Again, can't thank you enough for your courageous efforts to bring the MAPS scam to an end. I hope and expect this to become a major turning point in the so called psychedelic renaissance. I have watched Doblin's scam from the very beginning, It has always amazed me how many people fell for his glib and obviously insincere espousal of the marvelous effects of MDMA and other psychedelic drugs so he and his cult could profit egotistically and financially. There are so many things wrong with American psychedelic drug policy that cause these sometimes sacred drugs to be weaponized, commodified, and criminalized, while their spiritual, scientific, recreational, and therapeutic virtues are squandered. The first thing that needs to change is the Controlled Substance Act of 1970, which not only wrongly classifies these drugs as having "no medical use and a high potential for abuse," the CSA also places the authority to regulate these drugs to the DEA. It is in effect a martial law. We can clearly see the effects of this dysfunctional law n the history of MDMA. MDMA was an orphan drug for most of its life. That is, no pharmaceutical company owned it. Merck first conceived it in 1914 and tested it, I think, as an appetite suppressant. Finding no special properties in animal testing, the drug was released into the public domain. There it sat until the 1950 when Alexander Shulgin and others tested it, for things we don't know, at the top secret Edgewood Arsenal for chemical weapons. According to the official story, it was found to have no special properties, a story I do not believe. Then in the 1960s Shulgin and Gordon Alles began to look into it again. Slowly at first the substance began to work its way into the underground psychedelic community of therapists. Shulgin began to instruct clandestine chemists how to make it, and acquire the precursors. I organized a few chemists in the early 1980s and with Shulgin's help, began to produce it, with the hopes that this marvelous drug, with unique therapeutic properties would help our society gradually open to the more profound mysteries of the classic psychedelics that had become eclipsed during the hysteria of the 1960s. We intended to learn from those errors, Leary was to blame, for excessively promoting these drugs in the wrong context. My project turned on many hundreds of volunteers who were asked to describe their experience in a natural setting and submit a written report. Above all, they were asked to keep this substance secret. It was being used discreetly and had not attracted the attention of the DEA. There was no reason to make it illegal, until Doblin entered the scene. Of all the people my project turned on, he was the only one to violate the oath of secrecy. He called the government, and the media, the Partnership for a Drug Free America to announce the existence of this legal love drug. In so doing, he won the graces of the government, and the media who sensationally proclaimed him the Timothy Leary of the 1980s. Almost overnight MDMA, which became known as Ecstasy, went from a secret tool to the most popular recreational drug in the world. I happen to know, though direct personal experience, that Charles Schuster, the psychopharmacologist at the University of Chicago, provided the government with the main justification for making MDMA a Schedule 1 drug was in fact involved in a conspiracy, a secret arrangement with "the government." He told me, the government asked him to declare with no research to support his claim, that MDMA caused damage to nerve cells in the brain. A dramatic announcement of this supposed nerve damage came on May 31, 1985, at the University of Chicago, where just weeks before Schuster and I were discussing how to demonstrate the drugs unique therapeutic properties.... Charles Schuster, for his willingness to do what the government told him was rewarded with a promotion to head the National Institute of Drug Abuse.....Once Doblin helped to popularize MDMA it very quickly, in a matter of months, the most popular recreational drug in the world. All over America, and Europe, young people were treated to this substance in trance-like music conditions. Soon it became clear that the commerce of MDMA was mostly Israeli organized crime, with links their intelligence apparatus, Mossad.... while Doblin commenced his MAPS scam. If MDMA were placed in Schedule 3, as the law judge Francis Young recommended, it would have been more available for research, clinical uses, and for independent chemists to produce. But the Controlled Substance Act authorizes the DEA to reject the recommendations of the scientific or medical community, and that has to change.... I will be writing more about modern psychedelic history, which is poorly understood, due to misleading mainstream narratives vigorously promoted in the media and in books like Michael Pollan's. The true history of these drugs is really a lot more interesting, and complicated. You won't understand it however, if you are allergic to so called conspiracy theories. US drug policy is a farce. Drugs are made illegal not because the government wants to protect people by forbidding their use. Drugs are illegal because that way organized crime with links to secret government agencies can control the market. Alfred McCoy's classic book, originating from his PhD thesis at Yale, The Politics of Heroin in Southeast Asia, is a good place to start understanding the depth of the problem. Our beloved psychedelic drugs are swept up in this government sponsored criminality too.....
This is so tragically pathetic. Your bullshit "noble" narrative of "community organizing", "good science", "harm prevention", and "mitigating risk" are just masking your own axe to grind with certain people within MAPS and deeper envy and resentment. You should be ashamed of yourself for dedicating your energy in this way. I mean, you could've just posted about the legitimate abuses and limitations within MAPS without going to the FDA. Truly a despicable thing you've done.
