Therapeutic emergence of dissociated traumatic memories during psilocybin treatment for anorexia nervosa
Abstract Background Psychedelic treatment is a rapidly emerging therapeutic approach for a host of chronic, difficult to treat psychiatric disorders, including anorexia nervosa (AN). Trauma and its sequelae, such as dissociation, often contribute to comorbidity and treatment refractoriness. Aims In...
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BMC
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Journal of Eating Disorders |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s40337-025-01274-2 |
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| author | Stephanie Knatz Peck Timothy D. Brewerton Hannah Fisher Julie Trim Samantha Shao Nadav Liam Modlin Jessie Kim Daphna M. Finn Walter H. Kaye |
| author_facet | Stephanie Knatz Peck Timothy D. Brewerton Hannah Fisher Julie Trim Samantha Shao Nadav Liam Modlin Jessie Kim Daphna M. Finn Walter H. Kaye |
| author_sort | Stephanie Knatz Peck |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Psychedelic treatment is a rapidly emerging therapeutic approach for a host of chronic, difficult to treat psychiatric disorders, including anorexia nervosa (AN). Trauma and its sequelae, such as dissociation, often contribute to comorbidity and treatment refractoriness. Aims In this report, we describe the therapeutic emergence of previously dissociated traumatic memories of sexual assault in 2 of 10 research participants with AN while receiving psilocybin treatment. Methods Ten female adults who met DSM-5 criteria for AN or pAN (partial remission) participated in an open pilot study evaluating the safety, tolerability and preliminary efficacy of psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy. Participants received a 25-mg dose of investigational drug COMP360, a proprietary pharmaceutical-grade synthetic psilocybin formulation developed by COMPASS Pathfinder Ltd. administered in conjunction with psychological support. Participants also received two integration therapy sessions on days 1 and 7 after dosing, and they were reassessed at 1 and 3 months. Participants were interviewed using a semi-structured interview to understand qualitative perspectives of treatment and its effect on AN. Results/Outcomes Both patients described in this report significantly benefited from the emergence and processing of previously dissociated information (dissociative amnesia), and both patients subsequently attained remission of their AN psychopathology at 3-month follow-up as determined by global scores on the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q) and clinically meaningful weight gain. Conclusions/Interpretation PT may hold promise not only in the treatment of eating disorders but also trauma-related disorders, including PTSD and dissociative amnesia. Potential mechanisms of psilocybin’s facilitation of remembering and processing traumatic material is reviewed. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-dac6743ecff248a0b96b32e01ee9fd11 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2050-2974 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Eating Disorders |
| spelling | doaj-art-dac6743ecff248a0b96b32e01ee9fd112025-08-20T03:22:15ZengBMCJournal of Eating Disorders2050-29742025-05-0113111010.1186/s40337-025-01274-2Therapeutic emergence of dissociated traumatic memories during psilocybin treatment for anorexia nervosaStephanie Knatz Peck0Timothy D. Brewerton1Hannah Fisher2Julie Trim3Samantha Shao4Nadav Liam Modlin5Jessie Kim6Daphna M. Finn7Walter H. Kaye8Department of Psychiatry, University of CaliforniaDepartment of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Medical University of South CarolinaDepartment of Psychiatry, University of CaliforniaDepartment of Psychiatry, University of CaliforniaDepartment of Psychiatry, University of CaliforniaKing’s CollegeDepartment of Psychiatry, University of CaliforniaDepartment of Psychiatry, University of CaliforniaDepartment of Psychiatry, University of CaliforniaAbstract Background Psychedelic treatment is a rapidly emerging therapeutic approach for a host of chronic, difficult to treat psychiatric disorders, including anorexia nervosa (AN). Trauma and its sequelae, such as dissociation, often contribute to comorbidity and treatment refractoriness. Aims In this report, we describe the therapeutic emergence of previously dissociated traumatic memories of sexual assault in 2 of 10 research participants with AN while receiving psilocybin treatment. Methods Ten female adults who met DSM-5 criteria for AN or pAN (partial remission) participated in an open pilot study evaluating the safety, tolerability and preliminary efficacy of psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy. Participants received a 25-mg dose of investigational drug COMP360, a proprietary pharmaceutical-grade synthetic psilocybin formulation developed by COMPASS Pathfinder Ltd. administered in conjunction with psychological support. Participants also received two integration therapy sessions on days 1 and 7 after dosing, and they were reassessed at 1 and 3 months. Participants were interviewed using a semi-structured interview to understand qualitative perspectives of treatment and its effect on AN. Results/Outcomes Both patients described in this report significantly benefited from the emergence and processing of previously dissociated information (dissociative amnesia), and both patients subsequently attained remission of their AN psychopathology at 3-month follow-up as determined by global scores on the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q) and clinically meaningful weight gain. Conclusions/Interpretation PT may hold promise not only in the treatment of eating disorders but also trauma-related disorders, including PTSD and dissociative amnesia. Potential mechanisms of psilocybin’s facilitation of remembering and processing traumatic material is reviewed.https://doi.org/10.1186/s40337-025-01274-2Anorexia nervosaPsilocybinPsychotherapyEating disordersDissociative amnesiaMemory |
| spellingShingle | Stephanie Knatz Peck Timothy D. Brewerton Hannah Fisher Julie Trim Samantha Shao Nadav Liam Modlin Jessie Kim Daphna M. Finn Walter H. Kaye Therapeutic emergence of dissociated traumatic memories during psilocybin treatment for anorexia nervosa Journal of Eating Disorders Anorexia nervosa Psilocybin Psychotherapy Eating disorders Dissociative amnesia Memory |
| title | Therapeutic emergence of dissociated traumatic memories during psilocybin treatment for anorexia nervosa |
| title_full | Therapeutic emergence of dissociated traumatic memories during psilocybin treatment for anorexia nervosa |
| title_fullStr | Therapeutic emergence of dissociated traumatic memories during psilocybin treatment for anorexia nervosa |
| title_full_unstemmed | Therapeutic emergence of dissociated traumatic memories during psilocybin treatment for anorexia nervosa |
| title_short | Therapeutic emergence of dissociated traumatic memories during psilocybin treatment for anorexia nervosa |
| title_sort | therapeutic emergence of dissociated traumatic memories during psilocybin treatment for anorexia nervosa |
| topic | Anorexia nervosa Psilocybin Psychotherapy Eating disorders Dissociative amnesia Memory |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s40337-025-01274-2 |
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