Principles of MDMA-Assisted Therapy for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
Thursday, 18 April 2013, 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
This workshop has reached capacity and can no longer accept registrations.
The main focus of the workshop will be discussion of the therapeutic method used for MAPS-sponsored research based on the Treatment Manual on which all MAPS MDMA/PTSD studies are now based. The method will be illustrated with clinical vignettes from research sessions. As an introduction we will include a brief overview of the history of MDMA and the phases of MDMA research, a brief review of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), of the physiological and psychological effects of MDMA and of the rationale for studying MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD as well as a summary of the results of the first completed clinical trial of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD.
Michael Mithoefer, MD is a psychiatrist who practices in Charleston, SC where he divides his time between clinical research and outpatient clinical practice specializing in treating posttraumatic stress disorder with an emphasis on experiential methods of psychotherapy. He is clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at the Medical University of South Carolina and is a Grof certified Holotropic Breathwork Facilitator, a Certified Internal Family Systems Therapist and is trained in EMDR. He and his wife, Annie Mithoefer, completed a MAPS- sponsored Phase II clinical trial testing MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). They are currently conducting a second trial with military veterans, firefighters and police officers who have PTSD unresponsive to previous treatment. They conduct training for therapists in other MAPS sponsored studies, and he is medical monitor for MAPS-sponsored clinical trials in Europe, the Middle East, Canada and elsewhere in the US. Before going into psychiatry in 1995 he practiced emergency medicine for ten years and is currently board certified in Psychiatry, Emergency Medicine and Internal Medicine.
Annie Mithoefer, BSN, is a psychiatric nurse, Grof certified Holotropic Breathwork Practitioner and is trained in Hakomi Therapy. She and her husband, Michael Mithoefer divide their time between Clinical Research with MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and work with individual psychotherapy clients in their private practice. They are co-therapists for MAPS-sponsored clinical trials including a completed Phase II study testing MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and an ongoing study with military veterans, firefighters and police officers who have PTSD unresponsive to previous treatment. They also conduct training programs for other MAPS-sponsored research teams.