The Trials of Psychedelic Therapy: LSD Psychotherapy in America

284 Pages·2018·4.27 MB·English

by  Matthew Oram

The Trials of Psychedelic Therapy
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THE TRIALS of
PSYCHEDELIC THERAPY
LSD Psychotherapy in America
MAT THEW ORAM
Johns Hopkins University Press
Baltimore
© 2018 Johns Hopkins University Press
All rights reserved. Published 2018
Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Johns Hopkins University Press
2715 North Charles Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21218-4363
www.press.jhu.edu
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Oram, Matthew, 1984– author.
Title: The trials of psychedelic therapy : LSD psychotherapy in America /
Matthew Oram.
Description: Baltimore : Johns Hopkins University Press, 2018. | Includes
bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2017056668 | ISBN 9781421426204 (hardcover : alk. paper)
| ISBN 9781421426211 (electronic) | ISBN 142142620X (hardcover : alk.
paper) | ISBN 1421426218 (electronic)
Subjects: | MESH: United States. Food and Drug Administration. | Mental
Disorders—drug therapy | Lysergic Acid Diethylamide—therapeutic use
| Psychotherapy—methods | Hallucinogens—therapeutic use | Pharma-
ceutical Research—history | Drug and Narcotic Control—legislation &
jurisprudence | History, 20th Century | United States
Classification: LCC RC483.5.L9 | NLM WM 402 | DDC 616.89/18-dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017056668
A catalog record for this book is available from the British Library.
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Contents
Acknowledgments vii
Abbreviations xi
Introduction: Mysticism, Clinical Science, and the FDA 1
1 Free Experiment: Explorations in LSD Psychotherapy 15
2 Regulating Research: LSD and the FDA 47
3 Proof of Efficacy: LSD and the Randomized Controlled Trial 79
4 Against the Tide: The Spring Grove Experiment 109
5 Elusive Efficacy: The Trials of Psychedelic Therapy 146
6 The Quiet Death of Research: Psychedelic Therapy in the 1970s 183
Epilogue: Resurrection 205
Notes 223
Index 263
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Acknowledgments
For almost ten years this project has evolved through different forms and
traveled with me through four universities in three countries, and through
many major milestones and upheavals in my life. I have been very fortunate to
receive support and guidance from many talented and generous i ndividuals—
mentors, colleagues, friends, and family—without whom it would not have
been possible.
The project began as my doctoral dissertation at the University of Sydney.
Prior to this my growing interest in history cemented into grand ambitions
thanks to the rigorous and stimulating supervision of my honors research by
Günter Minnerup and the encouragement of Anne O’Brien, at the Univer-
sity of New South Wales. At the University of Sydney, Alison Bashford and
Stephen Robertson expertly guided my inexperienced enthusiasm through
every aspect of my academic development. Alison saw potential in my ideas,
brought me in, and supported my work to its conclusion and beyond, al-
ways generously and responsively providing her time and advice, without
ever alluding to the demands it placed on her busy schedule. She particularly
helped me gain confidence in my work and to see above the minute detail
and look at the big picture of my topic and candidature. Stephen’s exception-
ally close readings of my drafts shaped my development as a writer, and his
comments and advice were crucial in honing my arguments and thinking.
Also at Sydney I am indebted to the personal support and guidance of Judith
Keene, as well as other faculty members of the Department of History who
provided support and review of my work, including Warwick Anderson and
Stephen Garton. The friendship and support of Micaela Pattison, Dave Earl,
and others in the history postgrad community was crucial in these years and
has meant a lot.
During my doctoral work I relocated from Sydney back home to Christ-
church, New Zealand, and in February 2011 a major earthquake destroyed my
office, along with much of my research material. My recovery from this event
was significantly helped by the generosity of the University of Sydney’s School
of Philosophical and Historical Inquiry. Subsequently, I worked from space
in the Department of History of the University of Canterbury. Special thanks
go to Jane Buckingham for inviting me to engage with the department and
offering me access to the workspace, as well for her continued support over
the years. Thanks also to Peter Field, Judy Robertson, and the other staff and
students of the department for making me feel welcome. The department,
viii Acknowledgments
with which I held no formal ties, was in no way obliged to offer me a place
to work. Its generosity saved my project at a difficult time, when I was close
