linear relationship was found between dose and MEQ, ASC-Vis and EDI scores, while a quadratic relationship was found for CEQ scores. No relationship was found between the dose of cannabis and the EBI. CONCLUSIONS Results imply a possible interaction between the cannabis and psychedelic on acute subjective experiences; however, design limitations hamper our ability to draw firm inferences on directions of causality and the clinical implications of any such interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanna Kuc
- Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN, UK.
| | - Hannes Kettner
- Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK
| | - Fernando Rosas
- Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK
| | - David Erritzoe
- Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK
| | - Eline Haijen
- Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK
| | - Mendel Kaelen
- Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK
| | - David Nutt
- Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK
| | - Robin L. Carhart-Harris
- Department of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK
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Hübner S, Haijen E, Kaelen M, Carhart-Harris RL, Kettner H. Turn on, Tune in, and Drop out: Predictors of Attrition in a Prospective Observational Cohort Study on Psychedelic Use. J Med Internet Res 2021; 23:e25973. [PMID: 34319246 PMCID: PMC8367105 DOI: 10.2196/25973] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2020] [Revised: 02/19/2021] [Accepted: 05/04/2021] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Background The resurgence of research and public interest in the positive psychological effects of psychedelics, together with advancements in digital data collection techniques, have brought forth a new type of research design, which involves prospectively gathering large-scale naturalistic data from psychedelic users; that is, before and after the use of a psychedelic compound. A methodological limitation of such studies is their high attrition rate, particularly owing to participants who stop responding after initial study enrollment. Importantly, study dropout can introduce systematic biases that may affect the interpretability of results. Objective Based on a previously collected sample (baseline n=654), here we investigated potential determinants of study attrition in web-based prospective studies on psychedelic use. Methods Logistic regression models were used to examine demographic, psychological trait and state, and psychedelic-specific predictors of dropout. Predictors were assessed 1 week before, 1 day after, and 2 weeks after psychedelic use, with attrition being defined as noncompletion of the key endpoint 4 weeks post experience. Results Predictors of attrition were found among demographic variables including age (β=0.024; P=.007) and educational levels, as well as personality traits, specifically conscientiousness (β=–0.079; P=.02) and extraversion (β=0.082; P=.01). Contrary to prior hypotheses, neither baseline attitudes toward psychedelics nor the intensity of acute challenging experiences were predictive of dropout. Conclusions The baseline predictors of attrition identified here are consistent with those reported in longitudinal studies in other scientific disciplines, suggesting their transdisciplinary relevance. Moreover, the lack of an association between attrition and psychedelic advocacy or negative drug experiences in our sample contextualizes concerns about problematic biases in these and related data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Hübner
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Eline Haijen
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Mendel Kaelen
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | | | - Hannes Kettner
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
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8
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Mans K, Kettner H, Erritzoe D, Haijen ECHM, Kaelen M, Carhart-Harris RL. Sustained, Multifaceted Improvements in Mental Well-Being Following Psychedelic Experiences in a Prospective Opportunity Sample. Front Psychiatry 2021; 12:647909. [PMID: 34267683 PMCID: PMC8277190 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.647909] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2020] [Accepted: 05/31/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
In the last 15 years, psychedelic substances, such as LSD and psilocybin, have regained legitimacy in clinical research. In the general population as well as across various psychiatric populations, mental well-being has been found to significantly improve after a psychedelic experience. Mental well-being has large socioeconomic relevance, but it is a complex, multifaceted construct. In this naturalistic observational study, a comprehensive approach was taken to assessing well-being before and after a taking a psychedelic compound to induce a "psychedelic experience." Fourteen measures of well-being related constructs were included in order to examine the breadth and specificity of change in well-being. This change was then analysed to examine clusters of measures changing together. Survey data was collected from volunteers that intended to take a psychedelic. Four key time points were analysed: 1 week before and 2 weeks, 4 weeks, and 2 years after the experience (N = 654, N = 315, N = 212, and N = 64, respectively). Change on the included measures was found to cluster into three factors which we labelled: 1) "Being well", 2) "Staying well," and 3) "Spirituality." Repeated Measures Multivariate Analysis of Variance revealed all but the spirituality factor to be improved in the weeks following the psychedelic experience. Additional Mixed model analyses revealed selective increases in Being Well and Staying Well (but not Spirituality) that remained statistically significant up to 2 years post-experience, albeit with high attrition rates. Post-hoc examination suggested that attrition was not due to differential acute experiences or mental-health changes in those who dropped out vs. those who did not. These findings suggest that psychedelics can have a broad, robust and sustained positive impact on mental well-being in those that have a prior intention to use a psychedelic compound. Public policy implications are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keri Mans
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Division of Psychiatry, Department of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
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9
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Jobst BM, Atasoy S, Ponce-Alvarez A, Sanjuán A, Roseman L, Kaelen M, Carhart-Harris R, Kringelbach ML, Deco G. Increased sensitivity to strong perturbations in a whole-brain model of LSD. Neuroimage 2021; 230:117809. [PMID: 33524579 PMCID: PMC8063176 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.117809] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2020] [Revised: 01/02/2021] [Accepted: 01/25/2021] [Indexed: 02/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Novel offline perturbational method applied on functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data under the effect of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). Shift of brain's global working point to more complex dynamics after LSD intake. Consistently longer recovery time after model perturbation under LSD influence. Strongest effects in resting state networks relevant for psychedelic experience. Higher response diversity across brain regions under LSD influence after an external in silico perturbation.
Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) is a potent psychedelic drug, which has seen a revival in clinical and pharmacological research within recent years. Human neuroimaging studies have shown fundamental changes in brain-wide functional connectivity and an expansion of dynamical brain states, thus raising the question about a mechanistic explanation of the dynamics underlying these alterations. Here, we applied a novel perturbational approach based on a whole-brain computational model, which opens up the possibility to externally perturb different brain regions in silico and investigate differences in dynamical stability of different brain states, i.e. the dynamical response of a certain brain region to an external perturbation. After adjusting the whole-brain model parameters to reflect the dynamics of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) BOLD signals recorded under the influence of LSD or placebo, perturbations of different brain areas were simulated by either promoting or disrupting synchronization in the regarding brain region. After perturbation offset, we quantified the recovery characteristics of the brain area to its basal dynamical state with the Perturbational Integration Latency Index (PILI) and used this measure to distinguish between the two brain states. We found significant changes in dynamical complexity with consistently higher PILI values after LSD intake on a global level, which indicates a shift of the brain's global working point further away from a stable equilibrium as compared to normal conditions. On a local level, we found that the largest differences were measured within the limbic network, the visual network and the default mode network. Additionally, we found a higher variability of PILI values across different brain regions after LSD intake, indicating higher response diversity under LSD after an external perturbation. Our results provide important new insights into the brain-wide dynamical changes underlying the psychedelic state - here provoked by LSD intake - and underline possible future clinical applications of psychedelic drugs in particular psychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Beatrice M Jobst
- Center for Brain and Cognition, Computational Neuroscience Group, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Calle Ramón Trias Fargas 25-27, 08005 Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Selen Atasoy
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom; Center of Music in the Brain (MIB), Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Denmark
| | - Adrián Ponce-Alvarez
- Center for Brain and Cognition, Computational Neuroscience Group, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Calle Ramón Trias Fargas 25-27, 08005 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Ana Sanjuán
- Center for Brain and Cognition, Computational Neuroscience Group, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Calle Ramón Trias Fargas 25-27, 08005 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Leor Roseman
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Department of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, United Kingdom
| | - Mendel Kaelen
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Department of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, United Kingdom
| | - Robin Carhart-Harris
- Centre for Psychedelic Research, Department of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, United Kingdom
| | - Morten L Kringelbach
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom; Center of Music in the Brain (MIB), Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Denmark
| | - Gustavo Deco
- Center for Brain and Cognition, Computational Neuroscience Group, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Calle Ramón Trias Fargas 25-27, 08005 Barcelona, Spain; Institució Catalana de la Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ICREA), Barcelona, Spain; Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany; School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Melbourne, Australia
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10
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Roseman L, Haijen E, Idialu-Ikato K, Kaelen M, Watts R, Carhart-Harris R. Emotional breakthrough and psychedelics: Validation of the Emotional Breakthrough Inventory. J Psychopharmacol 2019; 33:1076-1087. [PMID: 31294673 DOI: 10.1177/0269881119855974] [Citation(s) in RCA: 133] [Impact Index Per Article: 26.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Psychedelic therapy is gaining recognition and the nature of the psychedelic experience itself has been found to mediate subsequent long-term psychological changes. Much emphasis has been placed on the occurrence of mystical-type experiences in determining long-term responses to psychedelics yet here we demonstrate the importance of another component, namely: emotional breakthrough. METHODS Three hundred and seventy-nine participants completed online surveys before and after a planned psychedelic experience. Items pertaining to emotional breakthrough were completed one day after the psychedelic experience, as were items comprising the already validated Mystical Experience Questionnaire and the Challenging Experience Questionnaire. Emotional breakthrough, Mystical Experience Questionnaire and Challenging Experience Questionnaire scores were used to predict changes in well-being (Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale) in a subsample of 75 participants with low well-being baseline scores (⩽45). RESULTS Factor analyses revealed six emotional breakthrough items with high internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha=0.932) and supported our prior hypothesis that emotional breakthrough is a distinct component of the psychedelic experience. Emotional breakthrough scores behaved dose-dependently, and were higher if the psychedelic was taken with therapeutic planning and intent. Emotional breakthrough, Mystical Experience Questionnaire and Challenging Experience Questionnaire scores combined, significantly predicted subsequent changes in well-being (r=0.45, p=0.0005, n=75), with each scale contributing significant predictive value. Emotional breakthrough and Mystical Experience Questionnaire scores predicted increases in well-being and Challenging Experience Questionnaire scores predicted less increases. CONCLUSIONS Here we validate a six-item 'Emotional Breakthrough Inventory'. Emotional breakthrough is an important and distinct component of the acute psychedelic experience that appears to be a key mediator of subsequent longer-term psychological changes. Implications for psychedelic therapy are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leor Roseman
- Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Eline Haijen
- Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | | | - Mendel Kaelen
- Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK.,Wavepaths Ltd, London, UK
| | - Rosalind Watts
- Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
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11
