Club Drug Information
Ecstasy/ MDMA
The number of ecstasy users increased dramatically
around of the turn of the century, but thankfully has been on a decline since
then. The estimated number of current MDMA users is about 450,000, which is
down by more than 200,000 over the last two years.
MDMA (3-4
methylenedioxymethamphetamine) is a synthetic, psychoactive drug chemically
similar to the stimulant methamphetamine and the hallucinogen
mescaline.
Ecstasy users suffer mental effects from the drug and ad a
whole perform more poorly than nonusers on certain types of cognitive or memory
tasks.
MDMA can interfere with the body's ability to regulate
temperature. This can lead to a sharp increase in body temperature
(hyperthermia), resulting in liver, kidney, and cardiovascular system failure.
Since MDMA can also interfere with its own metabolism (breakdown within the
body), leaving even more hazardous levels in the body with repeated
use.
Ecstasy use brings many of the same risks as users of other
stimulants such as cocaine and amphetamines. These include increases in heart
rate and blood pressure, a special risk for people with circulatory problems or
heart disease, and other symptoms such as muscle tension, involuntary teeth
clenching, nausea, blurred vision, faintness, and chills or
sweating.
Other effects of using ecstasy include confusion, depression,
sleep problems, drug craving, and severe anxiety. These problems can occur
during and sometimes days or weeks after taking MDMA.
Hallucinogens
Hallucinogens are drugs that cause hallucinations - profound
distortions in a person's perceptions of reality. Under the influence of
hallucinogens, people see images, hear sounds, and feel sensations that seem
real but do not exist. Some hallucinogens also produce rapid, intense emotional
swings.
LSD (an abbreviation of the German words for "lysergic acid
diethylamide") is the drug most commonly identified with the term
"hallucinogen" and the most widely used in this class of drugs. It is
considered the typical hallucinogen, and the characteristics of its action and
effects described in this Research Report apply to the other hallucinogens,
including mescaline, psilocybin, and ibogaine.
Drugs with street names
like acid and angel dust distort the way a user perceives time, motion, colors,
sounds, and self. These drugs can disrupt a person's ability to think and
communicate rationally, or even to recognize reality, sometimes resulting in
bizarre or dangerous behavior. Hallucinogens such as LSD cause emotions to
swing wildly and real-world sensations to assume unreal, sometimes frightening
aspects. Dissociative drugs like PCP may make a user feel disconnected and out
of control. Due to the severe mental effects of these drugs, many substance
abuse specialists perceive this class of drugs to be the most dangerous, as the
mind may not be as easily repaired as the body can be.
The effects of
LSD can be described as drug-induced psychosis-distortion or disorganization of
a person's capacity to recognize reality, think rationally, or communicate with
others. Some LSD users experience devastating psychological effects that
persist after the trip has ended, producing a long-lasting psychotic-like
state. LSD-induced persistent psychosis may include dramatic mood swings from
mania to profound depression, vivid visual disturbances, and hallucinations.
These effects may last for years and can affect people who have no history or
other symptoms of psychological problems.
LSD is a clear or white,
odorless, water-soluble material synthesized from lysergic acid, a compound
derived from a rye fungus. LSD is the most potent mood- and perception-altering
drug known: oral doses as small as 30 micrograms can produce effects that last
6 to 12 hours.
LSD is initially produced in crystalline form. The pure
crystal can be crushed to powder and mixed with binding agents to produce
tablets known as "microdots" or thin squares of gelatin called "window panes";
more commonly, it is dissolved, diluted, and applied to paper or other
materials. The most common form of LSD is called "blotter acid" - sheets of
paper soaked in LSD and perforated into 1/4-inch square, individual dosage
units. Variations in manufacturing and the presence of contaminants can produce
LSD in colors ranging from clear or white, in its purest form, to tan or even
black. Even uncontaminated LSD begins to degrade and discolor soon after it is
manufactured, and drug distributors often apply LSD to colored paper, making it
difficult for a buyer to determine the drug's purity or age.
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