A few dozen pioneering psychotherapists in the United States explored the drug's therapeutic uses until the US government declared MDMA a Schedule 1 controlled substance in 1985.

Richard Ingrasci, a psychiatrist who had for years been successfully using MDMA as an adjunct to marriage counseling, was one of several therapists who opposed the scheduling of the drug. Ingrasci, whose work became foundational for many modern psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy researchers, provided prominent testimony during the government's scheduling hearings in 1985.

"I have seen MDMA help many couples break through longstanding communication blocks because of the safety that emerges in the session as a result of the drug," Ingrasci declared in his testimony from the scheduling hearings. "It is difficult to convey in words how deeply moving it is to watch couples heal in this way with the help of MDMA."