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Haijen ECHM, Kaelen M, Roseman L, Timmermann C, Kettner H, Russ S, Nutt D, Daws RE, Hampshire ADG, Lorenz R, Carhart-Harris RL. Predicting Responses to Psychedelics: A Prospective Study. Front Pharmacol 2018; 9:897. [PMID: 30450045 PMCID: PMC6225734 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2018.00897] [Citation(s) in RCA: 176] [Impact Index Per Article: 29.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2018] [Accepted: 07/23/2018] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Responses to psychedelics are notoriously difficult to predict, yet significant work is currently underway to assess their therapeutic potential and the level of interest in psychedelics among the general public appears to be increasing. We aimed to collect prospective data in order to improve our ability to predict acute- and longer-term responses to psychedelics. Individuals who planned to take a psychedelic through their own initiative participated in an online survey (www.psychedelicsurvey.com). Traits and variables relating to set, setting and the acute psychedelic experience were measured at five different time points before and after the experience. Principle component and regression methods were used to analyse the data. Sample sizes for the five time points were N = 654, N = 535, N = 379, N = 315, and N = 212 respectively. Psychological well-being was increased 2 weeks after a psychedelic experience and remained at this level after 4 weeks. Higher ratings of a “mystical-type experience” had a positive effect on the change in well-being after a psychedelic experience, whereas the other acute psychedelic experience measures, i.e., “challenging experience” and “visual effects”, did not influence the change in well-being after the psychedelic experience. Having “clear intentions” for the experience was conducive to mystical-type experiences. Having a positive “set” as well as having the experience with intentions related to “recreation” were both found to decrease the likelihood of having a challenging experience. The baseline trait “absorption” and higher drug doses promoted all aspects of the acute experience, i.e., mystical-type and challenging experiences, as well as visual effects. When comparing the relative contribution of different types of variables in explaining the variance in the change in well-being, it seemed that baseline trait variables had the strongest effect on the change in well-being after a psychedelic experience. These results confirm the importance of extra-pharmacological factors in determining responses to a psychedelic. We view this study as an early step towards the development of empirical guidelines that can evolve and improve iteratively with the ultimate purpose of guiding crucial clinical decisions about whether, when, where and how to dose with a psychedelic, thus helping to mitigate risks while maximizing potential benefits in an evidence-based manner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eline C H M Haijen
- Psychedelic Research Group, Neuropsychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Mendel Kaelen
- Psychedelic Research Group, Neuropsychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Leor Roseman
- Psychedelic Research Group, Neuropsychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom.,The Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroimaging Laboratory (C3NL), Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Christopher Timmermann
- Psychedelic Research Group, Neuropsychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom.,The Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroimaging Laboratory (C3NL), Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Hannes Kettner
- Psychedelic Research Group, Neuropsychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Suzanne Russ
- Psychology Program, Department of Social Sciences, Dickinson State University, Dickinson, ND, United States
| | - David Nutt
- Psychedelic Research Group, Neuropsychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Richard E Daws
- The Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroimaging Laboratory (C3NL), Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Adam D G Hampshire
- The Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroimaging Laboratory (C3NL), Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Romy Lorenz
- The Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroimaging Laboratory (C3NL), Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Robin L Carhart-Harris
- Psychedelic Research Group, Neuropsychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
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12
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Abstract
OBJECTIVE To explore whether psilocybin with psychological support modulates personality parameters in patients suffering from treatment-resistant depression (TRD). METHOD Twenty patients with moderate or severe, unipolar, TRD received oral psilocybin (10 and 25 mg, one week apart) in a supportive setting. Personality was assessed at baseline and at 3-month follow-up using the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R), the subjective psilocybin experience with Altered State of Consciousness (ASC) scale, and depressive symptoms with QIDS-SR16. RESULTS Neuroticism scores significantly decreased while Extraversion increased following psilocybin therapy. These changes were in the direction of the normative NEO-PI-R data and were both predicted, in an exploratory analysis, by the degree of insightfulness experienced during the psilocybin session. Openness scores also significantly increased following psilocybin, whereas Conscientiousness showed trend-level increases, and Agreeableness did not change. CONCLUSION Our observation of changes in personality measures after psilocybin therapy was mostly consistent with reports of personality change in relation to conventional antidepressant treatment, although the pronounced increases in Extraversion and Openness might constitute an effect more specific to psychedelic therapy. This needs further exploration in future controlled studies, as do the brain mechanisms of postpsychedelic personality change.
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Affiliation(s)
- D. Erritzoe
- Centre for NeuropsychopharmacologyDivision of Brain SciencesFaculty of MedicineImperial College LondonLondonUK
| | - L. Roseman
- Centre for NeuropsychopharmacologyDivision of Brain SciencesFaculty of MedicineImperial College LondonLondonUK
| | - M. M. Nour
- South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation TrustLondonUK
- The Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and NeuroscienceKings College LondonLondonUK
| | | | - M. Kaelen
- Centre for NeuropsychopharmacologyDivision of Brain SciencesFaculty of MedicineImperial College LondonLondonUK
| | - D. J. Nutt
- Centre for NeuropsychopharmacologyDivision of Brain SciencesFaculty of MedicineImperial College LondonLondonUK
| | - R. L. Carhart‐Harris
- Centre for NeuropsychopharmacologyDivision of Brain SciencesFaculty of MedicineImperial College LondonLondonUK
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13
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Abstract
From the beginning of therapeutic research with psychedelics, music listening has been consistently used as a method to guide or support therapeutic experiences during the acute effects of psychedelic drugs. Recent findings point to the potential of music to support meaning-making, emotionality, and mental imagery after the administration of psychedelics, and suggest that music plays an important role in facilitating positive clinical outcomes of psychedelic therapy. This review explores the history of, contemporary research on, and future directions regarding the use of music in psychedelic research and therapy, and argues for more detailed and rigorous investigation of the contribution of music to the treatment of psychiatric disorders within the novel framework of psychedelic therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frederick S Barrett
- a Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Behavioral Pharmacology Research Unit , Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine , Baltimore , MD , USA
| | - Katrin H Preller
- b Neuropsychopharmacology and Brain Imaging, Department of Psychiatry Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics , University Hospital for Psychiatry Zurich , Zurich , Switzerland.,c Department of Psychiatry , Yale University School of Medicine , New Haven , CT , USA
| | - Mendel Kaelen
- d Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine , Imperial College London , London , UK.,e Wavepaths Ltd , London , UK
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14
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Abstract
