1. What is a drug?
2. What type of drugs are there?
3. What are the states of drug use?
4. How do I know I have a problem?
5. What treatment is available?
6. How can I quit abusing drugs?
Cocaine FAQ | Heroin FAQ | Marijuana FAQ | Club Drug FAQ
Q: What is a drug?
A: A DRUG can be defined as any substance taken to modify, change, or heal something within the body. There are both legal and illegal drugs. Prescription drugs have medicinal value and are legally prescribed by physicians. Street drugs have no medicinal value and can only be purchased illegally. For the purposes of addiction rehabilitation, make no mistake, alcohol is also considered a drug, and one of the most dangerous. Regardless of the type of drug, many are physically addictive and all share the potential to be psychologically addictive. Drugs can be classified and put into groups according to the effects produced on the brain.
Q: What type of drugs are there?
A: The following is a list of drug types:
STIMULANTS - Stimulants speed up the central nervous system. Common stimulants include cocaine, crack, methamphetamine, and prescription amphetamines such as Dexedrine and Benzedrine.
DEPRESSANTS - Depressants slow the central nervous system. Prescription depressants include barbiturates such as Seconal or Phenobarbital and benzodiazepines such as Valium and Xanax. Alcohol is the most widely abused legal depressant drug.
NARCOTICS - Narcotics or opiates are usually derived from the opium poppy. Narcotics include morphine, codeine, opium, and heroin. Doctors prescribe narcotics for use as painkillers, including morphine codeine, vicodin, and darvaset, etc.
CLUB DRUGS - This entire category of drugs has been made popular over the past few years and consists of a variety of different chemical compounds such as Ecstasy (MDMA), GHB, Ketamine, and LSD.
Q: What are the states of drug use?
A: There are several different levels of drug use that a person goes through prior to the final stage of addiction / dependence. Nearly everyone uses or has experimented with drugs. For our purposes we will concentrate on establishing four different and distinct categories or stages of addiction, they are: Use, Misuse, Abuse and Dependency/Addiction. These are defined in the following way:
Use - The ingestion of alcohol or other drugs without the experience of any negative consequences. If a high school kid had drunk a beer at a party and his parents had not found out we could say he had used alcohol. This can also apply to any drug.
Misuse - When a person experiences negative consequence from the use of alcohol or other drugs it is clearly misuse. A large percentage of the population misuses drugs or alcohol at some point in their lives. However, this does not imply that the negative consequences are minor. For example, a 40-year old man uses alcohol on an infrequent basis, his employer throws a surprise party and the 40-year old man drinks more than usual and on the way home he is arrested for DUI. He does not really have a problem with alcohol but in this instance the consequence is not minor.
Abuse - Continued use of alcohol or other drugs in spite of negative consequences. Let's go back to the 40-year old man who was arrested for DUI. If he had no substance abuse problem he would abstain from alcohol, getting a DUI would be enough of a deterrent. However, shortly thereafter this man goes to another party and there he drinks in excess and then gets behind the wheel of his car, this would be considered abuse.
Dependency/Addiction - The compulsive use of alcohol or other drugs regardless of adverse or negative consequences. For example, a man received three DUI's in one year. He was on probation and would be sentenced to one year in prison if he was caught using alcohol but he continued to drink. The man would be clearly addicted to alcohol because the negative consequences did not impact or deter his use.
In the event that an individual is clearly in the first or second stage (use or misuse) there are no indications that he will naturally progress to the final stages. However, once the individual has reached the abuse stage there is a high probability that they will progress into dependency on the drugs or alcohol and professional help should be sought.
Q: How do I know I have a problem?
A: You have a problem with drugs if you continue to use them even when they cause problems with your health, money, relationships, work or school. You may have a problem if you have developed a tolerance to drugs. This means you need to use more and more to get the same effect.
Q: What treatment is available?
A: Treatment can include counseling or medication assisted treatment. During the admission process your therapist and physician will help you find the treatment that is right for you.
Q: How can I quit abusing drugs?
A: The first step in breaking the addictions is to understand that you can take control of what you do. You can't control all the things that happen in your life or most of what other people do, but you do have control over how you react. So use that control.
