What are the effects of taking ecstasy?

Dear Reader, 

While ecstasy gets its name from the feel-good feelings it can give people, it can certainly leave you feeling less than ecstatic—especially as its effects wear off. Negative effects can include things like nausea or high blood pressure and can be made worse when mixing ecstasy with other substances. Fortunately, doing things like testing your drugs and using in a controlled environment can help to reduce the risk of feeling sick and experiencing other negative side effects if you choose to partake.  

What is ecstasy?  

Ecstasy is the most common name for the pressed tablet form of MDMA (or 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, if you’d like to get technical). It’s a psychedelic drug that first became popular in nightclub or rave environments. Despite being treated as a synonym, ecstasy is rarely pure MDMA. Usually, it’s cut with other substances like cocaine or caffeine, and sometimes it might not even contain any MDMA at all.  

What does ecstasy do to your body?  

Ecstasy increases the amount of chemicals like serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine in the brain. This can make you feel happy, empathetic, or outgoing, or cause psychedelic experiences—these effects are what most people hope to feel when they take ecstasy.  

But it can also cause some unintended negative reactions. Some people feel jittery or clench their teeth too hard. People with cardiovascular issues might experience high blood pressure or increased heart rate. Others might experience nausea or may just feel a bit ill in general.   

Why do some people get sick when using ecstasy? 

Many things could cause people to get sick while using ecstasy. One such reason may be due to serotonin. Studies show that serotonin production has been associated with stomach issues. When using ecstasy, it’s possible that the increases in serotonin make some people feel sick.  

For others, just introducing a new substance into the body may make them feel nauseous. Many people feel ill when taking even legal, over-the-counter medicines. Each person’s body reacts differently.   

What can affect the way you experience ecstasy?  

Everybody is different! Factors that might influence the way you experience ecstasy include your weight, the dose you take, or even your sex assigned at birth. While some people feel sick specifically as they start to feel their high and some on the comedown, others don’t experience sickness at all. Some research indicates that women might be more susceptible to negative effects like nausea. Plus, the context in which you take ecstasy can make a difference. If you’re feeling nervous or unwell already, you might be more likely to get sick or vomit. 

Your experience on ecstasy can also vary depending on what other substances you may be ingesting at the time. This isn’t always a harmful thing. For example, eating a hearty and nutrient-dense meal before or while using ecstasy may help you avoid nausea. But it’s common for people to consume substances like alcohol or other drugs at the same time as ecstasy, especially in environments like raves, music festivals, or nightclubs. These interactions can have some pretty unpredictable side effects like heatstroke and dehydration which might make a bad trip more likely. 

How can you minimize the negative effects of ecstasy?  

There’s always some risk associated with doing ecstasy, especially when you can’t be sure exactly what’s in the pill you take. But there are some steps you can take to reduce your risks of experiencing negative side effects. Some of them include: 

• Testing your substances to ensure that there isn’t anything in it that you didn’t intend to take. Some organizations, such as DanceSafe, have reagents and test strips to help you identify what may be in substances.  
• Taking ecstasy in a familiar environment with people you trust, for example, can make you feel safer.  
• Remembering to stay hydrated. This is because ecstasy can cause you to overheat and become dehydrated more easily. 
• Starting with a small amount and waiting a bit to see how you feel before taking more. Taking it slowly can prevent you from passing your limits and feeling unwell and might also decrease the risk of long-term effects like addiction or depression. 

Wishing you an ecstatic time!