NOTHING ECSTATIC ABOUT IT

Well, what is ecstasy and how did it surf up? E, like the most of the drugs, is taken to detach the user, for a while, from reality. It is regarded as a 'plastic nirvana' which leads to salvation. Scientifically, E is a chemical compound of the drug 3,4 methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA). The drug was synthesized in 1912 and patented by a pharmaceutical company two years later. In the late 1970s, American therapists used it to pacify couples in marriage counseling.

But slowly, since 1983, it started gaining popularity among young adolescents. By around 1985, according to reports, laboratories in California produced 5,00,000 doses a month. In the same year, Drug Enforcement Administration of the USA placed MDMA in the schedule I list. Despite the ban, the drug is still manufactured illegally and smuggled abroad. It reaches India in a clandestine way by sea and across the unguarded borders. It is believed that sniffer dogs can't detect E and because the recipe for e changes continuously, the dogs can't be trained to detact anything.

Black market E is available as powder, tablets and capsules of various shapes, colours and sizes. It goes by many whimsical names like Eccy, Dennis the Menace, Disco Biscuits, Pink Scuds, XTC, M&M, Dance Drugs, California Sunrise, Love Pill, Adam. A pill could cost anything between Rs. 500 to Rs 700 and is termed as designer drug. Anecdotal reports put the content of the pill between 75 mg - 200 mg. The drug is almost always swallowed, it may be snorted into the nose or, very rarely, injected into a vein.

An oral dose of MDMA becomes apparent within 30 minutes, peaks at around 60 - 90 minutes and disappears in about 4 hours. Confirms Ritu Mehra, who first tried it at 17, "I thought that guy was a crook who sold me dispirin for 800 bucks, but after twenty to twenty-five minutes, it caught me on and I ended up dancing throughout the night." The quality, like its supply, is erratic. These designer pills can be obtained only via reliable sources. Vikas Malhotra reiterates, "Depends on how well you know your dealers."

There are two distinct classes of users. One, the young, effervescent teens, who part their night away at raves. The other, which constitutes a smaller group, is made up of more spiritually inclined people, who are exploring some 'New Age' philosophy or seeking self enlightenment. It is, however, the first group which forms the 100% market for the pushers.

Anju Aggarwal, who tried E for a couple of years, terms her trip to be, "full of excitement and fulfilment. It was like - head rushes and body quivers." While Vikas neatly sums it as, "I am a better person because of E."

But what justification does the second group provide? Recalls Suresh Prabhakar, who is 28, "I sensed that I could communicate well and without inhibition. I also felt more intimate with others." It is this age-group of people whom we have to be more vary of. Because of their age, they have the access to money and now want to flaunt it. The situation becomes very dicey and many fall prey to it. Severe punishment is the solution of eliminating the E abuse.

In his book 'Forbidden Drugs', Philip Robson says that after half an hour to forty five minutes of having the pill, an increased sense of alertness, possibly accompanied by a dry mouth, skin tingling and an awareness of the heart beating faster is felt. A sense of closeness and empathy with others gradually appears. A change in the quality of light perception (luminescence) usually occurs and some people may experience actual visual hallucinations. "My fears disappeared. It was like someone was pumping energy into me", confides Avni, who still is an avid user of E.

Generally, the users buy the pill only for a particular party. The users of E tend to need a group around them for practical reasons. E can overload the system and friends are the lifeline in case of an overdose. The effect of E is enhanced partly by the blaring music played at the raves. There are special E songs like the British band 'Pulp's' much-aired single, 'Sorted for E's and Whizz'. Chips in Vishal Iyer, "The whole place is charged up and with E in my body, I can easily dance for 4 - 5 hours." Continues Avni, "After swallowing the pill, I felt like a powerhouse."

And what happens after the effect slowly withers away. One of the first symptoms is dehydration. The places of rave may be very hot and coupled with energetic dancing and lack of water at the site may easily cause dehydration. "That's exactly why I never booze while doing it. I remember once, all the water we had was over and I landed up paying 100 bucks to have bottle of water", recites Anju.

There are also reports of hypothermia(overheating of the body), which sometimes result in coagulation of the blood in the arteries and veins and kidney failure. How the drug elevates the body temperature is not known, but it may have to do with the drug's effect on the 'serotonin' system.

Studies indicate that ecstasy causes harmful effects on one of the brain's neurotransmitters called 5 hydroxytryptamine(5HT). The drug causes a massive release of 5HT and then seems to inhibit its synthesis so that the brain becomes temporarily depleted. MDMA may also destroy the presynaptic nerve cell endings in the brain that contain serotonin in their storage vesicles. 5HT plays an important role in regulating mood, sleep, aggression, hunger and sexual activity.

One of the myths surrounding E is that it increases the ability of making love. It has beed said, but not confirmed, that MDMA and variants release inhibitions and lead to an upsurge in promiscuous, unsafe sex. As Suresh spells it out with a smile, "The babe, dancing in front of me , slowly came all over me. After dancing, both of us just landed on he sand." The drug is also termed as love pill because of its ability to increase libido. However, on regular use, the amphetamine-like component of the drug's activity may cause erectile failure in men, inhibit orgasms in both sexes and girls may find their periods heavier.

People get information on E mainly through rumours and anecdotes of guys who have tried it. One of these rumours is that E is safe and not addictive. "I am never compelled to take E", recalls Vikas. However, studies indicate that E inhibits the immune system in some way and makes the body more susceptible to cold and other infections. The negative effects of the drug are largely concerned with the after effects rather then the risks of the drug itself.

In most of the cases, the user after the first rewarding experience, tends to go in for more of it. But the return gets diminished when the person becomes a regular. To retain that effect, he increases the dose. I may also be possible that the pills swallowed may not have MDMA in them at all or they may be contaminated with cheap but toxic hallucinogenic substitutes. "A tab of E will have 30% to 60% of MDMA in it. The rest can be anything else, say speed", explains Umesh.

The effects of E depend to a large extent, upon the characteristics of the taker, and the settings in which it is taken. Minor effects of doing E are clumsiness, lack of co-ordination and poor concentration which may lead to accidents, drowsiness or restless agitation, fear or anxiety, depression, dizziness or fainting, nausea or vomiting, headaches, persecutory feelings or unpleasant hallucinations.