Psilocybin paired with cognitive behavioral therapy for adults with depression
Psilocybin-assisted Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Major Depressive Disorder
This project combines two supervised psilocybin sessions with 12 sessions of cognitive behavioral therapy for adults living with major depressive disorder.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of California Los Angeles NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Los Angeles, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11248770 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you join, you would receive a manualized course of cognitive behavioral therapy alongside two supervised psilocybin dosing sessions (a lower and a higher dose). The team will follow safety procedures used in prior psychedelic research and collect information on how well the combined treatment can be delivered. Data from this work will be used to refine the therapy manual and plan a larger efficacy trial. The focus is on feasibility, safety, and creating a consistent treatment that could be tested more widely later.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Adults aged 21 or older with a diagnosis of major depressive disorder who are willing and able to attend regular in-person CBT sessions and supervised psilocybin dosing visits.
Not a fit: People who cannot take psilocybin for medical or psychiatric reasons, who are unwilling to participate in psychotherapy, or who cannot attend in-person visits are unlikely to benefit from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could produce a well-defined psilocybin-plus-CBT approach that may improve depressive symptoms and make psychedelic-assisted care safer and more consistent.
How similar studies have performed: Early clinical studies of psilocybin for depression have shown promising but mixed results, and pairing psilocybin with a standardized CBT protocol is a newer approach that requires further testing.
Where this research is happening
Los Angeles, United States
- University of California Los Angeles — Los Angeles, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Weintraub, Marc Joshua — University of California Los Angeles
- Study coordinator: Weintraub, Marc Joshua
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.