By David S. Prescott, LICSW and Natalie
Villeneuve, MSW
Amended version: Since the publication of
this blog, we learned new information. Out of our deepest respect for the
people whose harm is referenced below, we have added some important details and
observations to this blog post.
Cover
Story: Power Trip is a podcast hosted by New
York Magazine. It went to #1 on Spotify’s list of True Crime podcasts and
consists of nine episodes to date. Featuring Lily Kay Ross, who holds a Ph.D.
in Sociology and a Master’s Degree in Divinity, it addresses abuses – sexual
and otherwise – that have taken place in treatments incorporating psychedelic medications.
These treatments are mostly used for addressing trauma, making these violations
even more egregious and noteworthy.
Before delving into the issues covered in
the podcast, it’s important to emphasize that whatever one might think about
the use of these drugs in therapy, the themes involved are relevant to all who
assist those harmed by abuse. They include the willingness of those in
authority to dismiss or otherwise turn a blind eye to the experiences of people
who trusted, consented to participation in treatment (in some cases within
research studies), and found themselves violated and in worse shape than before.
The medications involved (including MDMA,
DMT/Ayahuasca, Psilocybin, and others) are certainly not new. In many cases,
their use in traditional healing methods, particularly within Indigenous
contexts, dates back countless years. In 2018, an entire issue of Psychotherapy
Networker focused on their potential use in psychotherapy, with
contributors as prominent as Bessel van der Kolk and Rich Simon. In 2019,
author Michael Pollan further brought the potential of these drugs to the
forefront in his best-selling book How
to Change Your Mind. Advocates use terms such as “psychedelic
revolution” and “movement” while others recall that drugs such as LSD also have
a dark and unfortunate history in CIA attempts at mind control (described in
Stephen Kinzer’s “Poisoner
in Chief”).
Cover Story: Power Trip provides accounts of individuals whose lives were altered by sexual
abuse while using these drugs in a therapeutic context. One tells the story of
being pressured into sex by the very person whose job it was to guide her
through the experience. She recounts how he told her that all his clients fall
in love with him. He was not licensed as a professional in any mental health
discipline, and it turns out that he had studied with others who themselves
were the subjects of prior allegations of sexual abuse. When the individual who
was harmed complained to the people in charge, the only result was an email on
which she was blind copied, explaining that he was not to be in contact with
her until such time as they could resolve their issues. There was neither
validation of her experience nor any consequence from her complaint.
In another case, a woman is guided through
a psychedelic experience by two “therapists” (male and female) One of these
(the male) had previously
been open about having problematic sexual boundaries. During the
experience, when she became upset, the guides grabbed her by the wrists and
held her down, stuffed part of a towel into her mouth, subdued her, and then
lied down next to her. The man spooned her and kissed her on the forehead. As
if that wouldn’t be shocking enough, this took place in a small office as part
of research by a group called the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic
Research (MAPS). Although the incident took place in 2015 and the women
subjected to abuse reported it to MAPS, it apparently took them six years to
review the video. Even then, their conclusion was that the session had not
proceeded in accordance with the protocols. Beyond that, there was never any
apology or accountability.
The woman involved in the above incident released
the video of this abuse, which is available here.
In it, the man can be heard advising his client to lie back and spread her
legs. It is very difficult to watch. For those who do wish to see what words
can’t adequately describe, it is important to know that it is only a small
section of an hours-long video. The edited clip makes it appear that the woman
eventually gave up resisting, but she didn’t. In fact, she fought back for
hours. Those who know the indomitable spirit of this woman are not surprised by
this, but others might not know the full extent of harm caused; the video is
brief.
In a separate
discussion of the podcast, Lily Kay Ross had this to say about the video:
“In sexual violence resistance education,
we talk about the data and the statistics around how […] the use of one active
resistance form, like verbal or physical, whether it’s yelling ‘no, get off
me’, or trying to punch somebody […] When you use one of those resistance
strategies, the chances of rapists advancing and continuing to try to complete
the assault, go down a lot. And then you use two strategies, they go down even
more. […] The vast majority of people who are intent on committing an act of
sexual harm will be deterred if there are forceful resistance strategies
deployed against them. And what we see in these videos is this, you know, an
hour or so of somebody using what we would teach as resistance
strategies to stop something from happening. And they don’t stop, for such a
prolonged period of time, they don’t stop. And I don’t understand what kind of
person, and what kind of state of mind, a person has to be in, to so clearly
see somebody suffering like that and to keep doing what they’re doing.”
Throughout the entire podcast, themes
emerge:
·
There is so little
accountability – none, really – that any reasonable person would wonder why no
one could even say, “that should not have happened” much less apologized. After
all, forcing yourself onto a person who by definition is not able to give
consent is sexual abuse.
·
Virtually all of those who
reported abuse received responses along the lines of gaslighting: Many were
told that their reactions to abuse – or their not wanting to have sex with
their guide – indicated blockages and resistance in their relationships. Likewise,
many were told that their despair in the wake of abuse and attempted abuse were
symptoms of other disorders that they needed to come to terms with.
·
In a case in which a woman
complains to MAPS about her treatment, describing her condition as being “suicidal
every minute,” her response is coded as “lowering of mood” as a side effect and
not included in reports to the Food and Drug Administration. By all
appearances, the number of the subjects in the studies is surprisingly low for
medical trials.
·
Many women felt pressured not
to discuss their experiences, so as not to undermine the “psychedelic
movement.”
·
Not surprisingly, there is very
considerable financial investment in ensuring that these medications are made
legal.
·
There are unspoken undertones: It
is hard not to notice that the people who are abused are primarily women while
the research and professional authorities are (with several surprising
exceptions) men. Likewise, it is difficult not to sense an unspoken attitude of
victim-blaming in that it is easy to fault women for placing themselves in a
vulnerable position.
