The Effects of Methylenedioxymethamphetamine

     The axon terminals after the neurotransmitters are released are supposed to reabsorb the extra neurotransmitters. The lack of serotonine in the neurons cause a lack of serotonine transporters, the spots on the neurons responsible for reabsorbing serotonine. Ecstasy blocks the re-uptake of serotonine by the synaptic terminal. The serotonine becomes toxic and begins to kill off brain cells (“After the Rave: the Ecstasy Hangover”, (www.faculity.washington.edu/chudler/mdma.html).

By 1919, Japan started producing methamphetamine which was cheaper and more potent than amphetamine. It was produced in a crystalline powder form and was able it to be dissolved in water, making it easier for it to be injected. This form of amphetamine is still legally produced in the US and is being sold under the name of Desoxyn. (Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, 2010, para. 1-3)

Sometimes people forget that methamphetamine hurts not only individuals, but families, neighborhoods and entire communities as well. You might not be using methamphetamine or know anyone who is - but that doesn't mean it's not having an effect on you. A methamphetamine lab can operate unnoticed in a neighborhood for years, causing serious health hazards to everyone around. The problems with meth are widespread. Children and the general public may be affected by the fumes from meth labs operating in or near their homes. The prison system is overwhelmed by the needs of incarcerated meth users. Hospital emergency departments (ED) report that meth is a significant drug problem. The cost of meth labs to society is large. A study done by the University of Arkansas found the cost to prevent abuse in one county to be around $20 million. Although many measures have been placed, abuse has been steadily increasing. In 2003, there was a 68% increase in workers who tested positive. Surprisingly, over 70% of users are actively employed. In particular, the lab problem is growing significantly in the Midwest and Mid Atlantic areas since they migrated from California in the early 80s.

Psychedelic chemicals are currently banned for any medical use and strictly limited in research to determine if they can be used effectively to help patient. With one out of ten people in America suffering from depression and one out of four people struggling with some type of mental illness not using every tool available to use seem foolish to limit the tools used by psychotherapist. During the next few pages I will discuss earlier uses for MDMA in psychotherapy and whether these results support or contradict these uses. This will be broken up into four sections; a brief overview of effects, couples therapy, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and schizophrenia.

One of the most common things most people hear when seeking, purchasing, and using MDMA is that it will cause holes in your brain. This would lead to the user eventually suffering from memory loss, loss of coordination, and impaired speech. Previous studies did confirm that it did cause damage to the mind, however, new larger studies have started to show that this is not the case for the average casual user. In a study for the Addiction Journal, 52 users and 52 non users of the drug were given samples of the drug then later tested for decreased cognitive function. The results showed very little reduction to brain

Methamphetamine, more commonly known as meth, is currently classified as a schedule 2 drug but should be promoted to a schedule 1 drug for its now outdated medical usage. Currently, methamphetamine can be prescribed by a doctor to treat attention hyperactivity disorder and other conditions, although it is rarely used medically. It is prescribed at doses much lower than those typically abused. (NIH, 2014). There are now other types of stimulants that are more effective, and more regularly used in the medical world for treating hyperactivity such as Ritalin or Adderall. Marijuana, a schedule 1 drug, has more proven health benefits than a schedule 2 drug, meth. Methamphetamine should be changed to a schedule 1 drug, as It has limited medical usage in this time period, and is highly toxic effects on the body if the person becomes addicted.

Methylenedioxymethamphetmine (MDMA) is an artificial created drug which is highly known for its capability to lower the edge on people. It increases the empathy of subjects and stimulates trust among people. MDMA creates an opportunity for a secure bond to take place and open up about certain traumatic events, something that lacks current anti-depressant medication. Whereas some medication prescribed to PSTD patients tend to hide their emotional state, MDMA creates a comfortable environment between the traumatic event that may be causing stress or anxiety, and suppress the escape feeling

Meaning out of all the drugs that are out there, Molly has a high potential for abuse. Molly is also classified as a mild hallucinogen and a psychedelic. Meaning that when someone is high on molly, they would hallucinate and start to see or hear things that are not really there. When Molly is taken, it acts as a central nervous system stimulant. The MDA absorbed through the body destroys serotonin-producing neurons in your body. These neurons role in your body is to regulate aggression, mood, sexual activity, sleep, and sensitivity to pain. This is why when people are high off of Molly, they have trippy dreams and feel unstoppable. Molly can be snorted, injected, but is mostly found in pill form. When in the form of a pill, they come in many different colors with pictures on the top to look

Methamphetamine is an acutely dangerous problem in the United States because of its powerful and extremely addictive qualities. It is frequently termed in the gay community as Tina, crystal, the girl, meth, and the bitch. According to National Institute on Drug Abuse ([NIDA], 2013), over 4.7 % of the U.S. population has tried methamphetamines at least once, and national trends demonstrated that in the first half of 2012 methamphetamine remained categorized as the first in drug associated treatment admissions in Hawaii and in San Diego, second in San Francisco, and third in Phoenix and in Denver. Methamphetamine use has been identified as the most rapidly emerging crisis in the United States (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2014).