Telling people that they have an "inner healing intelligence" and giving them MDMA which is the most empathogenic, loving and gentle drug there is - counts as MK Ultra 2.0 to you?
You've been watching too many movies.
They are promoting legitimate therapeutic practices and of course there are always nut cases who want to interpret something beautiful as something sinister.
I would say it's a stretch to call MAPS a therapy cult. We need to keep in mind that this is a part of people trying to navigate a new field. While suggestibility is definitely a concern, implying it's part of MAPS' underlying agenda seems like a stretch. You could argue that some journalistic views are similar to cult behavior. But, we can't forget that these treatments align with the spiritual part of Doblin's mission. It's a sensible way to see how psychedelics can help with trauma recovery and mind growth through fresh views. He believes that this is an opportunity to help people expand their minds as well, and I think we can all agree that humanity is due for a mental upgrade. Understanding the risk of self-hypnosis is key. Even though MAPS/Lykos is being scrutinized now, it's a problem that will likely be faced universally.
Journalists are not mental health professionals working with a highly vulnerable population who are susceptible to undue influence. Behavioral control and thought control are aspects of authoritarian organizations. Do you think that trauma survivors might be in a highly vulnerable state when under the influence of a psychedelic drug? Do you think people who are desperate for relief and suffering might be willing to do whatever it takes to win the approval of those with power to offer them treatment? Would they tend to turn a blind eye to unethical conduct? Would they be willing to do anything (including testify at FDA hearing, raise money for the cause, March on Washington, send an email to their local congressmen, be uncritical and loyal in their praise and admiration of the work of the organization and be willing to overlook glaring flaws) in order to win the approval and attention of their leader, Rick Doblin, their savior?
You’re right, it’s not a cult, It’s a high control, top down organization which holds significant leverage and power over its loyal following so much so that it’s almost impossible to engage in reasonable deliberation of issues raised about the trial because the followers are too invested in the outcome and cannot be objective.
Lifton (1961) described “eight psychological themes which are predominant within the social field of the thought reform milieu” (Lifton, 1961, p. 420):
I appreciate your insight and courage to write this piece. It’s a tough read while trying to discern, as someone else wrote here, how much of this harm is due to navigating a very new territory versus intentional action on the part of Doblin and MAPS therapists. I’ve seen and heard about similar abuses of power happening with charismatic psychedelic facilitators/leaders consciously entering dual relationships with clients for professional or personal gain. The increased suggestibility under MDMA was always dismissed especially using spiritual bypass and no one takes responsibility for the potential harm involved. I’ve also seen and experienced some spiritual bullying where untrained facilitators push boundaries under pretences that “you’re not trusting” or “your heart is closed”.
I find Neşe's insights here to be especially activating. The points she's making are extremely important. I hope to see this conversation broadened considerably. It is needed at the most invisible and hardship affected intersections.
Hi Anna! I understand you're worried about how MAPS is handling MDMA therapy for trauma survivors. Let's break this down in a simpler way:
First, it's important to know that MAPS isn't trying to control people or make them feel left out on purpose. They're actually working really hard to make a new kind of medicine available to help people who are hurting.
The problem is, when doctors and scientists make new medicines, they have to follow a lot of rules to make sure the medicines are safe. It's kind of like when you're baking cookies - you have to follow the recipe carefully to make sure they turn out right and don't make anyone sick.
Now, about the waiting lists and feeling like you might miss out - this happens with lots of new treatments, not just MDMA. It's not because MAPS wants to make people feel special or left out. It's because they can only help a certain number of people at first while they're still figuring things out.
David Graeber, a smart person who thought a lot about how society works, might say it's like this: Imagine you and your friends discover a really fun new game. At first, only a few of you know how to play it right. You'd want everyone to be able to play, but you need time to teach more people the rules. It's not because you're trying to leave anyone out - you're actually working on teaching everyone!
MAPS is kind of like that. They're not trying to control people or make them feel bad. They're just following the rules and trying to teach more doctors how to use this new treatment safely.
The most important thing is that MAPS and other doctors want to help people feel better, not worse. They're working on making MDMA therapy available to more people as quickly and safely as they can. It might take some time, but they're not trying to trick anyone or make them feel powerless.
It's unfortunate that the incident happened in the trial, and it's been addressed in the study. And I totally agree with you that it needs to be done with the most careful mean to make it safer.
Thank you for your work on this important topic! Psychedelic-assisted therapy is uncharted territory both regarding patient and therapist safety: possible suggestibility and manipulation of patients, possible misinterpretation or false memories of therapist behavior in session, unclear ability to consent under the influence…) Unfortunately, while I fouled Kolft et al. 2022 stating ‘Findings indicate a complex memory profile but no heightened vulnerability to external suggestion in response to MDMA intoxication.’ i wasn’t able to find any other recent research showing suggestibility-increasing effects of MDMA or proneness to false memory formation. Maybe you could point me to the relevant sources? Thanks you so much!
incredible work, great research! You have confirmed my suspicions about MAPS. Is it me or as a psychedelic enthusiast this whole thing is completely demoralizing! Just like everything else these days. They shouldn’t have made it past phase 1 trials and I was under the impression they were being reviewed by the federal government.
