The psychotherapeutic potential of MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine): an evidence-based review.
Psychopharmacology April 1, 2007 A C Parrott 85 citations
MDMA has both therapeutic and anti-therapeutic characteristics. Its acute mood effects can be positive and life-enhancing, and affirmative cognitions from MDMA therapy may endure. However, it can also intensify negative cognitions that persist. Setting, intention, and expectancy are crucial for positive outcomes but cannot be guaranteed. Post-MDMA, neurotransmitter recovery brings low moods that may worsen psychiatric distress. Proposed explanations for MDMA-assisted therapy are psychodynamic and lack a clear neurochemical model. Enduring therapeutic gains from a single session lack a psychopharmacological rationale. Diathesis-stress models indicate psychiatric individuals are more prone to adverse reactions. Several issues remain before MDMA can be considered clinically useful for psychotherapy.