Despite the known dangers, people continue to use meth. The use of methamphetamine will ruin your life. The abuse of this substance will destroy relationships, mental health and cause psychotic symptoms. If a loved one is addicted to methamphetamine, the most loving thing to do is to get them help. The world must continue to discourage the use of methamphetamine and continue to help those who have fallen into the trap, until it will eventually be a practice of the

According to the American Psychiatric Association chronic drug abuse may occur together with any mental illness that may include some of the following disorders. “Some common serious mental disorders associated with chronic drug abuse include schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, manic depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, panic disorder, and antisocial personality disorder” (Center, 2004). Some of these disorders carry with them an increased risk of drug abuse. Another example of a drug that can cause a mental disorder, is MDMA (3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine) which is commonly known as ecstasy. It produces long term deficits in serotonin function in the brain, leading to mental disorders such as depression and anxiety.

And the varying makeup of ecstasy and the number of other drug combinations that are taken in conjunction with it, increases the amount of variables that play a role. With so many variable it can be difficult to pin point what drug or combination of drugs caused which side effects. However, studies and observations have given some insight on possible long lasting side effects. Addiction is always a cause for concern. Not only addiction to MDMA itself, but also to the drugs possibly mixed in or taken alongside it. Studies that have been done on animals show permanent damage to neurons in the brain. This hasn’t been fully studied on humans but the animal studies can give us some insight on what may be happening in the brain. There have been some studies on humans that have been using MDMA for long periods of time. These studies have shown that there are problems with some brain functions such as memory. It is common for there to be sexual undertones at the types of parties and raves that ecstasy is often used. The feeling of closeness and intimacy along with heightened senses of touch can increase sex drive and lead to unprotected sex. This increases the risk of contracting a sexually transmitted disease. Other long-term effects can include problems sleeping, depression, paranoia, and

Short-term MDMA use commonly lead to the beneficial psychological effects of euphoria and increased empathy (Meyer 2013). The Neutral effects of hallucinations and enhanced sensations were also common (Greene, Kerr, Braitberg 2008). Physically, increased heart rate and increased blood pressure (Keane 2014) and dehydration, and hyperthermia (Carvalho, Carmo, Costa, Capela, Pontes, Remiao, Carvalho, Bastos 2012) were typical effects. These were all assigned the category of adverse. Increased perspiration was the final typical physical side effect (Keane 2014). It was assigned the category of

While researching neurotransmitters I did learn about the stimulant drug Ecstasy, also known as MDMA a class 1 drug which means it has no medical value and is highly addictive. The way that this works is very interesting. Neurotransmitters work like a lock and key, for each lock there is only one key to fit the lock, so for serotonin or dopamine, there is only one key that fits that particular lock. When MDMA is introduced into the brain it fits the serotonin receptor, once it is transported to an axon it does something strange, it allows serotonin to be released back out into the axon making a surplus of serotonin flooding the axons. This floods the axons with serotonin which in turn makes the user feel euphoria, lowers inhibitions, relaxation and an increase of awareness in the surroundings. Dr. G Ricaurte at Johns Hopkins University has been investigating the effects of MDMA in the brain. One of the parameters of his study pool was subjects who had used the drug over 200 times in the last 5 years. The subject’s behavior appeared normal but brain scans showed otherwise. Positron Emission Tomography (PET scan) showed damaged cells where serotonin is released. The

An individual’s behavior and emotion becomes chemically altered often resulting in dependency, aggression, onset of diseases and poor judgement. This poses a dangerous threat to the neurotransmitters since they have multiple jobs in different parts of the brain. Drugs of abuse are able to exert influence over the brain reward pathway either by directly influencing the action of dopamine within the system, or by altering the activity of other neurotransmitters that exert a modulatory influence over this pathway. These drugs are often powerful and have been known to trigger schizophrenic behavior and can also cause a person to cease breathing, for example hallucinogens such as LSD, mescaline, and psilocybin are able to artificially stimulate the serotonin receptor (Sapolsky, 2005).