Aisha Mohammed, a therapist at SoundMind, is quoted in this great piece on the importance of providing access to psychedelic therapies for people of color with PTSD, and others who have been targeted by the War on Drugs. We are so proud of our team who is leading the charge in Philadelphia to bring these incredible therapies into the mainstream, and specifically to the marginalized communities that need and deserve them most.

We hope your holidays are merry and you've been spending your days contemplating how amazing it would be if everyone with trauma and mental illness could have access to psychedelic therapies! As 2019 comes to a close, we want to remind you that you can make your tax-deductible donation to SoundMind Project up until midnight.

On September 27-29, members of the SoundMind team joined MAPS and the Pittsburgh Psychedelic Society for the Sleeping Octopus Assembly on Psychedelics (SOAP), an annual conference exploring the role of psychedelics in science, medicine, policy, and culture. The event, hosted at a historic mansion in Pittsburgh, PA, featured presentations, panels, and “tentacle” breakout sessions with experts and advocates working to advance psychedelic science, including SoundMind’s own Dr. Hannah McLane, and Dr. Michelle Joy!

Things are progressing here in the world of the SoundMind Center over the past month. Logistically and philosophically, we have been growing, and we are excited to share some of that with you - so check out some of the items below and we hope to see you either in Pittsburgh or somewhere, sometime, in the near future!

We would like to share some of the things we learned at the Psychedelic Medicine and Cultural Trauma workshop in Kentucky, which our entire six-person therapy team attended on August 10–11th. It was an incredible learning and collaborative experience! The workshop was jam-packed with thought-provoking presentations and heartfelt sharing of personal narratives.

Sleeping Octopus Assembly on Psychedelics is Sept 27-29th in Pittsburgh. It is a fun and relaxed conference, a nice mix of healthcare workers, psychedelic scientists, artists, philosophers, and enthusiasts. The lineup includes visionaries such as Rick Doblin, the founder of MAPS, and we are honored to announce that Hannah McLane and Michelle Joy will be giving a talk on ethics and access to innovative therapies for trauma. They will also be joining Rick Doblin and a few others for a panel discussion on Saturday afternoon. We hope to see you there!

Many updates and dates to remember! Thanks for coming to our fundraiser; An update about expanded access; Reminder about the Psychedelic Medicine and Cultural Trauma workshop next week; Local gatherings and conferences for psychedelic medicine; some other events and upcoming projects From the SoundMind Center development team.

Our whole therapy team (Michelle Joy, Aisha Mohammed, Jennifer Jones, Bob Sher, and Hannah McLane) plus our community organizer (Ayele Ajavon) are heading to Kentucky next week (Aug 10-11) for a Psychedelic Medicine and Cultural Trauma workshop. The speaker lineup and topics are incredible.

As many of you know, the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) is working toward FDA approval for patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to be treated with MDMA through Expanded Access. MDMA has already passed Phase I (safety and dosage) and Phase II (efficacy and side effects) clinical research trials. In Phase III, they are further evaluating efficacy and safety.

What an amazing night! Thanks to all who came out on what turned into a rainy summer night, and thanks to the Front Street Cafe for hosting us in their beautiful space.

SoundMind center was mentioned in the Philly Voice and our founder, Dr. Hannah McLane, was quoted: “She said people of color often face ongoing traumas caused by racial injustices and neighborhood violence – in addition to potentially having a main index trauma. ‘This leads to higher rates of PTSD in communities of color and this can also be more difficult to treat due to the ongoing nature of it,’ McLane said in an email. ‘We want to make sure to put significant resources towards addressing this inequality, as higher rates of PTSD in the population can cause ripple effects that serve to worsen the already unequal and unjust system.’”

Please join us for an evening of food, drink, community-building, dancing, and fundraising as we welcome to Philadelphia representatives from MAPS as well as the research team that developed this amazing treatment protocol.

We are currently looking for a part-time community organizer for this clinic, with a preference for people living in West Philly and identifying as POC, LGBTQ+, or other marginalized group – or someone who has had significant experience community organizing experience with these groups.

This is exciting news! If you’ve been following the story, there have been huge advancements lately in the effort to establish MDMA assisted psychotherapy as a safe, legal, and effective treatment for PTSD.

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MDMA, the active ingredient in ecstasy, is now being used to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Several Phase 2 trials have been completed with a total of 107 participants; there was an overall PTSD remission rate of 61% after 2 months and 68% after 12 months.