OPEN Foundation

Phenomenology

Survey of subjective “God encounter experiences”: Comparisons among naturally occurring experiences and those occasioned by the classic psychedelics psilocybin, LSD, ayahuasca, or DMT.

April 23, 2019 / Ayahuasca, Consciousness, DMT, LSD, Mushrooms / Psilocybin, Mystical experiences, Papers, Personal development, Phenomenology, Psychology, Psychopharmacology, Publications, Spirituality / By / , , , ,

Abstract

Naturally occurring and psychedelic drug-occasioned experiences interpreted as personal encounters with God are well described but have not been systematically compared. In this study, five groups of individuals participated in an online survey with detailed questions characterizing the subjective phenomena, interpretation, and persisting changes attributed to their single most memorable God encounter experience (n = 809 Non-Drug, 1184 psilocybin, 1251 lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), 435 ayahuasca, and 606 N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT)). Analyses of differences in experiences were adjusted statistically for demographic differences between groups. The Non-Drug Group was most likely to choose “God” as the best descriptor of that which was encountered while the psychedelic groups were most likely to choose “Ultimate Reality.” Although there were some other differences between non-drug and the combined psychedelic group, as well as between the four psychedelic groups, the similarities among these groups were most striking. Most participants reported vivid memories of the encounter experience, which frequently involved communication with something having the attributes of being conscious, benevolent, intelligent, sacred, eternal, and all-knowing. The encounter experience fulfilled a priori criteria for being a complete mystical experience in approximately half of the participants. More than two-thirds of those who identified as atheist before the experience no longer identified as atheist afterwards. These experiences were rated as among the most personally meaningful and spiritually significant lifetime experiences, with moderate to strong persisting positive changes in life satisfaction, purpose, and meaning attributed to these experiences. Among the four groups of psychedelic users, the psilocybin and LSD groups were most similar and the ayahuasca group tended to have the highest rates of endorsing positive features and enduring consequences of the experience. Future exploration of predisposing factors and phenomenological and neural correlates of such experiences may provide new insights into religious and spiritual beliefs that have been integral to shaping human culture since time immemorial.
Griffiths, R. R., Hurwitz, E. S., Davis, A. K., Johnson, M. W., & Jesse, R. (2019). Survey of subjective” God encounter experiences”: Comparisons among naturally occurring experiences and those occasioned by the classic psychedelics psilocybin, LSD, ayahuasca, or DMT. PloS one, 14(4), e0214377., https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0214377
Link to full text

Palliative Nursing and Sacred Medicine: A Holistic Stance on Entheogens, Healing, and Spiritual Care.

April 18, 2019 / Consciousness, Mystical experiences, Other subjects, Other substances, Papers, Phenomenology, Psychiatry, Psychology, Psychopharmacology, Psychotherapy, Publications, Spirituality / By / , ,

Abstract

The fields of palliative and holistic nursing both maintain a commitment to the care of the whole person, including a focus on spiritual care. Advanced serious illness may pose a plethora of challenges to patients seeking to create meaning and purpose in their lives. The purpose of this article is to introduce scholarly dialogue on the integration of entheogens, medicines that engender an experience of the sacred, into the spiritual and holistic care of patients experiencing advanced serious illness. A brief history of the global use of entheogens as well as a case study are provided. Clinical trials show impressive preliminary findings regarding the healing potential of these medicinal agents. While other professions, such as psychology, pharmacy, and medicine, are disseminating data related to patient outcomes secondary to entheogen administration, the nursing literature has not been involved in raising awareness of such advancements. Research is illustrating their effectiveness in achieving integrative experiences for patients confronting advanced serious illness and their ability to promote presence, introspection, decreased fear, and increased joy and acceptance. Evidence-based knowledge surrounding this potentially sensitive topic is necessary to invite understanding, promote scientific knowledge development, and create healing environments for patients, nurses, and researchers alike.
Rosa, W. E., Hope, S., & Matzo, M. (2019). Palliative Nursing and Sacred Medicine: A Holistic Stance on Entheogens, Healing, and Spiritual Care. Journal of Holistic Nursing, 37(1), 100-106, https://doi.org/10.1177/0898010118770302
Link to full text

Ibogaine and Subjective Experience: Transformative States and Psychopharmacotherapy in the Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder

April 9, 2019 / Addiction, Consciousness, Iboga / Ibogaine, Mystical experiences, Papers, Phenomenology, Psychiatry, Psychology, Psychopharmacology, Publications, Spirituality / By / , ,

