A study a world leading trauma expert has shown MDMA psychotherapy can help patients overcome Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Bessel van der Kolk - Neuroscientist and Professor of Psychiatry at Boston University Medical School - wrote the 2014 best-seller The Body Keeps the Score. The study into the effects of MDMA on PTSD, published earlier this year, showed the drug, coupled with talk therapy, significantly helped patients overcome traumatic experiences, even from childhood.
There is growing evidence that the very careful administration of drugs such as psilocybin's and MDMA in conjunction with therapy can "unlock" past trauma. Australia is the first country to allow the use of psychedelics and MDMA to treat mental health illnesses, while there are studies underway here.
Bessel van der Kolk spoke to Kathryn Ryan ahead of the NZ Trauma conference in Christchurch today.
Psychiatrist and trauma specialist Bessel Van Der Kolk Photo: Supplied