COCAINE FAQ
1. What is cocaine?
2. How would anyone become addicted to cocaine?
3. What are the physical effects of crack cocaine addiction?
4. Are there any other problems that can occur from crack or cocaine?
Q: What is cocaine?
A: Cocaine is derived from the leaves of the coca bush, which grows in South America. Cocaine has been used for centuries by Indians to combat the effects of hunger, hard work, and thin air, in the mid 1800s its effects were praised by Freud, among others. Until 1906, this substance was a chief ingredient of Coca-Cola and was also used as an anesthetic. Widespread use and addiction led to government efforts against cocaine in the early 1900s. The danger associated with cocaine was ignored in the 1970s and early 1980s, and cocaine was proclaimed by many to be safe. With the accumulating medical evidence of cocaine's deleterious effects and the introduction and widespread use of "crack" cocaine, the public and government have become alarmed again about its growing use. To many Americans, especially health care and social workers who deal with crack users and have witnessed the personal and societal devastation it produces, cocaine addiction is, by far, the most serious.
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Q: How would anyone become addicted to cocaine?
A: The effects of cocaine are immediate, extremely pleasurable, and brief. Cocaine and crack cocaine both produce intense but short-lived euphoria and can make users feel more energetic. Like caffeine, cocaine produces wakefulness and reduces hunger. Psychological effects include feelings of well-being and a grandiose sense of power and ability mixed with anxiety and restlessness. As the drug wears off, these temporary sensations of mastery are replaced by an intense depression, and the drug abuser will then "crash", becoming lethargic and typically sleeping for several days.
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Q: What are the physical effects of crack cocaine addiction?
A: The following is a list of possible physical effects:
• Changes in blood pressure, heart rates, and breathing rates
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Anxiety
• Convulsions
• Insomnia
• Loss of appetite leading to malnutrition and weight loss
• Cold sweats
• Swelling and bleeding of mucous membranes
• Restlessness and anxiety
• Damage to nasal cavities
• Damage to lungs
• Possible heart attacks, strokes, or convulsions
Crack is particularly dangerous for several reasons. Crack is inhaled and rapidly absorbed through the lungs, into the blood, and carried swiftly to the brain. The chances of overdosing and poisoning leading to coma, convulsions, and death
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Q: Are there any other problems that can occur from crack or cocaine?
A: Crack and other forms of cocaine can cause feelings of anxiety and depression, which may last for weeks. Attempts to stop using the drugs can fail simply because the resulting depression can be overwhelming, causing the addict to use more cocaine in an attempt to overcome his depression.
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HEROIN FAQ
1. What is heroin?
2. What are some other names for heroin?
3. What are the physical effects of crack cocaine addiction?
4. Are there any other problems that can occur from crack or cocaine?
5. What are the medical complications of chronic heroin addiction and use?
6. Are heroin users at special risk for contracting HIV/AIDS and hepatitis B and C?
7. How does heroin abuse affect pregnant women?
8. What are my treatment options?
9. I have been addicted to opiates for many years and have tried numerous times to quit, but gave in to the withdrawal, what makes Sacred Heart's detoxification process work for some one like me?
Q: What is heroin?
A: Heroin is an illegal, highly addictive opiate drug. Its abuse is more widespread than any other opiate. Heroin is processed from morphine, a naturally occurring substance extracted from the seed pod of certain varieties of poppy plants. It is typically sold as a white or brownish powder or as the black sticky substance known on the streets as "black tar heroin." Although purer heroin is becoming more common, most street heroin is "cut" with other drugs or with substances such as sugar, starch, powdered milk, or quinine. Street heroin can also be cut with strychnine or other poisons. Because heroin abusers do not know the actual strength of the drug or its true contents, they are at risk of overdose or death. Heroin also poses special problems because of the transmission of HIV and other diseases that can occur from sharing needles or other injection equipment.
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Q: What are some other names for heroin?
A: "smack", "junk", "horse", "skag", "H", "China white"
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Q: So Heroin is an opiate. What are some of the other opiates?
A: Opium, Morphine, Codeine, Merperidine , Hydrocodone (Lortab, Vicodin), Oxycodone (Percodan, Roxicet, Roxiprin, Tylox, Percocet), Stadol, Talwin, Dilaudid, Fentanyl, Buprenorphine, Methadone, Propoxyphene (Wygesic, Darvocet)
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Q: What are the long-term effects of heroin addiction and use?
