Psilocybin-Assisted Group Therapy Reduces Burnout in Healthcare Workers

Um novo estudo suggests that combining psilocybin with mindfulness practices could give frontline healthcare workers a much-needed mental health boost. Published in PLOS Medicine, the trial found that doctors and nurses who took part in psilocybin-assisted group therapy alongside mindfulness training saw faster, stronger improvements in depression than those who practiced mindfulness alone.

The biggest benefits appeared two weeks after the intervention, though the differences faded by six months. Researchers also found hints that the psilocybin group experienced more relief from emotional exhaustion and demoralization, plus a greater sense of connection.

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Why This Matters

Depression and burnout have hit healthcare workers hard, especially during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Endless hours, intense patient loads, and personal health risks have left many doctors and nurses drained. Burnout isn’t just “being tired”— it’s a state of emotional depletion marked by detachment, loss of purpose, and disconnection. Both depression and burnout can harm not only providers’ well-being but also patient care.

Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), a program of meditation and awareness practices, has been shown to help with emotional distress. Psilocybin, the psychedelic compound in magic mushrooms, is also gaining attention for its ability to reduce depressão. This study explored what happens when you bring the two together.

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Inside the Study

Led by Dr. Benjamin R. Lewis, associate professor of psychiatry at the Huntsman Mental Health Institute at the University of Utah, the trial enrolled 25 physicians and registered nurses who had worked frontline during COVID-19. To qualify, participants had to show both significant depression (a PHQ-9 score of 10+) and burnout symptoms.

“I’ve been a clinician for my entire career, and I was very well acquainted with healthcare provider burnout,” Lewis said.

“However I was nonetheless astonished by how severe the suffering was. Within days of putting up posters for our trial we had 700+ clinicians interested in participating… This really impressed upon me how much suffering goes on right in our midst and how much of this is under the surface.”

Participants were randomly split into two groups:

  • Mindfulness-only group: completed an eight-week MBSR program.
  • Psilocybin + mindfulness group: did the same mindfulness program but also joined a structured group psilocybin intervention, which included preparatory sessions, a single 25mg psilocybin dose, and integration meetings.

What They Found

At the two-week mark, the psilocybin + mindfulness group reported a 7.2-point drop in depression scores, compared to a 2.8-point drop in the mindfulness-only group. Nearly metade do psilocybin participants went into remission from depression, versus just one in the mindfulness-only group.

By six months, though, both groups had similar improvements. “We compared MBSR alone to MBSR + group psilocybin and both groups demonstrated significant improvement,” Lewis explained. “By the 6 month endpoint the MBSR alone group had ‘caught up’ as it were, suggesting that the addition of psilocybin accelerated or catalyzed the benefits of mindfulness training.”

Secondary outcomes hinted at psilocybin’s added value. At two weeks, participants reported less depersonalization and demoralizatione stronger feelings of connectedness. While these findings didn’t hold up under stricter statistical tests, the trends leaned in psilocybin’s favor.

Safety and the Group Experience

Importantly, no serious side effects occurred. Some participants felt temporary nausea or anxiety during the psilocybin session, but none needed medication or medical help. No one’s mental health worsened, and there were no cases of suicidality.

The group format itself may have boosted results. Sharing the experience with peers and therapists provided support and reduced isolation. Many reported what researchers call “complete experiências místicas.” These are deep feelings of unity, transcendence, and meaning. These experiences strongly correlated with improvements in depression and connectedness, suggesting that it’s not just the psilocybin, but the altered state itself (which can also come through intensive mindfulness) that plays a role in healing.

“I think a common misunderstanding… is that it is some kind of magic pill, or fix,” Lewis said. “In this sense grounding this within a mindfulness training program may help to better integrate these experiences within day to day ordinary life.”

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Caveats and Next Steps

As encouraging as the results are, this was a small, early trial with 25 participants, most of them white women. The lack of diversity limits how widely the results can be applied. The study was also not blinded, meaning participants knew which treatment they were getting, which can influence outcomes. There was no placebo condition either, making it hard to untangle psilocybin’s specific effects from the overall experience.

Still, the evidence points to psilocybin as a catalyst — jumpstarting benefits that mindfulness may later sustain. “I’d love to run a factorial design study… including mindfulness alone, psilocybin alone, mindfulness + psilocybin, and mindfulness + placebo,” Lewis said. “This would require a larger study but would be a necessary next step to really understanding the relative contributions of these different elements.”

For Lewis, the work is also deeply personal: “This was a deeply meaningful process for me and has been the highlight of my professional career.”

O Takeaway:

Psilocybin + Mindfulness May Help Ease Burnout in Healthcare Workers

This trial offers early but promising evidence that psilocybin-assisted group therapy (paired with mindfulness training) may help reduce depression and burnout among healthcare workers. While bigger, more diverse studies are needed, the findings highlight the potential of blending psychedelics with established mental health practices in supportive group settings.

For now, it adds one more hopeful piece to the growing puzzle of how psychedelics might help not just individuals, but entire communities under pressure.