About one month ago, I had my first encounter with MDMA.
Yes, very original and interesting - I know.
Let’s just leave it at an inadequate “ecstatic”.
I took this first pill - and only, since - with the cocksure intent that it
would be my first and only. For a little while afterward, I was delighted with my secret abjectness combined with strength of character.
My strong character has since wavered.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not externalizing my struggle with willpower -
I don’t crave Ecstasy, though I enjoyed it so much.
**My question is basically this:
If I can do it again to little or no ill-effect (as I am convinced I have already done), then…why shouldn’t I?**
I thought maybe the straight dope message board cohort (whom i trust, after a year of enjoyable lurking (hi everyone!) ) could telegraph in some sense.
P.S. Notice my choice of Great Debates - as far as I know, there has nothing been
said about the neurotoxicity of the drug that is not hotly contested.
Likewise, I have little doubt that long term heavy use is damaging.
Please assume that should I ever do Ecstasy again, the indulgences will
be few and far between and the dosage “moderate”.
MDMA is related to methamphedamines. That may be a reason you want to stay away from it.
I don’t think the drug is addictive, not physically anyway, but it’s certainly possible to become mentally addicted. For example, life is not so much fun, certainly not like it is on X, I gotta do it again ASAP.
I had a friend who did a lot of the stuff. He was a normal, intelligent and mentally strong individual. After about a year he had turned into a wishy-washy poofter. He couldn’t have clear thoughts or make any decisions, his life kinda went down the tubes, and just revolved around “feeling good”.
I’m not saying you shouldn’t do X again. It’s a lot of fun!
But you wanted some reasons why you shouldn’t do it, and this is what I have to offer.
BTW, DON’T believe those commercials on TV about people dropping like flies from taking a single dose of X. Sure shit like that happens. Some people are allergic to it. But it certainly is not common or something to be worried over.
However, you can overdose on X. So be careful. (And have fun!)
Indeed… especially doing drugs, because the people who write laws are in a better position than you are to know what you want to do with your body.(coughabortioncough) :rolleyes:
Great, isn’t it? The answer is: no reason whatsoever.
Unfortunately, that’s a big ‘if’ regarding “little ill effect”. MDMA works by giving you a brief serotonin overload. It is possible that this might lead to psychological problems such as depression in the long term (although any effect is masked by a lot of experimental noise so far). In the short term, outright overdose on MDMA is so rare as to be nominally non-existent, but the problem comes with it being adulterated by cheaper compounds: use a kit to test it. Also, drink some (but not too much) water if you’re dancing.
This thread brought me out of the woodwork. So congratulations.
Ecstasy is actually one of the drugs I would not be messing around with. Three day hangovers, heart failure, overheating, and water toxicity issues aside, ecstasy is one of the few drugs with studies behind it linking it to neurotoxicity – that is, nerve damage.
Now, lots of things cause brain damage, so it’s nothing to immediately freak out over. And these studies are often done on monkeys who are exposed to extreme intracranial amounts of the drug – a situation that would never be replicated in real life. But I’d still do a line of coke before I took rolls. If you do use ecstasy, don’t overdo it, stay hydrated but not too hydrated, and if you start feeling overtired or weak, get some fresh air and relax.
And watch out for anything with fentanyl in it, that stuff is not to be trifled with. (China White is the brand to watch out for, I believe)
Let’s look at this another way. Suppose you were a health nut. You’re taking megadoses of beta-carotene, gingko biloba, ginseng, and St. John’s Wort. I don’t know exactly what these do or are supposed to do; for the purposes of this argument, let’s assume there are no official reports saying these do bad things. Likewise, no official reports saying they do good things. It is also not illegal to take them (based on the observation that they’re all available OTC).
While under the dubious effect of these herbal thingies, you have a bad time at a party and smack somebody. It is found out later that you were under the effect of these herbal thingies. This will probably be discarded as not important.
