drugs), crack cocaine, cocaine, and speed/methamphetamines. The acceptability of these drugs proceeds in a somewhat structured order: the most accepted is the least harmful, and the least accepted is the most harmful. Ecstasy is the catch 22, if you will. It falls somewhere between tobacco and “magic” mushrooms on the acceptability list; yet, its danger lies somewhere between methamphetamines and LSD. A researcher, Dr. Ricaurte from Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions in Baltimore, says, “Our immediate concern is that people who use MDMA recreationally are unwillingly putting themselves at a risk of developing brain injury” (Radford 10/30/98). Does it make sense? No. But, I am not fabricating this information to scare or confuse anyone; I am merely conveying what I have witnessed. Additionally, another prominent reason for the tremendous spread of ecstasy use is its presumed safety. Because MDMA is so new, research is in its infancy and the side effects are relatively unknown. But compared to heroin, cocaine and other “harder” illicit drugs, “It causes relatively fewer problems,” says Cpl. Jocelyn Chagnon of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s Drug Awareness Service (Oh 4/24/00). For this reason, young people use the drug much more often. However, the long-term effects can be extremely detrimental. “Users of the drug [will] be more likely to have a higher incidence of depression in life…” because MDMA damages the nerves in the brain that release serotonin, which plays a role in mood, memory, pain perception, sexual desire, sleep, and appetite. These effects are less detrimental then the physical dependencies caused by heroin and cocaine, but they are far from healthy. (Radford 10/30/98) Lastly, there are the stories of a first experience. What strikes an adolescents brain louder than a personal testimony from a friend? Probably nothing. This is a huge aspect of the ...
