On February 27, 2016, the 11th and final participant received their last blinded experimental session in our ongoing study of MDMA-assisted therapy for social anxiety in adults on the autism spectrum. Sponsored by MAPS, this is a collaborative study between MAPS and the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, with blood plasma biomarker analysis conducted by researchers at Stanford University. “During the actual drug-assisted treatment sessions, both structured and unstructured tasks will be employed, including but not limited to listening to preselected music, working with art supplies, writing in journals, silent introspection, and engaging in rapport building interactions with therapists,” write the researchers in the March 2015 article published in Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology & Biological Psychiatry. “In addition, subjects will complete the TASIT, which is an interactive, video-based assessment of social inference skills. The co-therapists, always one male and one female to manage potential transference during therapy, will emphasize creating and communicating a setting of safety and support for the subject during periods of inner focus.”
