EcStasy ©

3,4-METHYLENE-DIOXYMETAMPHETAMINE (“MDMA”) is the chemical name for “ecstasy.” It is a synthetic psychoactive drug that possesses the stimulant properties of methamphetamine and hallucinogenic qualities most similar to mescaline.MDMA is not new. It was first developed in 1912 as an appetite suppressant by the German pharmaceutical company Merck. During the late 1970s, psychologists and psychiatrists used the drug as treatment for psychological and emotional disorders. Street use of the drug became popular in the 1980s; it became illegal in the United States in 1985.In its purest form, ecstasy is a white crystalline powder with a musty odor. It may also have a reddish or brownish color as a result of impurities. It usually comes as a tablet, capsule or in powder form and is usually taken orally, although it can be injected. The quantity of MDMA can vary from 9mg to 117mg per tablet.Ecstasy is often called “the love pill” because it heightens perceptions of color and sound and supposedly amplifies sensations when one touches or caresses another, particularly during sex.Ecstasy is illegal. The Drug Enforcement Administration classifies it as a “Schedule I” drug, a description reserved for dangerous substances with no recognized medical use. Other “Schedule I” drugs include heroin, cocaine, LSD and amphetamine.Penalties for possession, delivery and manufacturing of ecstasy can include fines up to $100,000 and up to 99 years to life in prison, depending on the amount of the drug you have in your possession.Is ecstasy addictive? Many think so. But even if a user doesn’t become addicted, four very real dangers exist:DANGER No. 1: Most ecstasy is only 40% pure so there is always a risk that any pill or gelatinous capsule of ecstasy may have been “cut” (combined) with other drugs such as heroin or cocaine, which are addictive. DANGER No. 2: One has to continually increase the amount of the drug one takes in order to feel the same effects. Users say the effect of ecstasy is greatly reduced after the first dose. And as a person takes more of the drug, the negative side effects also increase.Because the desired effect from using the drug diminishes, a person often then tries other drugs which are even more dangerous and do cause the user to become addicted.DANGER No. 3: Users feel there is sometimes a need to use other drugs such as heroin or cocaine to help cope with the mental and physical pain that results after one “comes down” from ecstasy; 92% of those who take ecstasy also abuse other, even harder drugs. A person often then tries other drugs which are even more dangerous and do cause the user to become addicted.DANGER No. 4: The false idea that a person only feels good with ecstasy leads to a desire to take it more often than just at raves and techno parties; 67% of those who use the drug want to continue taking it, despite having bad experiences.Ecstasy damages brain cells by causing the nerve branches and nerve endings to degenerate. These cells then regrow abnormally, failing to reconnect to some brain areas or connecting elsewhere to the wrong areas. It is as if the brain switchboard was torn apart, then rewired backwards.