An online survey of tobacco smoking cessation associated with naturalistic psychedelic use
An anonymous retrospective online survey of 358 people who reported quitting or reducing smoking after a non-laboratory psychedelic experience at least one year earlier found 38% continuous abstinence and 28% sustained reduction (many >2 years), while 34% relapsed (typically within 3–6 months). Participants reported reduced affective withdrawal symptoms and attributed cessation/reduction mainly to spiritual significance and changed life priorities/values, suggesting psychedelics may aid tobacco cessation via improved emotional regulation and altered priorities.
Authors
- Albert Garcia-Romeu
- Roland Griffiths
- Matthew Johnson
Published
Abstract
Data suggest psychedelics such as psilocybin and lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) may hold therapeutic potential in the treatment of addictions, including tobacco dependence. This retrospective cross-sectional anonymous online survey characterized 358 individuals (52 females) who reported having quit or reduced smoking after ingesting a psychedelic in a non-laboratory setting ⩾1 year ago. On average, participants smoked 14 cigarettes/day for 8 years, and had five previous quit attempts before their psychedelic experience. Of the 358 participants, 38% reported continuous smoking cessation after psychedelic use (quitters). Among quitters, 74% reported >2 years’ abstinence. Of the 358 participants, 28% reported a persisting reduction in smoking (reducers), from a mode of 300 cigarettes/month before, to a mode of 1 cigarette/month after the experience. Among reducers, 62% reported >2 years of reduced smoking. Finally, 34% of the 358 participants (relapsers) reported a temporary smoking reduction before returning to baseline smoking levels, with a mode time range to relapse of 3–6 months. Relapsers rated their psychedelic experience significantly lower in personal meaning and spiritual significance than both other groups. Participants across all groups reported less severe affective withdrawal symptoms (e.g. depression, craving) after psychedelic use compared with previous quit attempts, suggesting a potential mechanism of action for psychedelic-associated smoking cessation/reduction. Changes in life priorities/values were endorsed as the most important psychological factor associated with smoking cessation/reduction. Results suggest psychedelics may hold promise in treating tobacco addiction as potentially mediated by spiritual experience, changed priorities/values, and improved emotional regulation.
Research Summary of 'An online survey of tobacco smoking cessation associated with naturalistic psychedelic use'
Introduction
Converging lines of evidence suggest that serotonin 2A receptor (5-HT2A R) agonist psychedelics may assist in treating addictive behaviours. Observational and anthropological reports have linked ceremonial use of psychedelics to recovery from addiction, while meta-analytic and experimental data from earlier decades and recent psilocybin studies indicate possible therapeutic effects such as reduced substance misuse, durable increases in personality openness, and highly rated personally meaningful or spiritual experiences. Neurobiological findings—including changes in default mode network activity and altered amygdala and anterior cingulate reactivity—provide plausible mechanisms for lasting psychological change. Johnson and colleagues previously reported an open-label pilot suggesting promising psilocybin‑assisted smoking cessation outcomes, but that study’s uncontrolled design limits causal inference. This study aimed to characterise naturalistic reports of tobacco smoking cessation or reduction attributed to non‑clinical use of serotonergic psychedelics. Using a retrospective, anonymous online survey, the investigators sought to describe outcomes (sustained abstinence, persistent reduction, or relapse), identify psychological and contextual factors associated with longer abstinence, and test the hypothesis that more personally meaningful or spiritually significant psychedelic experiences would be linked to greater smoking cessation success. The survey was intended to complement laboratory research by identifying conditions and self‑reported mechanisms associated with persisting smoking change following psychedelic experiences in non‑laboratory settings.
Expert Research Summaries
Go Pro to access AI-powered section-by-section summaries, editorial takes, and the full research toolkit.
Full Text PDF
Full Paper PDF
Create a free account to open full-text PDFs.
Study Details
- Study Typeindividual
- Journal
- Compounds
- Topics
- Authors
- APA Citation
Johnson, M. W., Garcia-Romeu, A., Johnson, P. S., & Griffiths, R. R. (2017). An online survey of tobacco smoking cessation associated with naturalistic psychedelic use. Journal of Psychopharmacology, 31(7), 841-850. https://doi.org/10.1177/0269881116684335
References (19)
Papers cited by this study that are also in Blossom
Barrett, F. S., Johnson, M. W., Griffiths, R. R. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2015)
Bogenschutz, M. P., Pommy, J. A. · Drug Testing and Analysis (2012)
Carhart-Harris, R. L., Erritzoe, D., Williams, T. et al. · PNAS (2012)
Carhart-Harris, R. L., Muthukumaraswamy, S., Roseman, L. et al. · PNAS (2016)
Garcia-Romeu, A., Kersgaard, B., Addy, P. H. · Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology (2016)
