Posttraumatic Stress Disorder After a Psychedelic Experience, a Case Report

This study (2020) presents a case report of a man who developed PTSD after an experience with LSD and DMT.

Abstract

“In the last 2 decades, there is a renaissance in the scientific investigation of the therapeutic potential of psychedelic compounds. It is studied for the treatment of many psychiatric disorders, including posttraumatic stress disorder. The treatment is always done in the setting of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. A little is known about the potential effects, outside of the setting of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, on people diagnosed with a mental disorder or have a significant trauma history. In this case report, we present a young man who developed posttraumatic stress disorder after a psychedelic experience, induced by both Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD) and N, N Dimethyltryptamine (DMT). In the psychedelic experience, a repressed memory of childhood sexual abuse was recovered. To our knowledge, this is the first report on posttraumatic stress disorder onset after a psychedelic experience. We believe that this case report is important since the history of trauma is prevalent among individuals with substance use disorder. Medical staff that treats people with either substance use disorder or trauma should be familiar with irregular presentations, such as the one described in this case.”

Authors: Dafna S. Rubin-Kahana, Ahmed N. Hassan & Bernard Le Foll

Summary

Experience, a Case Report Dafna Sara Rubin-Kahana, MD, Ahmed Nabeel Hassan, MD, MPH, and Bernard Le Foll, MD, PhD

Psychedelic drugs were used for the treatment of psychiatric disorders in the 1950s and 1960s, but were banned after recreational use became popular. Recently, they have been used in the treatment of various psychiatric conditions. A young man started to experience posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms after recalling a previously repressed traumatic memory of Childhood Sexual Abuse (CSA). He began to use opioids heavily to self-medicate PTSD symptoms, and developed severe opioid use disorder that seemed independent from PTSD symptoms.

Mr. F was single with no kids, unemployed, and lived with his opioid using mother. He started using opioids heavily after using LSD and DMT in the same time, and remembered being sexually molested when he was 4 years old.

After 8 months in treatment, Mr. F’s condition improved: he decreased his opioids use to only once every 2 weeks, used only cannabis and nicotine daily, and stopped treatment with sertraline (under his judgment). He also used fentanyl daily, and other drugs such as cannabis, benzodiazepines, cocaine and crystal meth often.

A man with a history of CSA was diagnosed with substance-induced psychotic disorder and refused to complete a PTSD scale because he did not want to think about the trauma. He was recommended to start treatment with antipsychotic medication, but stopped coming to the clinic after 16 months.

Several reports suggest that LSD and DMT containing compounds, such as ayahuasca, can facilitate recovery of memories, and that MDMA can stimulate deep seated negative emotions and thoughts. There is a debate in the literature if recovered CSA memories are true, but many CSA survivors were able to verify their recovered memory. This case report has several limitations, but we believe that several important conclusions may be drawn from it.

Trauma is prevalent among people with SUD. Medical staff should be familiar with irregular presentations, and traumatic individuals should use psychedelic drugs only within the setting of assisted psychotherapy.

Study details

Compounds studied
LSD DMT

Topics studied
PTSD

Study characteristics
Case Study

Participants
1