Psychedelic drugs are making waves as modern trials support their therapeutic potential and various media continue to pique public interest. In this opinion piece, we draw attention to a long-recognised component of the psychedelic treatment model, namely ‘set’ and ‘setting’ – subsumed here under the umbrella term ‘context’. We highlight: (a) the pharmacological mechanisms of classic psychedelics (5-HT2A receptor agonism and associated plasticity) that we believe render their effects exceptionally sensitive to context, (b) a study design for testing assumptions regarding positive interactions between psychedelics and context, and (c) new findings from our group regarding contextual determinants of the quality of a psychedelic experience and how acute experience predicts subsequent long-term mental health outcomes. We hope that this article can: (a) inform on good practice in psychedelic research, (b) provide a roadmap for optimising treatment models, and (c) help tackle unhelpful stigma still surrounding these compounds, while developing an evidence base for long-held assumptions about the critical importance of context in relation to psychedelic use that can help minimise harms and maximise potential benefits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robin L Carhart-Harris
- 1 Psychedelic Research Group, Neuropsychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Leor Roseman
- 1 Psychedelic Research Group, Neuropsychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Eline Haijen
- 1 Psychedelic Research Group, Neuropsychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - David Erritzoe
- 1 Psychedelic Research Group, Neuropsychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Rosalind Watts
- 1 Psychedelic Research Group, Neuropsychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Igor Branchi
- 2 Center for Behavioral Sciences and Mental Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena, Roma, Italy
| | - Mendel Kaelen
- 1 Psychedelic Research Group, Neuropsychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
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15
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Abstract
Psychedelic drugs are creating ripples in psychiatry as evidence accumulates of their therapeutic potential. An important question remains unresolved however: how are psychedelics effective? We propose that a sense of connectedness is key, provide some preliminary evidence to support this, and suggest a roadmap for testing it further.
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Affiliation(s)
- R L Carhart-Harris
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Psychiatry, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, London, UK
| | - D Erritzoe
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Psychiatry, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, London, UK
| | - E Haijen
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Psychiatry, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, London, UK
| | - M Kaelen
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Psychiatry, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, London, UK
| | - R Watts
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Psychiatry, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, London, UK.
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16
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Kaelen M, Giribaldi B, Raine J, Evans L, Timmermann C, Rodriguez N, Roseman L, Feilding A, Nutt D, Carhart-Harris R. Correction to: The hidden therapist: evidence for a central role of music in psychedelic therapy. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2018; 235:1623. [PMID: 29582103 PMCID: PMC6713697 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-018-4886-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/02/2022]
Abstract
The article The hidden therapist: evidence for a central role of music in psychedelic therapy, written by Mendel Kaelen, Bruna Giribaldi, Jordan Raine, Lisa Evans, Christopher Timmerman, Natalie Rodriguez, Leor Roseman, Amanda Feilding, David Nutt, Robin Carhart-Harris, was originally published electronically on the publisher's internet portal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mendel Kaelen
- Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, London, UK.
| | - Bruna Giribaldi
- 0000 0001 2113 8111grid.7445.2Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, London, UK
| | - Jordan Raine
- 0000 0004 1936 7590grid.12082.39School of Psychology, Sussex University, Brighton, BN1 9RH UK
| | - Lisa Evans
- 0000 0001 2113 8111grid.7445.2Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, London, UK
| | - Christopher Timmermann
- 0000 0001 2113 8111grid.7445.2Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, London, UK ,0000 0001 2113 8111grid.7445.2Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience Laboratory (C3NL), Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, London, UK
| | - Natalie Rodriguez
- 0000 0001 2113 8111grid.7445.2Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, London, UK
| | - Leor Roseman
- 0000 0001 2113 8111grid.7445.2Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, London, UK ,0000 0001 2113 8111grid.7445.2Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience Laboratory (C3NL), Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, London, UK
| | | | - David Nutt
- 0000 0001 2113 8111grid.7445.2Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, London, UK
| | - Robin Carhart-Harris
- 0000 0001 2113 8111grid.7445.2Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, London, UK
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17
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Kaelen M, Giribaldi B, Raine J, Evans L, Timmerman C, Rodriguez N, Roseman L, Feilding A, Nutt D, Carhart-Harris R. The hidden therapist: evidence for a central role of music in psychedelic therapy. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2018; 235:505-519. [PMID: 29396616 PMCID: PMC5893695 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-017-4820-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 94] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2017] [Accepted: 12/21/2017] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Recent studies have supported the safety and efficacy of psychedelic therapy for mood disorders and addiction. Music is considered an important component in the treatment model, but little empirical research has been done to examine the magnitude and nature of its therapeutic role. OBJECTIVES The present study assessed the influence of music on the acute experience and clinical outcomes of psychedelic therapy. METHODS Semi-structured interviews inquired about the different ways in which music influenced the experience of 19 patients undergoing psychedelic therapy with psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was applied to the interview data to identify salient themes. In addition, ratings were given for each patient for the extent to which they expressed "liking," "resonance" (the music being experienced as "harmonious" with the emotional state of the listener), and "openness" (acceptance of the music-evoked experience). RESULTS Analyses of the interviews revealed that the music had both "welcome" and "unwelcome" influences on patients' subjective experiences. Welcome influences included the evocation of personally meaningful and therapeutically useful emotion and mental imagery, a sense of guidance, openness, and the promotion of calm and a sense of safety. Conversely, unwelcome influences included the evocation of unpleasant emotion and imagery, a sense of being misguided and resistance. Correlation analyses showed that patients' experience of the music was associated with the occurrence of "mystical experiences" and "insightfulness." Crucially, the nature of the music experience was significantly predictive of reductions in depression 1 week after psilocybin, whereas general drug intensity was not. CONCLUSIONS This study indicates that music plays a central therapeutic function in psychedelic therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mendel Kaelen
- Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN, UK.