to abandoning it. Thanks to Jeremy Greene, Hans Pols, and Catharine Cole-
borne for their valuable feedback as the dissertation came to a conclusion,
encouraging and advising me on developing the work into a book.
The revision of my dissertation into this book was made possible by a
2015 AMS History of Medicine and Healthcare Postdoctoral Fellowship from
AMS (Associated Medical Services, Inc.), which I undertook at the Univer-
sity of Calgary. The content is solely my responsibility and does not neces-
sarily represent the official views of AMS. Bringing me to Canada, the fel-
lowship provided me with a plethora of opportunities to advance my work
and academic experience in a new context. Thanks go to Frank W. Stahnisch
for introducing me to the scheme and for hosting and supporting me at the
university, as well as to Beth Cusitar, Donna Weich, and the Department of
Community Health Sciences, Cumming School of Medicine. I was lucky to
also be affiliated with the Calgary Institute for the Humanities. Thanks go to
Jim Ellis, Sharla Mann, Caroline Loewen, and the other fellows for providing
an ideal context for my writing. Thanks to Aleksandra Loewenau for her
postdoc camaraderie, as well as to the graduate students of the history of
medicine program. Final revisions were made at the University of Saskatch-
ewan. Deep thanks go to Erika Dyck for providing me with this opportunity,
for her advice and support during my time in Canada, and for the fun times
together with our families.
Research for this project benefited greatly from the assistance of many
archivists, librarians, and others throughout North America. Special thanks
goes to Stephanie Schmitz, archivist for the Psychoactive Substances Collection
at Purdue University Libraries, for her significant help as well as friendship
over many years. At Purdue, thanks also to Lauren Haslem, Kristin Leaman,
and Emma Meyer for their fast and diligent help preparing, copying, and
checking material over the years. Though I never met them, thanks also to
David Nichols, Betsy Gordon, and all of those who donated material for their
foresight and work in developing this fantastic collection that has been so
important to my work. I am extremely grateful to Richard Yensen and Donna
Dryer for inviting me into their home and generously sharing their stories,
materials, and hospitality with me, the fruits of which have added much to
the book. Thanks also to William Richards for taking an interest in my work
and sharing some enlightening memories with me. Thanks to Emmy Savage
for kindly providing a photo of her father. Daniel Carpenter and John Swann
Acknowledgments ix
took time to advise me on possible research collections to consult, and the
anonymous reviewers for Johns Hopkins University Press and elsewhere have
provided valuable feedback that has greatly improved my work. At the press,
thanks to Matt McAdam for taking on my project, to Carrie Watterson for
her careful copyediting, and to all the other staff who helped to bring the
book to fruition. Thanks also to Jackie Wehmueller for a stimulating initial
conversation that sparked things off.
An abridged version of chapter 2 was previously published as “Prohibited
or Regulated? LSD Psychotherapy and the United States Food and Drug Ad-
ministration,” History of Psychiatry 27, no. 3 (2016), pp. 290–306. Copyright
© 2016 Matthew Oram. Reused by permission of Sage Publications. Further
material in the book appeared in “Efficacy and Enlightenment: LSD Psycho-
therapy and the Drug Amendments of 1962,” Journal of the History of Medi-
cine and Allied Sciences 69, no. 2 (2014), pp. 221–250. Reused by permission
of Oxford University Press.
To those who appear in my narrative, I hope I have been fair and accurate
in my assessments and portrayals of your work. I have certainly tried my very
hardest. I hope that this book brings greater recognition to the important
research and therapy to which many of you dedicated your careers.
Finally, the various stages of this work would certainly not have been pos-
sible without the generous and unfaltering support and encouragement of
my family, particularly my parents Anne and Richard, as well as Theresa,
James, Zina, Margaret, Rob, Bob, Trevor, Sandy, Bill, and Cher. I met my wife,
Amy, partway into the project, and for seven years it has existed alongside
our relationship. In addition to her endless patience and support, she agreed
to take a foolhardy venture in moving to the other side of the world with an
eight-month-old and an uncertain future so that I could work on the book.
I am endlessly grateful for her hard work caring for Elias with no support in
a foreign environment so that I could follow my dreams. I hope I can, in at
least some small way, repay this sacrifice. And, to Elias, thank you for your
tolerance of our many moves and for being such a charming companion on
our adventures.