'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Psilocybin therapy is gaining attention due to a renewed interest in the use of psychedelics in physical and mental health treatment. Psilocybin is a compound thought to enhance healing. Does that mean it can be used in psychotherapy? The question is yet to be completely answered.
It's worthwhile to mention a word of caution. There's very limited evidence on how psilocybin therapy interacts with psychiatric treatment and its impact on mental well-being.
Sometimes, psychological research can be influenced by the file drawer problem, which means sometimes only the positive research gets published. The negative or contradicting research goes inside the researcher's cabinet.
However, the increased interest in psyilocybin therapy may contribute to our understanding of alternative therapy approaches.
Trending
What is psilocybin therapy?
Psychedelic assisted therapy has now gained popularity, especially after new research is showing the negative effects of medications for mental health issues like depression. Psilocybin is a form of psychedelic assisted therapy that uses the compound in conjunction with psychotherapy.
The main idea behind the use of this treatment is that some compounds have consciousness-altering properties. A lot of research in psychology has been done to identify the links of our levels of consciousness and mental health concerns. Many schools of thoughts believe that by accessing the material in the subconscious and unconscious, we can move towards healing.
Psilocybin therapy is thought to access this information for the mental health professional and bring new levels of awareness for the individual. It's thought of as a new key to understanding of the self and our internal representations.
What is psilocybin therapy used for?
Researchers have explored the role of pyschedelic therapy in alleviating symptoms of depression.
Research has focused on the role of these in managing depression without hallucinations. That has been taken into special consideration, as there can be a risk of hallucination with use of certain substances.
Some advocates of this therapy have also reported its use for relieving symptoms of anxiety. The patients who have tried this modality, often report that psychiatric medications have not been helpful even after years of using them.
Other areas of interest and focus are in releasing and healing traumatic memories. Patients might be able to access these memories much faster through this medium.
Another upcoming area of research is the use of psychedelic therapy and managing substance use. That, indeed, is a challenging area of study, as many mental health professionals are concerned about the use of substances in therapy. Would this lead to negative effects, especially for vulnerable individuals at risk?
Benefits of psilocybin therapy?
There's much contemplation about the use and effectiveness of psychedilics in therapy. However, there are also associated benefits to this type of alternative therapy.
One of the main benefits of this therapy is that an individual can experience heightened awareness and insights into their concerns. One barrier in psychotherapy is that individuals are often unaware of what's disturbing them. They may report unexplainable sadness or negative emotions and come to therapy.
Using psychedlics, we can get window into their levels of consciousness and identify their underlying thoughts, emotions and behaviors. Another potential benefit is that processing of emotions becomes easier.
An individual's ego becomes very active in dealing with potentially triggering information. However, the substances put an individual to ease and introduce new levels of calmness to help them process all the suppressed emotions.
New research is also focused on understanding the connection of alternative therapy and the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder.
There are added limitations to the use of psilocybin therapy. It's still a very exclusive type of alternative modality and is also very expensive.
One of the key agendas now is to increase research, enhance the quality of the sample and also make individuals more aware of what and how psilocybin therapy works. That's not going to be an easy task, but many individuals seem to be eager in trying this new modality.
Janvi Kapur is a counselor with a Master's degree in applied psychology with a specialization in clinical psychology.
What do you think of this story? Tell us in the comments section below.
