A 2006 study found that adults with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or severe ADHD symptoms who took microdoses of psychedelic drugs reported improved mindfulness after four weeks. According to a new preliminary study, frontiers of psychiatry. This finding highlights the importance of conducting future placebo-controlled studies to verify whether these observed changes can be reproduced in a controlled experimental setting.
ADHD affects millions of adults worldwide and is characterized by symptoms such as inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. Many people with ADHD turn to microdosing low-dose psychedelic drugs, sub-hallucinogens, to self-medicate symptoms and improve daily functioning. While recent research has investigated how microdosing may alter personality traits and mindfulness in the general population, its effects on individuals with ADHD remain largely unknown.
Mindfulness is defined as the ability to be present, pay attention to current experience, and respond to thoughts and feelings without judgment, and is associated with conscientiousness, agreeableness, extraversion, neuroticism, and tolerance. It is associated with personality traits such as Previous research has shown that people with ADHD tend to have lower mindfulness scores and different personality traits than people without ADHD. However, it is unclear how microdosing affects these characteristics in her ADHD patients.
To address this knowledge gap, a recent study was conducted investigating the effects of microdosing on mindfulness and personality traits in adults diagnosed with ADHD or experiencing severe ADHD symptoms. Ta. This study was part of a larger research effort and followed a prospective, naturalistic design. Adults with ADHD or severe ADHD-like symptoms who were willing to voluntarily begin microdosing psychedelic drugs were recruited into the study.
“We have previously demonstrated that people with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) self-medicate by administering repeated low doses of psychedelic substances, commonly known as microdosing. This approach has been shown to result in improvements in ADHD symptoms and overall well-being,” said study author Elaine CHM Heijen (@Ehigen), doctoral candidate Department of Neuropsychology and Psychopharmacology At Maastricht University.
“People diagnosed with ADHD typically have low levels of mindfulness, have difficulty focusing and maintaining attention in the present moment, and are nonjudgmental and unresponsive to new thoughts and feelings.” Additionally, their personality structure differs from non-ADHD individuals, with increased neuroticism (i.e., negative affectivity and emotional instability) and decreased conscientiousness (i.e., being less efficient and organized). ) is a feature.
“Previous microdosing studies have investigated changes in mindfulness and personality traits after microdosing, but these studies have primarily included samples from the general population. , we were interested in learning whether and how these characteristics change after microdosing adults with ADHD.”
Researchers collected data at four time points: baseline, two weeks after starting microdosing, four weeks after starting, and daily surveys. They recruited participants online, provided information about the study, and obtained informed consent. There were 233 participants at baseline, 66 at 2 weeks, and 44 at 4 weeks. The majority of participants reported microdosing of psilocybin-containing mushrooms.
Participants completed a variety of psychological assessments, including the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ-15) for mindfulness and the Big Five Inventory for Personality Traits (BFI-10). They also reported past experiences with psychedelic drugs, mindfulness practices, comorbid psychiatric diagnoses, and ADHD medication use.
After two and four weeks of microdosing, participants reported increased levels of mindfulness compared to baseline. Specifically, improvements were seen in areas such as observing, explaining, acting with awareness, not judging inner experiences, and not reacting to inner experiences.
“After four weeks of microdosing, we saw improvements in all aspects of mindfulness,” Hygen explained. “However, when controlling for recent mindfulness/meditation experience, only the dimensions of explanation and non-judgment of inner experience remained elevated. Therefore, these dimensions were particularly sensitive to changes after microdosing. It seems like there is.”
Explanation in the context of mindfulness refers to the ability to verbalize or explain one’s experience verbally or mentally. Non-judgment of inner experience, on the other hand, is a core aspect of mindfulness, which involves accepting and observing one’s thoughts, emotions, and sensations without judgment or evaluation. It means not labeling experiences as good or bad, right or wrong.
“Their average mindfulness scores at four weeks were comparable to the average mindfulness scores of the general population sample,” Hygen said.
The researchers also found that neuroticism, a personality trait often associated with emotional instability, decreased after four weeks of microdosing. Conscientiousness and extraversion increased after 4 and 2 weeks, respectively, but these effects were not statistically significant when multiple comparisons were taken into account. Cooperation and tolerance remained the same.
“After four weeks of microdosing, there was a significant reduction in the personality trait neuroticism compared to baseline,” Heijen told PsyPost. “However, this mean neuroticism score was still higher than the mean neuroticism level in the general population sample. Therefore, in adults with ADHD, mindfulness and personality traits were positively affected after 4 weeks of microdosing. However, controlled studies are needed to confirm these findings.”
However, this study had several limitations, including a high dropout rate and potential bias from participants who did not have a comfortable microdosing experience. Additionally, controlled studies in laboratory settings are required to ensure uniformity of the substances and doses used. Future research could investigate whether the effects of microdosing on mindfulness and personality traits are long-lasting by conducting follow-up measurements several months after microdosing.
“This study is a naturalistic prospective study, meaning we measured participants over time without any manipulation of variables such as the substance or dose used for microdosing during the study,” Hygen said. . “This is in contrast to controlled laboratory-based studies, where uniformity of drug and dose is ensured. Also, no control group is included, so it is unclear whether this effect is purely due to microdosing or whether We do not know whether other factors, such as placebo effects or expectancy effects, are the main forces behind the observed changes. Therefore, this study should be seen as a first step in this research direction. It is hoped that more controlled studies will follow.”
“Thanks to naturalistic studies like this one, we can learn more about microdosing practices in society,” added Heijen. “For example, the doses that people use for microdosing seem to vary widely. They seem to try several doses and dosing regimens and ultimately choose the method that works best for them. Calibration of this dosing practice may be an important factor in measuring the effectiveness of microdosing, but it is difficult to capture in controlled laboratory-based studies.”
the study, “Traits of mindfulness and personality traits in a microdosing ADHD sample: A naturalistic prospective survey study.” was written by Eline CHM Haijen, Petra PM Hurks, and Kim PC Kuypers.
