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Image: DEA (US)
Ecstasy is often called a "club drug" because people frequently take it at all-night dance parties, bars, clubs, and concerts. Other club drugs include ketamine, GHB (gamma hydroxybutyrate), speed and methamphetamine (see Tik/ Methamphetamine). People may take MDMA to have enough energy to keep dancing or partying all night or for a feeling of emotional warmth and a general sense of well-being. MDMA acts as both a stimulant and a hallucinogen. Unfortunately, users may not realize that MDMA may hurt them. In some cases, its abuse can be fatal (leading to death).
Drug group:
Stimulant
Chemical name:
MDMA (or 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine). Many tablets contain other ecstasy-type drugs like MDEA, MDA, MBDB.
Background:
It came onto the drug scene in a big way in the 1990's Rave-safe party drug, but has a long history before that.
Distribution:
Increase in nite-clubs, bars and hang-outs. Compared to Ecstasy from the 1990's and early 2000's the pills you get these days are not as potent. Controlled and sold by Nigerian and White syndicates. Used across the board by all races, recent increased use among black young people. Smuggled in from other countries.
Street name:
E, XTC, pills, Pille - or named after logos which are pressed into the tablets, such as doves, Mitsubishis, Crowns or smiley faces.
Form:
Usually tablets of different shapes, size and colour (often white). MDMA is usually taken orally, in a pill, tablet, or capsule. It may also be crushed and snorted, smoked or even injected. Each tablet contains between 60 and 120 milligrams of MDMA, plus other unknown "fillers" like Caffiene.
Ecstasy can be all sorts of substances and known by all sorts of names. Whatever it is called, the same applies; you don't know what you're taking. The more common urine tests, show MDMA as Methamphetamine.
Effects:
• Users feel alert and in tune with their surroundings.
• Sound, colour and emotions seem much more intense.
• Users may dance for hours with the effects lasting from three to six hours.
Duration:
For most users, the effects of MDMA last 3 to 6 hours. But negative side effects can last for days.
Risks & Side effects:
- The comedown - Can leave users feeling tired and depressed for days after.
- Risk of overheating and dehydration if users dance energetically.
- Use has been linked to liver and kidney failure/problems.
- Some experts are concerned that use of ecstasy can lead to selective damage to nerve endings in the brain.
- Users can die of heart attack, stroke or suicide.
Confusion, anxiety, sleep problems, heatstroke (hyperthermia), nausea, muscle tension, blurred vision, faintness, chills, excessive sweating, teeth clenching. If you suffer from cystitis or thrush, it could be heightened by dehydration caused by using ecstasy. MDMA is not a safe drug-even if taken only once in a while. It can change the way the brain functions, impairing the senses, memory, judgment, and coordination. There has been many reported deaths across the world.
Law: It is illegal to use or have it in your possession.
Statistic: • Worldwide, an estimated 4.5 billion people use Ecstasy, 100 000 of those are in SA. • SA produces one ton of Ecstasy per year.
Other Questions:
What happens if a person drinks Alcohol and use Ecstasy at the same time?
Used in combination with alcohol, MDMA becomes a very dangerous cocktail. To combine a central nervous depressant (alcohol) and a stimulant is like mixing petrol and fire.
Why do people on Ecstasy get Heatstroke?
MDMA speeds up heart rate and blood pressure and disrupts the brain's ability to regulate body temperature. Overheating to the point of "hyperthermia" can result. When this happens, abusers begin to sweat but can't cool off. Also, the "rave" or club atmosphere is hot and crowded, which doesn't help users stay cool. Treatment of hyperthermia requires prompt professional medical attention, as it can rapidly lead to muscle breakdown, which can in turn result in kidney failure and death.
How can I tell if someone I know is using Ecstasy?
Someone using MDMA may experience the following:
Forgetfulness
Loss of coordination, dizziness, or fainting Depression Confusion Sleep problems
Dental problems
Excessive thirst
Source: NIDA
Ecstasy is the drug that made the biggest impact of all illicit drugs in South Africa since 1993-1994. It is the single most significant drug that has been synonymous with the South African "rave scene" since the early 1990's, and is currently being abused by a large number of teenagers in South Africa. It is a tablet that is highly underrated for its serious and dangerous side effects, because the public at large is uninformed.
Superintendent from the SAPS 's Forensic Science Laboratory: "Although there are many risks and side-effects when using these amphetamine-type of stimulants, I would like to stress a particular risk. It lies in the fact that the consumer does not now in advance exactly what substance he or she is taking. While cases of acute poisoning as a result of MDMA overdose are rare, they can arise more frequently with MDA, DOB and other potent derivatives. In addition to the possibility of consuming one of the more potent derivatives, there is also the danger of taking in poisonous substances."
