Spiritual high without drugs: new study tests guided mystical experience
NCT ID NCT07584070
First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study tests whether a single guided, non-drug spiritual session can produce mystical-type experiences in healthy Christian adults. 120 participants will complete the session and then be randomly assigned to a Christian-based or control integration program for 4 weeks. Researchers will measure mystical experiences and well-being up to 2 months later.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Guided Invocation for Mystical Experience (GIME) - a behavioral intervention using breathing, guided imagery, and verbal suggestions
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a safe, non-drug way to help people have meaningful spiritual experiences and improve well-being.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage study with only 120 healthy Christian adults. The results may not apply to other groups, and the effects may be short-lived or not work for everyone.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 120 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Apr 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Aug 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * age 18 years or older; * active Christian faith; * willing to experience hypnosis; * English-speaking; able to complete one in-person session and 1- and 2-month follow-up assessments. Exclusion Criteria: * prior psychedelic use; * severe mental illness (e.g., schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, psychosis, borderline personality disorder); * unwillingness to experience hypnosis; * inability to complete study procedures
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As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Mind-Body Medicine Research Laboratory
Waco, Texas, 76112, United States
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