Ecstasy: A Drug That Can Kill :: Illegal Drugs Essays

Ecstasy A Drug That Can Killmissing works citedThree years ago, Mark*, straightaway a college junior, went to a Dave Mathews design in Boston with a few friends. He was 18 at the time, and about a half-hour before the concert started, they all decided to strickle a pill of the drug Ecstasy. This was Marks first time taking the drug, so he didnt full know what to expect. They chose what is called the speedy type, commonly employ at raves and parties rather than the dopey type, which is known to give more of a slow, relaxing feeling. Seriously, you get this warm wooly feeling that runs up your back, and a feeling that everything in life is right. Your jaw begins to clench and you love chewing on stuffgum, straws, candy, he said.The feelings that Mark experient are typical effects of the drug. His most intense feelings lasted about three hours, and the overall feeling of the drug remained for about six to seven hours. Yet the feelings of gladness abruptly ended when he awoke the next day.The next day was the most horrible day of my life, he said. All the happiness that was triggered in your brain is run out and youre left with nothing.Over eight million people aged 12 and older reported using the club drug ecstasy at least once in their lifetime, according to the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA), an information source on the consequences, patterns, and prevalence of alcohol, tobacco, and penal drug use and abuse in the general U.S. population, age 12 and older.Methylenedioxymethamephetamine (MDMA), commonly known as ecstasy, is a synthetic psychoactive drug used for its elated and hallucinogenic causes. Formally used to assist psychotherapy in the 1970s, it is now banned in the United States. Although illegal, it is rapidly rising in popularity in the United States, particularly among teenagers and young adults. Taken orally in a tablet or capsule, snorted, or injected, it generally takes 30 to 40 minutes to take effect and lasts about thre e to six hours, although some face effects can occur weeks after taking the drug.Ecstasys psychological stead effects include confusion, depression, sleep problems, anxiety, and paranoia. Like Prozac, it causes an elevation in serotonin, a chemical in the brain which triggers happy feelings in people. Some physical side effects are muscle tension, teeth clenching, nausea, blurred vision, chills, or sweating.