This survey study (n=452) found that the use of mescaline led to improvements in scores on clinical conditions (anxiety 80%, depression 86%, PTSD & AUD 76%). Those who scored higher on acute mystical experience (MEQ30), ego dissolution, and psychological insight had larger improvement than those who scored lower.
Abstract
“Mescaline is a naturally occurring psychoactive alkaloid that has been used as a sacrament by Indigenous populations in spiritual ritual and healing ceremonies for millennia. Despite promising early preliminary research and favorable anecdotal reports, there is limited research investigating mescaline’s psychotherapeutic potential. We administered an anonymous online questionnaire to adults (N = 452) reporting use of mescaline in naturalistic settings about mental health benefits attributed to mescaline. We assessed respondents’ self-reported improvements in depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and alcohol and drug use disorders (AUD and DUD). Of the respondents reporting histories of these clinical conditions, most (68–86%) reported subjective improvement following their most memorable mescaline experience. Respondents who reported an improvement in their psychiatric conditions reported significantly higher ratings of acute psychological factors including mystical-type, psychological insight, and ego dissolution effects compared to those who did not report improvements (Cohen’s d range 0.7 – 1.5). Many respondents (35–50%) rated the mescaline experience as the single or top five most spiritually significant or meaningful experience(s) of their lives. Acute experiences of psychological insight during their mescaline experience were associated with increased odds of reporting improvement in depression, anxiety, AUD and DUD. Additional research is needed to corroborate these preliminary findings and to rigorously examine the efficacy of mescaline for psychiatric treatment in controlled, longitudinal clinical trials.”
Authors: Gabrielle Agin-Liebes, Trevor F. Haas, Rafael Lancelotta, Malin V. Uthaug, Johannes G. Ramaekers & Alan K. Davis
Notes
A variety of studies have shown that the use of psychedelics can lead to positive changes in mental health. The psychedelic experience is often seen as one of the most memorable experiences of someone’s life. Although there are, mainly psychological, risks, many people find joy and meaning in the use of psychedelics.
A survey study found that, for those suffering from anxiety, depression, PTSD, alcohol- and substance use disorders improved significantly. For instance, of the 452 respondents in this study, 41% reported experiencing depression at the time of their most memorable mescaline experience. Of that group, 86% reported improvements after the experience.
What did this study find out?
- Psychological insight, was the only significant predictor after controlling for the acute mystical-experience and ego dissolution. Or in other words, the lessons learned and possibly integrated led to better outcomes
- Not many studies have looked at the relationship between classical psychedelics and PTSD. This one showed that for those suffering from PTSD (n=72), 76% improved and this effect was most pronounced for those with a stronger mystical-type experience
- Although it has been used for centuries, mescaline remains understudied and no RCT studies, to our knowledge, have been done. This research could be the impetus that helps start more studies into this interesting molecule
At this current time, we can use all the tools that are available to use to improve our mental health. And although psychedelics don’t directly target the core of many societal problems, studies like this one show the potential for improvement.
Summary
Psychiatric conditions such as mood, anxiety-spectrum, and substance use disorders are commonplace and contribute substantially to the global disease burden. They also increase the risk of developing comorbid medical conditions such as type 2 diabetes and coronary vascular disease.
Contemporary research involving classic psychedelics has shown promise in treating a variety of mental health conditions. The precise neurobiological effects of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy remain unidentified but may be related to functional changes in brain regions responsible for emotional processing and selfreference.
Certain classic psychedelics, such as psilocybin, have been well studied in recent years, paving the way for more research into other classic psychedelics. Mescaline, a naturally occurring phenethylamine, has been used in the treatment of chronic alcoholism among Native American Church members.
Although preliminary data suggest that mescaline use is associated with positive improvements in psychiatric conditions,18 no study has yet explored the possible mechanisms of change related to these psychiatric improvements.
■ RESULTS
We recruited 2025 people who completed 477 questionnaires. 22 people could not provide information regarding type of mescaline used, and three people were younger than 18 years old.
Respondents were primarily White, male, and heterosexual, with an average age of 38 (SD = 14.4). Those who reported that their anxiety and drug misuse/DUD conditions improved after mescaline were significantly younger than those who reported that their conditions did not improve or worsen after use.
Approximately one-third of the respondents reported that their most memorable experience with mescaline was among the top five or single most personally meaningful or spiritually significant experiences of their lives.