XTC - A CHEMICAL DRUG Ecstasy is an amphetamine derivative. Amphetamine is a fully synthetic artificially manufactured narcotic. There are various structures diverging form the basic chemical composition of the amphetamine molecule, and those are referred to as derivatives of amphetamine. The most important derivative at present is MDMA (Ecstasy). It is possible to obtain large numbers of varied amphetamine chemical structures by alteration.This is why these drugs are also known as designer drugs. It is important to remember that these drugs are manufactured in clandestine (backyard) laboratories. To increase the amount of batches produced, manufacturers "cut" (add) deadly substances to their final product, such as: - Blue death - Rattex - Traces of Cyanide These drugs has never been tested or approved by any council for human consumption. The user therefore never knows what he or she is consuming!
ABBREVIATIONS 1. DOM 2. MDA 3. MDMA 4. MDE CHEMICAL NAME 1. 2,5dimethoxy-4methylamphetamine 2. 3,4 methylenedioxy-amphetamine 3. 3,4 methylenedioxy-methamphetamine 4. N-ethyl 3,4 methylenedioxy-amphetamine
IDENTIFICATION OF THE DRUG As can be seen there is a legion of acronyms that describe these compounds, i.e. MDA, MDMA, STP, DOM, MDE, XTC, etc. Some of these acronyms are applied to more than one compound, or one compound can be known on the street by several acronyms, which leads to confusion. It is therefore difficult to describe a specific type of XTC to an individual. Ecstasy is usually sold in the form of a tablet, but can also be obtain in a liquid form. There are literally hundreds of different types of tablets currently circulating in the South African market. The easiest way to identify these tablets is to look for a logo that does not belong on a tablet thatis obtained at a pharmacy. The manufacturers usually opt for a well known brand name as a logo on the tablet, and trademarks such as Mercedes Benz, Mitsubishi, Volkswagen, Rolls Royce, Kelvin Klein, etc. are common (this also further the pseudonym of "Designer drug").
DANGERS Some of the more dangerous side effects of Ecstasy are the so-called "heat stroke" and "water logging" syndromes, which can be caused by the intake of the drug. Heat stroke is usually caused in a Rave or Night Club situation, where the user does not take in enough fluids in order to stop severe dehydration, while being above normal active. This is also caused by the neurons in the brain not functioning properly, and therefore the inability of the user receiving a timeouts conscious message of imminent danger. On the flip side of this is what is commonly known as "water logging" or "water poisoning". This effect or syndrome can be found where a person consumes too much fluid that the body cannotsuccessfully process. These fluids can turn poisonous and inevitably end up in the bloodstream or can cause kidney failure. The long-term abuse of XTC leads to severe psychiatric problems, and persons that are addicted to amphetamines have a tendency to severe aggressive outbursts. It has been found on numerous occasions that teenagers assault their parents in order to obtain funds to finance their addiction. The abuse of XTC inevitably leads to the abuse of Cocaine, because tolerance levels are reached quickly and the need for a better rush is high.
ECSTASY USE DEPLETES BRAIN'S SEROTONIN LEVELS Source: American Academy Of Neurology ST. PAUL, MN - Use of the recreational drug Ecstasy causes a severe reduction in the amount of serotonin in the brain, according to a study in the July 25 issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study examined the brain of a 26-year-old man who had died of a drug overdose: "The levels of serotonin and another chemical associated with serotonin were 50 to 80 percent lower in the brain of the Ecstasy user," said study author Stephen Kish, PhD, of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, Canada. "This is the first study to show that this drug can deplete the level of serotonin in humans." The man started using Ecstasy once a month at age 17. His usage increased, and in the last three years of his life he used it four to five nights a week at "rave" clubs, usually including a three-day weekend binge during which he took six to eight tablets. On the day after these binges, his friends said he appeared depressed and had slow speech, movement and reaction time.
CONFESSION BY AN ECSTACY DRUG DEALER AT A RAVE CLUB "There was no other people with me, it was just me and I think being wired on Coke and looking at all the people and realising that they all looked that way because of me. I looked down and I saw a young girl, very pretty young girl, very model looking face, very beautiful girl she couldn't have been more than 13 years old. I just saw her from up there taking a pill and I thought to myself - You know if that was my child I think I would die inside - and I think for a moment in time I actually realized the proper meaning and the true picture of drugs. I saw the true meaning of dealing with drugs and then I think that is really scary." The SAPS have already discovered clandestine laboratories in South Africa.
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