| | - Bruna Giribaldi
- Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK
| | - Jordan Raine
- School of Psychology, Sussex University, Brighton, BN1 9RH UK
| | - Lisa Evans
- Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK
| | - Christopher Timmerman
- Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK ,Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience Laboratory (C3NL),
Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK
| | - Natalie Rodriguez
- Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK
| | - Leor Roseman
- Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK ,Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience Laboratory (C3NL),
Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK
| | | | - David Nutt
- Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK
| | - Robin Carhart-Harris
- Psychedelic Research Group, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN UK
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18
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Carhart-Harris RL, Bolstridge M, Day CMJ, Rucker J, Watts R, Erritzoe DE, Kaelen M, Giribaldi B, Bloomfield M, Pilling S, Rickard JA, Forbes B, Feilding A, Taylor D, Curran HV, Nutt DJ. Psilocybin with psychological support for treatment-resistant depression: six-month follow-up. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2018; 235:399-408. [PMID: 29119217 PMCID: PMC5813086 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-017-4771-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 428] [Impact Index Per Article: 71.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2017] [Accepted: 10/19/2017] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
RATIONALE Recent clinical trials are reporting marked improvements in mental health outcomes with psychedelic drug-assisted psychotherapy. OBJECTIVES Here, we report on safety and efficacy outcomes for up to 6 months in an open-label trial of psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression. METHODS Twenty patients (six females) with (mostly) severe, unipolar, treatment-resistant major depression received two oral doses of psilocybin (10 and 25 mg, 7 days apart) in a supportive setting. Depressive symptoms were assessed from 1 week to 6 months post-treatment, with the self-rated QIDS-SR16 as the primary outcome measure. RESULTS Treatment was generally well tolerated. Relative to baseline, marked reductions in depressive symptoms were observed for the first 5 weeks post-treatment (Cohen's d = 2.2 at week 1 and 2.3 at week 5, both p < 0.001); nine and four patients met the criteria for response and remission at week 5. Results remained positive at 3 and 6 months (Cohen's d = 1.5 and 1.4, respectively, both p < 0.001). No patients sought conventional antidepressant treatment within 5 weeks of psilocybin. Reductions in depressive symptoms at 5 weeks were predicted by the quality of the acute psychedelic experience. CONCLUSIONS Although limited conclusions can be drawn about treatment efficacy from open-label trials, tolerability was good, effect sizes large and symptom improvements appeared rapidly after just two psilocybin treatment sessions and remained significant 6 months post-treatment in a treatment-resistant cohort. Psilocybin represents a promising paradigm for unresponsive depression that warrants further research in double-blind randomised control trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- R L Carhart-Harris
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Division of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK.
| | - M Bolstridge
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Division of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
- South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK
| | - C M J Day
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Division of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
- South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK
| | - J Rucker
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Division of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
- The Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
- South West London and St George's Mental Health NHS Trust, London, UK
| | - R Watts
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Division of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - D E Erritzoe
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Division of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - M Kaelen
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Division of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - B Giribaldi
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Division of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - M Bloomfield
- Division of Psychiatry, University College London and Clinical Psychopharmacology Unit, University College London, London, UK
| | - S Pilling
- Clinical Psychology and Clinical Effectiveness, University College London, London, UK
| | - J A Rickard
- Barts Health Pharmaceuticals, Barts Health NHS Trust, the Royal London Hospital, London, UK
| | - B Forbes
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Science, King's College London, London, UK
| | - A Feilding
- The Beckley Foundation, Beckley Park, Oxford, UK
| | - D Taylor
- Pharmacy and Pathology, South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK
| | - H V Curran
- Clinical Psychology and Clinical Effectiveness, University College London, London, UK
- Clinical Psychopharmacology Unit, University College London, London, UK
| | - D J Nutt
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Division of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
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19
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Atasoy S, Roseman L, Kaelen M, Kringelbach ML, Deco G, Carhart-Harris RL. Connectome-harmonic decomposition of human brain activity reveals dynamical repertoire re-organization under LSD. Sci Rep 2017; 7:17661. [PMID: 29247209 PMCID: PMC5732294 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-17546-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 89] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2017] [Accepted: 11/24/2017] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent studies have started to elucidate the effects of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) on the human brain but the underlying dynamics are not yet fully understood. Here we used 'connectome-harmonic decomposition', a novel method to investigate the dynamical changes in brain states. We found that LSD alters the energy and the power of individual harmonic brain states in a frequency-selective manner. Remarkably, this leads to an expansion of the repertoire of active brain states, suggestive of a general re-organization of brain dynamics given the non-random increase in co-activation across frequencies. Interestingly, the frequency distribution of the active repertoire of brain states under LSD closely follows power-laws indicating a re-organization of the dynamics at the edge of criticality. Beyond the present findings, these methods open up for a better understanding of the complex brain dynamics in health and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Selen Atasoy
- Center of Brain and Cognition, Computational Neuroscience Group, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Leor Roseman
- Psychedelic Research Group, Psychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Mendel Kaelen
