Cognitive Effects of Psychedelics
This article breaks down the subjective cognitive effects of the psychedelic experience into simple and easy to understand descriptions with accompanying image replications. This is done without resorting to metaphor, analogy, or personal trip reports.
These descriptions are not specific to any particular substance but are applicable to the effects which commonly occur in various forms under the influence of almost any psychedelic compound. This includes, but is not limited to, both classical and research chemical psychedelics, such as:
LSD, Psilocybin mushrooms, DMT, Ayahuasca, Mescaline, 5-MeO-MiPT, 2C-B, LSA, AL-LAD, ALD-52, 1P-LSD, 2C-B-Fly, 2C-C, 2C-D, 2C-E, 2C-P, 4-AcO-DMT, 4-HO-MET, 4-HO-MiPT, 5-MeO-DMT, DPT, and DOC.
The article begins with a description of the simpler effects and works its way up towards more complex experiences as it progresses. Individual effects are also summarized with a link to their full article.
Cognitive Amplifications
Cognitive amplifications are defined as any subjective effect that increases, enhances, or intensifies a facet of a person's sense of cognition.
Analysis enhancement
Anxiety
Creativity enhancement
Emotion intensification
Increased music appreciation
Increased sense of humor
Increased suggestibility
Novelty enhancement
Personal meaning enhancement
Thought connectivity
Cognitive Suppressions
Cognitive suppressions are any subjective effect which decreases or lowers the intensity of an aspect of a person's cognition.
Focus suppression
Memory suppression
Personal bias suppression
Novel States
A novel cognitive state is any cognitive effect which does not
merely amplify or suppress familiar states of mind, but rather induces an experience that is qualitatively
different from that of ordinary consciousness.
Although many transpersonal and psychological effects also technically fit into this definition, they are
excluded from this category of effects as they have their own defining qualities which standard novel states do not.
Conceptual thinking
Enhancement and suppression cycles
Thought loops
Time distortion
TIME DILATION
Time dilation is the feeling that time has slowed down. This commonly occurs during intense hallucinogenic experiences and seems to stem from the fact that abnormally large amounts of experience are felt in very short periods of time during an intense trip. This can create the illusion that more time has passed than it actually has. For example, at the end of certain experiences, one may feel that they have subjectively undergone days, weeks, months, years, or even infinite periods of time. Time dilation is often accompanied by other coinciding effects such as spirituality enhancement, thought loops, novelty enhancement, and internal hallucinations. This may lead one to perceive a disproportionately large number of events have occurred in this time. It is most commonly induced under the influence of heavy dosages of hallucinogenic compounds, such as psychedelics, dissociatives, entactogens, and cannabinoids.TIME COMPRESSION
Time compression is the experience of time speeding up and passing much quicker than it usually would while sober. For example, during this state, a person may realize that an entire day or evening has passed them by in what feels like only a couple of hours. This commonly occurs under the influence of stimulating compounds and seems to at least partially stem from the fact that during intense levels of stimulation, people typically become hyper-focused on activities and tasks. However, the same experience can also occur on depressant compounds that induce amnesia. This occurs due to the way a person can forget everything that occurred under the influence of the particular substance, thus giving the impression that they have suddenly jumped forward in time. Time compression is often accompanied by other coinciding effects such as memory suppression, focus enhancement, stimulation, and amnesia. This may lead one into perceiving a disproportionately small number of events have occurred in this time. It is most commonly induced under the influence of heavy dosages of stimulating and/or amnesic compounds, such as dissociatives, entactogens, amphetamines and benzodiazepines.Psychological States
Psychological effects are any cognitive effect that is either established within the psychological literature or arises as a result of the complex interplay between other more simplistic components such as cognitive enhancements and suppressions.
Catharsis
Deja vu
Delusion
Introspection
Rejuvenation
Transpersonal States
Transpersonal states are any subjective effect which feels as if it alters a person's cognition in a manner which relates to or contains information regarding their place in the universe, the inner workings of reality or consciousness, and the context of their existence. The fullest manifestation of these effects fall under what are sometimes called "peak", "transcendent" or "transformative" experiences.
Ego death
Type 1
Absent selfhood
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An absent selfhood can be described as a sudden and complete lack of the subjective experience of one’s own sense of identity. During this form of ego death, there is a profound experience of remaining fully conscious, while there is no longer an “I” experiencing one’s sensory input; there is just the sensory input as it is and by itself, without a conscious agent to comment on or think about what is happening to it.
Type 2
Objectified selfhood
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An objective selfhood can be described as the experience of the person remaining aware of the existence of oneself, while no longer perceiving themselves as integrally attached to their sense of identity. Instead of feeling that they and their sense of selfhood are a unified whole which is the subject of experience, their awareness instead feels entirely separate from it’s own sense of self, as if this selfhood is now the object of experience instead of the subject.
Type 3
Expanded selfhood
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An expanded selfhood can be described as the experience of one’s sense of identity becoming constituted by a wider array of concepts than it previously did. For example, while a person may usually feel that they are exclusively their “ego” and physical body, this effect can cause their sense of identity to also include the external environment or an object they are interacting with. This results in intense and inextricable feelings of unity or interconnectedness between oneself and varying arrays of previously “external” systems. For more information on this experience, please see our comprehensive article on states of Unity and Interconnectedness.
Spirituality enhancement
- An increased sense of personal purpose.
- An increased interest in the pursuit of developing personal religious and spiritual ideologies.
- An increased interest in the pursuit of developing personal religious and spiritual ideologies.
- The formation of complex personal religious beliefs.
- An increased sense of compassion towards nature and other people.
- An increased sense of unity and interconnectedness between oneself, nature, “god”, and the universe as a whole.
- A decreased sense of value placed upon money and material objects.
- A decreased fear and greater acceptance of death and the finite nature of existence.
Unity and interconnectedness
