Breaking the Negative Affective Bias: Psychedelic Journey of Rewiring the Brain for Positive Mental Health

Tuesday - January 23 2024, 09:03 UTC - 10 months ago

Psychedelics have shown potential in rapidly reducing negative affective bias - a common feature of depression. A new study found that ketamine and psilocybin can rewire brain circuits and shift emotional states, leading to lasting effects. The drugs' ability to promote neural plasticity and the birth of new neurons may explain their fast-acting nature. Despite being commonly seen as party drugs, psychedelics are gaining recognition in the medical community for their potential in mental health therapy.

Depression is a global epidemic, affecting millions of people worldwide. While traditional antidepressants have been the go-to method for treating depression, their success rates are limited and they often take weeks or even months to take effect. However, recent research has shown that psychedelics may hold the key to rapid and lasting relief from depression, through their ability to reduce negative affective bias.

Negative affective bias is a common feature of depression, where individuals view the world and their experiences through a negative lens. This leads to a constant state of sadness and rumination, making it difficult for those suffering to see the positive aspects of their lives. Scientists have been searching for ways to break this cycle and help individuals shift to a more positive mindset.

In a new study, researchers found that psychedelics, when administered in a controlled environment and combined with therapy, can effectively reduce negative affective bias in rats. More specifically, ketamine, a dissociative party drug, and scopolamine, a hallucinogen, were found to shift the emotional state of rats from negative to neutral. Psilocybin, the active ingredient in magic mushrooms, was even more effective in turning the rats' emotional dial towards positivity. This means that the rats became more open to learning and replaced their negative thoughts with positive ones.

But beyond just reducing negative affective bias, psychedelics also seem to work incredibly fast. Within a day, ketamine was found to rewire brain circuits, specifically the ones that regulate emotion. This explains why a single shot of ketamine can have lasting antidepressant effects, even long after the drug has left the body. Lower doses of psychedelics were also found to have therapeutic effects, highlighting the potential for lower dosages in treating depression.

The lead author of the study, Emma Robinson, shared that these findings could explain the long-lasting effects of a single psychedelic treatment in human patients.

The fast-acting nature of psychedelics can be attributed to their ability to shake up brain networks that regulate emotion. The drugs not only change the emotional tone of memories but also promote neural plasticity, the brain's ability to change and learn. This is crucial in the treatment of depression, where individuals often struggle with forming new and positive connections in their brains.

The use of psychedelics in mental health therapy may seem like a radical concept, but it has been gaining momentum in the scientific and medical communities. Ketamine, in particular, has paved the way for this research, with its intriguing action in the brain, especially in the hippocampus - the brain region responsible for memories and emotions. The drug has also been found to promote the birth of new neurons, further boosting the brain's processing power and aiding in the rewiring of neural networks.

While we often associate psychedelics with their use as party drugs or their role in religious and spiritual rituals, their potential as medicine has been acknowledged by reputable institutions like Johns Hopkins and Imperial College London. As more research is conducted and funding is allocated towards psychedelic-assisted therapy, we may be closer to breaking the negative affective bias and providing rapid and long-lasting relief for those suffering from depression.