An article in Psychiatry Advisor wonders if MDMA (Ecstasy) could be taken for the treatment of social anxiety in autistic individuals. Uh, I’m going out on a limb here and saying YES. That the infamous “hug drug” could be used to help autistic people with impaired social and communication skills is a no-brainer. It’s about as obvious as the “Special K Can Treat Depression” headlines a few months ago. It’s why we clubkids were always so happy and well-adjusted. We knew what was up.
A group of researchers is proposing a study that would examine the potential therapeutic use of the psychedelic drug MDMA, more commonly known as Ecstasy, for the treatment of social anxiety in autistic individuals.
Alicia L. Danforth, PhD, of the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Torrance, Calif., and colleagues argue that when used carefully and in a pure form, MDMA, like other hallucinogenic drugs, is able to boost moods and potentially allow those with autism to open up more.
Danforth note that some of the therapeutic properties of Ecstasy include
- Decreased feelings of fear
- Increased feelings of well-being
- Increased sociability
- Increased interpersonal trust
- Alert state of consciousness
- Increased awareness of some domains of empathy
In other news: the sky is blue and water is wet. I could have saved these scientists hundreds of thousands of dollars in research money.
The post Can Ecstasy Help Treat Autism? Well, OBVIOUSLY appeared first on World of Wonder.