- Psychedelic Research Group, Psychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Morten L Kringelbach
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Center for Music in the Brain, Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Gustavo Deco
- Center of Brain and Cognition, Computational Neuroscience Group, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
- Institució Catalana de la Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ICREA), Barcelona, Spain
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
- School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Robin L Carhart-Harris
- Psychedelic Research Group, Psychopharmacology Unit, Centre for Psychiatry, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
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Timmermann C, Spriggs MJ, Kaelen M, Leech R, Nutt DJ, Moran RJ, Carhart-Harris RL, Muthukumaraswamy SD. LSD modulates effective connectivity and neural adaptation mechanisms in an auditory oddball paradigm. Neuropharmacology 2017; 142:251-262. [PMID: 29101022 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2017.10.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2017] [Revised: 10/18/2017] [Accepted: 10/30/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Under the predictive coding framework, perceptual learning and inference are dependent on the interaction between top-down predictions and bottom-up sensory signals both between and within regions in a network. However, how such feedback and feedforward connections are modulated in the state induced by lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) is poorly understood. In this study, an auditory oddball paradigm was presented to healthy participants (16 males, 4 female) under LSD and placebo, and brain activity was recorded using magnetoencephalography (MEG). Scalp level Event Related Fields (ERF) revealed reduced neural adaptation to familiar stimuli, and a blunted neural 'surprise' response to novel stimuli in the LSD condition. Dynamic causal modelling revealed that both the presentation of novel stimuli and LSD modulate backward extrinsic connectivity within a task-activated fronto-temporal network, as well as intrinsic connectivity in the primary auditory cortex. These findings show consistencies with those of previous studies of schizophrenia and ketamine but also studies of reduced consciousness - suggesting that rather than being a marker of conscious level per se, backward connectivity may index modulations of perceptual learning common to a variety of altered states of consciousness, perhaps united by a shared altered sensitivity to environmental stimuli. Since recent evidence suggests that the psychedelic state may correspond to a heightened 'level' of consciousness with respect to the normal waking state, our data warrant a re-examination of the top-down hypotheses of conscious level and suggest that several altered states may feature this specific biophysical effector. This article is part of the Special Issue entitled 'Psychedelics: New Doors, Altered Perceptions'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher Timmermann
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, UK; Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience Laboratory (C3NL), Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, UK.
| | - Meg J Spriggs
- Cognitive Neuroscience Research Group, School of Psychology, University of Auckland, New Zealand; Centre for Brain Research, University of Auckland, New Zealand; Brain Research, New Zealand
| | - Mendel Kaelen
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, UK
| | - Robert Leech
- Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience Laboratory (C3NL), Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, UK
| | - David J Nutt
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, UK
| | - Rosalyn J Moran
- Department of Engineering Mathematics, University of Bristol, BS8 1TH, UK
| | - Robin L Carhart-Harris
- Psychedelic Research Group, Centre for Psychiatry, Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, W12 0NN, UK
| | - Suresh D Muthukumaraswamy
- Cognitive Neuroscience Research Group, School of Psychology, University of Auckland, New Zealand; Centre for Brain Research, University of Auckland, New Zealand; School of Pharmacy, University of Auckland, New Zealand; CUBRIC, School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF103AT, UK
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Roseman L, Sereno M, Leech R, Kaelen M, Orban C, McGonigle J, Feilding A, Nutt D, Carhart-Harris R. LSD alters eyes-closed functional connectivity within the early visual cortex in a retinotopic fashion. J Vis 2016. [DOI: 10.1167/16.12.133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
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Terhune DB, Luke DP, Kaelen M, Bolstridge M, Feilding A, Nutt D, Carhart-Harris R, Ward J. A placebo-controlled investigation of synaesthesia-like experiences under LSD. Neuropsychologia 2016; 88:28-34. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2016.04.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2015] [Revised: 03/18/2016] [Accepted: 04/04/2016] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
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Lebedev AV, Kaelen M, Lövdén M, Nilsson J, Feilding A, Nutt DJ, Carhart-Harris RL. LSD-induced entropic brain activity predicts subsequent personality change. Hum Brain Mapp 2016; 37:3203-13. [PMID: 27151536 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.23234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 147] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2016] [Revised: 03/24/2016] [Accepted: 04/18/2016] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Personality is known to be relatively stable throughout adulthood. Nevertheless, it has been shown that major life events with high personal significance, including experiences engendered by psychedelic drugs, can have an enduring impact on some core facets of personality. In the present, balanced-order, placebo-controlled study, we investigated biological predictors of post-lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) changes in personality. Nineteen healthy adults underwent resting state functional MRI scans under LSD (75µg, I.V.) and placebo (saline I.V.). The Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R) was completed at screening and 2 weeks after LSD/placebo. Scanning sessions consisted of three 7.5-min eyes-closed resting-state scans, one of which involved music listening. A standardized preprocessing pipeline was used to extract measures of sample entropy, which characterizes the predictability of an fMRI time-series. Mixed-effects models were used to evaluate drug-induced shifts in brain entropy and their relationship with the observed increases in the personality trait openness at the 2-week follow-up. Overall, LSD had a pronounced global effect on brain entropy, increasing it in both sensory and hierarchically higher networks across multiple time scales. These shifts predicted enduring increases in trait openness. Moreover, the predictive power of the entropy increases was greatest for the music-listening scans and when "ego-dissolution" was reported during the acute experience. These results shed new light on how LSD-induced shifts in brain dynamics and concomitant subjective experience can be predictive of lasting changes in personality. Hum Brain Mapp 37:3203-3213, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- A V Lebedev
