# ecstacy and intellect **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 12, 2000, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ecstacy-and-intellect/45182 "2000-12-12T16:38:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Chronic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/48db29/32.png) [@Chronic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronic)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2000, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ecstacy-and-intellect/45182/1 "2000-12-12T16:38:48Z")
i was wondering the other day if a person’s intelligence would weaken the effects of the drug ecstacy (MDMA).i consider myself to be smarter than my friends and we’ve all taken the drugand they all have a great tiem and i don’t everroll nearly as hard as any of them, all i do the whole time is think of why im not rolling as hard as them…HELP! ---
**Author:** ![Tymp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Tymp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tymp)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2000, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ecstacy-and-intellect/45182/2 "2000-12-12T16:43:18Z")
Chronic, This is a bit out of character for me . . . but lay off the drugs. It doesn’t seem to me that you’ve really got enough capital to risk the investment. Know what I mean? ---
**Author:** ![romanticide](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f07891/32.png) [@romanticide](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romanticide)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2000, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ecstacy-and-intellect/45182/3 "2000-12-12T16:46:38Z")
Well, I’m a pretty smart guy and the first time I rolled, it was amazing for me. 4 hours of unimaginable euphoria. I really don’t think it has anything to do with intelligence. I do know however that the more times you take it the less fun it is. For some people, after 1 go, it’s never the same again. I’ve done it a few times, and I don’t anymore just because it’s not worth the money now. The effects aren’t nearly the same. And you might want to check and make sure those drugs aren’t inhibiting your spelling abilities :o). ---
**Author:** ![Chronic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/48db29/32.png) [@Chronic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronic)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2000, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ecstacy-and-intellect/45182/4 "2000-12-12T16:46:50Z")
im not asking you to judge me by that one paragraph you read from me, im asking you to answer my question, that is all ---
**Author:** ![romanticide](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f07891/32.png) [@romanticide](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romanticide)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2000, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ecstacy-and-intellect/45182/5 "2000-12-12T16:50:43Z")
I just realized that I really, really love commas. I sure hope those drugs haven’t inhibited my grammatical prowess. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Tymp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Tymp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tymp)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2000, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ecstacy-and-intellect/45182/6 "2000-12-12T17:06:05Z")
Alright, I’ll “help” you. Roll by yourself. Don’t go out in public. Don’t talk to anyone. Remove all questions from your mind that have to do with your immediate relations with others. Examine your reasons for rolling. Without concentrating so much on what others around you are doing, you might be able to relax enough to realize that illicit drugs affect you just like they do most everyone else. By examining your reasons, you might be able to determine whether or not you’re in the game with a valid purpose. If you come up short in the purpose department, don’t ever touch the stuff again. Really, though, I don’t want you to roll ever again. If you don’t figure out what it’s all about the first time, you shouldn’t be taking any risks. How can you justify the risks to your health and sanity if you can’t even get high? The drugs you take do affect your body. You have no control over that. What you’ve got currently is an undetermined chemical alteration of your existence without any benefits of the high. That’s foolish. Lay off the drugs. ---
**Author:** ![john\_e\_wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3da27b/32.png) [@john\_e\_wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/john_e_wagner)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2000, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ecstacy-and-intellect/45182/7 "2000-12-12T17:19:11Z")
1. Street drugs are not regulated, so you dont know what you are taking. 2. Not all people respond to any type of drug in the same way. Thats why there are several types of drugs that accomplish the same thing. 3. No offense, but you attitude is all wrong. You are thinking that this isn’t working, so the effects are going to be muted. Go drink a beer and mellow out. ---
**Author:** ![BornDodgy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19b73/32.png) [@BornDodgy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BornDodgy)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2000, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ecstacy-and-intellect/45182/8 "2000-12-13T17:49:02Z")
I expected this question to be the other way round… as in “do you get dumber if you take drugs?” All I know is that whenever I get emails from friends who are on E or acid - their spelling is extraordinary… extra extra… 😃 dodgy ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2000, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ecstacy-and-intellect/45182/9 "2000-12-13T20:08:51Z")
