A qualitative analysis of the psychedelic mushroom come-up and come-down
Abstract Psychedelic therapy has the potential to become a revolutionary and transdiagnostic mental health treatment, yielding enduring benefits that are often attributed to the experiences that coincide with peak psychedelic effects. However, there may be an underrecognized temporal structure to th...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2025-02-01
|
| Series: | npj Mental Health Research |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s44184-024-00095-6 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1823861463171727360 |
|---|---|
| author | Ari Brouwer Joshua K. Brown Earth Erowid Fire Erowid Sylvia Thyssen Charles L. Raison Robin L. Carhart-Harris |
| author_facet | Ari Brouwer Joshua K. Brown Earth Erowid Fire Erowid Sylvia Thyssen Charles L. Raison Robin L. Carhart-Harris |
| author_sort | Ari Brouwer |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Psychedelic therapy has the potential to become a revolutionary and transdiagnostic mental health treatment, yielding enduring benefits that are often attributed to the experiences that coincide with peak psychedelic effects. However, there may be an underrecognized temporal structure to this process that helps explain why psychedelic and related altered states of consciousness can have an initially distressing but ultimately distress-resolving effect. Here we present a qualitative analysis of the self-reported ‘come-up’ or onset phase, and ‘come-down’ or falling phase, of the psychedelic experience. Focusing on psilocybin or psilocybin-containing mushroom experience reports submitted to Erowid.org, we use phenomenological, thematic content and word frequency analysis to show that the come-up is more often characterized by negatively valenced feeling states that resemble an acute stress reaction, while the come-down phase is more often characterized by positively valenced feeling states of the sort often observed following recovery from illness or resolution of stress. The therapeutic and theoretical relevance of these findings are discussed. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-4c8b4ee2eaa84c56ac05d73feed1855d |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2731-4251 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | npj Mental Health Research |
| spelling | doaj-art-4c8b4ee2eaa84c56ac05d73feed1855d2025-02-09T13:00:18ZengNature Portfolionpj Mental Health Research2731-42512025-02-01411910.1038/s44184-024-00095-6A qualitative analysis of the psychedelic mushroom come-up and come-downAri Brouwer0Joshua K. Brown1Earth Erowid2Fire Erowid3Sylvia Thyssen4Charles L. Raison5Robin L. Carhart-Harris6Department of Human Development and Family Studies, School of Human Ecology, University of Wisconsin-MadisonDepartment of Human Development and Family Studies, School of Human Ecology, University of Wisconsin-MadisonEC: Erowid Center, PO Box 1116EC: Erowid Center, PO Box 1116EC: Erowid Center, PO Box 1116Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin-MadisonDepartments of Neurology and Psychiatry, University of California San FranciscoAbstract Psychedelic therapy has the potential to become a revolutionary and transdiagnostic mental health treatment, yielding enduring benefits that are often attributed to the experiences that coincide with peak psychedelic effects. However, there may be an underrecognized temporal structure to this process that helps explain why psychedelic and related altered states of consciousness can have an initially distressing but ultimately distress-resolving effect. Here we present a qualitative analysis of the self-reported ‘come-up’ or onset phase, and ‘come-down’ or falling phase, of the psychedelic experience. Focusing on psilocybin or psilocybin-containing mushroom experience reports submitted to Erowid.org, we use phenomenological, thematic content and word frequency analysis to show that the come-up is more often characterized by negatively valenced feeling states that resemble an acute stress reaction, while the come-down phase is more often characterized by positively valenced feeling states of the sort often observed following recovery from illness or resolution of stress. The therapeutic and theoretical relevance of these findings are discussed.https://doi.org/10.1038/s44184-024-00095-6 |
| spellingShingle | Ari Brouwer Joshua K. Brown Earth Erowid Fire Erowid Sylvia Thyssen Charles L. Raison Robin L. Carhart-Harris A qualitative analysis of the psychedelic mushroom come-up and come-down npj Mental Health Research |
| title | A qualitative analysis of the psychedelic mushroom come-up and come-down |
| title_full | A qualitative analysis of the psychedelic mushroom come-up and come-down |
| title_fullStr | A qualitative analysis of the psychedelic mushroom come-up and come-down |
| title_full_unstemmed | A qualitative analysis of the psychedelic mushroom come-up and come-down |
| title_short | A qualitative analysis of the psychedelic mushroom come-up and come-down |
| title_sort | qualitative analysis of the psychedelic mushroom come up and come down |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s44184-024-00095-6 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT aribrouwer aqualitativeanalysisofthepsychedelicmushroomcomeupandcomedown AT joshuakbrown aqualitativeanalysisofthepsychedelicmushroomcomeupandcomedown AT eartherowid aqualitativeanalysisofthepsychedelicmushroomcomeupandcomedown AT fireerowid aqualitativeanalysisofthepsychedelicmushroomcomeupandcomedown AT sylviathyssen aqualitativeanalysisofthepsychedelicmushroomcomeupandcomedown AT charleslraison aqualitativeanalysisofthepsychedelicmushroomcomeupandcomedown AT robinlcarhartharris aqualitativeanalysisofthepsychedelicmushroomcomeupandcomedown AT aribrouwer qualitativeanalysisofthepsychedelicmushroomcomeupandcomedown AT joshuakbrown qualitativeanalysisofthepsychedelicmushroomcomeupandcomedown AT eartherowid qualitativeanalysisofthepsychedelicmushroomcomeupandcomedown AT fireerowid qualitativeanalysisofthepsychedelicmushroomcomeupandcomedown AT sylviathyssen qualitativeanalysisofthepsychedelicmushroomcomeupandcomedown AT charleslraison qualitativeanalysisofthepsychedelicmushroomcomeupandcomedown AT robinlcarhartharris qualitativeanalysisofthepsychedelicmushroomcomeupandcomedown |