This was such a detailed read but I fear you may have only scratched the surface. 38 years of this essential data collection operation, money laundering and so much more as I m sure we ll find out in the future.
Unfortunately there is a large cult that does use trauma based mind control and traffics the people for all sorts of bad things. Kathy O’brian is a survivor (who healed her Dissociative Identity Disorder) of what I am talking about, it’s still going on and I have a friend whose ex was in the cult. They don’t have a name but it goes up to the top of power in the United States.
This article is such a service to the psychedelic ‘community’ or those of us that actually want that. I urge everyone to share this amazing piece with everyone who’s ever heard of MAPS or interested in psychedelics as a tool for healing.
Thanks again I really appreciate all of your hard work !
MAPS is NOT a cult. The criticisms you raise in your hit piece are nonsensical.
PTSD is a very serious condition that causes great suffering for victims and their families. And comes with a very high risk of violence against loved ones and / or suicide. It takes strong psychotherapeutic techniques to heal someone from PTSD including deep psychological journeying.
If someone has a heart condition and gets open heart surgery - the treatment is dangerous and a small percentage will die during the surgery - or soon afterwards. Does this mean that we should ban heart surgery?
People with cancer routinely take chemotherapy which absolutely wrecks their bodies and literally kills many of them - but we still make this treatment available because we want to save people from cancer.
Does depth psychotherapy have risks? Sure - but in the vast majority of cases with a well-intentioned trained therapist most people will benefit - with many having life changing transformations. Might a small percentage of cases not turn out well? Sure - we are dealing with human beings here.
Does this mean we should not use these powerful tools and methodologies to heal PTSD because we might cause a little harm in a few cases? Of course not.
This is why these groups establish what they believe to be best practices in utilizing these very powerful tools. Of course they use a philosophy to guide them. Does this make them a cult? No - just the opposite. They are attempting to make the practice as effective, safe and professional as possible.
I've conducted many deep psychotherapeutic sessions using techniques which don't happen to utilize drugs. Stanislov Grof's framework - which is basically a map of the human psyche and human trauma - has been incredibly valuable in understanding and guiding these experiences.
The most obvious rule of depth psychotherapy is that whatever comes up in any given session is what is best to work with - and that the person - both their mind and body have an inner wisdom that supports the process and allows them to heal. This is just plain common sense for anyone who guides sessions and I've seen it work nearly every time.
If someone is learning to ride a bike wouldn't you encourage them to keep trying and tell them that they are doing well and will soon learn to be much better? Of course! Does this mean you are creating an evil cult of "inner intelligence bike riders"?
When going on deep healing journeys - something you appear to know nothing about - of course the journeyer should be in charge - the therapist is just there to support the transition they are making.
Anything else is an interference with the process. The therapist shouldn't be telling the journeyer that they are doing something wrong - or to stop emoting or anything like that. The purpose of the therapist is to encourage as much deep healing and forward progress as possible in a session. Criticizing the concept of the patient having an "inner healing intelligence" is beyond absurd.
In the work I do - I regularly shake the patients and sometimes press hard against them as a form of resistance and it works. Of course if they tell me to stop or otherwise signal that its not appropriate I immediately stop. But being able to touch and interact with a patient is vitally important in a deep therapeutic session.
I'm not going to cover every absurd thing you mentioned in that hit piece - but let me speak about Grof. He's an incredible thinker and depth psychologist having written numerous books on transpersonal psychology and having conducted countless group and individual healing sessions.
However what he shares is scientific and technical. He does not promote any religious or spiritual teachings - as you implied. In his books he mentions many of the varieties of altered states one may experience - but neither confirms nor denies their "truth". It is the EXPERIENCE of the journeyer that does the healing - regardless of the truth or falsehood of the story they are unfolding in the session. The goal is to support the patient's forward progress and not interfere with it because of any limiting beliefs on the part of the practitioner.
For someone who claims to be against the corporatization or suppression of psychedelic therapy - you just scored a massive blow in support of the corporate establishment. Are you jealous of the group? Did someone get to you? I'm puzzled how anyone who was serious about psychedelic therapy would have stooped this low.
PS. I have no association with MAPS - although I saw Rick Doblin speak about MAPS around 40 years ago so I really admire the Herculean effort he's put in for so many years attempting to convince highly resistant government agencies to accept this powerful sacrament as a legitimate form of medicine. Too bad you just wrecked his incredible achievement.
