Michael Mithoefer

Track: Psychedelics – Science, Spirituality and Therapeutic Potential

MDMA-assisted Psychotherapy Research in the 21st Century, A Blossoming of Seeds Planted by Stanislav Grof

We will give an overview of the methods and very promising results of MAPS-sponsored clinical research over the past 17 years using MDMA-assisted psychotherapy to catalyze healing of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). We will discuss our therapeutic method, which is heavily influenced by the work and teaching of Stanislav Grof, and will illustrate the nature of the therapeutic process during MDMA-assisted sessions with clinical vignettes and a brief video clip.

Michael Mithoefer, M.D. is Lead Clinical Investigator and Medical Monitor for the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), and Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the Medical University of South Carolina. He and his wife, Annie, completed the first phase 2 clinical trial of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD in 2009 and a subsequent study of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD in military veterans, firefighters and police officers. They are now leading trainings in MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for therapists interested in working on clinical trials, providing FDA-approved MDMA sessions for research therapists, and collaborating on a study with couples receiving MDMA-assisted psychotherapy in conjunction with Cognitive Behavioral Conjoint Therapy for PTSD. He is a Grof certified Holotropic Breathwork Practitioner, a Certified Internal Family Systems Therapist, and is board certified in Psychiatry, Emergency Medicine and Internal Medicine.