An embedded-brain view of psychedelic healing links serotonin 2A signaling, social context, and predictive processing in Johnson's theory of consciousness

Embedded-brain theory frames consciousness and psychedelic healing as processes shaped by brain, body, and environment together rather than by isolated neural activity alone. Johnson's model connects predictive processing, serotonin 2A receptor activity, and context-sensitive meaning making to explain why psychedelic experiences can feel unusually vivid, relational, and transformative. Psychedelics such as psilocybin, LSD, DMT, and ayahuasca appear here as tools that loosen rigid priors and increase sensitivity to sensory, emotional, and social input. MDMA and ketamine broaden the discussion by highlighting different pathways to therapeutic change, including affective safety, dissociation, and revised self-modeling. Therapeutic impact depends not only on pharmacology but also on setting, interpersonal attunement, and integration. Consciousness in this view emerges through active engagement with the world, so lasting change becomes more plausible when altered states are embedded in supportive relationships, rituals, and concrete life practice.