Key points

There is a renewed and increasing interest in psychedelic drugs as potential therapeutic resources.

Psychedelics, including psilocybin, are being explored to treat more conditions, including chronic pain.

Recent research demonstrates that psilocybin can significantly reduce chronic pain in rats.

Source: Peggy und Marco Lachmann-Anke from Pixabay There is a renewed and increasing interest in psychedelic drugs as potential therapeutic resources for the treatment of psychiatric disorders. In particular, psilocybin—the psychoactive psychedelic ingredient in “magic mushrooms”—has shown promise for the treatment of depression , and I’ve written previously about it as a treatment adjunct for alcohol abuse .

The rising awareness around psychedelics as potential treatments for mental health has significantly raised their profile, helping to generate interest in exploring their use related to other conditions, including chronic pain . According to the CDC, an estimated 51 million Americans suffer from chronic pain—defined as pain lasting longer than 3 months. [1]

Notably, the National Institutes of Health recently announced funding of $8.4M to support trials examining the efficacy and safety of psychedelic treatments for chronic pain. Per NIH, "A potential novel approach to treatment of chronic pain in adults involves psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT). Evidence for the efficacy of PAT has been particularly notable in depression, anxiety (especially existential distress), post- traumatic stress disorder ( PTSD ), and substance use disorders, among other indications." The NIH-funded research can include psilocybin, LSD, mescaline, and MDMA, a.k.a. ecstasy. [2]

Despite growing evidence of therapeutic potential, there had been no systematic studies to investigate the effectiveness of psilocybin to help treat chronic pain. However, researchers from the University of Michigan recently demonstrated that psilocybin can significantly reduce chronic pain in rats. Published in the December 18, 2023 issue of Current Biology, this study examined chronic pain in rats induced using intravenous formalin injections, a compound known to cause long-lasting pain sensitivity. [3]

Two types of pain responses were analyzed. Mechanical hypersensitivity—increased sensitivity to pain from physical touch that wouldn’t normally be painful, and thermal hyperalgesia which occurs when intense pain is experienced from warm temperatures that would not usually be […]

Psilocybin Is Proving to Be Beneficial for Chronic Pain