Research Keyword: mindfulness

Decreases in State and Trait Anxiety Post-psilocybin: A Naturalistic, Observational Study Among Retreat Attendees

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This study followed 52 people who attended psilocybin retreats in the Netherlands and measured their anxiety levels before, one day after, and one week after the experience. Participants showed significant reductions in both immediate anxiety (state anxiety) and long-term anxiety tendencies (trait anxiety) that lasted up to a week. The anxiety improvements were most strongly linked to feeling a sense of ego dissolution during the experience and to lasting changes in personality traits, particularly becoming less neurotic.

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Associations between psychedelic-related and meditation-related variables: A longitudinal study

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This study of over 13,000 people examined how using psychedelics relates to meditation practices. Researchers found that people who used psychedelics during the study period increased their meditation practice more than those who didn’t. Importantly, people who already had higher levels of mindfulness and self-compassion before using psychedelics had less difficult experiences during their use. However, among people who were already meditating regularly, psychedelic use was linked to more difficulties during meditation.

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Social pain: A systematic review on interventions

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This study reviews different treatments for social pain—the emotional hurt from rejection and social exclusion. Researchers found that regular pain reliever acetaminophen, mindfulness meditation, and the psychedelic compound psilocybin can reduce social pain, while placebo pills also help when people believe they work. Interestingly, combining acetaminophen with forgiveness works better than either alone, suggesting that both physical and emotional pain may use similar brain pathways.

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Meditation, psychedelics, and brain connectivity: A randomized controlled resting-state fMRI study of N,N-dimethyltryptamine and harmine in a meditation retreat

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Researchers studied how meditation combined with a psychedelic compound called DMT affects the brain. They scanned 40 experienced meditators before and after a 3-day retreat, with some receiving the psychedelic and others a placebo. While meditation alone reduced connections between different brain networks, the psychedelic enhanced certain connections, suggesting the two practices may complement each other in promoting mental health.

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Psychological flexibility as a mechanism of change in psilocybin-assisted therapy for major depression: results from an exploratory placebo-controlled trial

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This study examined how psilocybin mushroom therapy works for treating depression when combined with talk therapy. Participants received a placebo pill followed by psilocybin four weeks later, both times as part of psychological treatment. The research found that people who received psilocybin showed greater improvements in their ability to accept difficult thoughts and emotions and live according to their values, and these improvements were linked to feeling less depressed.

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Anhedonia: Current and future treatments

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Anhedonia is the inability to feel pleasure from activities, which is a significant problem affecting many people with depression and other psychiatric conditions. This review examined many different treatments for anhedonia including medications, brain stimulation techniques, and psychological therapies. The research shows that newer medications like vortioxetine and ketamine work better for anhedonia than older antidepressants, and combining multiple approaches including therapy and lifestyle changes gives the best results.

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Exploring neural markers of dereification in meditation based on EEG and personalized models of electrophysiological brain states

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Researchers developed a new brain-monitoring technique called the Inner Dereification Index that can detect when someone is meditating versus mind-wandering using only a brief EEG recording. By analyzing electrical activity in specific brain regions involved in self-awareness and personal thoughts, the method can accurately track meditation progress in real-time with 99.6% accuracy. The technique works with minimal training data and shows that certain meditation practices—particularly Tibetan Buddhist techniques aimed at experiencing the emptiness of self—create distinctive brain patterns. This breakthrough could enable real-time meditation feedback devices and personalized meditation guidance.

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