ACS Publications. Most Trusted. Most Cited. Most Read
Naturalistic Use of Mescaline Is Associated with Self-Reported Psychiatric Improvements and Enduring Positive Life Changes

OR SEARCH CITATIONS

My Activity
Publications

Figure 1Loading Img
Download Hi-Res ImageDownload to MS-PowerPointCite This:ACS Pharmacol. Transl. Sci. 2021, 4, 2, 543-552
    Article

    Naturalistic Use of Mescaline Is Associated with Self-Reported Psychiatric Improvements and Enduring Positive Life Changes
    Click to copy article linkArticle link copied!

    • Gabrielle Agin-Liebes*
      Gabrielle Agin-Liebes
      Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Francisco, 1001 Potrero Ave., San Francisco, California 94110, United States
      Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, 1001 Potrero Ave., Bldg. 80, San Francisco, California 94110, United States
      *Tel.: 646-641-2000. Email: [email protected]
      More by Gabrielle Agin-Liebes
      Orcidhttp://orcid.org/0000-0002-9754-229X
    • Trevor F. Haas
      Trevor F. Haas
      University of California, Davis, School of Medicine, 4610 X Street, Sacramento, California 95817, United States
      Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Southern California, 3620 McClintock Ave., Los Angeles, California 90089-0001, United States
      More by Trevor F. Haas
    • Rafael Lancelotta
      Rafael Lancelotta
      Habituating to Wholeness, LLC, 6500 W 13th Ave, Lakewood, Colorado 80214, United States
      More by Rafael Lancelotta
    • Malin V. Uthaug
      Malin V. Uthaug
      Department of Clinical Psychological Science, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Universiteitssingel 40, 6229, Maastricht, Limburg 6200 MD, The Netherlands
      More by Malin V. Uthaug
    • Johannes G. Ramaekers
      Johannes G. Ramaekers
      Department of Clinical Psychological Science, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Universiteitssingel 40, 6229, Maastricht, Limburg 6200 MD, The Netherlands
      More by Johannes G. Ramaekers
    • Alan K. Davis*
      Alan K. Davis
      College of Social Work, The Ohio State University, 1947 College Road, Columbus, Ohio 43210, United States
      Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research, Johns Hopkins University, 5510 Nathan Shock Drive, Baltimore, Maryland 21224, United States
      *Tel.: 614-292-5251. Email: [email protected]
      More by Alan K. Davis
    Other Access Options

    ACS Pharmacology & Translational Science

    Cite this: ACS Pharmacol. Transl. Sci. 2021, 4, 2, 543–552
    Click to copy citationCitation copied!
    https://doi.org/10.1021/acsptsci.1c00018
    Published March 23, 2021
    Copyright © 2021 American Chemical Society
    Request reuse permissions

    Abstract

    Click to copy section linkSection link copied!
    Abstract Image

    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.

    Copyright © 2021 American Chemical Society

    Subjects

    what are subjects

    Keywords

    what are keywords

    Read this article

    To access this article, please review the available access options below.

    Get instant access

    Purchase Access

    Read this article for 48 hours. Check out below using your ACS ID or as a guest.

    Recommended

    Access through Your Institution

    You may have access to this article through your institution.

    Your institution does not have access to this content. Add or change your institution or let them know you’d like them to include access.

    Cited By

    Click to copy section linkSection link copied!

    This article is cited by 52 publications.