A: One of the most detrimental long-term effects of heroin is heroin addiction itself. Addiction is a chronic problem, characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use, and by neuron-chemical and molecular changes in the brain. Heroin also produces profound degrees of tolerance and physical dependence, which are also powerful motivating factors for compulsive use and abuse. As with abusers of any addictive drug, heroin addicts gradually spend more and more time and energy obtaining and using the drug. Once they are addicted, the heroin abusers' primary purpose in life becomes seeking and using drugs. The drugs literally change their brains.
Physical dependence develops with higher doses of the drug. With physical dependence, the body adapts to the presence of the drug and withdrawal symptoms occur if use is reduced abruptly. Withdrawal may occur within a few hours after the last time the drug is taken. Symptoms of withdrawal include restlessness, muscle and bone pain, insomnia, diarrhea, vomiting, cold flashes with goose bumps ("cold turkey"), and leg movements. Major withdrawal symptoms peak between 24 and 48 hours after the last dose of heroin and subside after about a week. However, some people have shown persistent withdrawal signs for many months. Heroin withdrawal is never fatal to otherwise healthy adults, but it can cause death to the fetus of a pregnant addict.
At some point during continuous heroin use, a person can become addicted to the drug. Sometimes addicted individuals will endure many of the withdrawal symptoms to reduce their tolerance for the drug so that they can again experience the rush.
Physical dependence and the emergence of withdrawal symptoms were once believed to be the key features of heroin addiction. We now know this may not be the case entirely, since craving and relapse can occur weeks and months after withdrawal symptoms are long gone. We also know that patients with chronic pain who need opiates to function (sometimes over extended periods) have few if any problems leaving opiates after their pain is resolved by other means. This may be because the patient in pain is simply seeking relief of pain and not the rush sought by the addict.
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Q: What are the medical complications of chronic heroin addiction and use?
A: Medical consequences of chronic heroin abuse include scarred and/or collapsed veins, bacterial infections of the blood vessels and heart valves, abscesses (boils) and other soft-tissue infections, and liver or kidney disease. Lung complications (including various types of pneumonia and tuberculosis) may result from the poor health condition of the abuser as well as from heroin's depressing effects on respiration. Many of the additives in street heroin may include substances that do not readily dissolve and result in clogging the blood vessels that lead to the lungs, liver, kidneys, or brain. This can cause infection or even death of small patches of cells in vital organs. Immune reactions to these or other contaminants can cause arthritis or other rheumatologic problems. One of the greatest risks of being a heroin addict is death from heroin overdose. Each year about one percent of all heroin addicts in the United States die from an overdose of heroin despite having developed a fantastic tolerance to the effects of the drug. In a non-tolerant person the estimated lethal dose of heroin may range from 200 to 500 mg, but addicts have tolerated doses as high as 1800 mg without even being sick[1].
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Q: Are heroin users at special risk for contracting HIV/AIDS and hepatitis B and C?
A: Because many heroin addicts often share needles and other injection equipment, they are at special risk of contracting HIV and other infectious diseases. Infection of injection drug users with HIV is spread primarily through reuse of contaminated syringes and needles or other paraphernalia by more than one person, as well as through unprotected sexual intercourse with HIV-infected individuals. For nearly one-third of Americans infected with HIV, injection drug use is a risk factor. In fact, drug abuse is the fastest growing vector for the spread of HIV in the Nation. Research has found that drug abusers can change the behaviors that put them at risk for contracting HIV, through drug abuse treatment, prevention, and community-based outreach programs. They can eliminate drug use, drug-related risk behaviors such as needle sharing, unsafe sexual practices, and, in turn, the risk of exposure to HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases. Drug abuse prevention and treatment are highly effective in preventing the spread of HIV.
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Q: How does heroin abuse affect pregnant women?
A: Heroin abuse can cause serious complications during pregnancy, including miscarriage and premature delivery. Children born to addicted mothers are at greater risk of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome), as well.
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Q: What are my treatment options?
A:
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Q: I have been addicted to opiates for many years and have tried numerous times to quit, but gave in to the withdrawal, what makes Sacred Heart's detoxification process work for some one like me?
