Psychedelics and mental health: Having mystical experiences may yield strongest benefits

Scientists report particularly mystical and insightful psychedelic drug experiences may be associated with an enduring drop in both anxiety and depression symptoms. Of course, there’s also the risk of encountering a “bad trip.” What happens if a psychedelic experience becomes unpleasant, frightening, or destabilizing? Surprisingly, the study actually found that even challenging psychedelic trips can be beneficial — especially within the context of mystical and insightful experiences. Low scoring, combining low to moderate scores on mystical and insightful experiences and low scores on the challenging scale. Positive scoring, featuring high scores for mystical and insightful experiences and low scores on the challenging assessment.