    1. Gavin P. Schmitz, Manish K. Jain, Samuel T. Slocum, Bryan L. Roth. 5-HT2A SNPs Alter the Pharmacological Signaling of Potentially Therapeutic Psychedelics. ACS Chemical Neuroscience 2022, 13 (16) , 2386-2398. https://doi.org/10.1021/acschemneuro.1c00815
    2. Emma David, H. Russell Searight. Peyote: Neurochemistry, Psychological Effects, Cultural Aspects, Religious Perspectives, and Legality. 2025, 1-7. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-38971-9_1060-1
    3. Donatella Marazziti, Francesco Weiss, Riccardo Gurrieri, Gerardo Russomanno, Matteo Gambini, Anna Magnesa, Andrea Coccoglioniti, Giulio Perugi. Evaluating the value and risks of psychedelics for psychiatric medicine: a clinical perspective. Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics 2024, 1918 , 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1080/14737175.2024.2445016
    4. Adam W Levin. Hemispheric annealing and lateralization under psychedelics (HEALS): A novel hypothesis of psychedelic action in the brain. Journal of Psychopharmacology 2024, 27 https://doi.org/10.1177/02698811241303599
    5. Ioanna A. Vamvakopoulou, David J. Nutt. Psychedelics: From Cave Art to 21st-Century Medicine for Addiction. European Addiction Research 2024, 30 (5) , 302-320. https://doi.org/10.1159/000540062
    6. Tamara Valdez, Valbhi Patel, Nattaphone Senesombath, Zayd Hatahet-Donovan, Mary Hornick. Therapeutic Potential of Psychedelic Compounds for Substance Use Disorders. Pharmaceuticals 2024, 17 (11) , 1484. https://doi.org/10.3390/ph17111484
    7. B. A Pagni, J Wong, M. P Bogenschutz. The Therapeutic Effects of Classic Psychedelics in Alcohol Use Disorder. Current Addiction Reports 2024, 11 (5) , 916-927. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40429-024-00581-z
    8. Rúna F. E. Walther, Hein T. van Schie. ‘Mind-Revealing’ Psychedelic States: Psychological Processes in Subjective Experiences That Drive Positive Change. Psychoactives 2024, 3 (3) , 411-436. https://doi.org/10.3390/psychoactives3030026
    9. Hao Hua, Xinghuo Fu, Wenli Wang, Sen Wang, Di Wang, Zifeng Wu, Qi Zhang, Teng He, Chun Yang. A bibliometric analysis of research on psychedelics for depression treatment. Heliyon 2024, 10 (17) , e36886. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e36886
    10. Stanley Wong, An Yi Yu, Nicholas Fabiano, Ofer Finkelstein, Aryan Pasricha, Brett D.M. Jones, Joshua D. Rosenblat, Daniel M. Blumberger, Benoit H. Mulsant, M. Ishrat Husain. Beyond Psilocybin: Reviewing the Therapeutic Potential of Other Serotonergic Psychedelics in Mental and Substance Use Disorders. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs 2024, 56 (4) , 513-529. https://doi.org/10.1080/02791072.2023.2251133
    11. Bill Brennan, Alex Belser. EMBARK Psychedelic Therapy for Depression. 2024https://doi.org/10.1093/9780197762622.001.0001
    12. Poonam Bhadoria, Aastha Tiwari, Alok Jain, Venkatnarayan Ramanathan. Comprehensive computational insights on the conformations, electronic properties and binding mechanism of mescaline: A hallucinogenic molecule. Journal of Molecular Liquids 2024, 400 , 124562. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molliq.2024.124562
    13. Muhammet Celik, Mark S. Gold, Brian Fuehrlein. A Narrative Review of Current and Emerging Trends in the Treatment of Alcohol Use Disorder. Brain Sciences 2024, 14 (3) , 294. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci14030294
    14. Yu Kyung Lee, Mark S. Gold, Kenneth Blum, Panayotis K. Thanos, Colin Hanna, Brian S. Fuehrlein. Opioid use disorder: current trends and potential treatments. Frontiers in Public Health 2024, 11 https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1274719
    15. Jennifer M. Mitchell, Brian T. Anderson. Psychedelic therapies reconsidered: compounds, clinical indications, and cautious optimism. Neuropsychopharmacology 2024, 49 (1) , 96-103. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41386-023-01656-7
