Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research just published a well designed study showing that Psilocybin is effective in treating depression.

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2772630?resultClick=1

This is a small study and one has to be careful with generalizing the results, but the fact that the “magnitude of the effect … was about four times larger than what clinical trials have shown for traditional anti-depressants on the market” (Dr. Alan Davis) is a very good sign and is quite predictive that a similar large study would show good results. 

Importantly, this study used only two doses of psilocybin in the context of supportive therapy. The psilocybin group, in comparison with the group that did therapy only, showed rapid and large reductions in depressive symptoms. Half of participants no longer had depression diagnosis a month after therapy.

Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy is currently being studied in different contexts, including anxiety in the context of dying, addictions, eating disorders, and depression, and we are likely to hear quite a bit about this new, and so far very promising, form of therapy. Stay tuned.

Notably, as we reported in our previous blog, Health Canada recently paved the way to easier access to MDMA- and Psilocybin-Assisted Therapies via Special Access protocol. This means that some people in need might be able to access these therapies even before they are fully approved in the medical context.