Extended difficulties after psychedelic experiences: Prevalence and associations in a global, multilingual sample
Abstract
<title>Abstract</title> <p>As psychedelic use increases and integrates with mainstream medicine, understanding the prevalence and nature of post-psychedelic adverse outcomes is critical. We investigated extended difficulties after psychedelic use via the Global Psychedelic Survey (GPS) 2025, which is a multilingual online survey of people who have used psychedelics. Data on the prevalence, characteristics, and associations of retrospectively reported extended difficulties was gained from N = 6,476 participants. The most common difficulties reported were existential struggle (36.6%), depression (34%), and derealization (29.4%). Existential struggle was rated as the most severe difficulty, but also the one contributing most to healing. Overall, 48.3% of participants reported one or more difficulties lasting 24 hours or more, and 9.9% experienced difficulties for over a year. Clinically relevant disruptive difficulties (defined as lasting at least a month that caused disruption to daily life) were reported by 8% of the sample and were associated with younger age at the time of survey and at first psychedelic use, lower income, lack of family support, lower emotional stability/conscientiousness/agreeableness, higher pre-existing anxiety/depression, and using psychedelics to treat mental health conditions. The results underscore the necessity for evidence-based education on the potential risks and benefits of psychedelics, robust safety guidelines in clinical psychedelic interventions, and additional services for those experiencing post-psychedelic extended difficulties.</p>
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