From the Editor

“When it kicked in, it was like an epiphany. I could see all these things from combat I was afraid to look at before, and I had a totally new perspective. I relived the parts of me I had lost. I realized I had viewed myself as a monster, and I was able to start to have some compassion for myself. It was a turning point, and for the next year I continued to get better.”

In a recent article on MDMA (often called Molly or Ecstasy), The New York Times quotes U.S. Marine Nigel McCourry, who has PTSD, talking about his experience taking the drug. So – is there a role for MDMA in the treatment of PTSD? In a new paper published in The Lancet Psychiatry, researchers seem to find there is. In the study, therapy sessions were enhanced with MDMA; after the sessions, 68% of the patients no longer met the clinical criteria for PTSD.

The paper has gained international attention. The New York Times covered it (and quoted McCourry). So did Global News with an online article headlined: “‘Party drug’ MDMA touted as breakthrough therapy for PTSD patients.” The Independent’s story begins: “MDMA ‘cures’ sufferers’ post-traumatic stress disorder in a few weeks during study.”

mdma-pills-ecstasy-600x500MDMA: Colourful pills – helpful pills?

In this Reading, we consider the paper behind the headlines, and the Comment piece that accompanies it. We also consider what to tell patients if they ask about MDMA for PTSD.

DG

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