What Is Ecstasy?
Ecstasy — also known as Molly, Adam, and XTC, among many other names — is a synthetic drug, meaning it is made from lab-made chemicals. It increases levels of energy, happiness, and empathetic feelings toward others but also causes negative effects, from muscle cramps to depression to heart failure. Even small doses of ecstasy can harm your mental, physical, or emotional well-being. In high doses, it can cause death.
It was first made by German scientists in 1912, but it became widely available on the streets in the 1970s. It's used to increase alertness and experience longer periods of happiness. It may also enhance emotional and sexual relationships.
While not addictive like heroin or cocaine, ecstasy use may lead to dependence. It’s similar to other stimulant drugs, such as methamphetamine. It also causes hallucinogenic effects that can change how you see the world, such as not knowing what time it is or seeing things that are not there. Ecstasy directly affects the levels of neurotransmitters in your brain, including serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine.
Ecstasy is a Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act, which means you could face jail time if caught in possession of this drug.
Ecstasy/MDMA is not approved for medical use. However, it’s being studied for its potential ability to help treat certain psychological problems, such as:
- Posttraumatic stress disorder
- Eating disorders
- Anxiety
- Alcohol and substance use disorder
Other names for ecstasy
Some common street names for ecstasy include:
- Adam
- Beans
- Biscuit
- Clarity
- Disco biscuit
- E
- Eve
- Go
- Hug drug
- Lover’s speed
- Peace
- STP
- X
- XTC
What’s in ecstasy?
Ecstasy's main ingredient is a chemical called 3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine, or MDMA. In its pure form, ecstasy is a crystalline powder and is commonly taken by mouth as a tablet. However, ecstasy often comes mixed with other drugs, such as:
- 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (also known as MDA, the love pill, the love drug, or speed for lovers)
- N-ethyl-methylendioxyamphetamine (also known as MDE, Eve)
- Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD)
- Amphetamine
- Caffeine
- Heroin
- Lactose
- Ketamine
- Cocaine
- Methamphetamine
- Cathinones (stimulant drugs made in a lab and sold illicitly as “bath salts”)
- Rat poison
- Cough medicine
Sometimes, what’s sold as ecstasy contains no MDMA at all.
What does Molly look like?
Molly may come in the form of gel capsules or tablets, which are often colorful and come in a variety of shapes. They typically display logos, such as smiley faces, cartoon characters, or symbols used by popular brands such as Nike and Mercedes. Molly also may come in powder or liquid form.
How Do People Take Ecstasy?
Most commonly, people take ecstasy in tablet form by swallowing it. However, it can be taken in other ways, including:
- Dissolved in a liquid, like juice or soda
- Snorted as a powder
- Placed under the tongue
- Smoked
- Injected
Stacking
This involves either taking three or more tablets of ecstasy at the same time or taking ecstasy with LSD, marijuana, cocaine, alcohol, or other drugs. Sometimes, the drugs are taken at different times throughout the evening as a way of modifying the high. For example, someone may take ecstasy first, then take amphetamines when the ecstasy starts to wear off. Later, they might follow this with alcohol, marijuana, or other drugs. Stacking increases the risk of drug overdose. When alcohol is involved, you are more likely to get dehydrated.
Piggybacking
This involves taking several doses of ecstasy spread out over a short time.
Candy flipping
This involves taking ecstasy along with the hallucinogenic drug LSD.
Who takes ecstasy?
A 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health of people aged 12 or older showed that almost 2.2 million people said they used ecstasy in 2023, or nearly 1% of people surveyed. More than 22 million of those surveyed said they have tried ecstasy at some point in their lives.
The federal survey found that ecstasy was most popular among adults aged 26 and older. In 2023, more than 1.5 million adults in this age group used ecstasy compared with about 520,000 adults aged 18 to 25. An estimated 75,000 kids aged 12 to 17 reported using ecstasy in 2023.
Concerns are especially high for those who are still in middle or high school as their brains are not fully developed. In 2023, an estimated 0.4% of eighth graders (13 years old) said they used ecstasy in the last year. Almost double that number of 10th and 12th graders reported using ecstasy in the previous year.
Gay, lesbian, or bisexual people are more likely to have used ecstasy within the last 30 days. They are also more likely to report harm from its use.
People who identify as heterosexual males accounted for over half of ecstasy users compared with 28% of people who identify as heterosexual females, according to a 2023 study. Bisexual females made up about 10% of ecstasy users compared with gay males (4.6%), bisexual males (3.6%), and lesbian females (1.7%).
