Activating Neuroplasticity to ENHANCE the Perception Box Expanding Effects of Psilocybin (the ENHANCE Study)
Sponsor: Tiny Blue Dot Foundation
Principal Investigator: Charles Raison, MD
Purpose: The purpose of the study is to explore whether vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) may enhance the wellbeing-related effects of psilocybin. Psilocybin is a drug with temporary psychedelic effects that is not approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), but the FDA has allowed for the use of psilocybin in research. The VNS used in this study is a non-invasive, at home procedure that applies gentle electrical stimulation to the ear.
Study Population: English-speaking adults, 18-70 years old with reduced wellbeing, who meet other eligibility criteria as determined in the pre-screening process.
Interested? If interested in participating, you can find out more about the study here and/or complete our online survey to see if you are eligible, in which case you may be contacted by the study team.
Role of Experience, Conscious Awareness, and Plasticity in Psilocybin’s Behavioral Effects – Follow-Up Study (the RECAP2 Study)
Sponsor: Vail Health Foundation
Principal Investigator: Charles Raison, MD
Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the role that inducing neuroplasticity (the brain’s ability to adapt and change) plays in the behavioral effects of psilocybin in people who have experienced a mild decline in emotional wellbeing. Psilocybin is a drug with temporary psychedelic effects that is not approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), but the FDA has allowed for the use of psilocybin in research.
Study Population: English-speaking adults, 18-65 years old with reduced wellbeing, who meet other eligibility criteria as determined in the pre-screening process.
Interested? If interested in participating, you can find out more about the study here and/or complete our online survey to see if you are eligible, in which case you may be contacted by the study team.
Consciousness and Psilocybin Effects on Well-Being
(The CoPEWell Study)
Sponsor: Tiny Blue Dot Foundation
Principal Investigator: Charles Raison, MD
Purpose: The purpose of the study is to examine whether conscious awareness during the psychedelic experience is required (or strongly beneficial) for the longer-term effects on Perception Box expansion.
Study Population: English-speaking adults, 18-45 years old with reduced wellbeing, who meet other eligibility criteria as determined in the pre-screening process.
Interested? If interested in participating, please send an email to copewell@psychiatry.wisc.edu, and we will add you to the list of people to contact when recruitment begins. Check back here for a link to our recruitment survey when recruitment begins.
The Optimizing Psilocybin Study (OPT-IN) – Vail, Colorado
Through the establishment of The Vail Health Behavioral Health Innovation Center (BHIC), a collaboration between Vail Health and University of Wisconsin-Madison directed by Dr. Charles Raison, our research team supports the implementation of the OPT-IN Study which examines novel ways to enhance the impact of psilocybin on depression and anxiety via co-administration of non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation.
Conducted at the Vail Health BHIC, this study is unique in that it also assesses the impact of psilocybin on real-world social behavior and uses advanced strategies to better understand the risks and benefits of psilocybin use in a legalized setting, such as Colorado.
For more information, see the study description on Clinicaltrials.gov