MDMA
Effects
DURATION #
Caution : Reactions and experiences may vary dramatically from person to person. [see below]
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EFFECTS LIST #
POSITIVE
- mild to extreme mood lift, euphoria
- increased willingness to communicate
- increase in energy (stimulation)
- ego softening
- decreased fear, anxiety, and insecurities
- feelings of comfort, belonging, and closeness to others
- feelings of love and empathy
- forgiveness of self and others
- a sense of inner peace and acceptance of self, others, and the world
- increased awareness & appreciation of music
- increased awareness of senses (taste, smell, touch, hearing, vision)
- increased tactile sensation (pleasure from the sense of touch and being touched)
- life-changing spiritual experiences
- sensations bright and intense
- urge to hug and kiss people
- analgesia, anti-nocioception, decreased pain perception
NEUTRAL
- decreased appetite
- visual distortion
- rapid, involuntary eye jiggling (nystagmus)
- mild visual hallucinations (uncommon)
- moderately increased heart rate and blood pressure (increases with dose)
- restlessness, nervousness, shivering
- change in body temperature regulation
- upwellings of unexpected emotion, emotional lability
- strong desire to do or want more when coming down
NEGATIVE
-
(negative side effects increase with higher doses and frequent use)
- inappropriate and/or unintended emotional bonding
- anxiety or paranoia (less common than opposite)
- agitation (less common than opposite)
- tendency to say things you might feel uncomfortable about later
- mild to extreme jaw clenching (trisma), tongue and cheek chewing, and teeth grinding (bruxia)
- difficulty concentrating & problems with activities requiring linear focus
- short-term memory scramble or loss & confusion (including transient global amnesia)
- short periods of swooning, or disconnection from the external world, usually at very high doses or during brief blasts of intense rushing while coming up.
- impaired ability to focus eyes / blurred vision (related to nystagmus and dilation)
- muscle tension
- insomnia, inability to fall asleep when physically tired
- erectile disfunction and difficulty reaching orgasm
- increase in body temperature, hyperthermia, dehydration (drink water)
- hyponatremia (don't drink too much water)
- nausea and vomiting
- headaches, dizziness, loss of balance, and vertigo
- sadness on coming down, sense of loss or immediate nostalgia
- post-trip Crash - unpleasantly harsh comedown from the peak effect
- hangover the next day, lasting days to weeks
- mild depression and fatigue for up to a week
- severe depression and/or fatigue (uncommon)
- possible strong urge to repeat the experience, though not physically addictive
- possible psychological crisis requiring hospitalization (psychotic episodes, severe panic attacks, etc) (rare)
- possible liver toxicity (rare)
- possible neurotoxicity (controversial)
- small risk of death; approximately 2 per 100,000 new users have extreme negative reactions resulting in death (rare)
DESCRIPTION #
Some people are considerably more sensitive to MDMA than others. Those using MDMA for the first time or using material of an unknown purity and strength should be extremely careful.
Based on research from multiple labs, the effects of MDMA can increase non-linearly with increases in dosage. That is, increasing dosage from 100mg to 120mg (a 20% increase in dosage) can cause more than a 20% increase in experiential effects level. See Harris DS, Baggott M, et al. 2002 and de la Torre R, Farre M, et al. 2000. The current theory is that some metabolic pathway becomes saturated/overwhelmed somewhere around 1.5mg/kg and above, resulting in higher plasma levels and effects levels. The specific metabolic reason for this non-linearity has not yet been proven.
Based on research from multiple labs, the effects of MDMA can increase non-linearly with increases in dosage. That is, increasing dosage from 100mg to 120mg (a 20% increase in dosage) can cause more than a 20% increase in experiential effects level. See Harris DS, Baggott M, et al. 2002 and de la Torre R, Farre M, et al. 2000. The current theory is that some metabolic pathway becomes saturated/overwhelmed somewhere around 1.5mg/kg and above, resulting in higher plasma levels and effects levels. The specific metabolic reason for this non-linearity has not yet been proven.
CAUTION & DISCLAIMER #
Erowid's effects information is a summary of data gathered from users, research, and other resources. This information is intended to describe the range of effects people report experiencing. Effects may vary dramatically from one person to another or one experience to another based on a variety of factors such as body chemistry, age, gender, physical health, dose, form of material, etc.
RELATED RESOURCES #
REFERENCES #
- Harris DS, Baggott M, Mendelson J, Mendelson JE, Jones RT. "Subjective and hormonal effects of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) in humans" Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2002;162:396-405.
- Vollenweider FX, Gamma A, Liechti M, Huber T. "Psychological and cardiovascular effects and short-term sequelae of MDMA ('ecstasy') in MDMA-naive healthy volunteers" Neuropsychopharmacology. 1998 Oct;19(4):241-51.
- Baggott MJ, Coyle JR, Siegrist JD, Garrison KJ, Galloway GP, Mendelson JE. "Effects of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine on socioemotional feelings, authenticity, and autobiographical disclosure in healthy volunteers in a controlled setting" J Psychopharmacol. 2016 Feb 19;.