    16. Maha N Mian, Brianna R Altman, Fiona Low, Mitch Earleywine. Development of the Protective Strategies for Psychedelics Scale: A novel inventory to assess safety strategies in the context of psychedelics. Journal of Psychopharmacology 2024, 38 (1) , 101-109. https://doi.org/10.1177/02698811231214060
    17. Steven Jay Lynn, Charlie W. McDonald, Fiona G. Sleight, Richard E. Mattson. Cross-validation of the ego dissolution scale: implications for studying psychedelics. Frontiers in Neuroscience 2023, 17 https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2023.1267611
    18. Anne Buot, Cecile Pallares, Alina Oganesyan, Charles Dauré, Valérie Bonnelle, Eric Burguière, Joao Flores Alves Dos Santos, Karim N’Diaye, Michael Ljuslin, Pauline Smith, Vincent Verroust, Benjamin Wyplosz, Margot Morgiève, Luc Mallet. Improvement in OCD symptoms associated with serotoninergic psychedelics: a retrospective online survey. Scientific Reports 2023, 13 (1) https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-39812-0
    19. Marjolein Doesburg-van Kleffens, Amy M. Zimmermann-Klemd, Carsten Gründemann. An Overview on the Hallucinogenic Peyote and Its Alkaloid Mescaline: The Importance of Context, Ceremony and Culture. Molecules 2023, 28 (24) , 7942. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28247942
    20. Michail Kalfas, Rosie H. Taylor, Dimosthenis Tsapekos, Allan H. Young. Psychedelics for treatment resistant depression: are they game changers?. Expert Opinion on Pharmacotherapy 2023, 62 , 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1080/14656566.2023.2281582
    21. Julian Urrutia, Brian T Anderson, Sean J Belouin, Ann Berger, Roland R Griffiths, Charles S Grob, Jack E Henningfield, Beatriz C Labate, Larissa J Maier, M Catherine Maternowska, Frank Weichold, David B Yaden, Veronica Magar. Psychedelic Science, Contemplative Practices, and Indigenous and Other Traditional Knowledge Systems: Towards Integrative Community-Based Approaches in Global Health. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs 2023, 55 (5) , 523-538. https://doi.org/10.1080/02791072.2023.2258367
    22. Arne Bohn, Michiel H. H. Kiggen, Malin V. Uthaug, Kim I. M. van Oorsouw, Johannes G. Ramaekers, Hein T. van Schie. Altered States of Consciousness During Ceremonial San Pedro Use. The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion 2023, 33 (4) , 309-331. https://doi.org/10.1080/10508619.2022.2139502
    23. Alejandro Gómez-García, Daniel A. Acuña Jiménez, William J. Zamora, Haruna L. Barazorda-Ccahuana, Miguel Á. Chávez-Fumagalli, Marilia Valli, Adriano D. Andricopulo, Vanderlan da S. Bolzani, Dionisio A. Olmedo, Pablo N. Solís, Marvin J. Núñez, Johny R. Rodríguez Pérez, Hoover A. Valencia Sánchez, Héctor F. Cortés Hernández, José L. Medina-Franco. Navigating the Chemical Space and Chemical Multiverse of a Unified Latin American Natural Product Database: LANaPDB. Pharmaceuticals 2023, 16 (10) , 1388. https://doi.org/10.3390/ph16101388
    24. Samane Jahanabadi, Shayan Amiri, Mehdi Karkeh-abadi, Ali Razmi. Natural psychedelics in the treatment of depression; a review focusing on neurotransmitters. Fitoterapia 2023, 169 , 105620. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fitote.2023.105620
    25. Emma I Kopra, Jason A Ferris, Adam R Winstock, Kim PC Kuypers, Allan H Young, James J Rucker. Investigation of self-treatment with lysergic acid diethylamide and psilocybin mushrooms: Findings from the Global Drug Survey 2020. Journal of Psychopharmacology 2023, 37 (7) , 733-748. https://doi.org/10.1177/02698811231158245
    26. Maria Bălăeț, William Trender, Peter J. Hellyer, Adam Hampshire. Associations between the use of psychedelics and other recreational drugs with mental health and resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic. Frontiers in Psychiatry 2023, 14 https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1184681
    27. Rayyan Zafar, Maxim Siegel, Rebecca Harding, Tommaso Barba, Claudio Agnorelli, Shayam Suseelan, Leor Roseman, Matthew Wall, David John Nutt, David Erritzoe. Psychedelic therapy in the treatment of addiction: the past, present and future. Frontiers in Psychiatry 2023, 14 https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1183740
