Mystical-type experiences occasioned by psilocybin mediate the attribution of personal meaning and spiritual significance 14 months later
Open accessAbstract
Psilocybin has been used for centuries for religious purposes; however, little is known scientifically about its long-term effects. We previously reported the effects of a double-blind study evaluating the psychological effects of a high psilocybin dose. This report presents the 14-month follow-up and examines the relationship of the follow-up results to data obtained at screening and on drug session days. Participants were 36 hallucinogen-naïve adults reporting regular participation in religious/ spiritual activities. Oral psilocybin (30 mg/70 kg) was administered on one of two or three sessions, with methylphenidate (40 mg/70 kg) administered on the other session(s). During sessions, volunteers were encouraged to close their eyes and direct their attention inward. At the 14-month follow-up, 58% and 67%, respectively, of volunteers rated the psilocybin-occasioned experience as being among the five most personally meaningful and among the five most spiritually significant experiences of their lives; 64% indicated that the experience increased well-being or life satisfaction; 58% met criteria for having had a 'complete' mystical experience. Correlation and regression analyses indicated a central role of the mystical experience assessed on the session day in the high ratings of personal meaning and spiritual significance at follow-up. Of the measures of personality, affect, quality of life and spirituality assessed across the study, only a scale measuring mystical experience showed a difference from screening. When administered under supportive conditions, psilocybin occasioned experiences similar to spontaneously occurring mystical experiences that, at 14-month follow-up, were considered by volunteers to be among the most personally meaningful and spiritually significant of their lives.
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Psilocybin is a serotonergic classic psychedelic that has been examined in combination with psychological support as a promising treatment option in clinical trials for various disorders.
“Psilocybin (4-phosphryloxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine) is a serotonergic classic psychedelic (19–25) that has been examined in combination with psychological support as a promising treatment option in clinical trials for various disorders (26–28).”
From Acute and post-dosing effects of single-dose psilocybin for obsessive-compulsive disorder in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial: an interpretative phenomenological analysis (2025) · cites this paper as [21]
The Introduction identifies psilocybin as a classical hallucinogen whose effects are primarily mediated at 5-HT2A receptors, and the Methods describe preparation and interpersonal support. But the Comment proposes re-initiating therapeutic trials; this study followed volunteers’ experiences, not psilocybin treatment trials for various disorders. Its discussion of earlier treatment studies concerns classical hallucinogens generally. (LLM, conf=0.88)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredPsilocybin increases emotional empathy, attachment security and other prosocial effects.
“supporting evidence that psilocybin increases emotional empathy, attachment security and other prosocial effects, which has been observed previously [61,62].”
From Psilocybin‐assisted psychotherapy for methamphetamine use disorder: A pilot open‐label safety and feasibility study. (2025) · cites this paper as [62]
The Results (page not supplied) report higher retrospective ratings of positive social effects and behavior after psilocybin than after methylphenidate; the Comment also describes positive changes in altruism. The paper does not report increases in emotional empathy or attachment security, so those specific parts of the claim are unsupported. (LLM, conf=0.88)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredPsychedelic experiences in clinical settings are often characterized as highly meaningful.
“Psychedelic experiences in clinical settings are often characterized as highly meaningful.”
From Authenticity and Love Drugs: Insights from Psychedelic Therapy (2026) · cites this paper as Griffiths et al. 2008
The Comment section reports that many volunteers rated their psilocybin experience among the most personally meaningful of their lives. The Methods and Comment sections describe a supported, laboratory-based study of healthy volunteers, not psychedelic experiences across clinical settings generally. (LLM, conf=0.84)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredPsilocybin treatment has been described as one of the most meaningful experiences in the lives of participants of several studies.
“psilocybin treatment has been described as one of the most meaningful experiences (Griffiths et al. 2008;Smith and Sisti 2020) in the lives of participants of several studies.”
From Authenticity and Love Drugs: Insights from Psychedelic Therapy (2026) · cites this paper as Griffiths et al. 2008
The Results and Comment report that 58% of volunteers rated their psilocybin-session experience among the five most personally meaningful of their lives. This supports the meaningful-experience claim, but the study involved hallucinogen-naïve volunteers in a laboratory session, not patients receiving psilocybin treatment. (LLM, conf=0.85)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredIn this trial, participants rarely described the full array of acute effects that together prototypically constitute 'full mystical experiences' described in landmark studies.
