GoKawiilResearcher reports 5-MeO-DMT reduced Ebbinghaus illusion effect in self-experiment
A writer attending the Qualia Research Institute's 2026 retreat in Tepoztlan, Mexico, reports that under the influence of the psychedelic 5-MeO-DMT, the classic Ebbinghaus size-illusion nearly disappeared for them, using a self-built app to measure perceived circle size. The retreat brought together physicists, meditators and 'rational psychonauts' to study altered states including jhana meditation and 5-MeO-DMT, which is legal in Mexico.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
This is a single self-report rather than a controlled study, so it should be read as an anecdotal data point rather than proof that psychedelics generally improve perceptual accuracy. It could, however, feed into QRI's broader research agenda of treating consciousness and perception as measurable phenomena, potentially motivating future controlled studies on whether psychedelics alter susceptibility to visual illusions like Ebbinghaus's.
- A writer reports 5-MeO-DMT nearly cancelled the Ebbinghaus illusion for them during a 2026 Mexico retreat
- The claim comes from a single self-experiment using a custom app, not a peer-reviewed study
- The Qualia Research Institute frames this within its broader project of scientifically studying consciousness and altered states
Source: psychotechnology.substack.com — Sasha Putilin, 2026-10-30
Published there as: “5-MeO-DMT sometimes cancels the Ebbinghaus illusion”
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