Psychiatrist charged over fatal ‘heart protocol’ ceremony involving MDMA and ketamine
Industry Buzz
Putting someone in a sauna after administering MDMA (which already causes overheating and increased heart rate) and ketamine (which increases blood pressure), is literally a death waiting to happen. A doctor should know this.
—@Unlikely_Vehicle_828 via Reddit
A Miami Beach physician is facing a manslaughter charge after a woman was found unresponsive in a rooftop sauna after participating in a psychedelic “heart protocol” ceremony and later pronounced dead.[]
Psychiatrist Samuel Lee, MD, has pleaded not guilty in the death of Tina Sodhi. Investigators say the “heart protocol” combined MDMA and ketamine with a cleansing regimen and sauna exposure, turning a ceremony promoted as a path to holistic healing into a case that raises questions about psychedelic safety, clinical oversight, and physician accountability.[][]
What happened during the ‘heart protocol’
Sodhi attended the 3-day retreat in February 2025 and paid $2,000 to participate. According to police, Dr. Lee described the “heart protocol” as a holistic treatment involving a GABA agonist, MDMA, and ketamine. He reportedly told officers it was a “sacred sacrament” of his church and was not performed under his medical license.[]
Investigators say participants first received a GABA supplement to “relax the brain,” followed by doses of “heart medicine” intended to increase serotonin and dopamine and “open the heart.” Ketamine was then administered as the other medication peaked.[]
Dr. Lee allegedly promoted the 4- to 6-hour ceremony as a way to relieve depression, anxiety, addiction, suicidal thoughts, addiction, and past trauma. Sodhi also signed a waiver acknowledging the potential risks and was instructed to complete a gastrointestinal/parasite cleanse before the ceremony.[][]
The danger was in the combination
The Miami-Dade Medical Examiner attributed Sodhi’s death to dehydration associated with sauna confinement and the use of MDMA and ketamine.[][] The toxicology report later revealed that those substances were found in Sodhi’s body, as well as DMT, a psychedelic.[] Investigators said the liquid cleanse and prolonged heat exposure amplified the substances’ effects.[][][]
“Putting someone in a sauna after administering MDMA (which already causes overheating and increased heart rate) and ketamine (which increases blood pressure), is literally a death waiting to happen,” Reddit user @Unlikely_Vehicle_828 wrote in a discussion about the case on r/TherapeuticKetamine. “A doctor should know this.”
For physicians, the case shows how several seemingly separate risks can collide. Psychoactive drugs may affect consciousness, judgment, autonomic function, and thermoregulation. Add fluid and electrolyte shifts, reduced intake, and intense heat, and a patient’s condition can deteriorate quickly.
It is also a reason to ask patients directly about psychedelic retreats, wellness ceremonies, detoxes, and injectable treatments.
Patients may not view these experiences as medical care, and some may not know precisely which substances or doses they received.
Related: PA psychiatrist’s license revoked after years of obsessive sexual misconduct and prescription controlCeremonial care still carries clinical obligations
A signed waiver does not replace medication transparency, individualized risk assessment, meaningful informed consent, monitoring, or a clear emergency response plan. Describing an intervention as spiritual or ceremonial does not eliminate the medical risks involved in administering potent drugs.
Lee has since been ordered to stop practicing in Florida, and his Texas medical license was suspended.[][] The manslaughter charge remains an allegation. Still, the case delivers a clear message for clinicians exploring psychedelic-assisted care: The setting may look different from a traditional clinic, but the duty to protect patients does not.