Psychedelic Medicine
March 10, 2026
Amy Lehrner, Miryam Sperka, Lauren Lepow et al.
1 citation
There is growing interest in incorporating MDMA (3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine) into structured, evidence-based cognitive-behavioral treatment protocols for post-traumatic stress disorder. Yet this risks overlooking the distinctive qualities of MDMA-assisted therapy, which has already demonstrated strong clinical effects, high response rates, and low dropout using a principle-guided,...
Psychedelics
January 8, 2026
Rachel Yehuda, Amy Lehrner, Miryam Sperka et al.
2 citations
The original MAPS manual for MDMA-assisted therapy (MDMA-AT) opened a therapeutic frontier for PTSD. However, it drew critique for concepts—such as “inner healing intelligence” – that originated in transpersonal traditions rather than academic or empirically grounded clinical models. While many patients found the therapies helpful, these constructs were difficult to interpret and standardize....
EClinicalMedicine
December 1, 2025
Nadav Liam Modlin, Victoria Williamson, Guy M. Goodwin et al.
2 citations
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating condition leading to significant personal and societal burden. Standard treatments frequently demonstrate limited efficacy, leading to persistent symptoms and high dropout rates. Psilocybin has shown promise in treating depression, a condition that is often comorbid with PTSD. We aimed to explore participant experiences of psilocybin...
Journal of Psychopharmacology
August 29, 2025
Niall M. Mcgowan, James Rucker, Rachel Yehuda et al.
10 citations
Background: Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating condition for which there are few efficacious treatments. Psilocybin is being studied for use in treatment-resistant depression but has not yet been investigated in PTSD. Aims: The trial’s primary outcome was to investigate the safety and tolerability of single-dose psilocybin in participants with PTSD. Methods: This was a...
The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry
April 2, 2025
Adriana Feder, Oneysha Brown, Sarah B. Rutter et al.
Objective: This open-label clinical trial examined the preliminary efficacy of combining a course of 6 ketamine infusions with a brief, evidence-based exposure-based psychotherapy-written exposure therapy (WET)-in patients with chronic posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Methods: The trial was conducted between June 2021 and October 2023. Patients with chronic PTSD and high-moderate to severe...
Front Psychol
February 5, 2025
Joseph A. Zamaria, Gisele Fernandes-Osterhold, Jonathan Shedler et al.
21 citations
Psychedelics assisting therapy, or therapy assisting psychedelics? The importance of psychotherapy in psychedelic-assisted therapy.
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
September 12, 2024
Katinka Hooyer, Rachel Yehuda, Alan K. Davis et al.
4 citations
We sought to identify patterns of psychedelic use among United States military veterans, compare demographic variables and perspectives of those who did and did not report use, and characterize benefits and adverse outcomes associated with use. Respondents (N = 426) were recruited to complete an online cross-sectional survey. Approximately one-half (51%) reported using psychedelics. Most did so...
PLoS One
January 10, 2024
Rachel Yehuda, Leah Bedrosian, Charlotte Harrison et al.
52 citations
Introduction There is a resurgence of interest in the therapeutic potential of psychedelic substances such as 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA). Primary findings from our randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-site Phase 3 clinical trial of participants with severe PTSD (NCT03537014) showed that MDMA-assisted therapy induced significant attenuation in the...
Current Neuropharmacology
January 5, 2024
Tamar Glatman Zaretsky, Kathleen M. Jagodnik, Robert Barsic et al.
73 citations
Abstract: Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that can occur following exposure to a traumatic experience. An estimated 12 million U.S. adults are presently affected by this disorder. Current treatments include psychological therapies (e.g., exposure-based interventions) and pharmacological treatments (e.g., selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs))....
Psychedelic Med (New Rochelle)
December 13, 2023
Andrew Penn, Rachel Yehuda
7 citations
The reemergence of psychedelic medicines as clinical treatments has generated considerable interest in both professional and popular arenas. Although evidence is promising for psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT), there is much that is not yet known and needs to be researched so as to understand how to safely and effectively utilize PAT in clinical populations and to most effectively deploy PAT...
Psychedelic Med (New Rochelle)
December 13, 2023
Lauren Lepow, Hope Kronman, Rachel Yehuda
2 citations
Introduction: The field of psychedelic research and therapy is growing at an unprecedented rate, as is the need for shared terminology to allow for coherent conversations about these medicines. However, proclaiming consensus definitions at the present time may be a premature closure, limiting the possibility of what psychedelics can teach about the mind and brain. Objective: Our goal in this...
JAMA
August 31, 2023
Rachel Yehuda, Amy Lehrner
33 citations
An increasing number of clinicians and researchers have become interested in the potential of psychedelic drugs for the treatment of mental health disorders, including depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, eating disorders, and addictions.1,2
Focus (American Psychiatric Publishing)
July 1, 2023
Lauren Lepow, Hirofumi Morishita, Rachel Yehuda
9 citations
As psychedelic compounds gain traction in psychiatry, there is a need to consider the active mechanism to explain the effect observed in randomized clinical trials. Traditionally, biological psychiatry has asked how compounds affect the causal pathways of illness to reduce symptoms and therefore focus on analysis of the pharmacologic properties. In psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy (PAP),...
Psychedelic Medicine
May 19, 2023
Mollie Pleet, Joshua White, Joseph A. Zamaria et al.
12 citations
Introduction: A resurgence of interest in the use of psychedelics for mental health and wellness has stimulated greater experimentation with psychedelics in society. Although clinical psychedelic trials protect research participants by offering a safe setting, thorough preparation, and containment during and after ingestion of psychedelic medicines, many try these substances without the benefit...
Frontiers in Psychiatry
February 6, 2023
Candace R. Lewis, Joseph Tafur, Sophie Spencer et al.
29 citations
BackgroundPrevious research has demonstrated that epigenetic changes in specific hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) genes may predict successful psychotherapy in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). A recent Phase 3 clinical trial reported high efficacy of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-assisted therapy for treating patients with severe PTSD compared to a therapy with placebo...
medRxiv Preprint Server
January 3, 2023
Bessel Van der Kolk, Julie B. Wang, Rachel Yehuda et al.
2 citations
preprint
In recent years there has been a resurgence of interest in the therapeutic potential of psychedelic substances such as 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA). This renaissance of psychedelic studies opens the door for a new paradigm in psychiatric medicine: drug-facilitated psychotherapy. In this study we report the findings of a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-site Phase...
Frontiers in Neuroscience
September 20, 2021
Lauren Lepow, Hirofumi Morishita, Rachel Yehuda
70 citations
As psychedelic compounds gain traction in psychiatry, there is a need to consider the active mechanism to explain the effect observed in randomized clinical trials. Traditionally, biological psychiatry has asked how compounds affect the causal pathways of illness to reduce symptoms and therefore focus on analysis of the pharmacologic properties. In psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy (PAP),...