New research shows how psychedelics reorganise the patterns in your brain

Francesco Carta / Getty Images One participant described “melding with the MRI machine, floor, walls and air”.

Another described “losing all sense of self”, becoming at one with their surroundings.

Half the participants in our study reported having one of the most meaningful experiences of their lives.

What were they talking about? Taking psilocybin, the psychedelic compound in magic mushrooms.

Participants reported feeling less separation between themselves and world.

We scanned their brains during the experience, and found surprising patterns of organisation – while the brain networks that process our inner world and surroundings also became less distinct.

Our research is published today in Nature.

It adds new information to the ongoing discussion of the mental effects of psychedelics such as psilocybin and how they can be used in therapies .

Rest, meditation, music and clouds We examined 62 healthy adults with no prior psychedelic experience.

Each received 19 milligrams of psilocybin, a moderate dose similar to those used in clinical trials.

Participants had magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans and electroencephalograph (EEG) recordings of electrical brain activity twice, about one week apart.

Once without psilocybin, and once after taking it.

Both sessions involved rest, meditation and listening to ambient, ethereal music with closed eyes, followed by a silent video of moving clouds.

We have published the results in the PsiConnect dataset .