    28. Aki Nikolaidis, Rafaelle Lancelotta, Natalie Gukasyan, Roland R. Griffiths, Frederick S. Barrett, Alan K. Davis. Subtypes of the psychedelic experience have reproducible and predictable effects on depression and anxiety symptoms. Journal of Affective Disorders 2023, 324 , 239-249. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2022.12.042
    29. Fiona G. Sleight, Steven Jay Lynn, Richard E. Mattson, Charlie W. McDonald. A novel ego dissolution scale: A construct validation study. Consciousness and Cognition 2023, 109 , 103474. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2023.103474
    30. Daniel G. Anstis, Jessica Liyu, Emma K. Davison, Jonathan Sperry, . Alkaloids from the entheogenic plant Peganum harmala. Australian Journal of Chemistry 2023, 76 (5) , 264-278. https://doi.org/10.1071/CH23038
    31. Scott R. Walker, Glenn A. Pullella, Matthew J. Piggott, Peter J. Duggan, . Introduction to the chemistry and pharmacology of psychedelic drugs. Australian Journal of Chemistry 2023, 76 (5) , 236-257. https://doi.org/10.1071/CH23050
    32. C. Dauré, L. Mallet. Traitements psychédéliques et soins en addictologie. 2023, 593-599. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-2-294-77934-3.00069-X
    33. Ioanna A. Vamvakopoulou, Kelly A.D. Narine, Ian Campbell, Jason R.B. Dyck, David J. Nutt. Mescaline: The forgotten psychedelic. Neuropharmacology 2023, 222 , 109294. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropharm.2022.109294
    34. Andrea Mastinu, Margrate Anyanwu, Marinella Carone, Giulia Abate, Sara Anna Bonini, Gregorio Peron, Emanuela Tirelli, Mariachiara Pucci, Giovanni Ribaudo, Erika Oselladore, Marika Premoli, Alessandra Gianoncelli, Daniela Letizia Uberti, Maurizio Memo. The Bright Side of Psychedelics: Latest Advances and Challenges in Neuropharmacology. International Journal of Molecular Sciences 2023, 24 (2) , 1329. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24021329
    35. Jaden Brandt. A roadmap for psychedelic pharmacy in Canada: A proposed policy and operations approach for controlled access to select psychedelics for treatment of mental illness. Drug Science, Policy and Law 2023, 9 https://doi.org/10.1177/20503245231170340
    36. Benjamin A. Korman. Could classic psychedelics influence immigrants’ acculturation process? A narrative review contemplating how. Drug Science, Policy and Law 2023, 9 https://doi.org/10.1177/20503245231191400
    37. Grant M. Jones, Matthew K. Nock. Exploring protective associations between the use of classic psychedelics and cocaine use disorder: a population-based survey study. Scientific Reports 2022, 12 (1) https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-06580-2
    38. Grant Jones, Joshua Lipson, Matthew K. Nock. Associations between classic psychedelics and nicotine dependence in a nationally representative sample. Scientific Reports 2022, 12 (1) https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-14809-3
    39. Javier Calleja‐Conde, Jose Angel Morales‐García, Víctor Echeverry‐Alzate, Kora Mareen Bühler, Elena Giné, Jose Antonio López‐Moreno. Classic psychedelics and alcohol use disorders: A systematic review of human and animal studies. Addiction Biology 2022, 27 (6) https://doi.org/10.1111/adb.13229
    40. Haley Maria Dourron, Camilla Strauss, Peter S. Hendricks. Self-Entropic Broadening Theory: Toward a New Understanding of Self and Behavior Change Informed by Psychedelics and Psychosis. Pharmacological Reviews 2022, 74 (4) , 984-1029. https://doi.org/10.1124/pharmrev.121.000514
    41. Eric Bender. Finding medical value in mescaline. Nature 2022, 609 (7929) , S90-S91. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-02873-8
    42. Ada Kałużna, Marco Schlosser, Emily Gulliksen Craste, Jack Stroud, James Cooke. Being no one, being One: The role of ego-dissolution and connectedness in the therapeutic effects of psychedelic experience. Journal of Psychedelic Studies 2022, 6 (2) , 111-136. https://doi.org/10.1556/2054.2022.00199