I tried to befriend a former classmate, a key member of MAPS. I did so by email. She responded using the word "friend," asked if I still lived in the area and asked about my general wellbeing. I replied.
I heard nothing for weeks from her so I sent another email and then another a short time later. There was no answer. I suspect she flagged my address as spam and never intended to reply to me again.
At one point, I looked at the dark web monitoring service that I use and noticed someone had looked me up in August, about 3 weeks after I had tried to contact this individual.
I tried joining Twitter to see what had happened to my new friend. I made a comment on something she had reposted and commented on. I spoke in defense of her position. She said nothing.
About 3 weeks later, she un-reposted the tweet that I had commented on.
I sent her another email with a different return address and asked why she wouldn't talk to me. She replied, assured me that she hadn't filtered my email address and told me I could ask any questions about psychedelic chaplaincy I wanted. Again, time goes by, no answer. I finally asked my Dad to send something on my behalf as I am autistic and communicating with people is hard.
She told him that she had sent a few emails to me which had tried to reassure me that she had nothing against me. This is simply untrue.
Finally, I replied to one of her tweets with "[Her name,] can you see what I'm typing?"
Then I noticed that she had made posts but never replied to me. It confirmed that she had muted me.
This is incredibly hurtful. She knows nothing about me other than my income and now, the fact that I'm an autistic widower. She seems to try her best to ignore me. These are not the actions of a compassionate, honest therapist who has been contacted by a former classmate who apologized for being too shy to talk to her 40 years ago, these are the actions of a narcissist. This is psychological abuse. She still refuses to say anything directly to me on Twitter. The only thing she has done is to try to brush me off by replying with a link to a group that does therapy for widowed people.
I had asked for as little of her as to say "hello" every great once in a while.
She has made herself quite wealthy doing psychedelic chaplaincy for sufferers of PTSD. MDMA therapy can be extremely expensive.
One last thing, her degree. She has a PhD in religious studies. She posted the start and finish of her PhD program on her Facebook page. Those posts have no congratulations, no instances of "like" being clicked. Nothing. All her other posts have interactions from family and friends.
She now seems completely unreachable and I am unable to move on without closure. Without her at least acknowledging that she has read how badly she hurt me by stringing me along for 3 months when I so desperately needed a friend.
I refuse to divulge her name in case that gets me sued. I needed to share this because of the lack of honesty and compassion. I still feel horrible as I have no closure.
I previously commented here, debating what truly defines a "cult," but I deleted the post because, on reflection, it seemed overly apologetic and uncritical. After reading the author’s work, I’m now viewing MAPS with a more critical eye and believe the term warrants serious consideration.
“MAPS and the potential profit motive, along with the star-trip/desperate-$-ego-trip”
Ner 2010
Psychedelic Science in the 21st Century
BY VARIOUS AUTHORS
Jun 2010
Erowid Extracts #18
Psychedelic Used Car Salesmen
by Ner
When looking at the top MAPS people I felt as if I were looking at used car dealers: a necessary evil? Funding and all, I saw a lot of hungry eyes; needing work, I guess?
Listening to Carolyn Garcia speak of meeting Neal Cassady, seeing Nick Sand, and hearing Earth and Fire mention Terence McKenna and experiencing the subtle irony of their talk--that's what I came for, and I was fulfilled. Also, the ayahuasca track had something special; it seems that "medicine" can produce a kind of humbling experience, which was reflected in what I heard there.
All in all, the potential harvesting of the hungry masses that flooded the event was unpleasant. Thank God for Mountain Girl, Nick, Earth and Fire. I really miss Terence and others. Also, bless the Shulgins. I'm not completely comfortable with MAPS and the potential profit motive, along with the star-trip/desperate-$-ego-trip. Oh well. It may be the way of the world at this time, and it's just what I felt.
