Photo: Bret Hartman / TED
MAPS Launches New Study Recruitment Website
Visit mdmaptsd.org to explore participation opportunities for Phase 3 clinical trials
July 23, 2019
Dear friends and supporters,
This month marks several major accomplishments for MAPS. Our new study recruitment website, mdmaptsd.org, is now accepting applications! We are currently seeking research volunteers for Phase 3 clinical trials of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD. Volunteers will help contribute to scientific knowledge and will help us better understand if MDMA-assisted psychotherapy works for PTSD. MAPS conducts clinical trials under the guidance and regulations of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in collaboration with all federal regulators, including the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). To learn more about our clinical trials or apply to be a study participant, visit our website.
On July 9, 2019, TED released the first official TED Talk about psychedelics, presented by MAPS Founder and Executive Director Rick Doblin, Ph.D., on the main stage at TED2019. Watch Doblin speak about how psychedelics can shift the field of mental health to a large audience in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This video has received over 1,000,000 views since being published.
We are excited to invite you to the official book release of The Way of the Psychonaut: Encyclopedia for Inner Journeys by Stanislav Grof, M.D., Ph.D. This celebratory event includes the book launch, film screening, and addresses from special guests at the elegant Scottish Rite Masonic Center in San Francisco, Calif., on August 11, 2019. The event includes a film screening of the not-yet-released Journey of Consciousness, a feature-length documentary that explores Stanislav Grof’s story. Select tickets include the two-volume book set, which will be available for pickup at the event. • Learn More • Buy Tickets
Limited tickets are still available for Psychedelic Medicine & Cultural Trauma Workshop in Louisville, Kentucky from August 10-11, 2019. This day-and-a-half opening workshop focuses on the political and social factors that impact trauma and healing. Community leaders will join trainees for this workshop to engage in dialogue about the social, political, cultural, and historical causes of trauma, as well as to discuss barriers to acceptance of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy in communities of color while envisioning ways forward.
We’re pleased to share alternative ways to donate to MAPS! MAPS currently accepts donations in cryptocurrency including Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, Ethereum, and Monero. You can also shop using AmazonSmile to donate a portion of your purchase price to MAPS at no extra cost to you.
In this month’s edition of the MAPS Newsletter, you’ll also learn:
- MAPS and MAPS Public Benefit Corporation (MAPS PBC) are hiring! We are accepting applications for new career opportunities
- You’re invited to write a testimonial for the Zendo Project’s outreach and development efforts
- The 13th annual Horizons: Perspectives on Psychedelics conference in New York City is curating a large collection of educational presentations and classes about psychedelics, including the “MDMA Therapy for Clinicians” class hosted by Shannon Clare Carlin, M.A., A.M.F.T., of MAPS Public Benefit Corporation Psychedelic Medicine & Cultural Trauma Workshop in Louisville, Kentucky from August 10-11, 2019
Pioneering psychedelic therapist Claudio Naranjo, M.D., passed away on Friday, July 12, 2019, at the age of 86. Naranjo was a Chilean psychiatrist and pioneer in the integration of psychotherapy, spirituality, and psychedelic experiences. Among his many accomplishments, he is well-respected for being a developer of the Enneagram of Personality, founder of the Seekers After Truth Institute (SAT), and author of The Healing Journey plus numerous books on psychotherapy, consciousness, personality, and education. We are thankful for Naranjo’s many accomplishments and contributions that supported the expansion of psychedelic therapy.
“Nothing is more hopeful in terms of social evolution than the collective furthering of individual wisdom, compassion, and freedom.” — Claudio Naranjo
MAPS Founder Rick Doblin, Ph.D., reflects on Naranjo’s impact, stating, “Claudio Naranjo was a profound inspiration to me and to so many others. Claudio helped train MAPS’ first therapist team for MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD, for our study in Spain that began in 2000. Claudio’s talk was the highlight of the recent World Ayahuasca Conference. Despite his health challenges, in his final days he indicated an interest in being involved in MAPS’ psychedelic reconciliation project focused on Israelis and Palestinians who are taking ayahuasca and sometimes MDMA together. We honor Claudio’s memory by continuing to work to develop MDMA and other psychedelics into prescription medicines, and beyond.”
Follow MAPS on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, and reddit.
Don’t forget to share the MAPS Newsletter with a friend!
