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Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

sciencedirect.com

1–10 of 104 posts

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#3

Can someone tl;dr this without all the medical jargon?

The abstract spells it out: "This suggests fundamental differences in these treatments’ therapeutic actions, with SSRIs mitigating negative emotions and psilocybin allowing patients to confront and work through them. Based on the present results, we propose that psilocybin with psychological support is a treatment approach that potentially revives emotional responsiveness in depression, enabling patients to reconnect with their emotions."

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#4

Can someone tl;dr this without all the medical jargon?

They are comparing the effectiveness of SSRIs and psilocybin on depression by analyzing brain activity and the response to faces with different emotions (both agents work on serotonin receptors). Their conclusion is that while SSRIs lessens reaction to negative emotions, while psilocybin helps people think through their reactions. They conclude “Psilocybin represents a novel intervention for major depression that appears to be safe, rapid and potentially enduring in its antidepressant action.”

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#5

Can someone tl;dr this without all the medical jargon?

The last sentence of the abstract does a good job of this:

>"Based on the present results, we propose that psilocybin with psychological support is a treatment approach that potentially revives emotional responsiveness in depression, enabling patients to reconnect with their emotions."

This hypothesis was borne out in the data produced by the experiment.

Essentially, they were able to increase empathy in their patients which enabled the patients to experience less isolation, thus relieving (some/most of) their depression.

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#6
While researching microdosing last year I learned that psilocybin and SSRIs have similar mechanisms of action, so I’m very happy they did this research. Anti-depressants are very popular drugs, and psychedelics have been suppressed culturally and legally, much like marijuana. I think there is definitely a place for ‘medicinal mushrooms ‘. Like MDMA, it’s an amazing substance psychologically.

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#7
evidence indicates that psilocybin with psychological support may be effective for treating depression

On its own, psychological support may be effective for treating depression. If you're depressed, a reasonable starting point for clinical treatment is clinical treatment. The abstract does not suggest that self-medication with magic mushrooms may be effective. Deciding to consume psilocybin on one's own is an orthogonal decision and the study might provide a new rationalization for the practice. But it's just a rationalization for shrooming outside of a clinical setting.

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#8
post #7

evidence indicates that psilocybin with psychological support may be effective for treating depression On its own, psychological support may be effective for treating depression. If you're depressed, a reasonable starting point for clinical treatment is clinical treatment. The abstract does not suggest that self-medication with magic mushrooms may be effective. Deciding to consume psilocybin on one's own is an orthog…

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Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#9

While researching microdosing last year I learned that psilocybin and SSRIs have similar mechanisms of action, so I’m very happy they did this research. Anti-depressants are very popular drugs, and psychedelics have been suppressed culturally and legally, much like marijuana. I think there is definitely a place for ‘medicinal mushrooms ‘. Like MDMA, it’s an amazing substance psychologically.

[deleted]

Re: Increased amygdala responses after psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression

#10
post #8
post #7

evidence indicates that psilocybin with psychological support may be effective for treating depression On its own, psychological support may be effective for treating depression. If you're depressed, a reasonable starting point for clinical treatment is clinical treatment. The abstract does not suggest that self-medication with magic mushrooms may be effective. Deciding to consume psilocybin on one's own is an orthog…

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