Treatment-Resistant Depression (TRD)Depressive DisordersNeuroimaging & Brain Measures

Psychedelics and connectedness

This commentary paper (2017) proposes that connectedness is the key to its therapeutic potential.

Authors

  • Robin Carhart-Harris
  • David Erritzoe
  • Mendel Kaelen

Published

Psychopharmacology
meta Study

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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Research Summary of 'Psychedelics and connectedness'

Introduction

Psychedelic drugs such as psilocybin, LSD and DMT (ayahuasca) are undergoing renewed scientific and cultural interest, and a recurring theme in contemporary discourse is that of "connectedness." Carhart-Harris and colleagues note that patients in their psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression (TRD) programme frequently described a renewed sense of connection following treatment. In qualitative follow-up interviews, all 17 patients who endorsed the treatment's effectiveness made reference to a sense of connectedness that the authors characterise as having three aspects: connection to the self, connection to others, and connection to the world at large. This paper sets out to propose connectedness as a potentially central psychological mediator of psychedelics' therapeutic effects. The authors present preliminary empirical observations from multiple sources (qualitative interviews from a TRD trial, a longitudinal web-based survey, prior psilocybin studies and neuroimaging work), argue for the need to operationalise and validate the construct, and outline a research roadmap to test whether acute phenomena such as ego-dissolution, mystical or unitive experiences and awe lead to enduring increases in connectedness that, in turn, drive clinical benefit.

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Study Details

References (10)

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