LSD and Chill: Study Finds Acid Soothes Anxiety
The world calls LSD a hallucinogen, a psychedelic, and an entheogen. What if it gets a new name: anxiolytic? Will doctors prescribe LSD for anxiety, the way they do Xanax or Celexa?
Anxiety disorders affect nearly 20 percent of the population, according to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America.
A company called MindMed is studying how LSD, MDMA, and other compounds could treat various mental illnesses. MindMed designed a proprietary form of LSD, which they call MM-120. They mean for it to treat general anxiety disorder and other conditions such as adult ADHD.
Promising Results of LSD for Anxiety
To be clear, MindMed does not want LSD used exactly like Xanax or Celexa. MindMed is not looking for people to pop LSD pills every day, like people do with Celexa. It doesn’t expect patients to chew an LSD tablet when they’re feeling nervous, like they do with Xanax.
MindMed is studying larger doses, given only occasionally, under supportive conditions, to see the effects on worried, jittery minds over extended periods.
MindMed is currently enrolling 200 people for their Phase 2b study. A Phase 2b study looks at how effective a treatment is for a condition. MindMed is giving people their version of LSD at different doses: a mini-dose of 25 micrograms; a half-dose of 50 micrograms; a full dose of 100 micrograms; or a bigger dose of 200 micrograms. MindMed is giving some people a placebo.
Last year, MindMed’s collaborator at the University Hospital Basel released results in 42 patients. Researchers gave them either two doses of 200 micrograms or two doses of placebo. In that study, there were significant reductions in anxiety 16 weeks after treatment.
“[The] results demonstrated the significant, rapid, durable, and beneficial effects of LSD and potential to safely mitigate symptoms of anxiety. We know a lot about this molecule and we are leveraging our team’s pharmaceutical expertise to conduct rigorous clinical development and create an efficient pathway to approval,” said Rob Barrow, MindMed’s CEO. “The results of our 200-patient Phase 2b trial of MM-120, MindMed’s proprietary form of LSD D-tartrate are expected by the end of this year and will guide the dose selection and development strategy for our pivotal Phase 3 clinical trials, as we continue our efforts to bring a new potential treatment to the millions of people living with generalized anxiety disorder.”
Note that these researchers achieved these positive results under strict testing guidelines in controlled settings. If taken outside of a controlled environment, the results could vary. Some trip reports on sites like Reddit note that the powerful psychedelic can actually promote anxiety — at least in the short term. And even those users who report reduced anxiety in the short-term rarely see lasting effects. This could be due to the lack of integration through psychotherapy. People find ketamine can reduce anxiety, too, and so can microdosing.
Why This Psychedelic Could Successfully Treat Anxiety
Stigmatized and demonized for decades, a psychedelic resurgence is sweeping through medical care. Companies and universities are studying the drugs as a means of treating mental disorders, including anxiety and depression.
There is evidence—including a systematic review of psychedelics for mental illness—to suggest that the effect has something to do with the compounds’ effects on the default mode network (DMN). The DMN is a pattern of brain activity that is our persisting sense of self. This pattern is, at least in part, responsible for fear, anxiety, and rumination .
The DMN is crucial to everyday processes. But overactivity could be one culprit for developing general anxiety disorder, depression, and several other mental conditions.
LSD and other psychedelics not only suppress the DMN in the short-term right after dosage. But they also have a notably lasting effect on its functionality. LSD shows promise as a medication for acute anxiety relief and also for long-term treatment.
Early results from MindMed’s clinical trial suggest that a single treatment of LSD could prove more efficient than multiple doses of more traditional compounds for relieving anxiety. The company is still carrying out clinical trials to cement their findings.
LSD May Change Your Brain in a Way that Reduces Anxiety
Other studies have shown that other psychedelics, like psilocybin, have lasting effects on the brain as well. One study in particular concluded that the changes made to the executive control network (ECN), which is another major control system that works alongside the DMN, lasted for three months after a single treatment.
Of course, long-term studies will be even more helpful in determining how effective LSD and other psychedelics are for treating anxiety, as well as understanding why they work.
MindMed’s CEO is optimistic about future medicinal LSD use. “LSD happens to be the most studied drug in its class which helps de-risk development,” Barrow, MindMed’s CEO, said. “This is an exciting time to be in the space and to rethink brain health treatments for the many patients in need.”
