Research indicates that psilocybin may be an effective treatment for anxiety, particularly end-of-life anxiety.
Many early studies looking at psilocybin for anxiety focus on treating end-of-life anxiety in patients with advanced-stage cancer. The results have shown to be promising, as patients report having reduced symptoms of anxiety and fear of death. Researchers note the correlation between these results and the mystical experience1 reported by some people who take psilocybin.
In a 2016 double-blind2 , randomized, placebo-controlled, crossover trial, 29 people with clinically significant anxiety or depression as a result of life-threatening cancer were given either psilocybin or niacin. According to the researchers, “psilocybin produced immediate, substantial, and sustained improvements in anxiety and depression and led to decreases in cancer-related demoralization and hopelessness, improved spiritual well-being, and increased quality of life.” Research findings indicate that after nearly seven months, 60 to 80 percent of the participants continued to demonstrate enduring and clinically significant reductions in anxiety and depression symptoms, as well as an improved sense of the quality of life and attitude towards death.
In a pilot study, Charles Grob, MD and colleagues3 used a moderate dose of psilocybin (0.2 mg/ kg) to treat anxiety related to life-threatening cancer in 12 participants with a diagnosis of acute stress disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, anxiety disorder due to cancer, or adjustment disorder with anxiety. Participants underwent treatment as a six-hour assisted therapy for all sessions, active or placebo. As part of the data collection, the “subjects discussed the subjective aesthetic, cognitive, affective, and psychospiritual experiences they had during the session and completed rating instruments.”
Follow-up data collected every month for six consecutive months post-treatment showed promising results. Using five different measurement tools—Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Profile of Mood States (POMS), State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), and 5-Dimension Altered States of Consciousness Profile—the researchers found several improvements with the reduction in BDI Score being significant at the six-month follow-up, indicating improvement in mood and affect, with no notable side effects.
The research investigating psilocybin’s effects on end-of-life anxiety mobilized patients and advocates in Canada to petition the Health Minister in 2020 to receive exemptions from the country’s laws against psilocybin to use mushrooms as part of psychotherapy treatment. These patients were granted access to psilocybin for end-of-life care, making them the first publicly-known individuals to receive a legal exemption from the Canadian Drugs and Substances Act to access psychedelic therapy.
