Exploring athletes’ experiences of the effects of psychedelics on sport performance and well-being

While limited evidence exists in the literature supporting the use of psychedelics for enhancing various aspects of mental well-being and performance for differing populations and contexts, there seems to be no existing study focusing specifically on healthy athletes despite anecdotal accounts of athletes using psychedelics to enhance sports performance. This study aimed to contribute toward filling this gap in the literature by investigating the positive and negative experiences of athletes using psychedelics relating to mental well-being and sports performance. This qualitative phenomenological study investigated the lived experiences of athletes who used psychedelics, collecting data through a semi-guided online discussion on the platform Reddit, which was observed using thematic analysis. This study identified four main themes: enhanced well-being (with sub-themes: enhanced mood, enhanced social ties, and physical benefits), and enhanced performance (with sub-themes: being in the zone and enhanced creativity, cognitive impairment, and context of administration). The findings of this study generally corroborated findings of other studies investigating performance and well-being in nonathletic populations. This exploratory study found potential positive and negative effects of psychedelics on performance and well-being for athletes that could provide direction for future research in areas such as team cohesion, flow state, and cognitive impairment. Some limitations of this study included the low number of participants and risk of participant bias, as participants were recruited from online psychedelic communities. More research is needed for more concrete conclusions.