I think part of the bad rep MDMA gets as a theraputic drug comes from street-known MDMA not actually being pure MDMA. It’s often laced with ketamine or some other drugs that give different effects than what’s being used in this PTSD treatment.
Generally when you hear about people being hospitalised or dying after taking ecstasy, it's due to the other shit in the pills. MDMA is a relatively safe drug (although not without its risks, especially taken in a non-therapeutic setting).
"Often"? Often where? I'd say no since we'd hear about accidents with ecstasy "often" as well. This happens rarely, still.
EDIT: Found some data [1]:
"Although more recent ED data are not publicly available, the number of reported poisonings involving “hallucinogenic amphetamines” (which are most commonly MDMA and MDMA-like drugs) rose from 2057 (including 3 deaths) in 2009 to 2514 (including 14 deaths) in 2013"
"Ecstasy purity was low in the US in the mid-1990s3 and purity plummeted in Europe around 2009,11 but increased in 2010,8,11 while purity of powder and crystal ecstasy reportedly remained high in Europe (at 75–97%) in 2008–2013.11 However, the presence of synthetic cathinones (“bath salts”) and other novel psychoactive substances (NPS) increased within both pills and powders from 2008–2013.11 Spain in particular had a high prevalence of synthetic cathinones such as mephedrone and methylone detected in powder ecstasy.9 Despite extensive research in Europe, purity of ecstasy in the US over the last decade has not been formally researched."
I couldn't say how often MDMA is laced, and in what quantities, but it's definitely out there.
[1] https://www.vice.com/en_nz/article/8xdzpb/heres-what-was-in-...
Sometimes that's the case. This is one set of problems.
At the moment in the UK though, one of the major problems is massively dosed pills. 250-300mg+ in a single tablet. At these doses people get into danger.
It needs to be treated like a rare, therapeutic, and special vacation, not something you take whenever you want to have fun.
I think if MDMA really does work great for PTSD in therapeutic settings, it’d be a worthwhile treatment, even though some percentage of patients would abuse it.
New recreational users very often do not get a prolonged comedown / tuesday blues / suicide wednesday. Which is more indicative of heavier user, multiple doses, staying up all night, taking over drugs (including alcohol).
In a controlled setting, with a correct one time dose, in a clinical environment, not running around like a loon, sleeping and eating well, in one off sessions, the mid week comedown can be mitagated away
I only did it a handful of times, a long time ago, but if I took a reasonable amount and just had a chill night on the beach with friends, the recovery wasn’t so bad. One day of feeling tired/down, but similar intensity to a moderate hangover.
804 results for MDMA + anything else: https://www.ecstasydata.org/search.php?search_field=adv&name...
50 results for MDMA + ketamine: https://www.ecstasydata.org/search.php?search_field=adv&name...
I think it's likely that that's what caused the bad rep more so than how the dealers mixed it. All drugs that were used in a recreational way was deemed as bad.
Had we not had alcohol in the first place, we'd likely have other things a-ok'd, and alcohol would be treated by its merits compared to other recreational substances. By all reason it would be illegal far before many other substances.
Personally I am conflicted: on one hand we can see that the more we let people to have certain drugs, the less functional they are as human beings. On the other hand, if above point was really important, it would make sense to try to let people have the least harmful of these substances, so that, on average, the damage caused by their consumption is lower.
A growing part of me thinks that drug policies aren't as much about preventing harms as it seems to be about "playing games". We could do better all around the world. But things move slowly, so slowly. Stigmas hold, people fall to the soothing lull of prejudice and simplistic arguments.
This is all just business as usual.
No it isn't.
Other MD like drugs, sure, but ketamine no, not often
Always test your drugs people, and start low.
Chemical tests.
> but the “pure” crystallized products are easy to recognize mdma especially
Lots of the extended amphetamine family (including the various -drones) share very similar tastes, and crystallise very similarly. If you wash MDMA that contains these other substances you'll end up recrystallising those as well.
> And it would have to be a damn big tablet to contain too much mdma... by bet is on what else is inside.
Then your bet is factually wrong and likely dangerous.
Test your stuff. Know what you're getting, start low, and don't listen to people who 'know what the real stuff looks like'
It is unlikely most people will have access to equipment with the precision necessary at home. There is an organization out there (https://www.ecstasydata.org/) that does anonymous GCMS tablet tests of MDMA in particular for $40 (and other substances for a higher price).
The typical tests out there for most people are reagent tests -- chemicals known to react with a desired substance to turn a certain color. Reagent tests are not foolproof -- the main thing you know is that if you do not get the desired color, you most likely don't have the correct product. It is possible to fool a reagent test. They are better than nothing for sure.
Taste, color, and crystallization are not really reliable ways of identifying the product.
This is all very poor advice.
Get chemical test kits, use drug testing services where they are available, be cautious.
Which is pretty terrible itself, powders and crystals can be just as adulterated as pills. Relying on sight and taste to tell what you've got is very unreliable.