ECSTASY ON DARK WEB

If ecstasy users think they are in for a perpetual high, one minister of government seems set to reduce their expectations to a total low. While the local experience with the substance is one where it is not illegal, National Security Minister Stuart Young harbours an apprehension about the love drug, the name its widespread endearment has given it – and he is advocating that it be added to the list of banned drugs in TT. He said that much at an adolescent drug intervention programme at the Mount Irvine Hotel in Tobago last Tuesday, expressing concerns also, that more young people were using the drug and he wanted to clamp down on its use and abuse.

"It shocked me as well to learn that in small TT, we’ve had interdictions of over 7,000 pills in the last year,” Young said. “We’ve had people so bold, because it is not on the prohibited list, that they were mailing ecstasy drugs from away. That is how boldfaced they are, and the target is our young people and our adolescents.”

The ease of its availability is another worry. One drug dealer confided recently that Ecstasy dealers are buying the drug off what is known as the dark web and shipping it to TT.

The dark web is a network of encrypted websites that cannot be found using search engines such as Google or Firefox. Ecstasy dealers can go there using a special browser known as Tor, a free and open-source software for enabling anonymous communication. On that browser, a person can find sites that sell MDMA or ecstasy and use Bitcoin or another cryptocurrency to buy the drugs. Holland is one area well known for shipping ecstasy using the dark web. Once the drug is purchased on the dark web, it is shipped to the country using the conventional postal service or skybox.

MDMA or 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine is the pure form of the drug.

In love with Molly

The street name for MDMA is Molly. Ecstasy, however, is MDMA mixed with other substances which could be harmful depending on the mixture.

The drug dealer also said people make ecstasy in TT or cut the MDMA and mix it with other substances and re-press it is using a pill press. He said the age demographic for ecstasy users is between 20-25 with many university students among its widespread usage. It is popular in clubs, and most people can access it there for between $50 to $100 per tablet depending on the dealer.

Roll on ecstasy is the slang for the drug as that describes the feeling of euphoric bliss. Ecstasy is known as the love drug making the user feel a sense of euphoria and sexual arousal. MDMA/ecstasy helps the brain release hormones such as serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine. However, after that high, many users report a crash or "hangover" which results in depressive symptoms.

Billie, a club bartender and former ecstasy user, said with the rise in popularity of music festivals and electronic dance music (EDM), ecstasy became a fixture in the party circuit.

"The downside is it over produces the serotonin in your brain.” He said, “All these kids are popping pills and melting their brains. It's a chemical compound. People are producing it in their home."

When one thinks of drug dealers the image of gang men on a drug block may come to mind. However, ecstasy and Molly dealers tend to be party socialites from well off socio-economic backgrounds.

"It has embedded itself in the EDM parties. It fuelled the use of the drug and grew exponentially," he said.

Billie said ecstasy is popular at Carnival time, often taken with alcohol. However, he said that is not wise as ecstasy can dehydrate the body to dangerous levels.

"It is widely used at Carnival and some people end up in the hospital. They take it and drink (alcohol) and you're in the hot sun."

MDMA is a chemical compound in crystal form. Billie said people tend to take MDMA, cut it up and mix it with other substances such as baking soda or cocaine to make ecstasy. He suggested if a person is going to try ecstasy, they should get a drug testing kit which can be easily bought on Amazon for $20US, to ensure their drugs are safe to take.

Billie began experimenting with drugs when he was a teenager and started using ecstasy when he was 21. Now 30, he stopped using ecstasy four years ago when he realised his use was causing him to have suicidal feelings and periods of deep depression leading him to cut himself.

"People abuse it because it makes them feel good, but it made me feel really depressed for weeks later."

Cooking up drugs

He advises if anyone is taking ecstasy, they should have a sober sitter – a sober friend who would be there in case of a bad trip – to ensure they are safe.

When Ramesh was an engineering student he used to cook LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) in university. He has a cookbook on how to make ecstasy but never tried it because one of the by-products is explosive. Ramesh, a 34-year-old engineer, uses drugs such as marijuana, MDMA, psilocybin mushroom and ayahuasca in Peru.

When asked how he feels on ecstasy, Ramesh said: "X raises your positive emotions and covers your negative ones. You feel like you love everyone, and that pants are optional. You can probably understand what ends up happening when one person is on X and the other isn't. It's not like a weed high either. I'm lucid on weed. X is a horse of a different colour. But it's not a hallucinogen like ayahuasca or LSD."

He advises anyone experimenting with ecstasy to have supervision and trust the person they are with, and above all, avoid overdoing the drug.

"It can be very hard to come down off it after taking it. It creates some emotional dependence, especially if the taker isn't used to having lowered inhibitions. Overuse can lead to brain burnout," he said.

Jerry is a 21-year-old customer service representative who takes drugs recreationally. He first used pharmaceutical drugs medicinally when he was 12 to treat with his migraines and started experimenting after that. So far, he's used marijuana, LSD and ecstasy. He first used ecstasy a year ago when his friend sold him a pill for $50 at a party. There he said he felt "horny."

"I was doing things I would not normally do. I felt horny. I wanted to stay out and do stuff, mostly sex stuff. Other people they did it and handled their scene (had sex)," Jerry said.

However, like Billie, Jerry got a terrible hangover the next day. The second time he tried the drug, he bought it for $70 and experienced the same kind of low.

"I felt terrible the day after. I had headaches, my mouth was dry, and I was dehydrated."

Jerry also said he mixes his drugs with alcohol, which he admitted may not be the smartest thing to do.

When asked if he was concerned about the safety and the quality of the drugs he's taking, Jerry said he thinks about it sometimes, but does not feel too worried as he trusts the people who deal him.

"I think about that sometimes, but I feel like I'm going to be safe with the stuff because I end up fine."

Jerry says anyone who wants to get the drug can get it any time as he knows a number of people in the west and south who sell ecstasy.

In the US, MDMA is listed by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) as a schedule one drug, which is categorised as a drug with no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. However in TT, MDMA and ecstasy are not listed in the Dangerous Drugs Act.

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