The drug MDMA creates a sense of increased energy for users. It also distorts user’s perceptions of time and space. For some, it seems to enhance smells and sounds. Users of MDMA, who are often oblivious to the possibility of an MDMA overdose, indicate that the drug is beneficial because it provides:

• Decreased anxiety
• Emotional warmth
• Mental stimulation
• The ability to feel a greater empathy for others
• A unique sense of well-being

Yes, these all sound like desirable qualities. But users are rarely aware of the dark side of MDMA. Since MDMA is an illicit substance, there’s no governmental regulation regarding how it’s manufactured. You are truly at the mercy of whoever is cooking the batch to not cut MDMA with other drugs that may be even more dangerous. One batch may be relatively safe. The next one could be nearly toxic because of how it’s been adulterated by an unscrupulous manufacturer. Under these conditions, MDMA overdose is always a threat, no matter how little or how much you use.

Is MDMA Overdose Usually Intentional or Unintentional?

Think for a moment about what MDMA does to you when you take it. MDMA causes a massive release of serotonin into the body, which brings about the following:

• General euphoria
• A desire for physical contact
• A wave of positive feelings
• More intense emotions

In this haze of good feelings, users lose touch with reality. To keep the good times going, they will often dose themselves again while still high. This type of behavior greatly increases the possibility of an MDMA overdose.

Creating an even more dangerous situation is the fact that users will often combine MDMA with other drugs or alcohol. There’s a reason that doctors are cautious about putting you on multiple medications. They are always concerned about the possibility of an adverse and unexpected reaction. Combining illegal drugs of unknown composition is just an accident waiting to happen. People will mix drugs thinking that they’ll get a pleasant surprise from the high. They often get a surprise but not the one they were hoping for: an MDMA overdose.

Creating an even more dangerous situation is the fact that users will often combine MDMA with other drugs or alcohol. There’s a reason that doctors are cautious about putting you on multiple medications. They are always concerned about the possibility of an adverse and unexpected reaction. Combining illegal drugs of unknown composition is just an accident waiting to happen. People will mix drugs thinking that they’ll get a pleasant surprise from the high. They often get a surprise but not the one they were hoping for: an MDMA overdose.

Chronic methamphetamine overdose, which many people experience, can lead to the following symptoms:

• Sleep disturbances
• Extreme mood changes
• Anxiety
• Violent behavior
  

Chronic methamphetamine overdose can also bring about profound paranoia and hallucinations involving bugs crawling on the skin. As if this isn’t bad enough, long-term meth users can also expect to experience extreme weight loss, alarming dental problems and sores on the skin.

MDMA Overdose: How Much of the Drug Do You Have to Take to Overdose?

Taken in pill form as Ecstasy, the dosage may be anywhere from 10 to 150mg. Some users, however, will up doses to 500 or even 700mg to experience the drug’s effects. This binging behavior is typical at all-night dance parties. Unfortunately, the danger of an MDMA overdose is very high in these situations.

Don’t underestimate the risk you take by regularly taking MDMA recreationally. If you’re having trouble with MDMA, or have suffered an MDMA overdose in the past, it’s a good idea to consider professional drug rehab treatment. It may be the only effective way to beat your addiction.

What Are the Complications of an MDMA Overdose?

When a person experiences an MDMA overdose, there is a virtual laundry list of things that can go wrong. Adverse reactions can range from mild to extremely severe or even fatal. MDMA overdose symptoms include:

Psychological symptoms

• Memory impairment
• Amnesia
• Agitation, paranoia & restlessness
• Disorientation & confusion
• Disorganized thought process
• Hallucinations/delusions

Physiological symptoms

• Muscle rigidity
• Palpitations
• Breathing problems
• Convulsions
• Heart damage
• Stroke
• Hyperactivity
• Loss of consciousness
• Chest pain
• Potentially lethal hyperthermia
• Cardiac dysfunction
• Heart failure
• Renal failure
• Coma
• Death

These symptoms, especially the physical symptoms, are undeniably frightening and certainly destroy the sometimes glamorous reputation that this drug has. If you think that you or a loved one may have a problem with MDMA, or if you’ve been through an MDMA overdose, it’s strongly advised that you seek out a reputable drug rehab center so that you can begin turning your life around.

How Likely Is Someone To Die From an MDMA Overdose?

