Exploring the resurgence of psychedelic drugs for mental health, from a conference on MDMA therapy to a veteran-led church adopting psychedelics. Witness the journeys of veterans seeking relief from PTSD and the risks involved in alternative therapies. Delve into the potential of ketamine and psilocybin treatments, as individuals navigate emotional turmoil and transformative healing experiences.
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Contrasting Figures
Rick Doblin, in a white suit, and Rick Perry, a former Texas governor, highlight the changing perceptions of psychedelics.
Perry, once a proponent of drug testing for welfare recipients, now champions psychedelics for PTSD treatment.
insights INSIGHT
Psychedelics Going Mainstream
Psychedelic drugs, illegal for decades, are gaining mainstream attention for their potential in mental health treatment.
This shift is prompting a reevaluation of U.S. drug policy.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Veteran's Perspective
Veteran Jared Reinhardt, adorned with ayahuasca symbols on his military vest, advocates for psychedelics to address the veteran mental health crisis.
Reinhardt's personal transformation after ayahuasca underscores the potential benefits.
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Psychedelic drugs have been illegal for 50 years, but they’re trickling back into the mainstream because they show promise in helping treat post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health challenges.
We begin the hour with reporter Jonathan A. Davis visiting Psychedelic Science 2023, the largest-ever conference on psychedelic drugs. It’s put on by the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, an organization dedicated to legalizing MDMA (also known as ecstasy or molly) and other psychedelic drugs. Research shows that MDMA-assisted therapy can help treat depression and PTSD, and it’s moving toward approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Psychedelics were studied in the 1950s and ’60s as mental health treatments, but the war on drugs put a stop to research. Now, these drugs are gaining bipartisan support from politicians looking for solutions to the mental health crisis among veterans.
Then Reveal’s Michael I Schiller visits a group of veterans who are not waiting for psychedelic-assisted therapy to be approved by the federal government. They’ve joined a church founded by an Iraq War veteran who uses psychedelics as religious sacraments. Schiller accompanies them on a retreat in rural Texas, where they share the depths of their post-traumatic stress and the relief they’ve felt after psychedelic treatments. He also explores the risks involved in taking these drugs.
We close with an intimate audio diary from a woman in Oakland, California, who’s going through therapy with the one psychedelic drug that can be legally prescribed currently in the U.S.: ketamine. Ketamine started out as an anesthetic, but researchers found it can help with treatment-resistant depression when used in tandem with talk therapy. Ketamine can be dangerous if abused, but it also has helped people find relief from mental health issues. This story was produced by Davis.
This is an update of an episode that originally aired in October 2023.
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