Continued from More Suburban Moms Take Ecstasy, Page 1

Katie, a mom of two kids under four, told Mother & Baby she's been to children's birthday parties where a lot of parents are on Ecstasy or are taking cocaine. "It's the life they used to have -- they don't see why they should stop. They don't get as messy as they would if they were drinking, so they think it's okay to be around the kids [while under the influence of drugs]," she says.

When Parentdish covered this topic, mom Rachel left the following comment: "I too am over 30 and did not really 'play' with recreational drugs until my late 20s. I took Ecstacy the first time on my 30th birthday. OH MY GOD!!! Was it wonderful!!! I felt like I could handle the woes of my everyday life with my crumbled marriage and problems at work, etc. On X I felt like there wasn't anything I couldn't deal with. Almost a year later, I still crave that feeling. I am smart enough, though, to realize that I cannot be around that kind of thing. I don't even know where to get it anymore. I still have to fight that demon, but my kids remind me everyday of what I'd be missing if I continued down that road."

Ecstasy (or MDMA) was first produced in 1913 by a German company possibly to be used as an appetite suppressant. Before it was made illegal in 1985, MDMA was used by psychiatrists as a therapeutic tool. Ecstasy produces an energizing effect as well as feelings of euphoria, emotional warmth, and distortions in time perception and tactile experience. But according to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, MDMA can produce confusion, depression, sleep problems, drug craving, and severe anxiety. Researchers at the Academic Medical Centre, Amsterdam, Netherlands found that long-term use of the recreational drug Ecstasy, especially among women, can have serious negative effects on specific cells the the brain.

Another big problem with Ecstasy is that there's really no way to be sure you're buying pure MDMA. Ecstasy tablets are often "cut with" or contain other drugs, including methamphetamine. Scary stuff.

We like to cut loose as much as the next mom, but we'll stick with Chardonnay, thankyouverymuch.

Are you taking Ecstasy, or do you know any other moms who do? 

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