Mystical-type experiences occasioned by psilocybin mediate the attribution of personal meaning and spiritual significance 14 months later

Abstract

Psilocybin has been used for centuries for religious purposes; however little is known scientifically about its long-term effects. We previously reported the effects of a double-blind study evaluating the psychological effects of a high psilocybin dose. This report presents the 14-month follow-up and examines the relationship of the follow-up results to data obtained at screening and on drug session days. Participants were 36 hallucinogen-naïve adults reporting regular participation in religious/spiritual activities. Oral psilocybin (30 mg/70kg) was administered on one of two or three sessions, with methylphenidate (40 mg/70kg) administered on the other session(s). During sessions, volunteers were encouraged to close their eyes and direct their attention inward. At the 14-month follow-up, 58% and 67%, respectively, of volunteers rated the psilocybin-occasioned experience as being among the five most personally meaningful and among the five most spiritually significant experiences of their lives; 64% indicated the experience increased well-being or life satisfaction; 58% met criteria for having had a “complete” mystical experience. Correlation and regression analyses indicated a central role of the mystical experience assessed on the session day in the high ratings of personal meaning and spiritual significance at follow-up. Of the measures of personality, affect, quality of life, and spirituality assessed across the study, only a scale measuring mystical experience showed a difference from screening. When administered under supportive conditions, psilocybin occasioned experiences similar to spontaneously-occurring mystical experiences that, at 14-month follow-up, were considered by volunteers to be among the most personally meaningful and spiritually significant of their lives.

Neural correlates of the psychedelic state as determined by fMRI studies with psilocybin

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“…Spiritual experiences are not rare, with five to forty percent of the general population reporting having had at least one spiritual or mystical experience (Allman et al, 1992;Davis & Smith, 1985;Greeley, 1974;Ring, 1985;Thomas & Cooper, 1978). Indeed, spiritual practices such as prayer, meditation, or entheogen use are associated with increased numbers of spiritual or mystical experiences (e.g., Lyvers & Meester, 2012;Walsh & Vaughan, 1991), and the occurrence of these experiences is correlated with wellbeing (e.g., Griffiths et al, 2011;Griffiths, Richards, Johnson, McCann, & Jesse, 2008;Griffiths, Richards, McCann, & Jesse, 2006;Hood, 1977;Maslow, 1994).…”