Prescribing MDMA and psilocybin: who will get the drugs and how will they help?

Explainer: doctors say the drugs can help patients work through psychotherapy for PTSD – a condition that will affect one in five people in their lifetimes

• Prescribing drugs ‘a baby step in the right direction’
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From July, psychiatrists will be able to prescribe MDMA (ecstasy) and psilocybin (found in magic mushrooms) for mental health disorders.

There have long been predictions that psychedelics could “transform” psychiatry, and many clinical trials around the world have had promising results.