    43. Fúlvio Rieli Mendes, Cristiane dos Santos Costa, Victor Distefano Wiltenburg, Gabriela Morales-Lima, João Ariel Bonar Fernandes, Renato Filev. Classic and non‐classic psychedelics for substance use disorder: A review of their historic, past and current research. Addiction Neuroscience 2022, 3 , 100025. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addicn.2022.100025
    44. Victoria Amalie Nygart, Lis Marie Pommerencke, Eline Haijen, Hannes Kettner, Mendel Kaelen, Erik Lykke Mortensen, David John Nutt, Robin Lester Carhart-Harris, David Erritzoe. Antidepressant effects of a psychedelic experience in a large prospective naturalistic sample. Journal of Psychopharmacology 2022, 36 (8) , 932-942. https://doi.org/10.1177/02698811221101061
    45. Snehal R. Bhatt, Maya Armstrong, Tassy Parker, Marcello Maviglia, Rebecca Kass, Lawrence Leeman, Paul Romo, Douglas Ziedonis. Psychedelic Therapies at the Crossroads of Trauma and Substance Use: Historical Perspectives and Future Directions, Taking a Lead From New Mexico. Frontiers in Pharmacology 2022, 13 https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2022.905753
    46. Sam Gandy. Predictors and potentiators of psychedelic-occasioned mystical experiences. Journal of Psychedelic Studies 2022, 6 (1) , 31-47. https://doi.org/10.1556/2054.2022.00198
    47. Elaine Meade, Sarah Hehir, Neil Rowan, Mary Garvey. Mycotherapy: Potential of Fungal Bioactives for the Treatment of Mental Health Disorders and Morbidities of Chronic Pain. Journal of Fungi 2022, 8 (3) , 290. https://doi.org/10.3390/jof8030290
    48. Anne K Schlag, Jacob Aday, Iram Salam, Jo C Neill, David J Nutt. Adverse effects of psychedelics: From anecdotes and misinformation to systematic science. Journal of Psychopharmacology 2022, 36 (3) , 258-272. https://doi.org/10.1177/02698811211069100
    49. Mitch Earleywine, Fiona Low, Joseph De Leo. A Semantic Scale Network analysis of the revised Mystical Experiences Questionnaire: A call for collaboration. Journal of Psychedelic Studies 2022, 5 (3) , 156-165. https://doi.org/10.1556/2054.2021.00187
    50. Amanda J. Khan, Ellen Bradley, Aoife O’Donovan, Joshua Woolley. Psilocybin for Trauma-Related Disorders. 2022, 319-332. https://doi.org/10.1007/7854_2022_366
    51. Yu Kyung Lee, Mark S. Gold, Brian S. Fuehrlein. Looking beyond the opioid receptor: A desperate need for new treatments for opioid use disorder. Journal of the Neurological Sciences 2022, 432 , 120094. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jns.2021.120094
    52. David B. Yaden, Andrea P. Berghella, Paul S. Regier, Albert Garcia-Romeu, Matthew W. Johnson, Peter S. Hendricks. Classic psychedelics in the treatment of substance use disorder: Potential synergies with twelve-step programs. International Journal of Drug Policy 2021, 98 , 103380. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugpo.2021.103380
    Download PDF
    Go to ACS Pharmacology & Translational Science
    Get e-Alerts
    Get e-Alerts

    ACS Pharmacology & Translational Science

    Cite this: ACS Pharmacol. Transl. Sci. 2021, 4, 2, 543–552
    Click to copy citationCitation copied!
    https://doi.org/10.1021/acsptsci.1c00018
    Published March 23, 2021
    Copyright © 2021 American Chemical Society
    Request reuse permissions

    Article Views

    5180

    Altmetric

    -

    Citations

    52
    Learn about these metrics

    Article Views are the COUNTER-compliant sum of full text article downloads since November 2008 (both PDF and HTML) across all institutions and individuals. These metrics are regularly updated to reflect usage leading up to the last few days.

    Citations are the number of other articles citing this article, calculated by Crossref and updated daily. Find more information about Crossref citation counts.

    The Altmetric Attention Score is a quantitative measure of the attention that a research article has received online. Clicking on the donut icon will load a page at altmetric.com with additional details about the score and the social media presence for the given article. Find more information on the Altmetric Attention Score and how the score is calculated.