A lot of books about LSD were written 60 years ago by therapists that were working for the CIA. Their opinion of what could be done with it were vastly different from what most people thought it could be used for. The CIA wanted it for brainwashing, etc., and believed it mimicked a person suffering from severe mental illness. Other doctors, writers, etc., believed it was an incredible drug that could be used to break free from the systems we are forced to live in and to experience the world as it truly exists, in infinity, in the ever present now. There are amazing uses for these medicines if we approach them from the right viewpoint and do it responsibly. Read “ACID DREAMS” if you need a great source for what the CIA was up to. ✌🏻
Again, can't thank you enough for your courageous efforts to bring the MAPS scam to an end. I hope and expect this to become a major turning point in the so called psychedelic renaissance. I have watched Doblin's scam from the very beginning, It has always amazed me how many people fell for his glib and obviously insincere espousal of the marvelous effects of MDMA and other psychedelic drugs so he and his cult could profit egotistically and financially. There are so many things wrong with American psychedelic drug policy that cause these sometimes sacred drugs to be weaponized, commodified, and criminalized, while their spiritual, scientific, recreational, and therapeutic virtues are squandered. The first thing that needs to change is the Controlled Substance Act of 1970, which not only wrongly classifies these drugs as having "no medical use and a high potential for abuse," the CSA also places the authority to regulate these drugs to the DEA. It is in effect a martial law. We can clearly see the effects of this dysfunctional law n the history of MDMA. MDMA was an orphan drug for most of its life. That is, no pharmaceutical company owned it. Merck first conceived it in 1914 and tested it, I think, as an appetite suppressant. Finding no special properties in animal testing, the drug was released into the public domain. There it sat until the 1950 when Alexander Shulgin and others tested it, for things we don't know, at the top secret Edgewood Arsenal for chemical weapons. According to the official story, it was found to have no special properties, a story I do not believe. Then in the 1960s Shulgin and Gordon Alles began to look into it again. Slowly at first the substance began to work its way into the underground psychedelic community of therapists. Shulgin began to instruct clandestine chemists how to make it, and acquire the precursors. I organized a few chemists in the early 1980s and with Shulgin's help, began to produce it, with the hopes that this marvelous drug, with unique therapeutic properties would help our society gradually open to the more profound mysteries of the classic psychedelics that had become eclipsed during the hysteria of the 1960s. We intended to learn from those errors, Leary was to blame, for excessively promoting these drugs in the wrong context. My project turned on many hundreds of volunteers who were asked to describe their experience in a natural setting and submit a written report. Above all, they were asked to keep this substance secret. It was being used discreetly and had not attracted the attention of the DEA. There was no reason to make it illegal, until Doblin entered the scene. Of all the people my project turned on, he was the only one to violate the oath of secrecy. He called the government, and the media, the Partnership for a Drug Free America to announce the existence of this legal love drug. In so doing, he won the graces of the government, and the media who sensationally proclaimed him the Timothy Leary of the 1980s. Almost overnight MDMA, which became known as Ecstasy, went from a secret tool to the most popular recreational drug in the world. I happen to know, though direct personal experience, that Charles Schuster, the psychopharmacologist at the University of Chicago, provided the government with the main justification for making MDMA a Schedule 1 drug was in fact involved in a conspiracy, a secret arrangement with "the government." He told me, the government asked him to declare with no research to support his claim, that MDMA caused damage to nerve cells in the brain. A dramatic announcement of this supposed nerve damage came on May 31, 1985, at the University of Chicago, where just weeks before Schuster and I were discussing how to demonstrate the drugs unique therapeutic properties.... Charles Schuster, for his willingness to do what the government told him was rewarded with a promotion to head the National Institute of Drug Abuse.....Once Doblin helped to popularize MDMA it very quickly, in a matter of months, the most popular recreational drug in the world. All over America, and Europe, young people were treated to this substance in trance-like music conditions. Soon it became clear that the commerce of MDMA was mostly Israeli organized crime, with links their intelligence apparatus, Mossad.... while Doblin commenced his MAPS scam. If MDMA were placed in Schedule 3, as the law judge Francis Young recommended, it would have been more available for research, clinical uses, and for independent chemists to produce. But the Controlled Substance Act authorizes the DEA to reject the recommendations of the scientific or medical community, and that has to change.... I will be writing more about modern psychedelic history, which is poorly understood, due to misleading mainstream narratives vigorously promoted in the media and in books like Michael Pollan's. The true history of these drugs is really a lot more interesting, and complicated. You won't understand it however, if you are allergic to so called conspiracy theories. US drug policy is a farce. Drugs are made illegal not because the government wants to protect people by forbidding their use. Drugs are illegal because that way organized crime with links to secret government agencies can control the market. Alfred McCoy's classic book, originating from his PhD thesis at Yale, The Politics of Heroin in Southeast Asia, is a good place to start understanding the depth of the problem. Our beloved psychedelic drugs are swept up in this government sponsored criminality too.....
This is so tragically pathetic. Your bullshit "noble" narrative of "community organizing", "good science", "harm prevention", and "mitigating risk" are just masking your own axe to grind with certain people within MAPS and deeper envy and resentment. You should be ashamed of yourself for dedicating your energy in this way. I mean, you could've just posted about the legitimate abuses and limitations within MAPS without going to the FDA. Truly a despicable thing you've done.
I m glad she went to the FDA they should be shut down and I m calling for full boycott of their BS MK ultra 2.0 operation
Telling people that they have an "inner healing intelligence" and giving them MDMA which is the most empathogenic, loving and gentle drug there is - counts as MK Ultra 2.0 to you?
You've been watching too many movies.
They are promoting legitimate therapeutic practices and of course there are always nut cases who want to interpret something beautiful as something sinister.
Can I ask that You actually explain the cult part specifically & in detail.