A: Each consumer that enters Sacred Heart's detoxification program will receive an individualized medication protocol to address the acute symptoms associated with early opiate withdrawal. In addition to medication, our detoxification program offers regular support groups and activities designed specifically for those who are in the withdrawal phase of their recovery
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MARIJUANA FAQ
1. What is Marijuana?
2. What is THC?
3. How is Marijuana used?
4. What are the short-term effects of Marijuana?
5. What are the long-term effects of Marijuana?
6. What are the effects of Marijuana on Men?
7. What are the effects of Marijuana on Women?
8. What are the effects of Marijuana on pregnant women?
9. What are the effects of Marijuana on the brain?
10. What are the effects of Marijuana on the lungs?
11. What are the effects of Marijuana on heart rate and blood pressure?
12. What are the effects of heavy Marijuana use on learning and social behavior?
13. Is Marijuana addictive?
14. Do Marijuana users loose their motivation?
15. Does using Marijuana lead to other drugs?
Q: What is Marijuana?
A: Marijuana is a green or gray mixture of dried, shredded flowers and leaves of the hemp plant (Cannabis sativa). It is the most often used illegal drug in this country. All forms of cannabis are mind-altering (psychoactive) drugs; they all contain THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol), the main active chemical in marijuana. There are about 400 chemicals in a cannabis plant, but THC is the one that affects the brain the most. There are many different names for marijuana. Slang terms for drugs change quickly, and they vary from one part of the country to another. They may even differ across sections of a large city. Terms from years ago, such as pot, herb, grass, weed, Mary Jane, and reefer, are still used. You might also hear the names skunk, boom, gangster, kif, or ganja. There are also street names for different strains or "brands" of marijuana, such as "Texas tea," "Maui wowie," and "Chronic." A recent book of American slang lists more than 200 terms for various kinds of marijuana.
Marijuana's effect on the user depends on the strength or potency of the THC it contains. THC potency has increased since the 1970s but has been about the same since the mid-1980s. The strength of the drug is measured by the average amount of THC in test samples confiscated by law enforcement agencies. Most ordinary marijuana has an average of 3 percent THC. Sinsemilla (made from just the buds and flowering tops of female plants) has an average of 7.5 percent THC, with a range as high as 24 percent. Hashish (the sticky resin from the female plant flowers) has an average of 3.6 percent, with a range as high as 28 percent. Hash oil, a tar-like liquid distilled from hashish, has an average of 16 percent, with a range as high as 43 percent.
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Q: What is THC?
A: THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol) is the chemical in marijuana which makes you feel "high" (which means experiencing a change in mood and seeing or feeling things differently). Certain parts of the plant contain higher levels of THC. The flowers or buds have more THC than the stems or leaves. When marijuana is smoked, THC goes quickly into the blood through the lungs to the brain (this is when the "high" is felt and can happen within a few minutes and can last up to five hours)
THC is absorbed more slowly into the blood when marijuana is eaten as it has to pass through the stomach and intestine and can take up to one hour to experience the "high" effects which can last up to 12 hours. THC is absorbed quickly into body fat and is then released very slowly back into the blood. This process can take up to one month for a single dose of THC to fully leave the body.
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Q: How is Marijuana used?
A: Most users roll loose marijuana into a cigarette (called a "joint"). The drug can also be smoked in a water pipe, called a "bong." Some users mix marijuana into foods or use it to brew a tea. Marijuana cigarettes or blunts often include crack cocaine, a combination known by various street names, such as "primos" or "woolies." Joints and blunts often are dipped in PCP and are called "happy sticks," "wicky sticks," "love boat," or "tical." Hash users either smoke the drug in a pipe or mix it with tobacco and smoke it as a cigarette. Lately, young people have a new method for smoking marijuana. They slice open cigars and replace the tobacco with marijuana, making what's called a "blunt." When the blunt is smoked with a 40 oz. bottle of malt liquor, it is called a "B-40."
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Q: What are the short-term effects of Marijuana?