With appreciation,
Amy Mastrine
MAPS Web and Email Marketing Associate
Treating PTSD with MDMA-Assisted Therapy
Phase 3 Trials of MDMA-Assisted Therapy for PTSD: Now Enrolling
We are currently seeking research volunteers for Phase 3 clinical trials of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD. Volunteers will help contribute to scientific knowledge and will help us better understand if MDMA-assisted psychotherapy works for PTSD. MAPS conducts clinical trials under the guidance and regulations of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in collaboration with all federal regulators, including the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). To learn more about our clinical trials or apply to be a study participant, visit our new website.
Startle Testing with MDMA: Seventeenth Participant Receives Experimental Treatment
On July 15, 2019, the seventeenth participant completed experimental treatment in our ongoing study of the effect of MDMA on startle testing in healthy volunteers. Led by Principal Investigator Barbara Rothbaum, Ph.D., this study is conducted at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. • Learn More
MDMA Therapy Training Program Update: July 2019
The MDMA Therapy Training Program has launched a series of trainings to prepare therapy providers to become eligible to work on an MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD protocol. From June 23-29, 2019, Annie Mithoefer, B.S.N., and Michael Mithoefer, M.D., led a six-and-a-half-day training retreat in Northern California focused on MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD. This retreat was organized by the CIIS’ Center for Psychedelic Therapies and Research (CPTR) with support from the MDMA Therapy Training Program. More than 90 practitioners travelled from across the U.S. and internationally to receive training.
Annie and Michael Mithoefer will be leading an upcoming training retreat October 1-8, 2019 in Asheville, North Carolina. Eligible therapy providers interested in this event can submit the MDMA Therapy Training Application and respond ”yes” to the question about interest in this event. For those who have already completed applications, you will be automatically considered for this fall event and do not need to re-apply. Future training retreats will be announced through the training newsletter as they are scheduled.
The MDMA Therapy Training for Communities of Color event will take place August 10-17, 2019, in Louisville, Kentucky, led by Marcela Ot’alora M.A., L.P.C., and Monnica Williams, Ph.D., A.B.P.P., with support from additional trainers. Registration is now full for the 6-day training retreat taking place August 11-17, 2019. The 1.5-day Psychedelic Medicine and Cultural Trauma Community Workshop will take place August 10-11 and is open to the public with tickets available online. Scholarships and tiered tuition rates, for both therapy providers and affiliated community organizers who work with communities of color, are currently available for this event through generous funding from the Open Society Foundation (OSF), Libra Foundation, Riverstyx Foundation, Psychedelic Science Funders Collaborative (PSFC), and Dr. Bronner’s. Applicants who applied for this event will receive more information about the scholarship process. Additional scholarship programs are under development. For questions about this event, please email training@mapsbcorp.com.
In January 2019, MAPS Public Benefit Corporation (MAPS PBC) submitted an MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD protocol to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as part of an application to participate in the FDA Expanded Access (EA) program. We’ve received and responded to several rounds of comments from FDA regarding our protocol submission for Expanded Access (EA), and we will hear from FDA this month. The Expanded Access program’s purpose is to grant access to potentially beneficial investigational treatments for individuals or populations facing a serious or immediately life-threatening condition for which there is no satisfactory treatment currently available. If approved, Expanded Access would allow additional qualified sites to provide MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for participants with treatment-resistant PTSD under a MAPS protocol.
Sites in the U.S. and U.S. territories interested in being considered to participate in an MDMA/PTSD protocol may now apply with MAPS PBC to assess eligibility and obtain the prerequisite training to administer MDMA-assisted psychotherapy. The basic requirements of a qualified site are 1) treatment facility conducive to MDMA-assisted psychotherapy, 2) therapy team, qualified and able to complete MDMA Therapy Training Program, and 3) prescribing physician who can obtain a DEA Schedule I license for MDMA.
Site and practitioner application procedures are posted on our website. Each site must submit one site questionnaire. Only applicants affiliated with a qualifying site can be considered for training at this time. MAPS PBC will review applications on an ongoing basis, as they are received.
Sign up and stay tuned to the Training Program Newsletter to receive updates on upcoming trainings. • Learn More
Policy and Advocacy
Representing MAPS in Washington, D.C.
This month, MAPS Policy and Advocacy Director Natalie Ginsberg, M.S.W., met with U.S. House of Representatives member Joe Kennedy III in addition to a number of congressional staffers to discuss barriers to cannabis and psychedelic research. Ginsberg also connected with allies at organizations including Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), Drug Policy Alliance (DPA), and Americans for Tax Reform (ATR).
“I continue to be encouraged by the growing nonpartisan support for psychedelic research, especially when nonpartisanship is such a rarity in Washington these days.” explains Ginsberg.