“in our trial, participants rarely described the full array of acute effects that together prototypically constitute ‘full mystical experiences’ described in landmark studies (e.g., psilocybin for existential distress or depression) (21, 63).”
Psychedelics such as psilocybin have demonstrated a similar mood-enhancing potential.
“Mindfulness meditation and mindfulness-based interventions can augment positive affect in healthy and clinical populations acutely and long-term (10, 88) and a similar mood-enhancing potential has been demonstrated for psychedelics such as psilocybin (29, 38, 60, 83, 87).”
From Examining the Potential Synergistic Effects Between Mindfulness Training and Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy (2021) · cites this paper as [83]
Previous studies utilising psychedelic-administration outside of a mindfulness-enhancing context have failed to show such positive trait changes, with the exception of trait openness.
“Importantly, previous studies utilising psychedelic-administration outside of a mindfulness-enhancing context have failed to show such positive trait changes (83, 87, 133), with the exception of trait openness (74, 134).”
From Examining the Potential Synergistic Effects Between Mindfulness Training and Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy (2021) · cites this paper as [83]
Controlled studies where subjects achieved mystical experiences under the effects of psilocybin showed personal long-term benefits.
“Controlled studies where subjects achieved mystical experiences under the effects of psilocybin showed personal long-term benefits (Griffiths et al., 2008; Griffiths et al., 2011).”
From Psychological variables implied in the therapeutic effect of ayahuasca: A contextual approach (2018) · cites this paper as Griffiths et al., 2008
Feelings from a substance are not inauthentic where the meaning derived can continue to influence and help the person beyond the use of the drug.
“we suggest this is not the case where the meaning derived can continue to influence and help the person beyond the use of the drug, as studies have indicated (Griffiths et al. 2008;Lebedev et al. 2016).”
From Authenticity and Love Drugs: Insights from Psychedelic Therapy (2026) · cites this paper as Griffiths et al. 2008
Self-reported increases in interpersonal closeness and positive/altruistic social effects were reported 1, 2, 6, and 14 months after one and two administrations of psilocybin.
“Self-reported increases in interpersonal closeness and positive/altruistic social effects were reported 1, 2, 6, and 14 months after one and two administrations of psilocybin (89–92).”
From Modulation of Social Cognition via Hallucinogens and “Entactogens” (2019) · cites this paper as [90]
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- Authors
- Griffiths, R., Richards, W., Johnson, M., McCann, U., & Jesse, R.
- Affiliations
- Johns Hopkins University (US)
- Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center (US)
- Council on Spiritual Practices, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Corresponding author
- Griffiths, RR
- Venue
- Journal of Psychopharmacology
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2008-05-30
- Volume
- 22
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 621-632
- ISSN
- 0269-8811 (ISSN-L)
- 1461-7285
- PMC
- PMC3050654
- OpenAlex
- W2119738402
- Semantic Scholar
- 8b54ddd9e7bd7d50e17fd859f71038906017cf13
- Cited by
- 905
- References
- 49
- Citations by year
- 2026: 57 · 2025: 98 · 2024: 89 · 2023: 89 · 2022: 101 · 2021: 79 · 2020: 65 · 2019: 29 · 2018: 54 · 2017: 44 · 2016: 46 · 2015: 16 · 2014: 31 · 2013: 24 · 2012: 26
- FWCI
- 20.58
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Journal of Psychopharmacology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- Heffter Research Institute
- National Institute on Drug Abuse (R01DA003889)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychedelics and Drug Studies
- Social Sciences › Health › Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Paranormal Experiences and Beliefs
- Keywords
- psilocybin, mystical experience, personal meaning, spiritual meaning, long-term effects, life satisfaction, well-being, spirituality, religious experience, personality, quality of life
- MeSH terms
- Administration, Oral, Adult, Affect, Female, Follow-Up Studies, Hallucinogens, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Mysticism, Personality, Psilocybin, Quality of Life, Surveys and Questionnaires, Religion, Time Factors, Knowledge, Spirituality
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