Ecstasy and rave culture
Popular with young people since the 1980s, raves are parties often held in locations such as warehouses, nightclubs, and fields. Lasting all night, these events feature dancing to techno (a type of electronic music) amidst laser light shows and often involve illicit drug use, especially ecstasy.
Ecstasy Effects
Ecstasy has several effects during the hours it’s active in your system.
Ecstasy high
Taking ecstasy leads to feelings of euphoria, happiness, and well-being in which you feel drawn to or connected to other people as if you love them. You may feel a need to touch and be touched, and you’ll experience sexual arousal and a heightening of your senses.
How long does ecstasy take to kick in?
It typically takes 30-45 minutes before the effects of ecstasy are felt. These effects peak about 15-30 minutes later.
How long does ecstasy last?
The effects of ecstasy typically last about four to six hours, though they can continue for weeks.
As the effects begin to fade, people often take another dose of ecstasy to double the time it lasts.
Ecstasy side effects
In addition to the high you get from ecstasy, the drug also causes many unpleasant and potentially dangerous side effects that affect your mind and your body.
Psychological side effects
- Anxiety and panic attacks
- Confusion
- Depression
- Drug cravings
- Loss of appetite
- Memory and attention difficulties
- Paranoia
- Sleep difficulties
Physical side effects
- Blurred vision
- Chills
- Dangerous increase in body temperature (hyperpyrexia)
- Dehydration, which can be severe
- Feeling faint
- High blood pressure (hypertension)
- Muscle tension and cramping
- Nausea and vomiting
- Restless legs
- Sweating
- Tremors
Ecstasy keeps you from feeling any physical pain, so you may not realize it if you injure yourself while high.
Molly jaw
Taking ecstasy can cause you to grind your teeth and clench your jaw, a side effect sometimes referred to as Molly jaw. This can cause lockjaw, a painful condition in which you can’t fully open your mouth. This occurs when your jaw muscles spasm. Some people who take ecstasy suck on lollipops or pacifiers to prevent this.
Ecstasy should not be taken with other substances such as alcohol, cocaine, or marijuana, as doing so increases health risks.
Ecstasy Use Complications
When you take ecstasy, the drug affects a variety of brain chemicals called neurotransmitters.
- Serotonin. The drug boosts your serotonin levels and causes you to have an elevated mood and feel really happy or high.
- Dopamine. Ecstasy affects your levels of dopamine, which causes a person to become very energized and active.
- Norepinephrine. Ecstasy also increases your heart rate and blood pressure, a result of your norepinephrine being activated.
Long-term effects of ecstasy use
Taking ecstasy over a long period can have a dangerous, potentially fatal impact on your health. Such effects include:
- Brain damage that impairs memory, cognition, learning, sleep, and emotions
- Nerve degeneration
- Anxiety and depression
- Kidney failure
- Bleeding in the brain
- Psychosis
- Cardiovascular collapse, a severe drop in blood pressure that can lead to cardiac arrest
- Convulsions
It’s important to know that the effects of ecstasy will be different from person to person. Your health, weight, the amount you’ve taken, and other drugs used with ecstasy can all play a role. These differences can cause a person to react differently to the effects of ecstasy when on the drug and coming down from it.
High doses of ecstasy can cause a spike in your body temperature. This can cause heart, liver, or kidney failure or even death.
Ecstasy Overdose
Taking too much ecstasy can lead to a potentially fatal overdose. Its most dangerous consequence is hyperthermia — a sudden and severe rise in body temperature. This is made more likely by overexerting yourself physically while on ecstasy, for example, by dancing all night at a rave or in other hot environments. This spike in body temperature can lead to the failure of multiple organs, including the kidney and liver, as well as the failure of your cardiovascular system and muscle breakdown. It can also trigger dangerous swelling in your brain. Adding alcohol or other drugs to the mix adds to the dangers of overdose.
The symptoms of an ecstasy overdose include:
- An abnormal heartbeat or heart rhythm
- Rising body temperature
- Confusion or trouble communicating
- Feeling anxious or quite restless
- Seizures
What to do if you or someone you’re with overdoses on ecstasy
First, call 911. This is a medical emergency.
When talking to the dispatcher, try to not use terms such as “drugs” or “overdose.” Instead, tell them the symptoms that you can see are happening, such as seizures and not breathing. Give the dispatcher your exact location so the ambulance can get to you as quickly as possible.
You may worry about getting in trouble with the police for using ecstasy. In some places, the police do not arrest bystanders or those who overdose; in other areas, they might.
