Words of Change: How Speech Shows the Impact of 5-MeO-DMT

Have you ever noticed how your words change when you've gone through something big in life? The way we speak can show deep shifts happening inside us. New research shows that these speech patterns might reveal how psychedelic experiences, especially with a compound called 5-MeO-DMT, change our minds.

The Voice as a Window to Inner Change

When we experience something that deeply affects us, it often shows up in how we talk. Think about how your voice sounds different when you're excited versus calm. Scientists at the University of Colorado have found that these speech changes can help predict and track the mental changes that happen during and after psychedelic experiences. Their recent study shows fascinating links between our speech patterns and the deep mental shifts that can occur with 5-MeO-DMT.

What is 5-MeO-DMT?

5-MeO-DMT is a strong, fast-acting psychedelic compound. It's found naturally in certain plants and in the venom of the Sonoran Desert toad. Unlike better-known psychedelics like psilocybin or LSD, which can last 6-12 hours, 5-MeO-DMT's intense effects typically last only 15-60 minutes. Despite this short time, users often report some of the most profound experiences of their lives. They describe complete ego dissolution (a temporary loss of self-identity), mystical experiences, and deep spiritual insights. The compound has been used in traditional spiritual practices by indigenous groups, particularly in South America. It is now being studied for potential therapeutic uses for conditions like depression, anxiety, and PTSD.

The RetreatBot Study: Tracking Change Through Words

The research team, led by Joanna Kuc and colleagues, developed a clever approach to studying how 5-MeO-DMT affects people. They created what they called "RetreatBot," a system that collected daily voice journals from 29 participants for two weeks before and after a single dose of 5-MeO-DMT.This approach was unique because it allowed researchers to track changes over time, rather than just comparing before-and-after snapshots. Participants simply recorded themselves speaking about their thoughts, feelings, and experiences each day. "We wanted to capture the natural evolution of language and voice as people processed their psychedelic experiences," explained lead researcher Joanna Kuc. "Speech contains so much information beyond just the words themselves—it's a signal that can reveal subtle psychological changes."

The Science Behind Speech Analysis

The researchers used advanced tools to analyze both what people said and how they said it:

1. Natural Language Processing (NLP): Computer programs analyzed the actual words people used, looking at vocabulary choices and patterns.
2. Acoustic Analysis: Special software extracted features from the audio recordings themselves, measuring things like:
   • Pitch (how high or low the voice sounds)
   • Jitter (tiny variations in frequency)
   • Shimmer (variations in volume)

These vocal qualities can reveal emotional states and thinking processes that might not be apparent from words alone.

What Changed After 5-MeO-DMT?

The results were striking. After taking 5-MeO-DMT, participants' speech patterns showed several consistent changes:

Changes in Word Choice

People used significantly more cognitive language—words related to thinking, understanding, and insight. This suggests they were processing their experiences intellectually and gaining new perspectives. At the same time, they used fewer social words—terms referring to other people and social interactions. This shift indicates a turn toward looking inward and internal processing rather than external focus. As one participant described it: "Before, I talked a lot about what other people thought. After the experience, I found myself talking more about realizations and understanding things differently. It was like my focus had shifted inward."

Changes in Voice Quality

The acoustic analysis revealed fascinating changes in voice quality after 5-MeO-DMT:

• Increased jitter and shimmer: These subtle variations in voice suggest heightened emotional processing.
• Altered rhythm patterns: Many participants showed changes in the rhythm and flow of their speech, potentially reflecting new patterns of thought.

These vocal changes weren't just temporary—they persisted throughout the two-week post-experience period, suggesting lasting psychological shifts.

Predicting Transformative Experiences

Perhaps most intriguing was the discovery that baseline speech patterns—how people talked before taking 5-MeO-DMT—could actually predict several aspects of their psychedelic experiences and outcomes:

1. Psychological preparedness: Certain speech patterns indicated who was mentally ready for the intense experience.
2. Ego dissolution anxiety: Researchers could predict who might experience anxiety during states of ego dissolution based on pre-experience speech patterns.
3. Emotional breakthrough: Speech markers helped identify who was likely to have significant emotional breakthroughs during their experience.
4. Post-experience well-being: Most importantly, baseline speech could predict who would show the greatest improvements in well-being after their 5-MeO-DMT session.

This predictive power suggests that our speech patterns might contain hidden information about our psychological state and readiness for transformative experiences.

From External Focus to Introspection

The overall pattern that emerged from the study was a shift from external focus to introspection. After 5-MeO-DMT, people seemed less concerned with social dynamics and external events and more focused on internal understanding, meaning-making, and personal insights. "We observed a consistent pattern where participants moved from talking about external events and other people to discussing internal realizations and new perspectives," noted researcher Rosalind McAlpine. "It's as if the experience created a pivot point, turning attention inward in a productive way. "This shift aligns with what many psychedelic researchers have observed clinically—that these substances often help people break out of rigid patterns of thinking and gain fresh perspectives on their lives and challenges.

Practical Applications: Voice Journaling as a Tool

Beyond the scientific findings, this research points to a practical tool that might help people integrate and benefit from psychedelic experiences: voice journaling. The simple act of regularly recording thoughts and reflections appears to help people process and integrate their experiences. Unlike written journaling, voice recordings capture emotional nuances and can feel more natural for many people. "Participants often told us that the daily voice journaling helped them notice changes in themselves that might have otherwise gone unrecognized," said researcher Amelia Sellers. "It became a kind of mirror reflecting their psychological evolution. "This approach could be valuable not just for psychedelic experiences but for tracking psychological growth during any kind of transformative life event or therapeutic process.

The Future of Speech Analysis in Psychedelic Research

This groundbreaking study opens up exciting possibilities for the future of psychedelic research and therapy:

1. Personalized preparation: By analyzing speech patterns, therapists might better identify who needs additional preparation before psychedelic sessions.
2. Progress tracking: Voice analysis could provide objective measures of psychological change during psychedelic therapy.
3. Integration support: Speech analysis might help identify who needs additional support integrating their experiences.
4. Reducing reliance on questionnaires: Traditional psychological questionnaires have limitations and can feel artificial. Speech analysis offers a more natural window into psychological states.

As researcher George Blackburne explained, "We're just beginning to tap the potential of speech analysis in understanding psychedelic experiences. This approach gives us access to psychological processes that are difficult to capture with traditional methods."

The Bigger Picture: Language and Consciousness

At a deeper level, this research touches on fundamental questions about the relationship between language and consciousness. How do profound alterations in consciousness affect how we use language? And conversely, how do changes in our language reflect and potentially shape our consciousness? The study suggests that psychedelic experiences may create lasting changes in how we conceptualize and express our experiences—changes that manifest in subtle but measurable ways in our speech. As we continue to explore the therapeutic potential of substances like 5-MeO-DMT, tools like speech analysis may help us better understand not just if these experiences are beneficial, but how and why they create lasting positive change.

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. 

References

Kuc, J., McAlpine, R. G., Sellers, A., Blackburne, G., Lametti, D., & Skipper, J. I. (2025). Speech markers of psychedelic-induced psychological change. bioRxiv. https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.04.16.649217

Barsuglia, J., Davis, A. K., Palmer, R., Lancelotta, R., Windham-Herman, A. M., Peterson, K., Polanco, M., Grant, R., & Griffiths, R. R. (2018). Intensity of mystical experiences occasioned by 5-MeO-DMT and comparison with a prior psilocybin study. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 2459.  https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02459

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