Psychedelic experiences can be profound and transformative, often leading individuals to encounter a wide range of sensations, emotions, and perceptions (Johnson et al., 2019). Among these, can be the intriguing occurrence of déjà vu.
People who use psychedelic drugs often report a noetic sense about the insight or knowledge they gain through their experiences with the drug (Johnson et al., 2019).
Déjà vu is a French term that translates to “already seen” (Martin et al., 2018). It is a sensation that the current moment has already been experienced before , as if an event or situation is being relived (Martin et al., 2018). Déjà vu occurs both in normal experience and as a neuropsychiatric symptom. Its aetiology is only partially understood (Kalra et al., 2007). The cognitive and perceptual alterations induced by psychedelics are linked to encounters with déjà vu (Munoz, 2023)
Experiences of déjà vu when it comes to psychedelics, can be understood through different theories:
Memory-Based Understanding: Déjà vu arises from a temporary disruption or mismatch in memory processes, leading to a feeling of familiarity without a clear source (Martin et al., 2018). Psychedelics, with their potential to enhance memory recall and create new associations, may contribute to this phenomenon during altered states of consciousness (Munoz, 2023).
Neurological and Brain Connectivity Understanding: Studies have suggested that déjà vu experiences may be linked to transient changes in neural connectivity and activity (Kalra et al., 2007). Psychedelics modulate brain networks and alter neural connectivity patterns (Munoz, 2023). These changes could potentially trigger the sensation of déjà vu as different brain regions interact in novel ways.
Some accounts from psychedelic users..
“Everywhere I looked, everything I did, anything that happened… Somehow… I felt as if I had thought of what was happening, happening somewhere else, before then. I kept thinking to myself ‘where have I thought of this before’ It was very strange, and only got worse”
– Cannabis User’s experience via Erowid.
“I remembered it from the previous rotation on the wheel of time. Consciousness and reality merged into what amounted to a pure and continuous déja vu”
– Mushroom User’s experience via Erowid
Client Experiences:
In the realm of psychedelic therapy, clients have reported various encounters with déjà vu during their healing journeys. While each experience is unique and subjective, some common themes emerge:
- Enhanced Perception: Clients often describe a heightened awareness of their surroundings, where familiar settings or objects appear as if they have been encountered before (Fischman, 2022).
“ Sometimes, when I’ve had particularly trippy weed and there are no real distractions around me, I feel like I’ve gone up another level altogether, and I’m watching my subconscious mind playing with my conscious thoughts while I sit in another cinema in my sub-subconscious. ”
– Cannabis User’s experience via Erowid.
- Time Distortion: Time perception can become distorted during psychedelic experiences, and déjà vu may manifest as a sense of time looping or repeating, amplifying the feeling of familiarity (Fischman, 2022). In psychotherapy, this time distortion could be seen as avoidance to an event memory.
“ I knew in the back of my mind that I wasn’t really experiencing things over and over. But I was worried that I was perceiving it as such, and that inner turmoil between thinking I was looping, and knowing in my mind it wasn’t real brought me back, over and over ”
– Cannabis User’s experience via Erowid.
- Insights and Reflections: Déjà vu experiences can serve as catalysts for introspection, leading clients to reflect on past experiences, relationships, or unresolved emotions (Fischman, 2022). This can contribute to the therapeutic process and personal growth.
“For the next few weeks [After the trip], I was having small déjà-vues on strings of thoughts or ideas that I had during the walk, and then followed these strings again or tried to reconstruct them.”
– Mushroom User’s experience via Erowid.
Déjà vu remains an enigmatic phenomenon, and its occurrence within psychedelic experiences adds another layer of intrigue. Psychedelic users’ accounts suggest that déjà vu experiences could provide valuable insights and potentially enhance psychedelic therapeutic outcomes.
As the field of psychedelic research progresses, the links with déjà vu should be investigated (Munoz, 2023). This research could help better equip therapists to support clients when they experience deja vu in psychedelic assisted therapy sessions. In the meantime, it serves as a reminder of the intricate nature of consciousness and the profound effects that psychedelics can have on our perception of reality.
Reference List:
Fischman, L.G. (2022) Knowing and being known: Psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy and the sense of authenticity. Front Psychiatry, (13:933495). doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.933495.
iSkank. (2017, July 15). Nostalgic Panic on Bong Hits. Erowid. https://www.erowid.org/experiences/exp.php?ID=87624
Johnson, M., Hendricks, P., Barrett, F., & Griffiths, R. (2019). Classic psychedelics: An integrative review of epidemiology, therapeutics, mystical experience, and brain network function.
Pharmacology & Therapeutics, 197, 83-102, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pharmthera.2018.11.010.
Kalra, S., Chancellor, A., & Zeman, A. (2007). Recurring déjà vu associated with 5-hydroxytryptophan. Acta Neuropsychiatrica, 19(5), 311-313. doi:10.1111/j.1601-5215.2007.00245.x
Martin, C.B., Fiacconi, C.M., & Köhler, S. (2015). Déjà Vu. In D.R. Addis, M. Barense and A. Duarte (Ed.), The Wiley Handbook on the Cognitive Neuroscience of Memory (pp. 172-189). John Wiley & Sons. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118332634.ch9.
Munoz, L. (2023, March 28). Psychedelics and Cognition: A New Look. Cognitive Neuroscience Society. https://www.cogneurosociety.org/psychedelics-and-cognition-a-new-look/#:~:text=They%20found%20that%20while%20psychedelics,both%20types%20of%20memory%20encoding.
Quantify. (2003, November 10). ‘Have I Seen this Before?’ Deja-vu Gone Bad. Erowid. https://www.erowid.org/experiences/exp.php?ID=28315
Seebueb. (2017, December 10). A Trip Spent Walking and Police Escorting. Erowid. https://www.erowid.org/experiences/exp.php?ID=111315
Stash. (2000, May 31). Ego Death, Infinite Deja-Vu, Scared Shitles. Erowid. https://www.erowid.org/experiences/exp.php?ID=7