MDMA-assisted psychotherapy being used to treat eating disorders
MDMA is being used to help people recover from eating disorders.
However, this isn’t the same drug you might buy on the street and it’s certainly not something you should experiment with alone.
But in secure environments, MDMA-assisted psychotherapy is helping those suffering from eating disorders to recover.
The drug is currently in the final stage of FDA trials to become legal for this use.
According to Timothy Brewerton, clinical professor of psychiatry and behavioural sciences at the Medical University of South Carolina, this form of MDMA is “a pharmaceutical grade, at limited doses, given within a very specified kind of psychotherapeutic environment.”
And it’s not just being used to treat eating disorders but a range of psychiatric conditions.
Patients taking the drug as part of the therapy are strictly monitored and never allowed to take it away with them.
“We have some good info suggesting that this could be one of the more important uses of MDMA,” says Rick Doblin, executive director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (which is funding the trials).
“But because of the lack of funding, we have not actually started any formal studies,” he told Tonic.
The reason researchers hope MDMA will be effective is because it acts on the serotonergic and dopamine systems.
“What’s unique to MDMA is the oxytocin system,” explains Brewerton. “This has to do with social bonding and pro-social feelings and can enhance therapeutic alliance.”
During a psychotherapy session, MDMA generally makes patients feel more comfortable to talk about things they wouldn’t usually under normal circumstances. It helps people open up to therapists without being pushed.
But the problematic addition is that those suffering with eating disorders often have mental health problems too.
This is particularly common with anorexia, but Brewerton believes binge eating disorder - which is the most common eating disorder in the US - might be a better starting point.
There are currently very few medications prescribed to those suffering with eating disorders, so if given the green light, MDMA-psychotherapy could be a game changer.
