Sarah Mc
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sarahmcname.bsky.social
Sarah Mc
@sarahmcname.bsky.social
Therapist, social worker, researcher.
Reluctant psychedelic whistleblower.

Interested in psychotherapy: what works, how does it work, how do we know?
Reposted by Sarah Mc
Lest we forget the Satanic Panic.
December 4, 2025 at 2:27 PM
Very happy this article is finally coming out! Co-authored with a brilliant team.

We examine & highlight how this developing field is already at odds with established ethical norms and offer guidance for clinicians.

Abstract available below, full article out soon
psycnet.apa.org/record/2026-...
APA PsycNet
psycnet.apa.org
October 25, 2025 at 10:31 PM
Reposted by Sarah Mc
I'm proud to be a co-first author on this piece. It tries to help practitioners think about things we think of as most urgent & we provide table of types of issues that have arisen w/sources & connect these to code & what is needed.
#Psychedelics #Bioethics
psycnet.apa.org/record/2026-...
APA PsycNet
psycnet.apa.org
October 23, 2025 at 9:56 PM
Reposted by Sarah Mc
If i had to say what I thought was missing: I think the records audit should be compulsory & nothing here really adresses the varyingly problematic dynamics reported between therapists and participants, but this is in part about the limitations of the FDA's tools/powers.
September 4, 2025 at 8:00 PM
Reposted by Sarah Mc
The FDA letter for Lykos (MAPS) MDMA trials has been released and what's clear is the work of Dave and Lily and participants in Powertrip is vindicated. The underlying message here is bad science, bad protocol, bad data collection & record keeping (1/3)
psychedelicalpha.com/news/breakin...
BREAKING: FDA Publishes Lykos Therapeutics’ MDMA Complete Response Letter (CRL) - Psychedelic Alpha
FDA has published its complete response letter (CRL) to Lykos Therapeutics, citing durability, safety, and bias concerns in rejecting MDMA therapy for PTSD. Here, we very briefly unpack the letter.
psychedelicalpha.com
September 4, 2025 at 7:55 PM
It was about the integrity and quality of the research after all.
September 4, 2025 at 7:56 PM
Psychedelic research is "paradigm shifting"
I look forward to hearing an official explanation of how a study sponsor ended up leading the qualitative analysis.
After blowing the whistle on a psychedelic clergy study over 18 months ago, I recently received this letter from
Johns Hopkins' Office of Human Subjects Research finding multiple counts of "serious non-compliance" with federal human subject protections.

www.psychedeliccandor.org/p/breaking-j...
March 29, 2025 at 11:46 AM
Reposted by Sarah Mc
After blowing the whistle on a psychedelic clergy study over 18 months ago, I recently received this letter from
Johns Hopkins' Office of Human Subjects Research finding multiple counts of "serious non-compliance" with federal human subject protections.

www.psychedeliccandor.org/p/breaking-j...
Breaking: Johns Hopkins Psychedelic Clergy Study Found to Have Multiple Counts of "Serious Non-Compliance" with Federal Human Subject Protections
Unauthorized donor involvement and unauthorized study team members "significantly compromised" human research protection program, per JHU, citing other concerns for participants' rights and welfare.
www.psychedeliccandor.org
March 26, 2025 at 7:48 PM
I noticed Zotero automatically moved some studies that were in my library to a new folder named Retracted Items, and marked them with a big red X. It would be great if journals could do something like this, adding a label for retracted studies in the ref list, and a notice at the top of the article
February 10, 2025 at 6:12 PM
Reposted by Sarah Mc
Encouraged to see the Lancet editors speaking out, hoping US based medical & mental health journals will follow.
February 6, 2025 at 12:14 PM
Reposted by Sarah Mc
I don't know about Psymposia, but these 👇 independent, non-partisan expert committees are likely qualified to weigh in on the evidence for MDMA-assisted psychotherapy. bsky.app/profile/joar...
The list of committees evaluating the evidence for MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD as insufficient is starting to get extensive:
1. American Psychiatric Assoc.
2. American Psychological Assoc.
3. TGA expert committee
4. VA/DoD
5. ICER
6. FDA PDAC
7. FDA
8. APA Council of Research Task Force 👇
The APA Council of Research Task Force on Novel Biomarkers and Treatments assessment of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD is well-reasoned and balanced, and much more sober than many proponents would likely expect. psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/... 1/3
February 5, 2025 at 9:08 AM
Reposted by Sarah Mc
Always ask yourself:

“What evidence would convince me that I’m wrong?”

If the answer is, “nothing,” then you are not adhering to the rules of science or logic.
January 13, 2025 at 12:50 PM
"Coercing or otherwise unduly influencing trial participants violates their autonomy, and falsified trial results serve nothing but injustice [...] If these inadequate practices also plague other PATs, the entire field could become discredited."

www.excli.de/excli/articl...
Psychedelic-assisted therapy - supposedly paradigm-shifting research with poor attempts at hypotheses falsifying and questionable ethics | EXCLI Journal
EXCLI Journal - Experimental and Clinical Sciences, International Online Journal for Advances in Sciences
www.excli.de
December 16, 2024 at 11:08 PM
Reposted by Sarah Mc
Scientists, academics, researchers: We’re excited to share that @altmetric.com is now tracking mentions of your research on Bluesky! 🧪
There are already many articles for which there is more attention on Bluesky than on other comparable micro-blogging sites, meaning the academic community and the general public have clearly adopted Bluesky as one of its core places to disseminate and discuss new research.

A Place of Joy.
December 3, 2024 at 2:10 PM
"The studies were so low quality that we can't conclude much..." is becoming a well worn refrain in psychedelic research.

Enrolling participants in studies too poorly designed to draw conclusions is a research ethics issue. Especially if the risk involved is psychosis & worsening mental health.
December 2, 2024 at 12:23 PM
Tickled pink!

2023: the year 2 research participants published the year's most cited article in JAMA Psychiatry

The only reason Lily K Ross, David Nickles, and @emtumilty.bsky.social aren't listed authors is that there was a 3 author limit. This is their win too🎉

jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
March 22, 2024 at 10:22 PM