Abstract

This article examines the therapeutic potential of ibogaine, a powerful oneiric alkaloid derived from Tabernanthe iboga, through exploring the subjective experiences of 44 participants from two observational treatment studies for opioid use disorder. Following treatment with ibogaine HCl, the participants (Mexico, n = 30; New Zealand, n = 14) completed the States of Consciousness Questionnaire (SCQ) to quantify the magnitude of their psychotropic experience. Participants were asked to provide written transcripts of their experiences, with those supplied being analyzed thematically through an iterative process, to produce a set of coded themes. Mean SCQ scores in many domains exceeded 0.6, the cutoff score for a “complete mystical experience,” with 43% of participants achieving this in more than five of seven domains. Qualitative data described multiple phenomenological themes, including auditory and visual phenomena. Ibogaine’s strong oneiric action promoted cyclic visions leading to confronting realizations involving remorse and regret for participants’ actions towards others, but also release from feelings of guilt and worthlessness. Many participants reported feeling a sense of spiritual transformation. We propose that the reported experiences support the meaningfulness of ibogaine’s oneiric effects as a discrete element in its capacity for healing, which is distinct from pharmacological actions associated with reduced withdrawal and craving.

Brown, T. K., Noller, G. E., & Denenberg, J. O. (2019). Ibogaine and Subjective Experience: Transformative States and Psychopharmacotherapy in the Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder. Journal of psychoactive drugs, 1-11., https://doi.org/10.1080/02791072.2019.1598603
Link to full text

Sensitization to the prosocial effects of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA).

March 25, 2019 / Anxiety disorders / PTSD, MDMA, Neuroscience, Other subjects, Papers, Phenomenology, Psychiatry, Psychology, Psychopharmacology, Psychotherapy, Publications / By / , , , , ,

Abstract

The recreational drug 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) has well documented prosocial effects and is currently under clinical investigation as a treatment for patients with PTSD, autism, and other conditions. Early clinical trials have found that MDMA-assisted therapy may have robust long-lasting therapeutic effects, yet the mechanism by which acute treatments produce these long-term effects is unclear. Sensitization to certain behavioral drug effects is a common rodent model used to assess long-lasting neurobiological adaptations induced by acute drug treatments. Nine independent experiments were undertaken to investigate if and how mice sensitize to the prosocial effects of MDMA. When treated with 7.8 mg/kg MDMA and paired every other day for a week, MDMA-induced social interaction increased precipitously across treatment sessions. This previously unreported phenomenon was investigated and found to be heavily influenced by a social context and 5-HT2AR activation. Social sensitization did not appear to develop if mice were administered MDMA in isolation, and pretreatment with MDL100907, a selective 5-HT2AR antagonist, inhibited the development of social sensitization. However, when MDL100907 was administered to mice that had already been sensitized, it did not attenuate social interaction, suggesting that 5-HT2AR activity may be necessary for the development of social sensitization but not the expression of MDMA-induced social behavior. Additional investigation is warranted to further explore the phenomenon of social sensitization and to determine the underlying neurobiological mechanisms.
Curry, D. W., Berro, L. F., Belkoff, A. R., Sulima, A., Rice, K. C., & Howell, L. L. (2019). Sensitization to the prosocial effects of 3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA). Neuropharmacology, 151, 13-20., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropharm.2019.03.017
Link to full text 

5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT) used in a naturalistic group setting is associated with unintended improvements in depression and anxiety

March 1, 2019 / Anxiety disorders / PTSD, Depression, DMT, Medicine, Neuroscience, Other substances, Papers, Phenomenology, Psychiatry, Psychology, Psychotherapy, Publications / By / , , , ,

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

A recent epidemiological study suggested that 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT) used for spiritual and recreational reasons is associated with subjective improvement in depression and anxiety. Further exploration of the potential psychotherapeutic effects of 5-MeO-DMT could inform future clinical trials.

OBJECTIVES:

We examined self-reported improvement in depression and anxiety among people who use 5-MeO-DMT in a group setting with structured procedures guiding dose and administration of 5-MeO-DMT. Such procedures also include activities for the preparation of, and support during/following sessions, which are similar to procedures used in clinical trials of hallucinogen administration. Next, we examined whether depression or anxiety were improved following use, and whether the acute subjective effects (mystical/challenging) or beliefs about the 5-MeO-DMT experience were associated with improvements in these conditions.

METHODS:

Respondents (n = 362; Mage = 47.7; Male = 55%; White/Caucasian = 84%) completed an anonymous web-based survey.

RESULTS:

Of those reporting having been diagnosed with depression (41%) or anxiety (48%), most reported these conditions were improved (depression = 80%; anxiety = 79%) following 5-MeO-DMT use, and fewer reported they were unchanged (depression = 17%; anxiety = 19%) or worsened (depression = 3%; anxiety = 2%). Improvement in depression/anxiety conditions were associated with greater intensity of mystical experiences and higher ratings of the spiritual significance and personal meaning of the 5-MeO-DMT experience. There were no associations between depression or anxiety improvement and the intensity of acute challenging physical/psychological effects during the 5-MeO-DMT experience.