Go here [http://www.mdma.net/](http://www.mdma.net/) and leave the Straight Dope to questions of a more intellectual nature. ---
**Author:** ![TheGoat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@TheGoat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheGoat)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2000, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ecstacy-and-intellect/45182/10 "2000-12-13T21:13:44Z")
Don’t listen to any of these people Chronic do whatever makes you happy. Just be informed about what you are doing the people at [www.hyperreal.org](http://www.hyperreal.org) have some good information. Also check out [www.dancesafe.com](http://www.dancesafe.com). Live you life however you want just know the consquences for doing so. If you want my advice E is an excellent drug. It fucks you up big time though, and I don’t even want to think what its doing to me. Don’t take E reguraly cause it’ll just stop feeling good, and you’ll just be doing harm to yourself for no reason. And make sure to roll with a lot of other people who are rolling, if you want to really have fun make sure that these other people are females, and I guarante you’ll have the time of you life (or if you female roll with males). The experience really changes depeding on what type of pill you drop, who you hang out with, and what environment your hang out in. If you didn’t feel amazing then your doing something wrong. Have fun :wally ---
**Author:** ![james77](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a4c791/32.png) [@james77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/james77)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2000, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ecstacy-and-intellect/45182/11 "2000-12-13T22:45:55Z")
the feeling people get from mdma is caused by an increased ammount of serotonin and dopamine (both most likely spelled wrong)in your brain synapses. brain cells have a bit of space between them and in that space are brain chemicals. your mood and preceptions are dictated by which and how many chemicals are in that space. xtc increases the ammount of serotonin and dopamine (happy chemicals–the same chemicals that your brain released when you watched cartoons as a kid or those you have after sex)in the synapse and blocks them from being removed. this creates a sort of hyper-happiness (granted i am a layman and this a below laymen’s explanation–maybe some one with a little more brain knowledge could clarify the science of the whole thing). with this taken into account, it is likely that it is not your smarts that are keeping the drug from working. i’m not trying to insult you or pry into your life, but you may have some form of chemical imbalance. maoi drugs would have a detrimental effect on the high as well. or you may not be hardwired in a way that lets the drug have a good effect. there is a decent book called “drugs and the human body” by dr. ken lipsky that gives a complete and unbaised account of the way drugs (both legal and illegal) affect us. and just know that is always better to go directly to medical sources for drug info rather than stoner friends or message boards where some unknow kid could give you a load of bull about brain chemicals he can’t even spell the names of. ---
**Author:** ![DonJuanDeMarco3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a87d85/32.png) [@DonJuanDeMarco3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DonJuanDeMarco3)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2000, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ecstacy-and-intellect/45182/12 "2000-12-13T23:29:49Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by adam yax \* > \*\*Go here [http://www.mdma.net/](http://www.mdma.net/) and leave the Straight Dope to questions of a more intellectual nature. \*\* I find the affect of chemicals on the human body a very relevent subject to talk about. I know many people that do take many different types of illicit substances, some make lots of money selling these substances, and all of them make at least a 3.5 GPA. I have found that X makes me do my homework, papers, and tests three times as efficency. But on the other hand taking the drug multiple times over a couple weeks makes one depressed. X has no side effects other than the depresion. Now diluted x, dehydration and mixing x with DXM can all be deadly. I have only seen one person die while one x and that was because he jumped from a 30ft concert boom. I believe x, if taken while doing intelligent things, can give the brain a bigger serotonin reward for these intelligent things causing the brain to perform better. ---
**Author:** ![DonJuanDeMarco3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a87d85/32.png) [@DonJuanDeMarco3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DonJuanDeMarco3)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2000, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ecstacy-and-intellect/45182/13 "2000-12-13T23:34:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by james77 \* > **the feeling people get from mdma is caused by an increased ammount of serotonin and dopamine (both most likely spelled wrong)in your brain synapses** MDMA in no way effects any other component of the brain but serotonin. MDMA is not an opiate. Morphine and heroin effect dopamine levels. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2000, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ecstacy-and-intellect/45182/14 "2000-12-13T23:42:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by DonJuanDeMarco3 \* > \*\*I find the affect of chemicals on the human body a very relevent subject to talk about. \*\* True, it is a relevent subject, however asking “why don’t I roll as hard as my friends” is not. At least not for this forum, that would be more of a IMHO question.