Zendo Project: Burning Man 2019 Volunteer Application Closes July 31
Zendo Project staff recently facilitated a weekend-long workshop at the Chapel of Sacred Mirrors (CoSM) in Wappingers Falls, New York. This was our second annual CoSM training. Stay tuned for upcoming east coast trainings and more by signing up for our monthly Zendo Email Newsletter (ZEN). We encourage our community to consider donating to CoSM to help build Entheon: Sanctuary of Visionary Art.
On July 5 and 6, the Zendo Project provided services at the Dead & Company show at Folsom Field in Boulder, Colorado. We look forward to future collaborations with Dead & Company.
Have you received support by the Zendo Project and are willing to provide an anonymous testimonial? We will be using these testimonials for outreach and development purposes. Please visit our website.
Zendo Project volunteer applications for Burning Man 2019 will be accepted until July 31! Apply by visiting the Zendo Project application website and following the instructions. Volunteers must secure their own Burning Man ticket and camping. We look forward to receiving your application! Apply Now
Support MAPS
June 2019 Giving Report: MAPS Raises $480,740 for FDA-Regulated Phase 3 Trials, Seeks Funding for EMA-Regulated Phase 3 Trials
Currently, we estimate $9-$10 million is needed for European Medicines Agency (EMA) trials to supplement the data gathered for the FDA. In May 2019, we reached our initial goal of $2 million raised for this program, facilitating the continuation of critical start-up activities for planned trials in multiple European countries.
In June 2019, MAPS raised $480,740 in new donations and pledges from 826 supporters. Of that amount, $179,256 was for general support, $301,164 for MDMA/PTSD Phase 3, and $319 for other MAPS programs.
We extend a special thanks to those who so generously supported MAPS last month:
General Support:
- Adam Wiggins ($50,000)
- Claudine Liss ($10,000)
- Ramez Naam ($10,000)
- Scott Faber ($10,000)
- Anonymous ($7,764.29)
- Diva Nagula ($7,500)
- Anne Kiehl Friedman ($5,000)
- Ankush Gera ($5,000)
- Jason Tan ($5,000)
- Joe Polish ($5,000)
- Philip Rosedale ($5,000)
- Anonymous ($5,000)
- The Snider Foundation ($5,000)
- Vijay Chattha ($5,000)
- Jiri Techet ($3,000)
- David and Deborah Nabozny ($2,500)
- Steve Gehrman ($2,150)
- Grant Leonard ($1,100)
- Carey Scott ($1,000)
- Greg Logan ($1,000)
- Martin M. Smith ($1,000)
- Ronald Mis ($1,000)
- Sandeep Sood ($1,000)
- Vishal Gurbuxani ($1,000)
MDMA/PTSD Phase 3 Research:
- The Libra Foundation ($300,000)
Fiscal Sponsorship:
MAPS fiscally sponsors like-minded organizations and projects. This list includes donors who have contributed $1,000+ to organizations we fiscally sponsor.
- Anonymous ($12,712.86 – Better Living Through Chemistry)
- Elyssa Kellerman ($11,500 – Aniwa)
- Eric and Wendy Day ($5,000 – The Psychedelic Therapist)
- TIDES Foundation ($5,000 – Prescription X, $2,500 – Chacruna)
- Oona Castilla Chaplin ($3,333 – Aniwa)
- David Bronner ($2,500 – Chacruna)
- New Place Fund ($2,000 – Prescription X)
- Archan Chamapun ($2,000 – PsyKia)
MAPS relies on the generosity of individual donors to achieve its mission. Psychedelic science is again being conducted under federal guidelines, but no funding for psychedelic psychotherapy research is yet available from governments or major foundations.
Help us reach our goal to make MDMA a medicine by 2021 by establishing a monthly gift of $10 or more. maps.org/donate
Learn how to include MAPS in your will or estate plans.
Learn more about hosting a Global Psychedelic Dinner to fundraise for MAPS.
Media
Featured Media: July 2019
- Statement: MAPS Responds to Administration’s Letter About Psychedelic Research Agenda and Findings
- June 28, 2019
- Forbes: Cannabis Overhype, FDA-Approved Tripping, and More High-Minded Findings From The Aspen Ideas Festival
- June 30, 2019
- LA Times: How a Trip on Magic Mushrooms Helped Decriminalize Psychedelic Plants in a California City
- June 22, 2019
MAPS Store
The Ethics of Caring by
The Ethics of Caring is a unique and widely recommended text that complements standard ethics texts by helping the student or professional find right relationship with a client. Written for practicing therapy and medical professionals, bodyworkers, clergy, students, teachers, supervisors, and mentors, The Ethics of Caring model first promotes self-compassion, then gently guides self-reflection about unconscious countertransference that often occurs in the main areas of human life. The book illuminates many extraordinary types of human experiences to help professionals become aware in case clients bring these profound states in some way to the professional for support. • Buy Now
Events
Browse our Event Calendar page for more opportunities.