CONCLUSIONS:

Future prospective controlled clinical pharmacology studies should examine the safety and efficacy of 5-MeO-DMT administration for relieving depression and anxiety.

Davis, A. K., So, S., Lancelotta, R., Barsuglia, J. P., & Griffiths, R. R. (2018). 5-methoxy-N, N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT) used in a naturalistic group setting is associated with unintended improvements in depression and anxiety. The American journal of drug and alcohol abuse, 1-9., 10.1080/00952990.2018.1545024
Link to full text

Neurochemical models of near-death experiences: A large-scale study based on the semantic similarity of written reports.

February 1, 2019 / Consciousness, DMT, Ketamine, Papers, Phenomenology, Psychology, Psychopharmacology, Publications / By / , , , , , ,

Abstract

The real or perceived proximity to death often results in a non-ordinary state of consciousness characterized by phenomenological features such as the perception of leaving the body boundaries, feelings of peace, bliss and timelessness, life review, the sensation of traveling through a tunnel and an irreversible threshold. Near-death experiences (NDEs) are comparable among individuals of different cultures, suggesting an underlying neurobiological mechanism. Anecdotal accounts of the similarity between NDEs and certain drug-induced altered states of consciousness prompted us to perform a large-scale comparative analysis of these experiences. After assessing the semantic similarity between ≈15,000 reports linked to the use of 165 psychoactive substances and 625 NDE narratives, we determined that the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist ketamine consistently resulted in reports most similar to those associated with NDEs. Ketamine was followed by Salvia divinorum (a plant containing a potent and selective κ receptor agonist) and a series of serotonergic psychedelics, including the endogenous serotonin 2A receptor agonist N,N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT). This similarity was driven by semantic concepts related to consciousness of the self and the environment, but also by those associated with the therapeutic, ceremonial and religious aspects of drug use. Our analysis sheds light on the long-standing link between certain drugs and the experience of “dying”, suggests that ketamine could be used as a safe and reversible experimental model for NDE phenomenology, and supports the speculation that endogenous NMDA antagonists with neuroprotective properties may be released in the proximity of death.
Martial, C., Cassol, H., Charland-Verville, V., Pallavicini, C., Sanz, C., Zamberlan, F., … & Tagliazucchi, E. (2019). Neurochemical models of near-death experiences: A large-scale study based on the semantic similarity of written reports. Consciousness and cognition, 69, 52-69., 10.1016/j.concog.2019.01.011
Link to full text

Neurochemical models of near-death experiences: A large-scalestudy based on the semantic similarity of written reports

January 20, 2019 / DMT, Ketamine, Mystical experiences, Other substances, Papers, Phenomenology, Psychiatry, Psychology, Psychopharmacology, Psychotherapy, Publications, Religious studies, Spirituality / By / , , , , , ,

Abstract

The real or perceived proximity to death often results in a non-ordinary state of consciousness characterized by phenomenological features such as the perception of leaving the body boundaries, feelings of peace, bliss and timelessness, life review, the sensation of traveling through a tunnel and an irreversible threshold. Near-death experiences (NDEs) are comparable among individuals of different cultures, suggesting an underlying neurobiological mechanism. Anecdotal accounts of the similarity between NDEs and certain drug-induced altered states of consciousness prompted us to perform a large-scale comparative analysis of these experiences. After assessing the semantic similarity between ≈15,000 reports linked to the use of 165 psychoactive substances and 625 NDE narratives, we determined that the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist ketamine consistently resulted in reports most similar to those associated with NDEs. Ketamine was followed by Salvia divinorum (a plant containing a potent and selective κ receptor agonist) and a series of serotonergic psychedelics, including the endogenous serotonin 2A receptor agonist N,N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT). This similarity was driven by semantic concepts related to consciousness of the self and the environment, but also by those associated with the therapeutic, ceremonial and religious aspects of drug use. Our analysis sheds light on the long-standing link between certain drugs and the experience of “dying“, suggests that ketamine could be used as a safe and reversible experimental model for NDE phenomenology, and supports the speculation that endogenous NMDA antagonists with neuroprotective properties may be released in the proximity of death.