Now go back and replace “these herbal thingies” with “ecstacy.” Do you suppose that might have an adverse affect on your life, liberty and pursuit of happiness?
I’m not saying MDMA will cause people to snap like a twig and start smacking people around. I’m saying that, absent any other reason for bad things to happen, if you’re on MDMA and bad things happen, people are going to blame the MDMA and, therefore, you. This does not look good on a resume.
Yes, drugs are bad. I just had an espresso (bear with me, damn you!) and suddenly, I feel the contentment that would have otherwise taken a “job well done” achieve.
There was an anti-drug episode of South Park that delivered this POV that’s oddly overlooked in many legalization debates. It’s not about physical harm, its about productivity. The parents didn’t want Stan smoking marijuana because it would make him too content, and thus lazy. Plenty of our laws aren’t about protecting us from harm; they’re about upholding cultural standards. American culture values work and productivity over instant gratification, to the point of illegalizing it. We don’t want people to cure their dissatisfaction instantly with a pill, we want it to drive them to do something worthwhile.
OK, so let’s just look at this in a straight-up pro and con type of way
Con:
[ul]
It’s illegal, and depending on where you live might be seriously so, and if caught could seriously impact your lifestyle
There are health risks, as already illustrated on this board
You might do things on it that you wouldn’t normally do, which may have consequences
You WILL look like a total wanker to anyone who isn’t also on it
You will have vicious two-day hangovers from time to time
You might experience short-term depression after using it on the weekend
[/ul]
Pro:
[ul]
It’s a hell of a lot of fun
It’s a good way to meet people, and you’re really unlikely to piss anyone off
You really can dance all night
It’s a hell of a lot of fun
[/ul]
Besides the fact that it’s illegal, I think I may have a good reason.
What goes up must come down.
With all drugs, and particularly with E, the mindblowingly amazing heights are typically followed by lows that can get bad. Really, really bad. Headaches, puking, lack of appetite, and severe depression are all fairly common aftereffects.
Taking all that into consideration, I’m still of the mindset that it is (or at least should be) up to you. My rule of thumb has always been to be informed of the contents of and aftereffects of whatever I put in my body. This includes food, vitamins, workout supplements, and drugs.
Well… I’ve nothing against drugs, but I think I’ll avoid the more ingestable types until I can get a perscription for them from my doctor and pick them up at a pharmacy. Taking powerful substances without being sure what’s in them, where they come from and what they can do to me seems kind of silly. I wouldn’t take antibiotics without a checkup first, either.
Maybe I’m gradually turning into a Wiccan, becuase I’d like to say ‘An it harm no-one, do as thou wilt’ - for some people, some drugs cause them to inflict harm on those around them, either through obvious, immediate methods such as antisocial behaviour, or more insidious things such as breakdown of family relationships, neglect and poor health.
This would be a good reason why some people really shouldn’t get involved in some substances, under some conditions, but expressing that in a set of one-size-fits-all laws is highly problematic in all kinds of ways.
Like I said, there’s several issues with studies of this type–
[ul]
[li]Species- We don’t do experiments on humans (only studies). Neurologically, monkeys and rats are often far removed from humans. Therefore, studies may not be applicable across species.[/li][li]Brain Imaging- PET scans and fMRIs are great technologies, but they only show correlation between certain observable factors (glucose consumption, blood flow, etc) and certain external behaviors or treatments (such as MDMA). We often have no idea what these factors indicate exactly. The brain is far too complicated for anyone to say, “Oh look, the happy portion of the brain is active! Huzzah! Nobel prizes for me!”[/li][li]Lack of Causality- Briefly adressed in bullet #1. We can’t impose treatment of this type on humans. It’s unethical. Sucks, don’t it?[/li][/ul]
Is everyone aware that MDMA’s sordid history began as a marriage counseling drug? (Source: The Little Book of Ecstasy, Thomas, 2003) I love pharmacology.