A: Some of the possible short-term effects could be:
• Sleepiness
• Difficulty keeping track of time, impaired or reduced short-term memory
• Reduced ability to perform tasks requiring concentration and coordination, such as driving a car
• Increased heart rate
• Potential cardiac dangers for those with preexisting heart disease
• Bloodshot eyes
• Dry mouth and throat
• Decreased social inhibitions
• Paranoia, hallucinations
• Impaired or reduced short-term memory
• Impaired or reduced comprehension
• Altered motivation and cognition, making the acquisition of new information difficult
• Paranoia
• Psychological dependence
• Impairments in learning and memory, perception, and judgment - difficulty speaking, listening effectively, thinking, retaining knowledge, problem solving, and forming concepts
• Intense anxiety or panic attacks
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Q: What are the left-term effects of Marijuana?
A: Some of the long-term effects of Marijuana could be:
• Enhanced cancer risk
• Decrease in testosterone levels and lower sperm counts for men
• Increase in testosterone levels for women and increased risk of infertility
• Diminished or extinguished sexual pleasure
• Psychological dependence requiring more of the drug to get the same effect
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Q: What are the effects of Marijuana on Men?
A: Marijuana is the most common drug used by adolescents in America today. Marijuana affect the parts of the brain which controls the sex and growth hormones. In males, marijuana can decrease the testosterone level. Occasional cases of enlarged breasts in male marijuana users are triggered by the chemical impact on the hormone system. Regular marijuana use can also lead to a decrease in sperm count, as well as increases in abnormal and immature sperm. Marijuana is a contributing factor in the rising problem of infertility in males. Young males should know the effects and potential effects of marijuana use on sex and growing process before they decide to smoke marijuana.
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Q: What are the effects of Marijuana on Women?
A: Just as in Males, marijuana affects the female in the part of the brain that controls the hormones, which determines the sequence in the menstrual cycle. It's been said that females who smoked or used marijuana on a regular basis had irregular menstrual cycles, the female hormones were depressed, and the testosterone level was raised. Even though this effect may be reversible, it may take several months of no marijuana use before the menstrual cycles become normal again.
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Q: What are the effects of Marijuana on pregnant women?
A: Any drug of abuse can affect a mother's health during pregnancy, and this is a time when she should take special care of herself. Drugs of abuse may interfere with proper nutrition and rest, which can affect good functioning of the immune system. Some studies have found that babies born to mothers who used marijuana during pregnancy were smaller than those born to mothers who did not use the drug. In general, smaller babies are more likely to develop health problems.
A nursing mother who uses marijuana passes some of the THC to the baby in her breast milk. Research indicates that the use of marijuana by a mother during the first month of breast-feeding can impair the infant's motor development (control of muscle movement). Research also shows more anger and more regressive behavior (thumb sucking, temper tantrums) in toddlers whose parents use marijuana than among the toddlers of non-using parents.
Mothers who smoke marijuana on a regular basis have been reported of having babies with a weak central nervous system. These babies show abnormal reactions to light and sound, exhibit tremors and startles, and have the high-pitched cry associated with drug withdrawal. Occurring at five times the rate of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, Fetal Marijuana Syndrome is a growing concern of many doctors. Furthermore, doctors worry that children born to "pot-head" mothers will have learning disabilities, attention deficits and hormonal irregularities as they grow older, even if there are no apparent signs of damage at birth. Pregnant or nursing mothers who smoke marijuana should talk to their doctors immediately.
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Q: What are the effects of Marijuana on the brain?
A: Researchers have found that THC changes the way in which sensory information gets into and is acted on by the hippocampus. This is a component of the brain's limbic system that is crucial for learning, memory, and the integration of sensory experiences with emotions and motivations. Investigations have shown that neurons in the information processing system of the hippocampus and the activity of the nerve fibers are suppressed by THC. In addition, researchers have discovered that learned behaviors, which depend on the hippocampus, also deteriorate. Recent research findings also indicate that long-term use of marijuana produces changes in the brain similar to those seen after long-term use of other major drugs of abuse.
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Q: What are the effects of Marijuana on the lungs?
A: Someone who smokes marijuana regularly may have many of the same respiratory problems that tobacco smokers have. These individuals may have daily cough and phlegm, symptoms of chronic bronchitis, and more frequent chest colds. Continuing to smoke marijuana can lead to abnormal functioning of lung tissue injured or destroyed by marijuana smoke.
