First Patient: How a Trauma Trial Betrayed Meaghan Buisson

First Patient: How a Trauma Trial Betrayed Meaghan Buisson She was an elite athlete who once broke the solo marathon world record on inline skates, and she became the very first patient at a clinical trial for MDMA-assisted psychotherapy-only to be harmed inside it. How did a trial designed to treat trauma allow a therapist with a lapsed license to cross boundaries that Canadian law classifies as sexual abuse? In this episode, we tell the story of Meaghan Buisson and what happened during her enrollment in a MAPS-sponsored MDMA-assisted psychotherapy trial, including the protocol, the therapists involved, the timeline of her participation, and the events that followed-did the trial protect its first patient? Person: Meaghan Buisson Organization: MAPS (Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies) Therapists: Richard Yensen and Donna Dryer Enrollment date: December 2014 Final formal enrollment end: June 2016 - She skated to a solo marathon world record and received a speeding ticket for inline skating in 2006. - She won forty-seven Canadian national championships, set sixteen Canadian records, and earned eleven international medals. - She enrolled as the first patient at her trial site in December 2014 and began sessions under the trial protocol. - Richard Yensen’s psychology license had lapsed in 2009, five years before Buisson became his patient. - A sexual relationship between Buisson and Yensen began between October 2015 and early 2016 while she was still an active trial participant. To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com. © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved. This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].