Papers

Research literature with structured metadata.

Trials

Registered studies by status, phase, and compound.

Topics

Indications and themes psychedelics are researched for.

Compounds

Evidence across molecules with rich data.

Countries

Regulation, access, and research activity by region.

Stakeholders

Organizations shaping the space across research, policy, and funding.

People

Investigators, clinicians, and authors with mapped output.

Courses

Training programs and certifications across modalities.

Events

Conferences, workshops, and convenings by date and focus.

Results

Compare outcome data across trials and publications.

Research Snapshot

One-page overview of trials, participants, papers, and research networks.

Clinical Guidelines

Trial-anchored manuals and protocol guidance with competency mapping.

Research recaps

Monthly evidence summaries with key takeaways.

Map of research

Landscape view of trials, compounds, and outcomes.

Newsletter

Weekly or daily updates on trials, publications, analysis, and more.

Research Groups

Worldwide map of psychedelic research centres by region.

Road to Access

Science, regulation, and economics on the path to patient access.

Research Network

Interactive co-authorship map of psychedelic researchers.

Top papers

Find needles in the haystack of psychedelic research per topic.

AskBeta
Pricing

The intelligence layer for psychedelic research.

Company

  • About
  • Contact
  • Newsletter

Product

  • Feedback
  • Roadmap
  • Changelog
  • API
  • Partners
  • Clinical Guidelines

Legal

  • Privacy
  • Terms

© 2026 Blossom. All rights reserved.

Home/Research/LSD/Creativity

LSD for Creativity

24 papers and 1 clinical trial exploring lsd as a treatment for creativity.

Compoundclassic psychedelic

LSD

LSD is a classic psychedelic ergoline with high potency at microgram doses and an 8-12 hour duration of action, mediated primarily via 5-HT2A receptor agonism. Modern Phase IIb data in generalised anxiety disorder and FDA Breakthrough Therapy Designation for MM120 have reignited clinical development.

Full LSD profile
Indication300 million adults struggling with creative blocks globally.

Creativity

Psychedelics have emerged as potential enhancers of creativity, influencing both divergent and convergent thinking processes. Current research indicates their capacity to disrupt cognitive rigidity and promote innovative thought patterns, warranting further exploration into their therapeutic and recreational applications.

Full Creativity profile

Academic Research

24 papers
Open Accessindividual

Participant Experiences of Microdosed Lysergic Acid Diethylamide in a 6-Week Randomised Controlled Trial

In the first qualitative study embedded in a randomised, placebo‑controlled trial, interviews with 40 healthy males who microdosed 10 µg LSD every third day for six weeks identified effects across mood, social life, mindfulness, cognition/creativity and physiology, with overarching themes of increased openness and bidirectional (positive and negative) effects. These findings highlight clinically relevant signals (notably changes in anxiety) that bear on patient and dose selection for mood‑disorder trials and emphasise set, setting and placebo‑related uncertainty as key considerations for psychedelic trial design.

Published
November 10, 2025
Journal
Journal of Humanistic Psychology
Authors
Murphy, R. J., Wardlaw, M., Smith, T., Noorani, T., Evans, W., Reynolds, L., Menkes, D. B., Sumner, R. L., Muthukumaraswamy, S. D.
Open Accessindividual

Multimodal creativity assessments following acute and sustained microdosing of lysergic acid diethylamide

In a randomised controlled trial of 80 healthy adult males who received 10 µg LSD or placebo every third day for six weeks, a multimodal battery of creativity tests (AUT, RAT, CAT, EPSQ) found no acute or lasting enhancement of creativity despite participants reporting feeling more creative on dose days.

Published
September 5, 2024
Journal
Psychopharmacology
Authors
Murphy, R. J.
Open Accessindividual

LSD increases sleep duration the night after microdosing

In a Phase 1 randomized, double‑blind, placebo‑controlled trial of 80 healthy male volunteers, microdosing LSD (10 µg every third day for six weeks) increased objectively measured sleep duration by 24.3 minutes on the night after dosing compared with placebo, with no changes in sleep‑stage proportions or physical activity. The effect, observed across 3,231 nights, is clinically meaningful and unlikely to be explained by placebo.

Published
April 15, 2024
Journal
Translational Psychiatry
Authors
Allen, N., Jeremiah, A., Murphy, R., Sumner, R. L., Forsyth, A., Hoeh, N. R., Menkes, D. B., Evans, W. J., Muthukumaraswamy, S., Sundram, F., Roop, P.
Open Accessmeta

Microdosing psychedelics: Current evidence from controlled studies

This systematic review (s=14) compiles double-blind, placebo-controlled studies on microdosing LSD (5-20μg) under laboratory conditions. It reports that acute low doses of LSD affect blood pressure, sleep, neural connectivity, mood, social cognition, and perceptions of pain and time, with noticeable effects at 10-20 μg but not at 5μg. While no serious adverse effects were noted, repeated microdosing did not significantly change mood or cognition.

Published
January 26, 2024
Journal
Biological Psychiatry
Authors
Murphy, R., Muthukumaraswamy, S., De Wit, H.
Paywallindividual

Greater subjective effects of a low dose of LSD in participants with depressed mood

This double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled, crossover trial (n=39) finds a low dose of LSD (26μg) to produce greater positive mood, stimulant-like, and psychedelic effects in people with mild depression (BDI-II≥17) compared to non-depressed controls. Self-rated depression scores decreased more 48 hours after LSD for the mildly depressed group. Both groups showed expected physiological and subjective drug effects. This suggests low-dose LSD may have therapeutic potential for depression.

Published
December 2, 2023
Journal
Neuropsychopharmacology
Authors
Molla, H. M., Lee, R., Tare, I., de Wit, H.
Open Accessindividual

Acute mood-elevating properties of microdosed LSD in healthy volunteers: a home-administered randomised controlled trial

This placebo-controlled, randomised, naturalistic study (n=80) of repeated microdoses of LSD (10μg, 14x, 6w) finds improved ratings, on dosing days, on creativity, connectedness, energy, and other wellness ratings. Though these transient changes were found, no enduring changes to mood and cognition were observed.

Published
September 1, 2023
Journal
Biological Psychiatry
Authors
Murphy, R., Sumner, R. L., Evans, W. J., Ponton, R., Godfrey, K., Forsyth, A., Cavadino, A., Krishmamuthy, V., Smith, T., Hoeh, N. R., Menkes, D. B., Muthukumaraswamy, S.

Clinical Trials

1 trial
CompletedPhase I

A randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial to study the effects of repeated microdoses of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) on creativity and brain activity in healthy adult males

This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial (n=80) will study the effects of repeated microdoses of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) on creativity and brain activity in healthy adult males. Participants will receive either 10 µg of LSD or a placebo, dissolved in water in 1 ml oral syringes, taken once every three days for a total of 14 doses over a 41-day regimen.

Started
November 19, 2019
Type
interventional
Blinding
double
Randomized
Yes
Registry ID
ACTRN12621000436875

Explore further

Search all LSD papers Search all Creativity trials Full LSD profile Full Creativity profile