Dr Linda Helps - You may have heard about ecstasy or “e” as it’s often referred to. Ecstasy is said to be the staple at all night underground parties known as “raves.” The drug became illegal in 1985. This designer drug is produced in clandestine laboratories and is a molecular alteration of an existing drug.

Listen to what teens tell Sarah Wadhams, LCSW, a senior clinician for the Essex County Juvenile Drug Court in Salem, MA. about tripping for three to six hours on ecstasy:

“Wired”
“High”
“High energy”
“Happy”
“Clear”
“Don’t care”
“Nothing bothers me”
“Relaxed”
“Uninhibited”

“After the ride” their comments change to:

“Depressed”
“Desperate”
“Hung over”
“Want more”
“Exhausted”
“Edgy”
“Paranoid”

This high-let-down cycle repeats. The more one repeats the cycle, the more opportunity to become psychologically dependent on the drug (It has been proven to be physically addictive). And the side effects are not too pleasant:

· Increased body temperature that can cause your blood to coagulate (thicken). People have died as a result of this at “raves” while tripping on “e”.

· An ability to sustain long bouts of physical exercise.

· Dehydration when you engage in high levels of physical activity and don’t drink enough liquids.

· Increased heart rate and blood pressure.

· Blurred vision, chills, faintness, or sweating.

Here’s more information about “e”:

· Its actual chemical name is methylenendioxymethamphetamine (MDMA). (Try to say that three times with or without 15 marshmallows stuffed in your mouth!)

· Some street names are X-TC, X, Adam, Clarity, Lover’s Speed.

· Given its derivatives, it simultaneously acts as a hallucinogen and a stimulant.

· Ecstasy is known to deplete serotonin levels in the brains of animals. Serotonin (found in humans too) has a lot to do with your thought process, ability to sleep, what type of mood you are in, how aggressive you are or might become, and your eating patterns… not to mention your ability to feel pain. When you take “e”, you compromise your brain’s natural process of regulation in a safe and healthy manner.

For you history buffs, ecstasy was developed in the early 1900’s in Germany. There is debate as to whether ecstasy was created as an appetite suppressant or as a means to enhance people in therapy.

Regardless, ecstasy has not been studied in humans. Guess what? That makes you a guinea pig if you choose to take the little “happy pill”. At best, you’ll get “high”; at worst, you could die (remember, you never know if what you are taking has been “laced” or mixed with some other substance which could be lethal).

Bottom line—ecstasy can lead to agony. Think twice before you follow the crowd!