About Drugs and religion?

Question

What's the difference between prescription and illicit drugs?

I'm not a drug advocate.

I don't do drugs (illegal)

But read and follow up.

I'm a severely depressed person and an off (off means numb or slightly depressed). My religion has a rule against using drugs, as does the law. I'm not *very* anti-drugs but they just don't make sense to me.

However, I have a few friends that do E lately and talk about how you really bond and it lets you trust better and love better (even after it wears down). I just assumed these are people trying to rationalize their drug use or something,

but then I prayed about it and felt strongly that this is something I should do. I was really confused about that. But now I think that if my brain chemistry is just so messed up that I can't even trust people, and feel connected to noone, maybe this really will help...

I've taken anti-depressants, and E could be like an extreme one. It also was used in therapy with good results...

Thoughts?

Answer 1

Methyl desoxyl mescal amphetamine - (MDMA) is a hallucinogenic stimulant. It has no anti-depressant qualities that are not related to it's stimulative constituent, and any affects felt to this are purely placebic.

My advice: Talk to a professional. Self-medication is never a good idea, with, or without the blessings of "god".

Answer 2

Judging by your writing style, you are too clever to mess about with E.

p.s. i am not anti-drugs.

Answer 3

My opinion is just based on the facts and the risks. I'm not religious. The evidence for many illegal drugs though is the short term high is not in anyway really worth the long term damage or consequences related to doing them. People I have known personally have ended up making many bad choices that negatively effected their lives and in some cases they aren't even able to recognize it.

Here is the research I found on the side effects of doing E:

Brain imaging research in humans indicates that Ecstasy causes injury to the brain, affecting neurons that use the chemical serotonin to communicate with other neurons. The serotonin system plays a direct role in regulating mood, aggression, sexual activity, sleep, and sensitivity to pain. Many of the side effects users face with Ecstasy use are similar to those found with the use of cocaine and amphetamines: Psychological Ecstasy side effects, including confusion, depression, sleep problems, drug craving, severe anxiety, and paranoia - during and sometimes weeks after taking Ecstasy. Physical Ecstasy side effects such as muscle tension, involuntary teeth clenching, nausea, blurred vision, rapid eye movement, faintness, and chills or sweating. Increases in heart rate and blood pressure, a special risk for people with circulatory or heart disease.

Also, there is evidence that people who develop a rash that looks like acne after using Ecstasy may be risking severe side effects, including liver damage, if they continue to use the drug. Research links Ecstasy use to long-term damage to those parts of the brain critical to thought and memory. One study, in primates, showed that exposure to Ecstasy for 4 days caused brain damage that was evident 6 to 7 years later.

MDA, the parent drug of MDMA (Ecstasy), is an amphetamine-like drug that has also been abused and is similar in chemical structure to Ecstasy. Research shows that MDA also destroys serotonin-producing neurons in the brain. Ecstasy also is related in its structure and effects to methamphetamine, which has been shown to cause degeneration of neurons containing the neurotransmitter dopamine. Damage to these neurons is the underlying cause of the motor disturbances seen in Parkinson's disease. Symptoms of this disease begin with lack of coordination and tremors and can eventually result in a form of paralysis.  

Answer 4

E is not a good idea.  Can and probably will cause more problems than it's worth.

I would suggest just stopping and taking stock of your life.  Change things radically if you have to.    Stop thinking your life has to look like anyone else's.   Or that the stuff you see on TV and all the toys of this modern world will make you happy.  

Make changes, radical ones if you have to.