To be clear, the actual abuse is not the
only issue at stake in these scenarios. Very clearly present are those who
either don’t notice or care enough to put the brakes on research studies.
Following the leads offered in this podcast, one quickly finds responses that
are more legalese than actual communication. They add up to an unacceptable
betrayal of the vulnerable individuals who trusted them. Again, how hard can it
be to apologize? Like the other elements in this podcast, a lack of
accountability is something that readers of this blog face every day.
It is tragic that these circumstances have
occurred. By most accounts, the proper use of these medications can be
enormously helpful, often being the only successful treatment in the lives of
some who have experienced trauma. The podcasters, their subjects, and the
authors of this post are all in agreement that more research and innovation
would be welcome, if it takes place in a space that is truly safe for all
involved.
Also frustrating is that beyond the
intersection of big money and abuse are many practitioners who use medications
as responsibly as possible and take every precaution to provide genuine safety
to their clients. We cannot make this point strongly enough.
As an aside, this podcast is not the first
to call attention to abuse in this context. Author, therapist, and teacher Will
Hall provides a concise and comprehensive review of the issues, as well as his
personal experience at the Mad in America website in a 2021 article titled, Ending
the Silence Around Psychedelic Therapy Abuse. This article helped to
expose apparent abuses by highly influential leaders in the psychedelic therapy
arena (Françoise Bourzat and Aharon Grossbard). Their fall from apparent grace
has been a difficult experience for many thousands of devotees.
Abuses in similar contexts where
charismatic leaders hold enormous power over their vulnerable followers are
also not unfamiliar. Yoga legend Pattabhi Jois is alleged to have sexually
abused countless numbers of students. The Shambhala meditation tradition
has also recently been plagued by sexual
assault scandals. While many spiritual movements have emphasized devotion
to leaders, it’s nonetheless wise, given these experiences, to be very cautious
in how we limit our own autonomy along the way.
What is the best way forward? To start:
·
We can remind one another and
ourselves that abuse is abuse, plain and simple.
·
We can recognize that the abuse
dynamics in this podcast (and in the article by Will Hall) are similar to those
that have occurred elsewhere throughout human history and unite against them.
·
We can be aware that, despite
the many potential benefits of these forms of therapy, abuses can and do occur.
·
We can ensure that our
professions (and individual practitioners) take action and contribute to the solution
instead of tacitly delegating responsibility to outside groups and politicians.
·
We can further work to develop
and enforce the most stringent codes of ethics and professionalism to prevent
these abuses. This can include advisory committees that include those who have
experienced harm as well as experts in trauma. Of course, this will include
raising awareness and mobilizing resources, since on their own, ethical codes,
like laws, are not enough on their own to prevent abuse.
·
We can revisit what informed
consent actually means in the lives of our clients and in our treatment
settings, including when one is under the influence of medications that induce
ecstatic and suggestible states.
·
We can accept that the Western
scientific perspective can be flawed, and that it cannot be our only
perspective. We can incorporate Indigenous knowledge into this work and give
voice back to those who have a deeper understanding and connection to plant
medicines. One area for further reflection can be the colonialist
roots of current psychedelic science.
·
We can hold individuals who
cause harm accountable while nevertheless regarding them with compassion and
supporting opportunities for them to change.
·
We can move beyond the
assumption that the criminal justice system will deliver justice, and consider
how a restorative justice approach may instead bring healing to those harmed by
psychedelic abuse.
·
We can always remember that
just as the helping professions are rooted in the idea of doing no harm, we can
also focus on ensuring that we do no further harm.
These calls to action are not about
vilifying psychedelics, nor is this an attempt to undermine the advancement of
psychedelic science, as many stakeholders may fear. Rather, this is a question
about how a group of individuals can unite over a common objective. There
already exists a community of people who are passionate about psychedelics, and
who would largely agree that psychedelic medicines have the power to be
life-changing. After a psychedelic experience, many individuals have reported
feeling a greater sense of connection to others and the world around them, and
they describe leaving the experience with a more open mind.
If we are truly committed to learning from
psychedelic medicines, then how can we apply these teachings to address this
issue of therapy abuse? How can we proceed with compassion, and how can we
bring people together in conversation? Most psychedelic therapists and guides
would agree that their goal is to help people, not to further traumatize them. And
while justice can look different for every survivor of abuse, a common theme
amongst survivors of sexual abuse is that they want to feel validated, and for
the person who harmed them to take accountability and admit that they are
telling the truth.
It is understandable why anyone would meet
accusations of sexual abuse with denial, blame, and even threats of lawsuits
(as was the response
by Grossbard and Bourzat following allegations of sexual misconduct; for
additional legal activity, see here
and here).
After all, even after having so-called transcendent experiences through
psychedelics, these people are still human, and will thus seek to protect
themselves in face of fear. If cancel culture has taught us anything, it is
that there is no opportunity to recover from your worst mistakes. When fearing
punishment, career loss, legal recourse, and ostracization, what would motivate
someone to take accountability? How can we expect people to be brave, to take
responsibility, and to commit to change if the risks are so great?
Yet, if we can unite on the common ground
that we want psychedelic healing to progress safely, then we have a bridge to
connection. If someone communicates (verbally and non-verbally) that they do
not feel safe, this must be received with openness and a willingness to learn. If
it is true that psychedelics can dissolve
the ego, expand one’s consciousness, and increase empathy
(as well as suggestibility), then it is fair to believe that we can unite, embrace
accountability, learn from our mistakes and harm, and ensure that psychedelic
therapy is as free as possible from abuse.
(The authors are grateful to Geral
Blanchard for his helpful comments on an earlier draft of this blog post.)
