Cessation and reduction in alcohol consumption and misuse after psychedelic use

Summary & key facts

Researchers ran an anonymous online survey of 343 people who said their drinking got better after using psychedelics outside of a clinic. Most respondents were white men in the United States. Many said they had struggled with alcohol for years and that a moderate or high dose of LSD or psilocybin led to a big drop in drinking. The people in the survey rated their psychedelic experiences as very meaningful, and those who had stronger or more insightful experiences tended to report larger reductions in alcohol use. Because this was a self-selected, retrospective survey, it cannot prove the drugs caused the change, but the results support doing more careful studies.

Key facts:

• 343 people completed an anonymous online survey about their drinking after psychedelic use.
• About 90% of respondents were white and about 80% were male, and about 60% lived in the United States.
• On average participants had struggled with problematic drinking for about seven years before the psychedelic experience they said helped them.
• About 70% met retrospective criteria for severe alcohol use disorder before the psychedelic experience, according to their own reports.
• About 40% reported taking a moderate or high dose of LSD and about 35% reported taking psilocybin. Most of those people said their alcohol use dropped significantly afterward.
• After the psychedelic experience, about 80% of respondents said they no longer met criteria for alcohol use disorder, based on their own answers.
• People who reported higher doses, stronger feelings of insight, mystical-type effects, or personal meaning from the experience tended to report larger reductions in drinking.
• About 28% said the psychedelic experience changed their life priorities or values, and that change helped them reduce alcohol misuse.
• Because the study asked people to remember past events and only included people who already believed psychedelics helped them, the results cannot prove cause and may not apply to everyone.

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Meta-analysis of randomized studies using lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) for alcohol use disorder (AUD) showed large, significant effects for LSD efficacy compared to control conditions. Clinical studies suggest potential anti-addiction effects of LSD and mechanistically-related classic psychedelics for alcohol and other substance use disorders. AIMS: To supplement clinical studies, reports of psychedelic use in naturalistic settings can provide further data regarding potential effects of psychedelics on alcohol use. METHODS: An anonymous online survey of individuals with prior AUD reporting cessation or reduction in alcohol use following psychedelic use in non-clinical settings. RESULTS: 343 respondents, mostly White (89%), males (78%), in the USA (60%) completed the survey. Participants reported seven years of problematic alcohol use on average before the psychedelic experience to which they attributed reduced alcohol consumption, with 72% meeting retrospective criteria for severe AUD. Most reported taking a moderate or high dose of LSD (38%) or psilocybin (36%), followed by significant reduction in alcohol consumption. After the psychedelic experience 83% no longer met AUD criteria. Participants rated their psychedelic experience as highly meaningful and insightful, with 28% endorsing psychedelic-associated changes in life priorities or values as facilitating reduced alcohol misuse. Greater psychedelic dose, insight, mystical-type effects, and personal meaning of experiences were associated with a greater reduction in alcohol consumption, controlling for prior alcohol consumption and related distress. CONCLUSIONS: Although results cannot demonstrate causality, they suggest that naturalistic psychedelic use may lead to cessation or reduction in problematic alcohol use, supporting further investigation of psychedelic-assisted treatment for AUD.

Topics

Forensic Toxicology and Drug Analysis Pain Management and Placebo Effect Psychedelics and Drug Studies

Categories

Clinical Psychology Psychology Social Sciences

Tags

Alcohol Alcohol consumption Biochemistry Chemistry Clinical psychology Consumption (sociology) Medicine Psychiatry Psychology Social science Sociology

Substances

LSD Psilocybin

Conditions & symptoms

Addiction Substance abuse disorder Addiction or harmful habbits