Molly is not a good girl. She killed two people last week, sent four more to intensive care, and caused the cancellation of the final day of the Electric Zoo music festival in New York City. Molly has a reputation. She’ll go right to your head, flooding your brain with neurotransmitters and making you feel euphoric and full of energy.
Who is this modern-day “girl with kaleidoscope eyes?”
Marina Csomor says the question is not who, but, what is “molly?”:
According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, molly is the powder or crystal form of MDMA — or 3, 4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine, a chemical drug most commonly known for its use in the pressed pill Ecstasy.
Unlike Ecstasy, which has a reputation for being laced with everything from caffeine to methamphetamine, molly — a name shortened from “molecule” — is thought of as “pure” MDMA.
The DEA labels it an illegal Schedule 1 controlled substance, considered to have a high potential for abuse and no accepted use in medical treatment.
Emergency room physicians are seeing a variety of adverse effects from molly:
MDMA, even in its pure form, can produce elevated heart rates and distortion of thought processes, causing users not to realize their rising body temperature or fading stamina as they continue to party. Combining MDMA with alcohol or other drugs can also be the cause of its more serious side effects.
Bania frequently sees patients who have complications from MDMA, ranging from dehydration and exhaustion to more severe side effects such as hyperthermia, seizures, electrolyte abnormalities, cardiac episodes and comas.
MDMA also depletes the body of some of its neurotransmitters, which can lead to a decreased mood about a day or two after using the drug. Prentiss said he has even seen the drug lead to long-term depression.
As much as we might like the facts about molly to frighten our kids too, we know it probably won’t. They hear so much “Don’t do this,” or, “Stay away from that” already that one more parental rant might be met with one more roll of the eyes.
At least we can have a conversation about molly based on facts. Hopefully, that will be good enough.
(Image: Yahoo! Images)