This article highlights my personal experience in using self-compassion during a medically supervised MDMA–assisted group therapy (MDMA–AGT) session in a controlled setting, which has been recently published in full as “A healing experience with MDMA: A psychotherapist’s mini-autoethnographic case study” in the *Journal of Transpersonal Research*.

* **Disclaimer:** This article is provided solely for educational and informational purposes. It does not endorse, promote, or encourage the use of psychedelic substances (including hallucinogens, entheogens, or other psychotomimetics) recreationally, outside of clinically controlled settings, and/or in jurisdictions where they are not legalized. Neither is psychotherapy nor advice. It must not be regarded as psychological, psychiatric, or medical advice.

## The Need for Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy (PAT) Training

The rapid global reemergence of psychedelic research and Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy, or PAT, is rapidly transitioning from clinical research to regulated medical frameworks (albeit with its global regulatory status and, for some specific substances (e.g., psilocybin), at the state level). This growth has outpaced mental health (MH) professionals’ readiness to use PAT safely and competently.

The promising success of psilocybin and MDMA-assisted therapies for major depressive disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), respectively, along with accelerated action taken by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and its foreseeable approval, poses a great need for psychiatrists and therapists who are expected to work in PAT. Not surprisingly, an increasing number of MH professionals have become interested in the field and are seeking related training and education.

In 2025, the American Psychological Association highlighted psychedelic treatment as one of the “top 10 trends” for psychologists. Thus, there is a need for further education for both clinicians and clients about the benefits and risks of PAT, including ethical considerations in treatment.

## Therapists’ Personal Experiences of PAT

The benefits of therapists’ personal experiences are increasingly being considered a critical component of their training. Personal, experiential, firsthand perspectives allow therapists to better educate, prepare, guide, support, and integrate their clients’ PAT experiences into their lives. (Villiger, 2024). This view is consistent with research findings supporting the idea that MH professionals working in psychedelic integration “should themselves have undergone induced altered states of consciousness” to improve their own human potential and competencies as therapists, as well as to offer better empathetic understanding to their clients.

Therapists lacking firsthand experience may risk misinterpreting the PAT’s requirements and process, thus developing unrealistic expectations or overlooking the importance of “set and setting”, all of which can diminish therapeutic effectiveness (Nielson & Guss, 2018). Hence, there is a strong case for the role of firsthand experience with PAT in developing competence in this field (Dames et al., 2024). The rationale supporting this claim is that as a clinician, “you can only take your clients as far as you’ve been yourself.”

## MDMA-Assisted Therapy

Individual MDMA-assisted therapy (MDMA-AT) and MDMA-assisted group therapy (MDMA-AGT) use pharmaceutical-grade MDMA and psychotherapy. In 2017, the FDA designated MDMA-AT as a “breakthrough therapy” for PTSD due to its unique ability to enhance trust, self-compassion, and prosocial behavior while preserving ego function and cognitive clarity.

The benefits of group PAT have been described as “transformative but underutilized” due to the combined power of psychedelic compounds in promoting human connectivity and the healing potential derived from group therapy.

## Self-compassion and PAT

Self-compassion is the disposition and behavior of being accepting and supportive of yourself, rather than being self-critical or unaccepting, especially when you’re experiencing emotional pain or suffering due to life events or perceived personal imperfections, weaknesses, flaws, deficiencies, or shortcomings. In other words, it means being your best friend rather than your worst enemy. Self-compassion comprises a triad of bipolar continuums, or three opposite states of mind: self-kindness/self-judgment, common humanity/isolation, and mindfulness/overidentification (Neff, 2023).

Recent research strongly suggests self-compassion plays a critical role in fostering psychological flexibility and reducing self-critical patterns in MDMA-AT and in providing long-term healing in PAT in general. In short, self-compassion replaces self-criticism and self-judgment with warmth, self-tolerance, and self-kindness when you experience distress.

## My Personal Experience

My experience during a medically-supervised MDMA-AGT in a controlled setting was a big surprise and an unexpected gift. A memory I believed had long been resolved resurfaced with startling mental clarity and emotional presence, leaving me stunned. After more than thirty years of working as a psychologist and several intermittent periods of personal psychotherapy, I had thought this early wound had been fully healed and released. Under MDMA’s compassionate clarity, I realized my healing had been incomplete.

The experience felt like traveling back through time and space to meet a much younger self. It was deeply embodied, emotional, and insightful, grounded in a powerful sense of safety, self-compassion, gratitude, and empowerment. This entailed unconditionally accepting and embracing my ‘vulnerable self’—not a weak self or identity, but rather an authentic, courageous state of being that is transparent and open to true emotions. In this case, it was the part of me that embodied feelings, thoughts, and physical sensations associated with painful memories and intense emotions stemming from unmet emotional needs in early life, while softening self-judgment patterns and creating space for a more compassionate stance toward myself, that enabled the healing that took place.

The enhancing neuroplasticity effects of MDMA on the brain allow it to rewire and adapt rapidly, which in turn enables individuals to unlearn embedded emotional patterns. This curative factor enabled me to turn my experience into a vow, a steadfast commitment to remain, now etched indelibly into my being. Imagine the new experience of having someone permanently by your side who, instead of being negative, critical, and demanding, is positive, forgiving, encouraging, and fully committed to protecting and supporting you.

## Conclusion

In a world where PAT is becoming increasingly common, therapists’ personal experiences of PAT are becoming critical. They enable them to better prepare, guide, and support clients who are contemplating or using PAT. Self-compassion replaces self-criticism and self-judgment with warmth, self-tolerance, and self-kindness. It plays a critical role in PAT. Due to the enhancing neuroplasticity effects of psychedelics, positive behaviors such as self-compassion can be anchored readily.