But know this: Good Samaritan laws, which can protect you from prosecution when offering help during an overdose, exist in all states except Wyoming. These laws vary from state to state. In some states, Good Samaritan laws offer broad protection from arrest and prosecution for drug-related crimes; in other states, the aid you give during an overdose will provide you an “affirmative defense,” a legal term that means you will not be found guilty of a crime.
Can You Get Addicted to Ecstasy?
Even though ecstasy includes addictive ingredients, there is very little research to prove that you can get addicted to the drug. Research shows drugs such as cocaine are more likely to cause addiction than ecstasy.
While you may not get addicted to ecstasy, using it does increase your risk for substance use disorder, especially if you struggle to control your use of ecstasy. That can lead to serious difficulties in your daily life, such as at your job, in your relationships, and in maintaining your emotional well-being. It can even put your life at risk.
What to do if you want to stop using Molly
Although there are no medications to help you stop using ecstasy, some people who have had issues with ecstasy have reported that behavioral therapy can help. Behavioral therapy teaches you skills to better manage the situations that trigger your need to use ecstasy.
Reaching out for help from friends and family can be a great way to gain support. If you communicate your problems about ecstasy and express the desire for help, you can avoid substance use disorders.
Educate yourself, talk with your doctor, and reach out to local or virtual organizations that can provide support for addiction.
If you or someone you know has suicidal thoughts while using ecstasy, call or text 988 (the national suicide hotline) or visit www.988lifeline.org, which provides support via online chats.
If you or someone you know overdoses, call poison control at 800-222-1222 to speak to an expert. Call 911 or head to the nearest hospital to receive medical help right away.
Ecstasy and Molly Harm Reduction Information
Taking illegal substances such as ecstasy always comes with risk. For example, you never know how much or how little of the drug is in the tablet or how you will react to it. If you do use it, it’s important to know how to reduce the risk of overdose and other serious consequences. Here are some precautions:
Stay hydrated. Before and during your time on ecstasy, drink one 16-ounce bottle of water for every hour that passes while on the drug. This will stop you from getting dehydrated and possibly fainting or feeling lightheaded.
Be around trusted friends. Don’t use ecstasy when you are alone. At best, have at least one person who is going to be ecstasy-free during the session. If problems arise, they’ll need to call for help.
Be in a safe and familiar environment. When you begin to feel the effects of ecstasy like changes to the way you see the world around you, a familiar environment can provide you with a sense of security to know where you are. Avoid being around bodies of water, hills, or being in a car.
Take it in small doses. If you’re going to take ecstasy, try to take it in mini doses. This could mean cutting a tablet into quarters and only taking one quarter at a time — no more than every two or three hours — to see how it affects you. This may be safer than taking a full dose.
Don’t mix it with other substances. Using alcohol or other drugs along with ecstasy makes it more likely to harm yourself and end up in the hospital.
Use a pacifier or suck on lollipops. This can help prevent bruxism, the medical term for the type of teeth clenching that ecstasy can cause.
Alert someone if you feel unwell. Know the symptoms of an overdose and ask for help right away if you believe you or someone you’re with is having one. Keep in mind that you'll likely feel some unpleasant side effects as part of the ecstasy experience, such as nausea and vomiting, racing heartbeat, and sweating.
If you choose to take ecstasy, use it with as much precaution as possible. Educate yourself and your friends about the safety tips for ecstasy use to reduce unwanted health problems.
Takeaways
Ecstasy is an illegal drug. Often associated with all-night parties called raves, ecstasy gives users a feeling of euphoria, heightened senses, a desire to be with and touch other people, and other effects. But it also has serious potential for harm, including the risk of life-threatening overdoses. The only certain way to protect yourself is to avoid it.
Ecstasy FAQs
How long does ecstasy stay in your system?
Depending on the type of drug test used, ecstasy can be detected for three to five days after taking it. Typically, its effects last between four and six hours, but you may feel them for weeks.
How long does it take for ecstasy to kick in?
You will begin to feel its effects within 30 to 45 minutes.
What is ecstasy in pharmacology?
Ecstasy is a synthetic drug, meaning it’s made in a lab. The chemical is called 3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine, or MDMA.
Is ecstasy a hard drug?
There’s no set definition for “hard drugs.” Generally, hard drugs are considered to be those with the greatest potential for harm and addiction, such as heroin and cocaine. While ecstasy may not be addictive, its use can be fatal. Researchers and addiction specialists widely consider ecstasy a hard drug.
