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DMT (N,N-Dimethyltryptamine) is a psychedelic known for inducing intense states of consciousness. This psychedelic naturally occurs in different plants and animals, including humans. When consumed, it produces effects that last under 15 minutes, with users often reporting feelings of oneness with the universe, vivid hallucinations, and deep mystical or spiritual experiences.
While a lot is known about the psychological effects of psychedelics, not much is known about how the body and its role in these experiences. Now new research has uncovered a new link between patterns of heart activity and mystic experiences induced by DMT.
The objective of the investigators was to examine how changes in activities of the autonomic nervous system during the administration of DMT may be associated with subjective experiences of insightfulness and spirituality.
Their research involved seventeen healthy participants, 6 of whom were women. Each participant took part in a controlled trial where DMT or a placebo was administered. The investigators used electrocardiograms to monitor their heart activity during this period, which allowed them to measure the influence of the autonomic nervous system on heart activity prior to, during and following the psychedelic’s administration.
The autonomic nervous system is divided into the sympathetic nervous system, which helps activate the body’s fight or flight response and the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps the body relax after stress, promoting recovery and relaxation.
In addition, each participant was required to complete questionnaires before and after their psychedelic sessions, which included a scale that measured dimensions like insightfulness and spiritual experience. Two weeks after their psychedelic trip, the participants gave reports on their well-being.
In their report, the investigators revealed that they’d observed that both the parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous systems were active at the same time during the psychedelic trip. This is unusual, with the investigators linking this observation to reports of insightful and spiritual experiences from participants during the psychedelic session.
In addition to this, they found that the balance between these two nervous systems before and after DMT’s administration could forecast the intensity of the psychedelic experiences. The investigators also discovered that the degree of co-activation between the two nervous systems during the psychedelic session was associated with improvements in well-being.
These findings suggest that the physiological responses play a crucial role in shaping the psychological effects of these drugs.
The study did have some limitations, which included the assessment of only heart function to measure activity in the autonomic nervous system, and the small sample size. Its findings were reported in the Journal of Psychopharmacology.
As more entities like Seelos Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: SEEL) progress with their R&D programs, more information is likely to become available about the different mechanisms through which hallucinogenic compounds react with various body systems in order to trigger the therapeutic effects that these substances have come to be associated with.
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