"I was planning to kill myself each and every day," he said. He actually attempted to do so at least five times.

"The idea of having dreams and a future, and growing old never even entered my mind — for eight years," he said. "I didn't expect to be alive in three days because I was constantly thinking of killing myself."

That changed in November 2014 after he took part in a clinical trial for MDMA-assisted psychotherapy (methylenedioxymethamphetamine), which uses the drug ecstasy to help break down psychological barriers to treatment.

"Five years later, I'm alive. I probably wouldn't be," he said. "It saved my life."

Just weeks ago, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved MDMA therapy for "expanded access," which means it has been approved for compassionate use to treat 50 more people at ten sites across the nation as it goes through final clinical trials in the U.S., Canada, and Israel.