MDMA in conjunction with psychotherapy appears to be successful in treating alcoholism, according to a new clinical study.

The first-of-its-kind trial was conducted over eight weeks and saw four patients from different walks of life: “a 54-year-old mother-of-three, a 34-year-old man with two children, a retired man who had been drinking for 30 years and a former heroin user.” Each were treated with weekly psychotherapy sessions and monthly doses of 99.9 percent pure MDMA.

Two of the adults “slipped up” and had a single drink each over the eight weeks. However, the other two subjects remained completely sober for the entirety of the treatment. Although this was a small, four-person study, the results proved to be quite remarkable.

Three of the four people taking part in the trial attempted to quit drinking before the MDMA treatment. None of them succeeded. This time around, they all managed to stay sober for at least nine months.

One of the patients was quoted saying — “It’s given me what I wanted; to be cured, to not have the cravings, to look at life differently. I’m not so angry at everything… Being under MDMA was beautiful. It showed me the real me; the me without alcohol.”

This was a necessary first study in the ongoing research to investigate whether MDMA can be used from a medical standpoint to battle addiction. The direct effects of MDMA were not measured, but rather, this study was carried out to test the safety of the program.

Read more extensive details on the trial here.

Source: Daily Mail