MDMA-assisted Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: Rationale for a New Approach
September 7, 2025 Mathew Herbert, Brian H. Blanco, Dimitri Perivoliotis et al. preprint
MDMA-assisted psychotherapy shows promise for treating PTSD, but the FDA rejected its current form due to concerns about standardization and empirical grounding of the psychotherapy methods. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), an evidence-based cognitive behavioral therapy, is proposed as a well-suited alternative to pair with MDMA. The subjective effects of MDMA directly support key ACT processes; ACT methods could prepare patients for MDMA administration, guide therapists during sessions, and help integrate MDMA experiences to improve functioning and quality of life. ACT offers a scalable, structured yet flexible framework for a new PTSD treatment approach.