This handwaves the problem that two adults cannot reach a compromise without taking a drug. That's a personal problem not being solved, but actually being masked and brushed under the metaphorical rug. Perhaps what they need is relationship counselling?
If you anesthetize me, I will protest less when you do something that would otherwise cause me pain, but you haven't taken away my ability to feel pain in the long-term.
If you get me high, I'll be less anxious in the short-term, but the root cause of my anxiety hasn't been solved.
I disagree with the "masked" framing. _Actually talking to each other_ is fairly difficult for a lot of people and even a lot of relatively happy couples. Managing to do that in a productive fashion may take a very good night's sleep, or a lot of coffee, or a few beers, or some MDMA, or post-coital neurochemical rush, or whatever else. As long as it happens, you've had the conversation. If it went well and you got somewhere and did a thing or mutually understand a problem or whatever, it was a success.
Tools are tools. My inability to ram a nail into a wall with my thumb isn't being "masked" by my use of a hammer, and while I might get better at it with practice and better thumb technique that wouldn't be a more valid solution.
This seems like a bad take. Are you going to tell me ibuprofen is worthless because it doesn't fix the underlying issue?
No, it's a tool. Nobody is saying you should take casual MDMA to discuss every day solutions. But it does highlight the power of allowing people to express things that they might otherwise have difficulty expressing.
And maybe you learn something about your partner in the process.
This is why it's a powerful therapeutic tool. People with PTSD can talk through their most troubled experiences and lift that weight from their shoulders. Something they may be incapable of doing in a sober context.
In that sense, it's not just "anesthetizing" as you so lovingly put it, there is therapeutic value beyond a a momentary high.
MDMA was originally named 'Empathy' for a reason. Establishing an empathetic bridge with a spouse or significant other can have lasting effects which can clear a log jam of grievances. And as with all psychoactive medication, therapy is often part of the treatment.
Obviously, self medicating to perpetuate avoidant or maladaptive behavior is generally considered drug abuse and never recommended.
it has been the state of humans throughout history that we could not all universally reach a compromise without taking a drug, which makes sense given that we haven't had a lot of time to evolve since then
If you anesthetize me, I will protest less when you do something that would otherwise cause me pain, but you haven't taken away my ability to feel pain in the long-term.
If you get me high, I'll be less anxious in the short-term, but the root cause of my anxiety hasn't been solved.