Psychedelic Medicine and Cultural Trauma Workshop, Louisville, Kentucky, August 10-11, 2019
Trauma experienced by people of color is historical, cultural, systemic, and communal, in addition to an increased likelihood of experiencing discrete interpersonal trauma. To understand individual therapy, it is imperative that therapists, as well as community leaders, understand the larger traumatic context. This day-and-a-half opening workshop focuses on the political and social factors that impact trauma and healing. Community leaders will join trainees for this workshop to engage in dialogue about the social, political, cultural, and historical causes of trauma, as well as to discuss barriers to acceptance of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy in communities of color while envisioning ways forward. • Learn More
The Way of the Psychonaut: Book Launch and Film Screening, San Francisco, California, August 11, 2019
MAPS invites you to a book launch, film screening, and addresses from special guests at the elegant Scottish Rite Masonic Center in San Francisco, Calif., on August 11, 2019. This event is the official book release of The Way of the Psychonaut: Encyclopedia for Inner Journeys by Stanislav Grof, M.D., Ph.D., the all-new two-volume compendium spanning more than 60 years of Dr. Grof’s work in transpersonal psychology, spirituality, psychedelic therapy, and Holotropic Breathwork, published by MAPS. • Learn More
Breaking Convention 2019, August 16-18, 2019, London, United Kingdom
Breaking Convention is a biennial multidisciplinary conference on psychedelic consciousness, featuring more than 150 presenters from around the world. Europe’s largest conference on psychedelic consciousness, Breaking Convention is now approaching its eighth year. Breaking Convention is a truly multi-faceted festival selling nearly a thousand tickets in forty countries and offering the latest ground-breaking research and insights across human and social sciences, law, politics, art, history and philosophy. Spanning three full days, Breaking Convention features numerous workshops, awards, an art exhibition, and films. • Learn More
Insight 2019: Integrating Science and Practice of Psychedelic States, September 5-7, 2019, Berlin, Germany
The INSIGHT 2019 is a public transdisciplinary conference on the science and practice of psychedelic states. Join to participate in the discussion with international experts and young researchers from the fields of medicine, neuroscience, psychotherapy, philosophy, social and political sciences, public health, and policy making. Our goal is to create a responsible and evidence-based discourse about the complexity and usefulness of these states – both induced by pharmacological and non-pharmacological methods.• Learn More
Horizons: Perspectives on Psychedelics 2019, October 11-13, 2019, New York, New York
Horizons: Perspectives on Psychedelics is an annual forum in New York City that examines the role of psychedelic drugs and plant medicines in science, medicine, culture and spirituality. In recent years, a growing community of scientists, doctors, scholars, and activists have orchestrated a renaissance in psychedelic research and practice. Horizons brings together the brightest minds and the boldest voices of this movement to share their knowledge, insights, and dreams for the future. Now in its twelfth year, Horizons is the largest and longest-running annual gathering of the psychedelic community in the world. • Learn More
Psychedelics for Clinicians 101 & 102, November 2-3, 2019, Montreal, Canada
This 2-day training offered by psychologists Ingmar Gorman and Elizabeth Nielson is designed for clinicians and healthcare providers who want to learn more about current psychedelic research and clinical practice, including how to work with patients who have a history of psychedelic use or have expressed an interest in using psychedelics. This interactive training includes experiential learning and role-play exercises. It is the first time a program of this kind has been offered in Montreal. • Learn More
International Drug Policy Reform Conference, November 6-9, 2019, St. Louis, Missouri
The International Drug Policy Reform Conference is a biennial event that brings together people from around the world who believe that the war on drugs must end. Reform attendees have the opportunity to spend three days interacting with people committed to finding alternatives to the war on drugs while participating in sessions given by leading experts from around the world. • Learn More
More News
We’re Hiring!
MAPS and MAPS Public Benefit Corporation (MAPS PBC) are currently hiring! MAPS is hiring a Full-Charge Bookkeeper and Financial Planning Manager. MAPS PBC is hiring a Video Systems Support Specialist (European Union), Regulatory Affairs and Submission Specialist (RASS), and Clinical Research Associate. You can support MAPS by referring qualified applicants to our open positions.
Thank you to Dr. Bronner’s for their company’s support of the MAPS Newsletter!