I’m not defending MAPS, but I only see You saying they are, not actually presenting evidence; by way of examples, of it.
I would say it's a stretch to call MAPS a therapy cult. We need to keep in mind that this is a part of people trying to navigate a new field. While suggestibility is definitely a concern, implying it's part of MAPS' underlying agenda seems like a stretch. You could argue that some journalistic views are similar to cult behavior. But, we can't forget that these treatments align with the spiritual part of Doblin's mission. It's a sensible way to see how psychedelics can help with trauma recovery and mind growth through fresh views. He believes that this is an opportunity to help people expand their minds as well, and I think we can all agree that humanity is due for a mental upgrade. Understanding the risk of self-hypnosis is key. Even though MAPS/Lykos is being scrutinized now, it's a problem that will likely be faced universally.
Journalists are not mental health professionals working with a highly vulnerable population who are susceptible to undue influence. Behavioral control and thought control are aspects of authoritarian organizations. Do you think that trauma survivors might be in a highly vulnerable state when under the influence of a psychedelic drug? Do you think people who are desperate for relief and suffering might be willing to do whatever it takes to win the approval of those with power to offer them treatment? Would they tend to turn a blind eye to unethical conduct? Would they be willing to do anything (including testify at FDA hearing, raise money for the cause, March on Washington, send an email to their local congressmen, be uncritical and loyal in their praise and admiration of the work of the organization and be willing to overlook glaring flaws) in order to win the approval and attention of their leader, Rick Doblin, their savior?
You’re right, it’s not a cult, It’s a high control, top down organization which holds significant leverage and power over its loyal following so much so that it’s almost impossible to engage in reasonable deliberation of issues raised about the trial because the followers are too invested in the outcome and cannot be objective.
Lifton (1961) described “eight psychological themes which are predominant within the social field of the thought reform milieu” (Lifton, 1961, p. 420):
milieu control,
mystical manipulation,
the demand for purity,
the cult of confession,
the sacred science,
loading the language:
doctrine over person,
the dispensing of existence.
I appreciate your insight and courage to write this piece. It’s a tough read while trying to discern, as someone else wrote here, how much of this harm is due to navigating a very new territory versus intentional action on the part of Doblin and MAPS therapists. I’ve seen and heard about similar abuses of power happening with charismatic psychedelic facilitators/leaders consciously entering dual relationships with clients for professional or personal gain. The increased suggestibility under MDMA was always dismissed especially using spiritual bypass and no one takes responsibility for the potential harm involved. I’ve also seen and experienced some spiritual bullying where untrained facilitators push boundaries under pretences that “you’re not trusting” or “your heart is closed”.
I find Neşe's insights here to be especially activating. The points she's making are extremely important. I hope to see this conversation broadened considerably. It is needed at the most invisible and hardship affected intersections.
Hi Anna! I understand you're worried about how MAPS is handling MDMA therapy for trauma survivors. Let's break this down in a simpler way:
First, it's important to know that MAPS isn't trying to control people or make them feel left out on purpose. They're actually working really hard to make a new kind of medicine available to help people who are hurting.
The problem is, when doctors and scientists make new medicines, they have to follow a lot of rules to make sure the medicines are safe. It's kind of like when you're baking cookies - you have to follow the recipe carefully to make sure they turn out right and don't make anyone sick.
Now, about the waiting lists and feeling like you might miss out - this happens with lots of new treatments, not just MDMA. It's not because MAPS wants to make people feel special or left out. It's because they can only help a certain number of people at first while they're still figuring things out.
David Graeber, a smart person who thought a lot about how society works, might say it's like this: Imagine you and your friends discover a really fun new game. At first, only a few of you know how to play it right. You'd want everyone to be able to play, but you need time to teach more people the rules. It's not because you're trying to leave anyone out - you're actually working on teaching everyone!
MAPS is kind of like that. They're not trying to control people or make them feel bad. They're just following the rules and trying to teach more doctors how to use this new treatment safely.
The most important thing is that MAPS and other doctors want to help people feel better, not worse. They're working on making MDMA therapy available to more people as quickly and safely as they can. It might take some time, but they're not trying to trick anyone or make them feel powerless.
It's unfortunate that the incident happened in the trial, and it's been addressed in the study. And I totally agree with you that it needs to be done with the most careful mean to make it safer.
Does this help explain things a bit better, Anna?
shout out chatgpt for holding it down with that explain like i'm 5 energy
Thank you for your work on this important topic! Psychedelic-assisted therapy is uncharted territory both regarding patient and therapist safety: possible suggestibility and manipulation of patients, possible misinterpretation or false memories of therapist behavior in session, unclear ability to consent under the influence…) Unfortunately, while I fouled Kolft et al. 2022 stating ‘Findings indicate a complex memory profile but no heightened vulnerability to external suggestion in response to MDMA intoxication.’ i wasn’t able to find any other recent research showing suggestibility-increasing effects of MDMA or proneness to false memory formation. Maybe you could point me to the relevant sources? Thanks you so much!
