Counter anecdote: I did plenty of MDMA 10+ years ago and I have just as much social anxiety now as I did then. Yes, it is alleviated for the few hours you are inebriated, but alcohol mostly has the same effect for me, anxiety relief wise. No long term relief and a profound reversal the next day. The last times I did MDMA were so unpleasant by the end of the trip that I get anxiety thinking about doing it, a decade later.
I now also have generalized anxiety. While I doubt it has anything to do with MDMA, I would strongly caution people to not self administer substituted amphetamines for psychiatric disorders.
Right. Of course there might be a big difference between taking plenty of MDMA for recreational purposes and taking it under a controlled dosage and environment. Or maybe MDMA really isn't a viable treatment. Or maybe it just works for some people. It is impossible to know more without proper scientific research.
Anyone who studies the history of science should be worried by the amount of power that politicians currently have over what scientists can and cannot study. There was a time after the renaissance when universities in Europe where granted almost total independence from the state. My university had its own police force and jail, at one point. This was a time when civilization advanced rapidly, and many of the ideas that we take for granted now were explored.
Now universities are very much part of the system. I am afraid that we are entering the high-tech dark ages.
100% agreed that research access should be expanded, especially in light of the fact that these sort of drugs are unpredictable in their contents when obtained illicitly. Moving MDMA from schedule I to schedule II in the US would be a huge help. Despite my anecdotal warnings, its not a substance that doesnt merit further research.
I now also have generalized anxiety. While I doubt it has anything to do with MDMA, I would strongly caution people to not self administer substituted amphetamines for psychiatric disorders.