Ecstasy May be Used to Help Rape Victims

[DUreader]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1091729,00.html


snip


The study could begin as soon as January. It will
recruit 20 victims of crime suffering
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) who find it
difficult to talk about their experience.

Over several months, each will receive 17
sessions of counselling with a therapist; before
two sessions they will swallow a capsule
containing either a placebo or 125mg of MDMA -
about the same as or a little more than the
amount found in a typical ecstasy tablet. The trial
will be double-blind, meaning that neither the
patients nor the investigators will know who has
taken the drug. If the one-year pilot study proves
a success, Mr Doblin says further research will
follow.

Before considering ecstasy as a prescription drug
for PTSD, the FDA would require convincing
evidence of its benefits from two larger studies
involving hundreds of people.

The research is controversial, and getting it off
the ground has proved difficult. The FDA originally
approved the study in November 2001 but
insisted that Mr Doblin's group also get the green
light from an independent ethics review board.
These oversee research and are usually attached
to universities. Applications to seven different
boards were all rejected because of fears of legal
action, experimental bias, or in some cases with
no explanation at all. Permission was only finally
granted in September.



snip

[truthisfreedom]

1. weird. this will drive the right crazy. helping women cope with unbear-

able pain is impossible for them. in fact, doing anything that makes women feel safe or equal is impossible for the rethugs.

[Ilsa]

2. A quote about the purpose of the drug and dangers:

(Snip)
"What we'd like to do is develop MDMA into a prescription medicine," said Rick Doblin, the founder and head of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, which is coordinating and funding the new trial. "MDMA has a dramatic ability to help people express deeper emotions, to look at emotionally conflicted topics from their past and it promotes a certain catharsis."
(Snip)

This looks too risky, IMO. I would decline to be in the study if I were seeking help. The idea of giving a drug that could cause irreversible brain damage is repugnant to me as a nurse.

[DUreader]

7. What sources do you have for 'irreversible brain damage'?

I don't know much about this mdma, but I am familiar with drugwar

media tactics

[ender]

13. the only studies showing damage are the Ricaurte studies...

There is exactly ONE researcher that has shown "damage" from ecstasy. Dr. Ricaurte.

most of his studies are suspect, and demonstrating that heay abuse - 10 doses at 200 mg in 24 hours is harmful.

[dolo amber]

3. Oooooo-keeeeeey

The trial will be double-blind, meaning that neither the patients nor the investigators will know who has taken the drug.

Yeah, because it's SO difficult to tell if someone's taken E or not...:eyes:

Ecstacy is a noticably mind altering drug, I'm doubting the *double-blind* aspect of this research will be very conclusive/credible.

[DUreader]

8. I think it would depend on dosage

[Teaser]

16. That's kind of the point

Effects can be evaluated apart from bias then. If a researcher notices an effect, odds are it will be real then.

[MetaTrope]

4. Psychedelic therapy has been ongoing since the 1950s

But the research has been very low-profile since the "drug war" became such a boondoggle. http://www.maps.org/

re: the "irreversible brain damage" story, see http://www.maps.org/media/tbj111003.html

[markses]

14. Together with Erowid, MAPS.org

Is one of the best sites on the internet, tout court.

http://www.maps.org/

http://www.erowid.org/

[liberalmuse]

5. I'd really like to see...

more research done on psychedelics. It seems that psychoactive drugs are very good at helping victims of post traumatic stress disorder, and have been show to help people overcome substance addiction. I truly dislike our government's policy on psychedelics (especially marijuana, even though I obstain).

[HawkerHurricane]

6. Is this study even legal?

My research says any studies designed to show a illegal substance useful are banned in the US.
Or maybe that's just pot.

[DUreader]

9. I wonder, also what about the RAVE act?

didn't that restrict things like this even more?

[ender]

10. its in the UK

[GinaMaria]

17. just about to post about that

the way cannabis is classified it cannot be studied. The gov has classified it as having no medical value (tell that to patients on chemotherapy). But X can be studied?! The drug war just boggles the mind more than any mind altering substance could.

[truthspeaker]

11. MDMA was originally intended to facilitate therapy

before people started taking it for fun. I wrote a report on it in high school back in '87, when it was still new.

[FuseONE]

12. yeah

It was quite cathartic for me :smoke:

[ender]

18. it was originially a weight loss drug.

i wanna say its a merck drug discoverred in 1907, for weight loss...

and its absolutely amazing at that :-)

[Khephra]

15. I was wondering where this generation's Timothy Leary was

Rick Doblin, so good to have you joining us!

(And yes, that X study that showed damage was shown to be flawed just a little while ago. I'm sure we have the article on it somewhere in the archives.)

For those who don't know Leary's history, he originally studied the effects of LSD, in carefully controled sessions, on criminals to see if it would help them from committing crimes again, IIRC. It's too cold here for me to dig up my Leary books, but the original point was to have LSD administered by trained Doctors--never as a street drug. And the the Cops and G. Gorden Liddy came in to the scene....