Many people who use mescaline report improvement in their mood, anxiety, and substance use outcomes. Only a small minority report an explicit intention to address or resolve their psychiatric conditions during their mescaline experience.
Those who reported improvements in their psychiatric conditions after mescaline use reported higher ratings of acute mystical-type, psychological insight, and ego dissolution effects compared with those who did not report improvements. However, there were no significant differences in ratings of acute psychologically challenging experiences among those who reported improvements.
We conducted logistic regressions to determine if acute subjective effects of mescaline were associated with improvements in respondents’ reference psychiatric conditions following mescaline use. We found that insight, but not mystical-type or ego dissolution, was associated with improvement in PTSD.
■ DISCUSSION
This report provides detailed information from an international sample of 452 adults who reported improvements in psychiatric conditions following naturalistic use of mescaline. Results indicate that mescaline use was associated with self-reported improvements in a variety of domains including mood, anxiety, and substance use disorders.
Psychological mechanisms involved in the therapeutic process of psychedelic experiences are still in early phases of exploration. Acute phenomenological experiences of psychological insight were the only significant predictor of clinical improvement across several diagnostic categories in this study.
A large number of studies have documented a consistent relationship between mystical-type experiences and clinical outcomes. However, more nuanced and process-oriented models propose that the assimilation of these transpersonal experiences with personal insights into one’s psychological coping patterns may be required for lasting therapeutic change.
Mescaline use was associated with improvements in PTSD symptoms in our study sample. This may be because of mescaline’s combined psychedelic and entactogenic properties, which may harmonize with feelings of emotional openness, trust, and safety to facilitate meaningful and constructive shifts in one’s schemas, avoidance patterns, and appraisals of threat and safety.
A significant proportion of respondents rated their mescaline experience as either the single most or among the top five most meaningful or spiritual experiences of their lives. In addition, psychologically challenging effects that occur during a psychedelic experience may be neutral or positively associated with the meaningfulness or spiritual significance of these experiences.
Our study was a cross-sectional study, and we cannot infer causality regarding the impact of mescaline on psychiatric conditions. Additionally, we did not analyze outcomes with respect to psychiatric comorbidity, and it is possible that some respondents presented with multiple diagnoses that were not captured. A final shortcoming of our study was that respondents were predominately young White males, which greatly limits the generalizability of these findings to other demographic groups.
Our study indicates that mescaline may facilitate unintended improvements in self-reported depression, anxiety, PTSD, and substance use disorders when administered in a naturalistic setting. Additionally, respondents reported very low rates of adverse experiences, corroborating empirical evidence that mescaline carries a low risk for harmful health consequences.
■ METHODS
This study was a secondary data analysis from a larger epidemiological study that recruited individuals via Internet advertisements, email invitations, and word-of-mouth. Participants were required to have reading and writing fluency in English and have ingested mescaline on at least one occasion.
Mental Health Measure included questions about whether respondents had been diagnosed with a mental health condition in the past, and whether their conditions had changed after mescaline consumption.
Acute mescaline effects were measured using the Psychological Insight Questionnaire (PIQ). The PIQ consists of 23 items with two subscales: avoidance and maladaptive patterns, and goals and adaptive patterns.
The Mystical Experiences Questionnaire (MEQ-30) is a 30-item self-report questionnaire that measures the phenomenological effects occasioned by a psychedelic. It has shown good reliability and demonstrated excellent internal consistency within our study sample.
A 26-item self-report instrument was used to measure the intensity of challenging experiences that may occur after ingesting a psychedelic. The CEQ contains seven total factors: fear, death, insanity, isolation, physical distress, and paranoia.
We used the Ego Dissolution Inventory (EDI) to assess the degree of ego dissolution experienced by respondents after ingesting mescaline. The EDI demonstrated good convergent validity and excellent internal consistency within our sample.
We asked respondents to rate their most meaningful experience with mescaline in terms of its personal meaning, spiritual significance, psychological challenge, and psychological insight, as well as whether their experience had led to any enduring changes in their current sense of well-being or life satisfaction.
Data Analysis. We calculated frequency counts, analyzed descriptive data, split the sample into five psychiatric subgroups based on prior diagnoses, and conducted a series of chi-square analyses and t-tests to determine whether any significant between-group findings on any measures of acute effects were predictive of improvement in each subgroup.
Funding
This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health and several individuals.