Thank you for bringing this vital conversation forward.
incredible work, great research! You have confirmed my suspicions about MAPS. Is it me or as a psychedelic enthusiast this whole thing is completely demoralizing! Just like everything else these days. They shouldn’t have made it past phase 1 trials and I was under the impression they were being reviewed by the federal government.
This was such a detailed read but I fear you may have only scratched the surface. 38 years of this essential data collection operation, money laundering and so much more as I m sure we ll find out in the future.
Unfortunately there is a large cult that does use trauma based mind control and traffics the people for all sorts of bad things. Kathy O’brian is a survivor (who healed her Dissociative Identity Disorder) of what I am talking about, it’s still going on and I have a friend whose ex was in the cult. They don’t have a name but it goes up to the top of power in the United States.
This article is such a service to the psychedelic ‘community’ or those of us that actually want that. I urge everyone to share this amazing piece with everyone who’s ever heard of MAPS or interested in psychedelics as a tool for healing.
Thanks again I really appreciate all of your hard work !
MAPS is NOT a cult. The criticisms you raise in your hit piece are nonsensical.
PTSD is a very serious condition that causes great suffering for victims and their families. And comes with a very high risk of violence against loved ones and / or suicide. It takes strong psychotherapeutic techniques to heal someone from PTSD including deep psychological journeying.
If someone has a heart condition and gets open heart surgery - the treatment is dangerous and a small percentage will die during the surgery - or soon afterwards. Does this mean that we should ban heart surgery?
People with cancer routinely take chemotherapy which absolutely wrecks their bodies and literally kills many of them - but we still make this treatment available because we want to save people from cancer.
Does depth psychotherapy have risks? Sure - but in the vast majority of cases with a well-intentioned trained therapist most people will benefit - with many having life changing transformations. Might a small percentage of cases not turn out well? Sure - we are dealing with human beings here.
Does this mean we should not use these powerful tools and methodologies to heal PTSD because we might cause a little harm in a few cases? Of course not.
This is why these groups establish what they believe to be best practices in utilizing these very powerful tools. Of course they use a philosophy to guide them. Does this make them a cult? No - just the opposite. They are attempting to make the practice as effective, safe and professional as possible.
I've conducted many deep psychotherapeutic sessions using techniques which don't happen to utilize drugs. Stanislov Grof's framework - which is basically a map of the human psyche and human trauma - has been incredibly valuable in understanding and guiding these experiences.
The most obvious rule of depth psychotherapy is that whatever comes up in any given session is what is best to work with - and that the person - both their mind and body have an inner wisdom that supports the process and allows them to heal. This is just plain common sense for anyone who guides sessions and I've seen it work nearly every time.
If someone is learning to ride a bike wouldn't you encourage them to keep trying and tell them that they are doing well and will soon learn to be much better? Of course! Does this mean you are creating an evil cult of "inner intelligence bike riders"?
When going on deep healing journeys - something you appear to know nothing about - of course the journeyer should be in charge - the therapist is just there to support the transition they are making.
Anything else is an interference with the process. The therapist shouldn't be telling the journeyer that they are doing something wrong - or to stop emoting or anything like that. The purpose of the therapist is to encourage as much deep healing and forward progress as possible in a session. Criticizing the concept of the patient having an "inner healing intelligence" is beyond absurd.
In the work I do - I regularly shake the patients and sometimes press hard against them as a form of resistance and it works. Of course if they tell me to stop or otherwise signal that its not appropriate I immediately stop. But being able to touch and interact with a patient is vitally important in a deep therapeutic session.
I'm not going to cover every absurd thing you mentioned in that hit piece - but let me speak about Grof. He's an incredible thinker and depth psychologist having written numerous books on transpersonal psychology and having conducted countless group and individual healing sessions.
However what he shares is scientific and technical. He does not promote any religious or spiritual teachings - as you implied. In his books he mentions many of the varieties of altered states one may experience - but neither confirms nor denies their "truth". It is the EXPERIENCE of the journeyer that does the healing - regardless of the truth or falsehood of the story they are unfolding in the session. The goal is to support the patient's forward progress and not interfere with it because of any limiting beliefs on the part of the practitioner.
For someone who claims to be against the corporatization or suppression of psychedelic therapy - you just scored a massive blow in support of the corporate establishment. Are you jealous of the group? Did someone get to you? I'm puzzled how anyone who was serious about psychedelic therapy would have stooped this low.
PS. I have no association with MAPS - although I saw Rick Doblin speak about MAPS around 40 years ago so I really admire the Herculean effort he's put in for so many years attempting to convince highly resistant government agencies to accept this powerful sacrament as a legitimate form of medicine. Too bad you just wrecked his incredible achievement.
