In the first part of a three-part mini series on psychedelic assisted therapies presented by the Institute of Integrative Health and Wellness (IIHW), in partnership with the USC Center for Mindfulness Science (CMS), researchers from the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies Public Benefit Corporation (MAPS PBC) talk about the evidence base supporting MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD, the mechanisms behind it, and the elements behind the MAPS PBC MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD treatment protocol. The event will be moderated by IIHW’s own Jeffrey I. Gold, Ph.D., and will conclude with a live question and answer session.

MAPS PBC is the first organization to get approval by the FDA to conduct a phase 3 clinical trial with MDMA, operating under an FDA-granted breakthrough therapy designation.

Shannon Carlin, MA, LMFT

Shannon Carlin, M.A., L.M.F.T., is the Chief of Therapy Training and Supervision at MAPS PBC. As the Chief of Training and Supervision, Shannon leads the development and implementation of clinical training and supervision programs that prepare clinicians and counselors to deliver MDMA-assisted therapy in approved clinical settings around the world. 

Shannon has served as a co-therapist on MAPS-sponsored Phase 2 trials researching MDMA-assisted therapy for anxiety associated with life-threatening illness and MDMA-assisted therapy for severe PTSD. She currently works with clients in a small private practice delivering transpersonal approaches, psychedelic integration, and ketamine-assisted psychotherapy.

Shannon’s previous professional experience includes the development of community programs delivering resources and training for healthy living, life skills, employment, and positive youth development. Her work has served adults with schizophrenia, bipolar, and substance use disorder, families and youth in low-income residential settings, and high school students learning about moderation management of drug and alcohol use. Shannon is passionate about addressing homelessness, she has volunteered with housing projects and shelters and completed a farm internship with the Homeless Garden Project.

Shannon received her master’s degree in Integral Counseling Psychology from the California Institute of Integral Studies and a bachelor’s degree in Cultural Anthropology from the University of California, Santa Cruz. An adventurer at heart, Shannon can be found in nature, gardening, running, and dancing.

Dimitri Perivoliotis, Phd

Dimitri Perivoliotis, Ph.D. has been involved in mental health treatment and research for the past 22 years, with a focus on developing innovative applications of evidence-based psychotherapy for improving quality of life in people with psychosis. He currently is an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at UC San Diego and a staff psychologist at the VA San Diego Healthcare System, where he manages an award-winning mental illness clinic and training program. 

 Along with Aaron T. Beck, MD and colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania, he co-developed a new CBT intervention for promoting recovery in people with psychosis who struggle with negative symptoms and daily functioning, which is outlined in the book, Recovery-Oriented Cognitive Therapy for Serious Mental Health Conditions (Guilford Press). 

 In recent years, Dr. Perivoliotis’ professional focus has shifted to psychedelic science. Since 2018, he has served as an adherence rater (and since 2020, as Lead US Adherence Rater) for the MAPS Phase 3 randomized controlled clinical trial of MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD. In this role, he reviews session recordings for adherence to the protocol and has helped train new raters.

Dr. Perivoliotis conducts ketamine-assisted psychotherapy for Veterans with treatment resistant depression and PTSD at the VA and serves on a workgroup that is working to develop and standardize this treatment. He co-founded the UCSD Psychedelic Science Group and has presented on psychedelics for mental health to national and international audiences.

Allison Coker, PhD

Allison Coker, Ph.D. serves as the Associate Director of Regulatory Affairs at MAPS PBC where she guides the North American regulatory strategy to develop and deliver innovative products to marketing approval, in alignment with global business strategy. Dr. Coker serves as Regulatory Lead on cross-functional Core teams to communicate regulatory requirements and ensure optimal execution of regulatory strategy and study governance. In this role Dr. Coker provides expertise, sound decision making, and guidance (both strategic and operational) to develop and optimize the regulatory strategy across MAPS clinical development programs.

Dr. Coker was trained as a neuroscientist with a multidisciplinary background in behavioral pharmacology studying motivation, addiction, and stress across diverse research methodologies in both preclinical and clinical research settings. She earned her bachelor's degree in Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology from Emory University and a doctorate in Neuroscience from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). Prior to joining MAPS PBC, Dr. Coker worked as a Program Manager for the Institute for Translational Neuroscience, a research consortium at UCSF focused on conducting translational and clinical research to develop novel treatment strategies for PTSD and alcohol and substance use disorders.

Dr. Coker is excited by both the therapeutic potential and regulatory challenges of making MDMA a medicine and enjoys leveraging her experience to support data-driven advancement of MAPS’ clinical development program.

Jeffrey I. Gold, PHD

Moderator

Jeffrey I. Gold, PhD, is a Professor in the Departments of Anesthesiology, Pediatrics, and Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at the Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California. Dr. Gold, a licensed clinical psychologist, Director Emeritus and Founder of the Pediatric Pain Management Clinic within the comprehensive interdisciplinary Pain Medicine Division in the Department of Anesthesiology Critical Care Medicine. He is the director of the Biobehavioral Pain Lab, Director and co-founder of the USC Institute for Integrative Health & Wellness, Chair for the Institutional Review Board (IRB) at the Saban Research Institute at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, and faculty within the Pediatric Psychology specialization at Children's Hospital Los Angeles. 

Dr. Gold has specialized in the assessment, treatment, and clinical investigation of acute and chronic pain and other health outcomes (e.g., health-related quality of life, PTSD) in children, adolescents, and adults with various chronic medical illnesses and chronic pain conditions. After graduating with his doctoral degree in clinical psychology (1999), Dr. Gold completed a research fellowship at the National Center for Posttraumatic Stress in Boston and later a clinical post-doctoral fellowship in the Departments of Hematology/Oncology and Psychiatry at the UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland.

Dr. Gold is actively engaged in the evaluation and utility of digital therapeutics (i.e., virtual reality, digital mobile applications, virtual care) focused on patients and their families and healthcare providers targeting health and mental health outcomes (i.e., reducing stress, pain, anxiety, psychological distress), while increasing comfort, satisfaction, and overall positive health outcomes and wellness.