The therapeutic potential of MDMA

The Gray Area with Sean Illing

Vox Media Podcast Network

Society & Culture, News, Politics, News Commentary, Philosophy

4.6 • 10.8K Ratings

🗓️ 24 July 2023

⏱️ 50 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In the ‘80s and ‘90s, MDMA (also known as molly or ecstasy) was dismissed as a club drug and became the target of anti-drug propaganda. Today, it’s on the brink of being legalized for use in clinical therapy to treat conditions like PTSD. How did that happen? And what have we learned about the therapeutic potential of MDMA? Sean discusses all this with Rachel Nuwer, author of I Feel Love: MDMA and the Quest for Connection in a Fractured World. They talk about why they’re excited by the research underway and what it might mean for everyone's well-being. Host: Sean Illing (@seanilling), host, The Gray Area Guest: Rachel Nuwer (@RachelNuwer), journalist and author of I Feel Love: MDMA and the Quest for Connection in a Fractured World References: “The extraordinary therapeutic potential of psychedelic drugs, explained,” by Sean Illing (Vox; March 8, 2019) How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence, by Michael Pollan “Rolling under the Sea: Scientists Gave Octopuses Ecstasy to Study Social Behavior,” by Rachel Nuwer (Scientific American, December 1, 2018) Enjoyed this episode? Rate The Gray Area ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Subscribe for free. Be the first to hear the next episode of The Gray Area. Subscribe in your favorite podcast app. Support The Gray Area by making a financial contribution to Vox! bit.ly/givepodcasts This episode was made by: Producer: Erikk Geannikis Engineer: Patrick Boyd Editorial Director, Vox Talk: A.M. Hall Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	We, with our eyes and our mouths, obviously, but also our brains.
0:06.4	NUME can help you learn more about that psychological component to healthy eating.
0:10.6	NUME uses science and personalization so you can manage your weight for the long term.
0:15.2	Start taking control of your weight management and join the millions who have lost weight
0:18.6	with NUME.
0:19.8	You can sign up for your trial today at num.com.
0:22.6	That's n-o-o-m dot com.
0:25.0	To sign up for your trial today.
0:28.6	One of the most encouraging parts of the current psychedelic renaissance is that it shows
0:33.7	how quickly cultural attitudes can evolve.
0:37.8	We've covered this before on the show because I think this has been a very good thing for
0:42.0	the world and for the many people likely to benefit from it.
0:46.6	At the forefront of this renaissance is a drug called MDMA.
0:50.9	Many of you might know it as Mali or X to C. The drug has had a rather strange journey
0:56.8	in the public imagination over the last few decades or so.
1:00.8	In the 80s and 90s, it exploded with the underground rave movement.
1:05.2	They said half ahead of E would be fun.
1:10.6	And it was dismissed as a club drug.
1:15.2	Before long, X to C was the target of tons of anti-drug propaganda.
1:20.5	No one knows how much brain damage that is a drug X to C causes.
1:27.2	One thing you don't want to play with is X to C.
1:32.4	And if you're old enough to have been in middle school during this era, as I was, you
	...

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