Hello. I just want to tell what I have seen.
I tried to befriend a former classmate, a key member of MAPS. I did so by email. She responded using the word "friend," asked if I still lived in the area and asked about my general wellbeing. I replied.
I heard nothing for weeks from her so I sent another email and then another a short time later. There was no answer. I suspect she flagged my address as spam and never intended to reply to me again.
At one point, I looked at the dark web monitoring service that I use and noticed someone had looked me up in August, about 3 weeks after I had tried to contact this individual.
I tried joining Twitter to see what had happened to my new friend. I made a comment on something she had reposted and commented on. I spoke in defense of her position. She said nothing.
About 3 weeks later, she un-reposted the tweet that I had commented on.
I sent her another email with a different return address and asked why she wouldn't talk to me. She replied, assured me that she hadn't filtered my email address and told me I could ask any questions about psychedelic chaplaincy I wanted. Again, time goes by, no answer. I finally asked my Dad to send something on my behalf as I am autistic and communicating with people is hard.
She told him that she had sent a few emails to me which had tried to reassure me that she had nothing against me. This is simply untrue.
Finally, I replied to one of her tweets with "[Her name,] can you see what I'm typing?"
Then I noticed that she had made posts but never replied to me. It confirmed that she had muted me.
This is incredibly hurtful. She knows nothing about me other than my income and now, the fact that I'm an autistic widower. She seems to try her best to ignore me. These are not the actions of a compassionate, honest therapist who has been contacted by a former classmate who apologized for being too shy to talk to her 40 years ago, these are the actions of a narcissist. This is psychological abuse. She still refuses to say anything directly to me on Twitter. The only thing she has done is to try to brush me off by replying with a link to a group that does therapy for widowed people.
I had asked for as little of her as to say "hello" every great once in a while.
She has made herself quite wealthy doing psychedelic chaplaincy for sufferers of PTSD. MDMA therapy can be extremely expensive.
One last thing, her degree. She has a PhD in religious studies. She posted the start and finish of her PhD program on her Facebook page. Those posts have no congratulations, no instances of "like" being clicked. Nothing. All her other posts have interactions from family and friends.
She now seems completely unreachable and I am unable to move on without closure. Without her at least acknowledging that she has read how badly she hurt me by stringing me along for 3 months when I so desperately needed a friend.
I refuse to divulge her name in case that gets me sued. I needed to share this because of the lack of honesty and compassion. I still feel horrible as I have no closure.
I previously commented here, debating what truly defines a "cult," but I deleted the post because, on reflection, it seemed overly apologetic and uncritical. After reading the author’s work, I’m now viewing MAPS with a more critical eye and believe the term warrants serious consideration.
“MAPS and the potential profit motive, along with the star-trip/desperate-$-ego-trip”
Ner 2010
Psychedelic Science in the 21st Century
BY VARIOUS AUTHORS
Jun 2010
Erowid Extracts #18
Psychedelic Used Car Salesmen
by Ner
When looking at the top MAPS people I felt as if I were looking at used car dealers: a necessary evil? Funding and all, I saw a lot of hungry eyes; needing work, I guess?
Listening to Carolyn Garcia speak of meeting Neal Cassady, seeing Nick Sand, and hearing Earth and Fire mention Terence McKenna and experiencing the subtle irony of their talk--that's what I came for, and I was fulfilled. Also, the ayahuasca track had something special; it seems that "medicine" can produce a kind of humbling experience, which was reflected in what I heard there.
All in all, the potential harvesting of the hungry masses that flooded the event was unpleasant. Thank God for Mountain Girl, Nick, Earth and Fire. I really miss Terence and others. Also, bless the Shulgins. I'm not completely comfortable with MAPS and the potential profit motive, along with the star-trip/desperate-$-ego-trip. Oh well. It may be the way of the world at this time, and it's just what I felt.
💜
Hi NEŞE
You successfully get more attention talking about this topic, well done.
I don't agree with you but you have the right to express your opinion.
Opinion ? This is literally journalistic truth ? Did you see all the references ? There’s direct quotes from the therapists and patient reports
A lot of books about LSD were written 60 years ago by therapists that were working for the CIA. Their opinion of what could be done with it were vastly different from what most people thought it could be used for. The CIA wanted it for brainwashing, etc., and believed it mimicked a person suffering from severe mental illness. Other doctors, writers, etc., believed it was an incredible drug that could be used to break free from the systems we are forced to live in and to experience the world as it truly exists, in infinity, in the ever present now. There are amazing uses for these medicines if we approach them from the right viewpoint and do it responsibly. Read “ACID DREAMS” if you need a great source for what the CIA was up to. ✌🏻
I agree - and doesn’t it seem like the CIA was involved in MAPS!?!?!?