Unlocking the Mind: Can Psychedelics Like Ayahuasca Really Boost Creativity?

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This article examines the scientific evidence behind the long-held belief that psychedelics, specifically an ayahuasca-inspired formula of DMT and harmine, can enhance creativity by altering our thought processes.

Synopsis

A recent placebo-controlled study explored how a formulation mimicking the Amazonian brew ayahuasca affects creativity. The findings show that it's not going to turn everyone into an artist overnight, but it does significantly change the dynamics of creative thinking, particularly by enhancing divergent thinking—generating new ideas. This research, supported by analogous studies of psychedelics and cognitive flexibility, provides a scientific foundation for how these drugs could be used to drive innovation and navigate mental impasses.

The Ancient Connection Between Psychedelics and Creativity

For centuries, artists, musicians, writers, and intellectuals have argued that psychedelic drugs can open new doors of creativity. From the surreal artwork of indigenous Amazonian peoples who use ayahuasca to the revolutionary music of the 1960s, the association is firmly rooted in our cultural heritage. But is there any scientific reality to these assertions? Can a drug really enhance creativity in a person? Researchers are at last beginning to examine this question in controlled laboratory settings, moving beyond anecdotal evidence to parse the neurological foundations of this intriguing phenomenon.

A groundbreaking 2025 study published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology investigated this very query with an ayahuasca-like compound that features the intense psychedelic N,N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and a harmine derivative that renders the DMT orally active [1]. The researchers were curious to discover not just if it had an effect on creativity, but how it changed the dynamic process of creative thinking.

Divergent vs. Convergent Thinking: A Psychedelic Shift

To understand the outcomes of the study, a distinction between two types of creative thinking must be made. Convergent thinking is the ability to derive a single, well-established answer to a problem. It is all about logic, rightness, and the application of existing knowledge. Divergent thinking, in contrast, is the ability to generate many unrelated ideas, entertain a broad assortment of possible solutions, and make unexpected links. It is a spontaneous, free-flowing process that is often the hallmark of creativity. A 2016 study concluded that ayahuasca users showed enhanced divergent thinking as their convergent thinking abilities decreased, meaning that there was a shift away from fixed, solution-based thinking to more open-ended thinking [2].

The 2025 experiment built on this by using a double-blind, placebo-controlled protocol—clinical research's gold standard. Participants were given the DMT/harmine mixture, harmine alone, or a placebo and then asked to complete a creative task. The results were subtle. The psychedelic drug didn't reliably increase creativity in general, but it did drastically alter the creative process to make the outputs in the divergent thinking tasks more innovative and novel [1]. This suggests that the psychedelic experience can help subjects break free from conventional thought patterns and explore new mental frontiers.

The Brain on Psychedelics: A More Flexible Mind

What is happening in the brain to cause this shift? Research suggests that psychedelics increase the entropy of the brain, i.e., they disrupt its normal, orderly patterns of activity and allow more free-form and interconnected communication between different brain regions that don't normally talk to each other. This state of increased cognitive flexibility is one mechanism by which the observed improvements in creativity are believed to occur. A 2021 study in Frontiers in Pharmacology found that ayahuasca users not only experienced long-term improvements in creative thinking but also in empathy and decentering—the ability to observe one's thoughts and emotions from a detached perspective [3].

This ability to transcend one's own rigid mental models is extremely valuable for creative problem-solving. By temporarily dissolving the ego and the cognitive biases that accompany it, psychedelics can facilitate a more objective and innovative approach to problem-solving. As one 2018 article in ScienceDirect explains, psychedelics offer an extremely valuable model to examine the processes of the creative mind by giving us an insight into a state of consciousness where the normal constraints of the mind are loosened [4].

The Future of Creativity: A Tool, Not a Magic Bullet

We must be careful not to get too excited about these findings. Psychedelics are not a magic bullet for creativity. The trip is also highly dependent on the user, his or her mindset, and the environment in which the drug is taken—a concept called "set and setting." However, the research increasingly indicates that, if taken in a considerate and intentional fashion, these drugs are highly successful at unlocking innovation, overcoming creative block, and enabling new thought patterns. As the science keeps evolving, we may find that this ancient wisdom of the indigenous people holds a key to unlocking the full potential of the human mind.

References

[1] Suay, D., et al. (2025). Ayahuasca-inspired DMT/harmine formulation alters creative thinking dynamics during artistic creation. Journal of Psychopharmacology. Retrieved from https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/02698811251353256

[2] Kuypers, K. P. C., et al. (2016). Ayahuasca enhances creative divergent thinking while decreasing conventional convergent thinking. Psychopharmacology, 233(18), 3395–3403. Retrieved from https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4989012/

[3] Kiraga, M. K., et al. (2021). Persisting Effects of Ayahuasca on Empathy, Creative Thinking, Decentering, Personality, and Well-being. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 12. Retrieved from https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/pharmacology/articles/10.3389/fphar.2021.721537/full

[4] Kuypers, K. P. C. (2018). Out of the box: A psychedelic model to study the creative mind. Progress in Brain Research, 242, 145-160. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306987718301634

Disclaimer: Psychedelic Assisted Psychotherapy has not been approved by any regulatory agencies in the United States, and the safety and efficacy are still not formally established at the time of this writing.