Regardless of the THC content, the amount of tar inhaled by marijuana smokers and the level of carbon monoxide absorbed are three to five times greater than among tobacco smokers. This may be due to the marijuana users inhaling more deeply and holding the smoke in the lungs.
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Q: What are the effects of Marijuana on heart rate and blood pressure?
A: Recent findings indicate that smoking marijuana while shooting up cocaine has the potential to cause severe increases in heart rate and blood pressure. In one study, experienced marijuana and cocaine users were given marijuana alone, cocaine alone, and then a combination of both. Each drug alone produced cardiovascular effects; when they were combined, the effects were greater and lasted longer. The heart rate of the subjects in the study increased 29 beats per minute with marijuana alone and 32 beats per minute with cocaine alone. When the drugs were given together, the heart rate increased by 49 beats per minute, and the increased rate persisted for a longer time. The drugs were given with the subjects sitting quietly. In normal circumstances, an individual may smoke marijuana and inject cocaine and then do something physically stressful that may significantly increase risks of overload on the cardiovascular system.
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Q: What are the effects of heavy Marijuana use on learning and social behavior?
A: A study of college students has shown that critical skills related to attention, memory, and learning are impaired among people who use marijuana heavily, even after discontinuing its use for at least 24 hours. Researchers compared 65 "heavy users," who had smoked marijuana a median of 29 of the past 30 days, and 64 "light users," who had smoked a median of 1 of the past 30 days. After a closely monitored 19- to 24-hour period of abstinence from marijuana and other illicit drugs and alcohol, the undergraduates were given several standard tests measuring aspects of attention, memory, and learning. Compared to the light users, heavy marijuana users made more errors and had more difficulty sustaining attention, shifting attention to meet the demands of changes in the environment, and in registering, processing, and using information. The findings suggest that the greater impairment among heavy users is likely due to an alteration of brain activity produced by marijuana.
Longitudinal research on marijuana use among young people below college age indicates those who used have lower achievement than the non-users, more acceptance of deviant behavior, more delinquent behavior and aggression, greater rebelliousness, poorer relationships with parents, and more associations with delinquent and drug-using friends.
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Q: Is Marijuana addictive?
A: Not everyone who uses marijuana becomes addicted, when a user begins to seek out and take the drug compulsively, that person is said to be dependent on the drug or addicted to it. In 1995, 165,000 people entering drug treatment programs reported marijuana as their primary drug of abuse, showing they needed help to stop using.
Some heavy users of marijuana show signs of dependence because when they do not use the drug, they develop withdrawal symptoms. Some subjects in an experiment on marijuana withdrawal had symptoms, such as restlessness, loss of appetite, trouble with sleeping, weight loss, and shaky hands.
According to one study, marijuana use by teenagers who have prior serious antisocial problems can quickly lead to dependence on the drug. That study also found that, for troubled teenagers using tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana, progression from their first use of marijuana to regular use was about as rapid as their progression to regular tobacco use, and more rapid than the progression to regular use of alcohol.
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Q: Do Marijuana users loose their motivation?
A: Some frequent, long-term marijuana users show signs of a lack of motivation (amotivational syndrome). Their problems include not caring about what happens in their lives, no desire to work regularly, fatigue, and a lack of concern about how they look. As a result of these symptoms, some users tend to perform poorly in school or at work. Scientists are still studying these problems.
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Q: Does using Marijuana lead to other drugs?
A: Long-term studies of high school students and their patterns of drug use show that very few young people use other drugs without first trying marijuana. The risk of using cocaine has been estimated to be more than 104 times greater for those who have tried marijuana than for those who have never tried it. Although there are no definitive studies on the factors associated with the movement from marijuana use to use of other drugs, growing evidence shows that a combination of biological, social, and psychological factors are involved.
Marijuana affects the brain in some of the same ways that other drugs do. Researchers are examining the possibility that long-term marijuana use may create changes in the brain that make a person more at risk of becoming addicted to other drugs, such as alcohol or cocaine. While not all young people who use marijuana go on to use other drugs, further research is needed to determine who will be at greatest risk.
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CLUB DRUG FAQ
1. What is a Club Drug?
2. What is Ecstasy?
3. What are some of the facts about Ecstasy and its use in life?
4. What are the effects of acute doses of MDMA (Ecstasy)
5. What are the long-term consequences of MDMA (Ecstasy)?
Q: What is a Club Drug?
