In the ‘80s and ‘90s, MDMA (also known as molly or ecstasy) was dismissed as a club drug and became the target of anti-drug propaganda. Today, it’s on the brink of being legalized for use in clinical therapy to treat conditions like PTSD. How did that happen? And what have we learned about the therapeutic potential of MDMA? Sean discusses all this with Rache ... Show More
Jul 17
Why public opinion turned on AI
AI was supposed to make our lives better. Instead, it’s made many of us scared and angry. Communities are protesting data centers across the country, and polling shows most Americans think AI is moving too fast.In today's episode, guest host Miles Bryan talks with independent jou ... Show More
44m 48s
Jul 13
A skeptic considers the case for God
Sean talks with writer Liz Bruenig about faith, doubt, and the experience of believing in God in a modern, skeptical age. They discuss religious experience, the limits of science, the appeal of cynicism, Dostoevsky, beauty, mystery, and whether belief is ultimately a choice. They ... Show More
51m 57s
Dec 2015
MDMA: Pharmacological Healer
<p>In the form of recreational ecstasy, the psychoactive drug MDMA carries with it a stigma of wide-eyed ravers, free love and counterculture pharmacological spirituality. But beyond its cultural legacy, MDMA offers a potent therapeutic tool for doctors and therapists -- if we ca ... Show More
40m 15s
Jun 2023
The Science of MDMA & Its Therapeutic Uses: Benefits & Risks
In this episode, I discuss Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), which is also commonly known as “ecstasy” or “molly,” including how it works in the brain to cause short- and long- term-shifts in emotional processing and its clinical applications for the treatment of post-traum ... Show More
2h 13m
Aug 2024
Ecstasy Therapy: Penicillin for the soul
In 1980s Berkeley, an eccentric chemist and his wife, a self-taught therapist, experimented with MDMA. Their work would kickstart a decades-long campaign to mainstream psychedelics as a therapeutic tool — one that’s coming to a head this month, with a decision due from the FDA.
T ... Show More
27m 55s
Nov 2023
MDMA: Can Ecstasy Cure Your Agony?
Molly, ecstasy, MDMA: whatever you call it, this drug is blowing up. Some say MDMA can be a legitimate medicine to treat conditions like PTSD. But others reckon it's a dangerous drug that can fry your brain, and even kill you — from just one bad pill. Who's right? That's what we' ... Show More
43m 14s
Jun 2020
Will Psychedelics Save Mankind?
<p>Psychedelics have gotten very popular in the past few years for their therapeutic properties, but how much do you know about them? In this episode, I am going to talk about MDMA, which has a better success rate for PTSD than anything... ever! If all goes well with the FDA tria ... Show More
22m 59s
Jul 2019
From the Vault: MDMA, Part 2
Some of you have tried the ecstasy. Others have merely heard about the drug on a TV sitcom, or heard about it in a news report. Either way, MDMA's power resonates through our culture -- and sometimes it's hard to distinguish the truth form the misinformation. But what exactly is ... Show More
41m 23s