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Ecstasy to treat stress disorder
From Elaine Monaghan in Washington
27 Feb 2004
ECSTASY, the drug blamed for rave deaths among teenagers, is being put to more respectable use in the United States by a psychiatrist who believes that it can cure the crippling effects of post-traumatic stress disorder.
US drug authorities gave Michael Mithoefer permission this week to use MDMA, or Ecstasy, in a study of 20 patients suffering from the disorder, which sends victims into a debilitating panic as they repeatedly relive a past trauma.
“There is enough suggestive evidence to warrant further study,” said Dr Mithoefer, who will lead the research at the Medical University of South Carolina. He built his case on evidence gathered before Ecstasy was banned in 1985, including instances where rape victims reported relief from their symptoms in controlled therapy enhanced by the drug.
Rick Doblin, president of a non-profit psychedelic studies group that is sponsoring the study, has worked with one such woman who also became an advocate for MDMA’s use in therapy. Her rapist almost killed her. She had lost her ability to differentiate between past and present, Mr Doblin said. Sufferers of the disease “have this feeling that the trauma is about to happen again and they cannot go to certain places”, he added.
In a supervised therapy session using Ecstasy, the woman reported experiencing a kind of catharsis, where she was able to confront her trauma for the first time, he said.
Dr Mithoefer said that he was anxious not to create the impression that recreational Ecstasy use was safe. “I am concerned about people misinterpreting this,” he said. “I think it is very important that people understand the difference between safe use in this kind of controlled setting and unsafe use in settings such as raves, which can be dangerous.”
Mr Doblin, 50, is not shy about admitting to his own Ecstasy use, which he says has helped him in his relationships and life in general. He believes that the drug should be legalised so that people can make their own informed decision.
L:ink
From Elaine Monaghan in Washington
27 Feb 2004
ECSTASY, the drug blamed for rave deaths among teenagers, is being put to more respectable use in the United States by a psychiatrist who believes that it can cure the crippling effects of post-traumatic stress disorder.
US drug authorities gave Michael Mithoefer permission this week to use MDMA, or Ecstasy, in a study of 20 patients suffering from the disorder, which sends victims into a debilitating panic as they repeatedly relive a past trauma.
“There is enough suggestive evidence to warrant further study,” said Dr Mithoefer, who will lead the research at the Medical University of South Carolina. He built his case on evidence gathered before Ecstasy was banned in 1985, including instances where rape victims reported relief from their symptoms in controlled therapy enhanced by the drug.
Rick Doblin, president of a non-profit psychedelic studies group that is sponsoring the study, has worked with one such woman who also became an advocate for MDMA’s use in therapy. Her rapist almost killed her. She had lost her ability to differentiate between past and present, Mr Doblin said. Sufferers of the disease “have this feeling that the trauma is about to happen again and they cannot go to certain places”, he added.
In a supervised therapy session using Ecstasy, the woman reported experiencing a kind of catharsis, where she was able to confront her trauma for the first time, he said.
Dr Mithoefer said that he was anxious not to create the impression that recreational Ecstasy use was safe. “I am concerned about people misinterpreting this,” he said. “I think it is very important that people understand the difference between safe use in this kind of controlled setting and unsafe use in settings such as raves, which can be dangerous.”
Mr Doblin, 50, is not shy about admitting to his own Ecstasy use, which he says has helped him in his relationships and life in general. He believes that the drug should be legalised so that people can make their own informed decision.
L:ink