- Aging Research Center, Karolinska Institutet (Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society) & Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - M Kaelen
- Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Imperial College London, United Kingdom
| | - M Lövdén
- Aging Research Center, Karolinska Institutet (Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society) & Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - J Nilsson
- Aging Research Center, Karolinska Institutet (Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society) & Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - A Feilding
- The Beckley Foundation, Beckley Park, United Kingdom
| | - D J Nutt
- Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Imperial College London, United Kingdom
| | - R L Carhart-Harris
- Division of Brain Sciences, Department of Medicine, Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Imperial College London, United Kingdom
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Carhart-Harris RL, Kaelen M, Bolstridge M, Williams TM, Williams LT, Underwood R, Feilding A, Nutt DJ. The paradoxical psychological effects of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). Psychol Med 2016; 46:1379-1390. [PMID: 26847689 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291715002901] [Citation(s) in RCA: 178] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) is a potent serotonergic hallucinogen or psychedelic that modulates consciousness in a marked and novel way. This study sought to examine the acute and mid-term psychological effects of LSD in a controlled study. METHOD A total of 20 healthy volunteers participated in this within-subjects study. Participants received LSD (75 µg, intravenously) on one occasion and placebo (saline, intravenously) on another, in a balanced order, with at least 2 weeks separating sessions. Acute subjective effects were measured using the Altered States of Consciousness questionnaire and the Psychotomimetic States Inventory (PSI). A measure of optimism (the Revised Life Orientation Test), the Revised NEO Personality Inventory, and the Peter's Delusions Inventory were issued at baseline and 2 weeks after each session. RESULTS LSD produced robust psychological effects; including heightened mood but also high scores on the PSI, an index of psychosis-like symptoms. Increased optimism and trait openness were observed 2 weeks after LSD (and not placebo) and there were no changes in delusional thinking. CONCLUSIONS The present findings reinforce the view that psychedelics elicit psychosis-like symptoms acutely yet improve psychological wellbeing in the mid to long term. It is proposed that acute alterations in mood are secondary to a more fundamental modulation in the quality of cognition, and that increased cognitive flexibility subsequent to serotonin 2A receptor (5-HT2AR) stimulation promotes emotional lability during intoxication and leaves a residue of 'loosened cognition' in the mid to long term that is conducive to improved psychological wellbeing.
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Affiliation(s)
- R L Carhart-Harris
- Imperial College London,Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology,Division of Brain Sciences,Faculty of Medicine,London,UK
| | - M Kaelen
- Imperial College London,Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology,Division of Brain Sciences,Faculty of Medicine,London,UK
| | - M Bolstridge
- Imperial College London,Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology,Division of Brain Sciences,Faculty of Medicine,London,UK
| | - T M Williams
- Department of Psychiatry,The University of Bristol,Bristol,UK
| | - L T Williams
- Imperial College London,Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology,Division of Brain Sciences,Faculty of Medicine,London,UK
| | - R Underwood
- Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience,Department of Psychology,King's College London,London,UK
| | - A Feilding
- The Beckley Foundation,Beckley Park,Oxford,UK
| | - D J Nutt
- Imperial College London,Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology,Division of Brain Sciences,Faculty of Medicine,London,UK
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Roseman L, Sereno MI, Leech R, Kaelen M, Orban C, McGonigle J, Feilding A, Nutt DJ, Carhart-Harris RL. LSD alters eyes-closed functional connectivity within the early visual cortex in a retinotopic fashion. Hum Brain Mapp 2016; 37:3031-40. [PMID: 27125770 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.23224] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2016] [Revised: 03/31/2016] [Accepted: 04/12/2016] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
The question of how spatially organized activity in the visual cortex behaves during eyes-closed, lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD)-induced "psychedelic imagery" (e.g., visions of geometric patterns and more complex phenomena) has never been empirically addressed, although it has been proposed that under psychedelics, with eyes-closed, the brain may function "as if" there is visual input when there is none. In this work, resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) data was analyzed from 10 healthy subjects under the influence of LSD and, separately, placebo. It was suspected that eyes-closed psychedelic imagery might involve transient local retinotopic activation, of the sort typically associated with visual stimulation. To test this, it was hypothesized that, under LSD, patches of the visual cortex with congruent retinotopic representations would show greater RSFC than incongruent patches. Using a retinotopic localizer performed during a nondrug baseline condition, nonadjacent patches of V1 and V3 that represent the vertical or the horizontal meridians of the visual field were identified. Subsequently, RSFC between V1 and V3 was measured with respect to these a priori identified patches. Consistent with our prior hypothesis, the difference between RSFC of patches with congruent retinotopic specificity (horizontal-horizontal and vertical-vertical) and those with incongruent specificity (horizontal-vertical and vertical-horizontal) increased significantly under LSD relative to placebo, suggesting that activity within the visual cortex becomes more dependent on its intrinsic retinotopic organization in the drug condition. This result may indicate that under LSD, with eyes-closed, the early visual system behaves as if it were seeing spatially localized visual inputs. Hum Brain Mapp 37:3031-3040, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leor Roseman
- Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN, United Kingdom.,Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience Laboratory (C3NL), Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN, United Kingdom
| | - Martin I Sereno
- Birkbeck-UCL Centre for Neuroimaging (BUCNI), London, WC1H 0AP, United Kingdom
| | - Robert Leech
- Computational, Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience Laboratory (C3NL), Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN, United Kingdom
| | - Mendel Kaelen
- Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN, United Kingdom
| | - Csaba Orban
- Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN, United Kingdom
| | - John McGonigle
- Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN, United Kingdom
| | - Amanda Feilding
- The Beckley Foundation, Beckley Park, Oxford, OX3 9SY, United Kingdom
| | - David J Nutt
- Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN, United Kingdom
| | - Robin L Carhart-Harris
- Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, W12 0NN, United Kingdom
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Speth J, Speth C, Kaelen M, Schloerscheidt AM, Feilding A, Nutt DJ, Carhart-Harris RL. Decreased mental time travel to the past correlates with default-mode network disintegration under lysergic acid diethylamide. J Psychopharmacol 2016; 30:344-53. [PMID: 26979587 DOI: 10.1177/0269881116628430] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
This paper reports on the effects of LSD on mental time travel during spontaneous mentation. Twenty healthy volunteers participated in a placebo-controlled crossover study, incorporating intravenous administration of LSD (75 μg) and placebo (saline) prior to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Six independent, blind judges analysed mentation reports acquired during structured interviews performed shortly after the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans (approximately 2.5 h post-administration). Within each report, specific linguistic references to mental spaces for the past, present and future were identified. Results revealed significantly fewer mental spaces for the past under LSD and this effect correlated with the general intensity of the drug's subjective effects. No differences in the number of mental spaces for the present or future were observed. Consistent with the previously proposed role of the default-mode network (DMN) in autobiographical memory recollection and ruminative thought, decreased resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) within the DMN correlated with decreased mental time travel to the past. These results are discussed in relation to potential therapeutic applications of LSD and related psychedelics, e.g. in the treatment of depression, for which excessive reflection on one's past, likely mediated by DMN functioning, is symptomatic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jana Speth
- Department of Psychology, School of Social Sciences, University of Dundee, Dundee, UK
| | - Clemens Speth
- Department of Psychology, School of Social Sciences, University of Dundee, Dundee, UK
| | - Mendel Kaelen
- Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | | | | | - David J Nutt
- Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Imperial College London, London, UK
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Tagliazucchi E, Roseman L, Kaelen M, Orban C, Muthukumaraswamy S, Murphy K, Laufs H, Leech R, McGonigle J, Crossley N, Bullmore E, Williams T, Bolstridge M, Feilding A, Nutt D, Carhart-Harris R. Increased Global Functional Connectivity Correlates with LSD-Induced Ego Dissolution. Curr Biol 2016; 26:1043-50. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2016.02.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 169] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2015] [Revised: 01/06/2016] [Accepted: 02/02/2016] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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Kaelen M, Barrett FS, Roseman L, Lorenz R, Family N, Bolstridge M, Curran HV, Feilding A, Nutt DJ, Carhart-Harris RL. LSD enhances the emotional response to music. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2015; 232:3607-14. [PMID: 26257162 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-015-4014-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 85] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2015] [Accepted: 06/29/2015] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
RATIONALE There is renewed interest in the therapeutic potential of psychedelic drugs such as lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). LSD was used extensively in the 1950s and 1960s as an adjunct in psychotherapy, reportedly enhancing emotionality. Music is an effective tool to evoke and study emotion and is considered an important element in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy; however, the hypothesis that psychedelics enhance the emotional response to music has yet to be investigated in a modern placebo-controlled study. OBJECTIVES The present study sought to test the hypothesis that music-evoked emotions are enhanced under LSD. METHODS Ten healthy volunteers listened to five different tracks of instrumental music during each of two study days, a placebo day followed by an LSD day, separated by 5-7 days. Subjective ratings were completed after each music track and included a visual analogue scale (VAS) and the nine-item Geneva Emotional Music Scale (GEMS-9). RESULTS Results demonstrated that the emotional response to music is enhanced by LSD, especially the emotions "wonder", "transcendence", "power" and "tenderness". CONCLUSIONS These findings reinforce the long-held assumption that psychedelics enhance music-evoked emotion, and provide tentative and indirect support for the notion that this effect can be harnessed in the context of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. Further research is required to test this link directly.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Kaelen
- Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Division of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK,
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Carhart-Harris RL, Kaelen M, Whalley MG, Bolstridge M, Feilding A, Nutt DJ. LSD enhances suggestibility in healthy volunteers. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2015; 232:785-94. [PMID: 25242255 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-014-3714-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 155] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2014] [Accepted: 08/04/2014] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) has a history of use as a psychotherapeutic aid in the treatment of mood disorders and addiction, and it was also explored as an enhancer of mind control. OBJECTIVES The present study sought to test the effect of LSD on suggestibility in a modern research study. METHODS Ten healthy volunteers were administered with intravenous (i.v.) LSD (40-80 μg) in a within-subject placebo-controlled design. Suggestibility and cued mental imagery were assessed using the Creative Imagination Scale (CIS) and a mental imagery test (MIT). CIS and MIT items were split into two versions (A and B), balanced for 'efficacy' (i.e. A ≈ B) and counterbalanced across conditions (i.e. 50 % completed version 'A' under LSD). The MIT and CIS were issued 110 and 140 min, respectively, post-infusion, corresponding with the peak drug effects. RESULTS Volunteers gave significantly higher ratings for the CIS (p = 0.018), but not the MIT (p = 0.11), after LSD than placebo. The magnitude of suggestibility enhancement under LSD was positively correlated with trait conscientiousness measured at baseline (p = 0.0005). CONCLUSIONS These results imply that the influence of suggestion is enhanced by LSD. Enhanced suggestibility under LSD may have implications for its use as an adjunct to psychotherapy, where suggestibility plays a major role. That cued imagery was unaffected by LSD implies that suggestions must be of a sufficient duration and level of detail to be enhanced by the drug. The results also imply that individuals with high trait conscientiousness are especially sensitive to the suggestibility-enhancing effects of LSD.
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Affiliation(s)
- R L Carhart-Harris
- Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology, Division of Brain Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK,
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