Griffiths, R. R. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2008)
Griffiths, R. R., Richards, W. A., Mccann, U. et al. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2006)
Johnson, M. W., Garcia-Romeu, A., Cosimano, M. P. et al. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2014)
Johnson, M. W., Richards, W. A., Griffiths, R. R. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2008)
Krebs, T. S., Johansen, P. Ø. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2012)
Show all 19 referencesShow fewer
Maclean, K. A., Johnson, M. W., Griffiths, R. R. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2011)
MacLean, K. A., Leoutsakos, J. S., Johnson, M. W. et al. · Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion (2012)
Palhano-Fontes, F., Andrade, K. C., Tófoli, L.F. et al. · PLOS ONE (2015)
Preller, K. H., Pokorny, D., Hock, A. et al. · PNAS (2016)
Sessa, B., Johnson, M. W. · British Journal of Psychiatry (2018)
Studerus, E., Gamma, A., Kometer, M. et al. · PLOS ONE (2012)
Thomas, G., Lucas, P., Rielle Capler, N. et al. · Current Drug Abuse Reviews (2013)
Vollenweider, F. X., Kometer, M. · Nature Reviews Neuroscience (2010)
Winstock, A. R., Kaar, S., Borschmann, R. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2013)
Cited By (48)
Papers in Blossom that reference this study
Johnson, M. W., Naudé, G. P., Hendricks, P. S. et al. · JAMA Network Open (2026)
Sloshower, J. A., Zeifman, R. J., Guss, J. et al. · Scientific Reports (2024)
Cherniak, A. D., Mikulincer, M., Brulin, J. G. et al. · Journal of Psychedelic Studies (2024)
Orłowski, P., Hobot, J., Ruban, A. et al. · Psychophysiology (2024)
Nayak, S., Jackson, H., Sepeda, N. D. et al. · Frontiers in Psychiatry (2023)
Buot, A., Pallares, C., Oganesyan, A. et al. · Scientific Reports (2023)
Romeo, B., Fauvel, B., Verroust, V. et al. · Journal of Psychoactive Drugs (2023)
Zafar, R., Siegel, M., Harding, R. et al. · Frontiers in Psychiatry (2023)
Weiss, B., Ginige, I., Shannon, L. et al. · Psychological Medicine (2023)
Lake, S., Lucas, P. · Psychedelic Medicine (2023)
Show all 48 papersShow fewer
Kangaslampi, S. · Journal of Psychedelic Studies (2023)
Brasher, T., Rosen, D., Spinella, M. · International Journal of Wellbeing (2023)
Moreton, S. G., Arena, A. F., Foy, Y. et al. · Death Studies (2023)
Rabinowitz, J., Lev-Ran, S., Gross, R. · Frontiers in Psychiatry (2023)
Simonsson, O., Hendricks, P. S., Chambers, R. et al. · Therapeutic Advances in Psychopharmacology (2022)
Johnson, M. W. · Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences (2022)
Whitney, S., Yaden, D. B., Lipson, J. et al. · Frontiers in Psychology (2022)
Aharon-Almagor, A., Barrett, F. S. · Research Square (2022)
Shaw, L., Rea, K., Lachowsky, N. J. et al. · Journal of Psychoactive Drugs (2022)
Raison, C. L., Jain, R., Jain, S. et al. · Frontiers in Psychiatry (2022)
Maia, L. O., Massarentti, C. M., Tófoli, L.F. · Psychopharmacology (2022)
Yaden, D. B., Berghella, A. P., Regier, P. S. et al. · International Journal of Drug Policy (2021)
Ermakova, A. O., Dunbar, F., Rucker, J. et al. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2021)
Johnson, M. W., Gründer, G., Betzler, F. et al. · Current Addiction Reports (2021)
Davis, A. K., Xin, Y., Sepeda, N. D. et al. · Chronic Stress (2021)
Healy, C. J., Lee, K. A. · Chronic Stress (2021)
Cox, D. J., Garcia-Romeu, A., Johnson, M. W. · The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse (2021)
Teixeira, P. J., Johnson, M. W., Timmermann, C. et al. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2021)
Rush, B., Marcus, O., García, S. et al. · Frontiers in Pharmacology (2021)
Romeo, B., Hermand, M., Pétillion, A. et al. · Journal of Psychiatric Research (2021)
Rodrigues, L. S., Rossi, G. N., Rocha, J. M. et al. · European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience (2021)
Agin-Liebes, G. I., Lancelotta, R., Uthaug, M. V. et al. · ACS Pharmacology and Translational Science (2021)
DiVito, A. J., Leger, R. F. · Molecular Biology Reports (2020)
Smith, W. R., Sisti, D. · Journal of Medical Ethics (2020)
O'callaghan, C., Hubik, D. J., Psychiatry, M. et al. · Journal of Music Therapy (2020)
Barrett, F. S., Doss, M. K., Sepeda, N. D. et al. · Scientific Reports (2020)
Garcia-Romeu, A., Davis, A. K., Griffiths, R. R. et al. · Frontiers in Psychiatry (2020)
Davis, A. K., Barrett, F. S., Griffiths, R. R. · Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science (2020)
Argento, E., Capler, R., Thomas, G. et al. · Drug and Alcohol Review (2019)
Webb, M., Copes, H., Hendricks, P. S. · International Journal of Drug Policy (2019)
Garcia-Romeu, A., Davis, A. K., Fire Erowid et al. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2019)
Johnson, M. W., Hendricks, P. S., Barrett, F. S. et al. · Pharmacology and Therapeutics (2019)
Richards, W. A., Garcia-Romeu, A. · International Review of Psychiatry (2018)
Haijen, E. C. H. M., Kaelen, M., Roseman, L. et al. · Frontiers in Pharmacology (2018)
Jungaberle, H., Thal, S., Zeuch, A. et al. · Neuropharmacology (2018)
Noorani, T., Garcia-Romeu, A., Swift, T. C. et al. · Journal of Psychopharmacology (2018)
Schindler, E. A. D., Wallace, R. M., Sloshower, J. A. et al. · Frontiers in Pharmacology (2018)
Johnson, M. W., Griffiths, R. R. · Neurotherapeutics (2017)
Your Personal Research Library
Go Pro to save papers, add notes, rate studies, and organize your research into custom shelves.