Download In this episode, Lori shares her first hand experience of MDMA Therapy assisted by Therapist, Shari Taylor. Shari Taylor is a PhD, MSN and RYT(Registered Yoga Teacher). Both from New Orleans, Lori Tipton was Shari’s MDMA patient who suffered from traumatic life experiences and PTSD. 3 Key Points: Lori shares her heartfelt story about her experience in healing her PTSD in MDMA Therapy Before her therapy, Lori says she struggled with loving herself, and the fact that she loves herself now after her healing is the reason she is alive today Lori says she wants people to understand that this is a legitimate form of therapy, and wants this to be accessible to everyone Support the show Patreon Leave us a review on iTunes Share us with your friends – favorite podcast, etc Join our Facebook group - Psychedelics Today group – Find the others and create community. Navigating Psychedelics Show Notes About Lori Lori has a love/hate relationship with social media She saw on Facebook that they were opening the phase 3 trials for MDMA therapy in New Orleans Sent an email on a whim and Shari replied They looked for people who suffered from significant traumatic events in their lives Lori lost her brother to a drug overdose, her mother killed two people and she was the one to discover their bodies, and she was raped by someone she trusted and got pregnant and then had an abortion Lori says there was an extensive screening process and psychometric testing “You become more of a manifestation of the disorder, and it starts to become who you are” - Lori She felt so 'untethered' and removed from everyone and everything because of her PTSD Day one of Therapy There are many sessions before even taking MDMA to get to know each other first Set and setting are so important Lori says she went in with an open mindset, but was so skeptical She had seen psychologists, psychiatrists, endocrinologists, dietitians, taken anti anxiety meds and antidepressants, went vegan, became a yoga teacher, and even saw a witch doctor But she was nervous that she was going to go into the sessions and come out a different person, which had her start to question who she really was Taking the MDMA She was offered the MDMA, and she accepted it She lied there, started to feel the effects, listened to the music playing and it reminded her of a film she had seen Buddy Boulden a trumpet player, who passed away at 30 at a mental institution in Louisiana So this just popped into her head and then she told Shari about it and then next thing she knew she was telling her about her mother and her rape The way that MDMA worked for her in the first session is that when she had a memory, she could feel it, and she hadn't truly felt the feelings from those memories before As the session ended, it was anticlimactic She said it was like dipping the corner of a towel in water, the water would eventually cover the whole towel The amygdala is getting shut down in therapy, so you're able to bring up these memories without getting overwhelmed Days Following Therapy Lori said after the first session, it was awesome! She went and got pizza and it was the best pizza she has ever had in her life! The first session of MDMA allowed her to experience life in a way she hadn't been in years Her partner noticed her enjoying the world, and noticed the changes the most Lori wrote a lot before going into the sessions, and writing has helped her with her healing The Second Session Having PTSD led her to repress her feelings When she locked up her fear and anxiety, she unfortunately locked up happiness too In the second session she took more MDMA, and it really helped her She felt she was able to really separate herself from her memories and feelings and emotions “It was like taking off a pair of foggy glasses and it was so empowering” - Lori Joe mentions that after his one and only ayahuasca session, he got a strong message that he needed to reconnect t