Martial, C., Cassol, H., Charland-Verville, V., Pallavicini, C., Sanz, C., Zamberlan, F., … & Tagliazucchi, E. (2019). Neurochemical models of near-death experiences: A large-scale study based on the semantic similarity of written reports. Consciousness and cognition, 69, 52-69., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2019.01.011
Link to full text 

Awe: a putative mechanism underlying the effects of classic psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy

September 27, 2018 / Mystical experiences, Other subjects, Other substances, Papers, Phenomenology, Psychology, Psychopharmacology, Psychotherapy, Publications, Spirituality / By /

Abstract

A psychological model of classic psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy informed by contemporary scientific data is presented in this paper. It is suggested that classic psychedelic-occasioned mystical experience is characterized by profound awe, a discrete emotion experienced in the presence of a vast stimulus requiring accommodation of mental structures. Awe, in turn, promotes the small self, a construct that, in the extreme, is analogous to those of unitive experience and ego dissolution. The small self is conceptualized as key to understanding the downstream effects of mystical experience occasioned in the context of classic psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. With this novel theoretical framework in mind, a number of clinical implications and recommendations are provided so as to advance this incipient field of study.
Hendricks, P. S. (2018). Awe: a putative mechanism underlying the effects of classic psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. International Review of Psychiatry, 30(4), 331-342., 10.1080/09540261.2018.1474185
Link to full text

Unifying Theories of Psychedelic Drug Effects

March 2, 2018 / Consciousness, Papers, Personality, Phenomenology, Psychiatry, Psychology, Psychopharmacology, Publications / By /

Abstract

How do psychedelic drugs produce their characteristic range of acute effects in perception, emotion, cognition, and sense of self? How do these effects relate to the clinical efficacy of psychedelic-assisted therapies? Efforts to understand psychedelic phenomena date back more than a century in Western science. In this article I review theories of psychedelic drug effects and highlight key concepts which have endured over the last 125 years of psychedelic science. First, I describe the subjective phenomenology of acute psychedelic effects using the best available data. Next, I review late 19th-century and early 20th-century theories—model psychoses theory, filtration theory, and psychoanalytic theory—and highlight their shared features. I then briefly review recent findings on the neuropharmacology and neurophysiology of psychedelic drugs in humans. Finally, I describe recent theories of psychedelic drug effects which leverage 21st-century cognitive neuroscience frameworks—entropic brain theory, integrated information theory, and predictive processing—and point out key shared features that link back to earlier theories. I identify an abstract principle which cuts across many theories past and present: psychedelic drugs perturb universal brain processes that normally serve to constrain neural systems central to perception, emotion, cognition, and sense of self. I conclude that making an explicit effort to investigate the principles and mechanisms of psychedelic drug effects is a uniquely powerful way to iteratively develop and test unifying theories of brain function.
Swanson, L. R. (2018). Unifying Theories of Psychedelic Drug Effects?. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 9, 172. 10.3389/fphar.2018.00172
Link to full text

The experience elicited by hallucinogens presents the highest similarity to dreaming within a large database of psychoactive substance reports

January 4, 2018 / LSD, Mushrooms / Psilocybin, Neuroscience, Other substances, Papers, Phenomenology, Psychology, Publications / By / ,

Abstract

Ever since the modern rediscovery of psychedelic substances by Western society, several authors have independently proposed that their effects bear a high resemblance to the dreams and dreamlike experiences occurring naturally during the sleep-wake cycle. Recent studies in humans have provided neurophysiological evidence supporting this hypothesis. However, a rigorous comparative analysis of the phenomenology (“what it feels like” to experience these states) is currently lacking. We investigated the semantic similarity between a large number of subjective reports of psychoactive substances and reports of high/low lucidity dreams, and found that the highest-ranking substance in terms of the similarity to high lucidity dreams was the serotonergic psychedelic lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), whereas the highest-ranking in terms of the similarity to dreams of low lucidity were plants of the Datura genus, rich in deliriant tropane alkaloids.. Conversely, sedatives, stimulants, antipsychotics and antidepressants comprised most of the lowest-ranking substances. An analysis of the most frequent words in the subjective reports of dreams and hallucinogens revealed that terms associated with perception (“see”, “visual”, “face”, “reality”, “color”), emotion (“fear”), setting (“outside”, “inside”, “street”, “front”, “behind”) and relatives (“mom”, “dad”, “brother”, “parent”, “family”) were the most prevalent across both experiences. In summary, we applied novel quantitative analyses to a large volume of empirical data to confirm the hypothesis that, among all psychoactive substances, hallucinogen drugs elicit experiences with the highest semantic similarity to those of dreams. Our results and the associated methodological developments open the way to study the comparative phenomenology of different altered states of consciousness and its relationship with non-invasive measurements of brain physiology.
Tagliazucchi, E., & Sanz, C. (2018). The experience elicited by hallucinogens presents the highest similarity to dreaming within a large database of psychoactive substance reports. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 12, 7. 10.3389/fnins.2018.00007
Link to full text

7 May - Psychedelics, Nature & Mental Health with Sam Gandy

REGISTER NOW!
X