115. The Future of Therapy Is Psychedelic

For 37 years, Rick Doblin has been pushing the F.D.A. to approve treating post-traumatic stress disorder with MDMA, better known as Ecstasy. He tells Steve why he persisted for so long, why he doesn’t like calling drug use “recreational,” and what he learned from his pet wolf. RESOURCES: " MDMA-Assisted Therapy for Moderate to Severe PTSD: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Phase 3 Trial ," by Jennifer M. Mitchell, Marcela Ot’alora G., Bessel van der Kolk, Scott Shannon, Michael Bogenschutz, Rick Doblin, et al. ( Nature Medicine, 2023). " MDMA Therapy Inches Closer to Approval ," by Rachel Nuwer ( The New York Times, 2023). " Psychedelics Reopen the Social Reward Learning Critical Period ," by Romain Nardou, Edward Sawyer, Young Jun Song, Gül Dölen, et al. ( Nature, 2023). " The Social Costs of Keystone Species Collapse: Evidence from the Decline of Vultures in India ," by Eyal Frank and Anant Sudarshan ( SSRN, 2023). " Global Health, Climate Change and Migration: The Need for Recognition of 'Climate Refugees ,'" by Saverio Bellizzi, Christian Popescu, Catello M. Panu Napodano, Maura Fiamma, and Luca Cegolon ( Journal of Global Health, 2023). " Comparison of Prolonged Exposure vs Cog…