Emergency room visits are a key indicator of the dangers of an MDMA overdose. Recent research indicates that annual MDMA-related ER visits by people under 21 have gone up more than 120% between 2005 and 2011. The same research found a deep connection between these emergency room visits and the fact that users often combine MDMA with other drugs or alcohol. A shocking 33% of patients presenting to emergency rooms for MDMA overdose had also consumed alcohol. Usually people do this to lengthen the time that they experience euphoria. Unfortunately, that longer high comes with a price.

A statistic that should shock you is that more than 40% of all overdose victims who come into emergency rooms will die. The cause of death usually has to do with the following factors:

• Body temperature is too high
• Liver failure
• Seizure
• Cardiac arrest

If you’ve been using MDMA recreationally and have always assumed it was a relatively harmless club drug, you’d be wrong. The danger of MDMA overdose is very real. The best way to avoid overdose is to overcome your addiction with professional drug rehab treatment.

When an Overdose Happens, What Do You Do?

If you believe a friend or family member is having an MDMA overdose, your first move should always be to contact 911 immediately. However, there may be things you can do before emergency medical personnel arrive, such as:

• Turn victims on their side to prevent aspiration (food or liquid being drawn into the airway)
• Make sure their airway is clear
• If victims are conscious, keep them awake until help arrives
  

When the victim arrives at the hospital, doctors will need you to answer questions if the individual isn’t conscious. This will include questions about what type of drugs were taken, in what qualities, and how long ago they were taken. The more you can tell them, the more effectively they can do their job. An MDMA overdose is less likely to wind up as a fatality if doctors have all the information they need.

There are a number of things that medical professionals must do to save the life of an overdose victim. For example, they will need to address imminent threats such as high body temperature, high blood pressure and any cardiac issues. Once overdose victims have been stabilized, it’s time to start thinking about how to prevent this situation from ever happening again.

The solution isn’t to be more careful with how much MDMA you take next time. Surviving an overdose is often a matter of pure luck. Remember that if this happens again, you could die. The best solution is always to seek professional drug rehab treatment before tragedy strikes.

Effective MDMA Drug Rehab Treatment Is Crucial

Making the decision to seek drug rehab treatment is one of the most courageous decisions you’ll ever make in your life. It’s no exaggeration to say that this decision could literally save your life. The rehab process involves several stages, all of which contribute to a successful recovery:

Detox: This is the vital first step in your recovery from MDMA addiction. You can’t enter rehab treatment with any traces of drugs in the system. All drugs must be flushed out of your body during detox. This isn’t an easy process due to the presence of withdrawal symptoms. Some could be unpleasant enough that you’ll consider using again just to make them go away. That’s why professional detox is so important. Under the careful supervision of doctors and trained staff members, your detox will be much safer and far more comfortable than if you attempted to detox on your own.

Rehab Treatment: Once detox has been completed, you will be drug-free. However, simply being drug-free means nothing if you don’t understand how addiction works and how to avoid the inevitable temptations that you’ll run into in your daily life. Effective rehab treatment is one of the most effective ways to remain drug-free over the long-term.

Rehab treatment will be either as an inpatient or as an outpatient. Which is most suitable for you? A trained addiction specialist at a drug rehab center will be able to help you determine the best treatment for you.

Inpatient: As an inpatient, you’ll benefit from being completely cut off from any bad influences that exist on the outside. The inpatient experience is a safe zone with no access to MDMA. This option is generally for more severe cases of addiction, or for patients who don’t come from stable homes that would normally provide support. It’s also the optimal choice if you find out that you have a co-occurring mental condition (such as depression), which can ruin your attempt at recovery if doctors aren’t dealing with it during rehab treatment.

Outpatient: This option is ideal for patients whose MDMA addiction is less severe. It’s also appropriate for patients who come from families that are able to provide sufficient support during this challenging time period. As an outpatient, you’ll be able to continue taking care of family, school or work responsibilities that can’t be put on hold as they would be during inpatient treatment. Another consideration for outpatient treatment is that health insurance policies tend to do a better job of covering outpatient treatment for the simple reason that it cost them less money.

Should I Travel Or Stay Near Home For Drug Rehab Treatment?

Although it’s tempting to stay near home since it’s more convenient, many patients appreciate the treatment experience more when they are away from their usual environment. This also opens up the range of drug rehab centers for consideration, which is important because you want the best rehab treatment possible.

Remember that rehab treatment is about new beginnings in your life. Receiving treatment in a new and unfamiliar place can effectively reinforce this point for you.

It’s Time to Do Something

    You can’t put off thinking about treatment. An MDMA overdose could be in your near future, and it could be fatal this time. By seeking out drug rehab treatment, you give yourself the best possible chance of reclaiming the life that MDMA has slowly been taking away from you.