Stanford Researchers Observe PTSD Symptom Reduction in 30 Special Forces Veterans After Ibogaine Treatment in Mexico

U.S. traveled to a clinic in Tijuana, Mexico, to receive ibogaine treatment monitored by Stanford University researchers. The veterans received ibogaine pills up to a maximum of 14 milligrams per kilogram of body weight over three hours.

In the Stanford trial, participants were given an intravenous infusion of 1g of magnesium sulfate to protect their hearts. After one single ibogaine session, participants' overall scores on a health questionnaire went from mild-to-moderate disability to no-to-mild disability for PTSD, depression and anxiety, according to Stanford University.

Researchers measured neural electrical signals of the special forces veterans and found that the most intensely-hallucinogenic ibogaine trips coincided with a reduction in a type of brain wave linked with stronger PTSD symptoms, still present one month later.

A follow-up study found a direct link between the intensity of veterans' dream-like immersive experiences and greater improvements in PTSD symptoms immediately and one month after ibogaine treatment. Elias Kfoury was among those who participated in the 2024 experiment in Mexico.

U.S. Navy in 2016 after being diagnosed with PTSD in 2012. "I started seeing people that I recognised from pictures, old family or friends that had passed a long time ago. I watched so many events from my life and felt like this is happening right now," Elias Kfoury said.

"I spent my childhood in war and then I found myself again as an adult in war," Elias Kfoury said. The former Navy special operations medic described injuries from head to toe, persistent headaches and a string of 12 surgical procedures that failed to bring relief. After leaving the military he "declined further and further into darkness" despite trying medications and therapy.

"Physically, intellectually, emotionally, spiritually, every part of me was touched by that medicine… it's like my life is completely different now," Elias Kfoury said. He received 5-MeO-DMT one month after his ibogaine experience. The ibogaine treatment "gave me a roadmap… but you have to put the work in consistently," he added.

Ibogaine is a compound found in the roots of the African shrub iboga and has been traditionally used in central western African spiritual and healing ceremonies. The ibogaine trip could last up to 72 hours. Ibogaine is banned in many countries including the US where it is listed as a controlled substance.

Modern scientific interest dates to 1962 when Howard Lotsof, a 19-year-old heroin addict, took a single dose of ibogaine and noticed his heroin withdrawal symptoms disappeared. In a 2017 survey of 88 patients who received ibogaine treatment in Mexico for chronic opioid use, 80% said it helped reduce withdrawal symptoms and 67% said the experience helped them unlock memories or insights into the root causes of their addiction.

In a 2017 study led by Alan Davis into ibogaine for opioid addiction, 17% of patients reported no change, 6% said their opioid consumption increased, 71% said ibogaine treatment was much better than other treatments, and 30% reported never using opioids again.

"There's no uniform trajectory that unfolds after treatment. There are some people who don't respond to the treatment," Alan Davis said. Ibogaine treatment is often followed by 5-MeO-DMT, a potent substance found in the venom of the Colorado River toad.

José Carlos Bouso has been studying psychedelics for 30 years. "When you see it for the first time, it's like magic – they take ibogaine and their withdrawal syndrome completely disappears," José Carlos Bouso said. " Clayton Olash worked on a 2026 analysis of the Mexico trial on the 30 veterans.

"We don't have a clear mechanism, not nearly as good as we do for the other psychedelics," Clayton Olash said. Ibogaine does not interact much with 5-HT2A receptors. Ibogaine may have a stronger effect through kappa-opioid receptors involved in stimulating cells that restore myelin.

Noribogaine is formed when the body processes ibogaine and can increase serotonin activity in the brain according to animal studies, Clayton Olash said. Ibogaine helps the brain recover from addiction by increasing neurotrophins which support brain cell growth and neuroplasticity. Scientists at the University of California created a synthetic version of ibogaine free of hallucinogenic effects.

The synthetic trip-free ibogaine reduced alcohol and heroin-seeking behaviour and produced antidepressant-like effects in rats. In 2025, the US state of Texas committed $50m in funding for clinical trials of ibogaine as a treatment for opioid use disorder, PTSD and traumatic brain injury.

In April 2026, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the US Food and Drug Administration to expedite their review of psychedelics as pharmaceuticals and decreeing $50m in federal funding for research into ibogaine specifically. com reported that the findings add to decades of research on ibogaine while underscoring the need for larger randomised clinical trials and clearer understanding of its mechanisms.