A: "Club drug" is a vague term that refers to a wide variety of drugs including MDMA (Ecstasy), GHB, Rohypnol, ketamine, methamphetamine, and LSD. Uncertainties about the drug sources, pharmacological agents, chemicals used to manufacture them, and possible contaminants make it difficult to determine toxicity, consequences, and symptoms. However, the information in this bulletin is based on scientifically sound data regarding the use of these drugs.
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Q: What is a Ecstasy?
A: Ecstasy/MDMA, a relatively simple chemical belonging to the amphetamine family of compounds, has properties of both stimulants and hallucinogens. While MDMA does not cause true hallucinations, many people have reported distorted time and perception while under the influence of this drug. The vast majority of people take MDMA orally, and its effects last approximately four to six hours. Many users will "bump" the drug, taking a second dose when the effects of the initial dose begin to fade. The typical dose is between one and two tablets, with each containing approximately 60-120 milligrams of MDMA. However, tablets of what users call Ecstasy often contain not only MDMA but a number of other drugs, including methamphetamine, caffeine, dextromethorphan, ephedrine, and cocaine.
One of the more alarming facts about MDMA is that despite its known detrimental effects, there are increasing numbers of students and young adults who continue to use the drug. Results from the 2000 "Monitoring the Future survey" indicate that MDMA use increased among students in the 12th, 10th, and 8th grades. African Americans show considerably lower rates of MDMA use than do either whites or Hispanics. The recent CEWG data showed a large increase in use among Hispanics that may represent an important change.
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Q: What are some of the facts about Ecstasy and its use in life?
A: According to SAMHSA's 2003 National Survey on Drug Use & Health, about 2.1 million persons aged 12 or older (0.9%) reported using Ecstasy at least once in the past year. Almost all (97.5%) of the persons age 12 or older who used Ecstasy in the past year also reported past year use of alcohol compared with 65.2% of those who had not used Ecstasy in the past year. Over 90% of past year Ecstasy users reported also using other types of illicit drugs in the past year compared with 13.8% of the those who did not use Ecstasy in the past year. About 22.8% of the past year Ecstasy users used one other illicit drug, 50.3% used two to four other illicit drugs, and 17.9% used five or more illicit drugs during the past year.
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Q: What are the effects of acute doses of MDMA (Ecstasy)?
A: MDMA works in the brain by increasing the activity levels of at least three neurotransmitters: serotonin, dopamine, and norepinepherine. Much like other amphetamines, MDMA causes these neurotransmitters to be released from their storage sites in neurons, increasing brain activity. Compared to the potent stimulant methamphetamine, MDMA triggers a larger increase in serotonin and a smaller increase in dopamine. Serotonin is a major neurotransmitter involved in regulating mood, sleep, pain, emotion, and appetite, as well as other behaviors. By releasing large amounts of serotonin, and also interfering with its synthesis, MDMA leads to a significant depletion of this important neurotransmitter. As a result, it takes the human brain a significant amount of time to rebuild the store of serotonin needed to perform important physiological and psychological functions.
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Q: What are the long-term consequences of MDMA (Ecstasy)?
A: According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse Acute doses of MDMA produce marked changes in both dopamine and serotonin systems within the brain. Though the changes in dopaminergic neurons appear transient, the data suggest that the changes in the serotonergic system are longer-lasting. In addition, examinations of more global brain function have shown that the effects of acute doses of MDMA extend to regions of the brain that are thought to be involved in higher thought processes. These findings have raised concern about possible long-term effects on both infrequent and regular users of MDMA.
Because MDMA produces long-term deficits in serotonin function, and because serotonin function has been implicated in the etiology of many psychiatric disorders including depression and anxiety, investigators have suspected that MDMA users may experience more psychopathology than non-users. Indeed, a number of investigators have found that heavy MDMA users experience a constellation of psychiatric changes, scoring significantly higher on measures of obsessive traits, anxiety, paranoid thoughts, and disturbed sleep, among others. One study, aimed at developing reliable measures of diagnosing substance abuse disorders, found that 43 percent of MDMA users met DSM-IV criteria for dependence and 34 percent met the criteria for abuse of MDMA.
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