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This programme contains
some strong language

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Ecstasy has become one of
Britain's most notorious drugs.

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The messier they look,
the better time they're having.

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No other illegal substance has had
such an effect on fashion, music

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and how we party.

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Everyone's moving, and...

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and doing that all night, all night.

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20 years on
from its acid house heyday,
E and its crystal form MDMA...

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Oh!
..still rank in the top three most
popular illegal drugs in the UK.

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Cos it's perfect.

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It's MDM-amazing!

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But for some people,
ecstasy has caused agony.

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They said to my mum and dad,
"I think you might need to sort

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"the funeral arrangements out
for your daughter". Chin-chin.

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We follow two ecstasy users
over one night,

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and journey inside the body
and the brain to find out how
the drug creates its highs...

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and its lows.

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We've gone over the mountain,
and now we're on our descent.

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With access to cutting edge science,
we find out why ecstasy
is known as the love drug.

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Will you give me a hug?
Thank you, darling.

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It's a drug that has changed
some lives irreversibly.

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We were just doing MDMA to be close.

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Killer chemical
or the ultimate feelgood high?

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This is the inside story
of how ecstasy works.

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Every year in the UK, over half
a million people use ecstasy.

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It's become a big feature
of British club culture,

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despite possession carrying a
maximum prison term of seven years.

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Recently, many users have swapped
pills for the crystal form

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of the drug, named after
its main active ingredient, MDMA.

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It's MDMA that's responsible
for the unique combination

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of energy and empathy that have
become the drug's hallmarks.

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Katie is a 20-year old student
in her first year at university.

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She's been an occasional
ecstasy user for four years.

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So this is the first
time I took it, MD.

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I can't believe that I'm actually
showing this to the camera.

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We were all too young
to be going out clubbing,

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so it was just
getting messy in a park.

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We researched it a bit
actually, to start with.

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I was on Google, a bit scared.

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Did half each to start with.
We were timing it.

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Was convinced it wasn't working and
listened to a tune on my mobile phone

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that I loved, and the next
thing I know, I was buzzing.

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It was just, I guess, pure ecstasy.

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Even that horrible little park
that we were sat in was beautiful.

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Tonight, Katie plans to take MDMA
at a drum and bass night.

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Oh, it's a lovely big gram.
Just got this off a guy.

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You know,
went to see a man about a dog.

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Oh, God!

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She wraps the MDMA
in cigarette papers
to make what are called bombs.

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I don't like the idea that
I'd have to keep taking out
a packet in a club.

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It'd be a lot more chance that
I'd get caught doing it that way.

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Katie takes MDMA or ecstasy
on average once or twice a month.

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It's not the only thing I'm into.

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I do it now and again, but they do
accentuate experiences and stuff,

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so, yeah, I could
easily live without them,

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but while they're there, I'm going
to use the resources that we got.

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Oh, God, my hair is awful.

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I don't know why
I care so much, because the state of
me later on, I won't give a shit.

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I guess that's why I try to make
such an effort before I go out,

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cos I know how downhill
it's going to go, visually.

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After the first drop,
I'm going to be in bits.

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Oh. I'll open that one last.

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I can't wait to go out and get messy!

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Katie doesn't usually drop her
first bomb of MDMA until she's
just about ready to hit the club.

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That way, she hopes she won't
appear too high at the door.

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I've got a little bomb here,
cos I don't want to overdo things.

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Chin-chin!

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Whether it's taken as a pill
or as crystals, most users of
ecstasy take the drug orally.

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It starts to disintegrate into
the stomach, and by the time it
reaches the small intestine,

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the particles are small enough to
be absorbed into the bloodstream.

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The drug is pumped
to the heart and lungs and then
to the rest of the body.

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At the brain, the molecules are
carried through tiny capillaries

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whose walls are thick enough
to protect the brain
from most impurities.

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But MDMA molecules can slip
through the capillary walls
and cross into the brain.

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After a bomb of MDMA and a couple
of cans of cider, Katie's starting
to feel in the party mood.

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I don't really know if I'm coming up,

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but if I'm pretty bloody honest,
I'm feeling pretty fantastic.

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It's a jumble gym,
it's the jumble gym tonight, lads.

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MDMA, the main active ingredient
in ecstasy, was first synthesised

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in Germany in 1912 and was
originally intended to be used
as a blood-clotting agent.

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By the 1980s, MDMA had
seeped out of the laboratory

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and was being used recreationally
in nightclubs in the USA and Ibiza.

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Its euphoric effects earned it
the new name ecstasy.

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The new club drug was banned,

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but this did little
to dent its popularity.

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By the early '90s,
over half-a-million pills
were being taken

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every weekend in the UK,
at legendary clubs like Shoom,
The Trip and the Hacienda.

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Its illegal status meant there was
no regulation over how the drug
was made and what was put into it.

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John Ramsey is an expert
on what's in ecstasy.

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He runs a drugs database and has
collected hundreds of ecstasy pills
over the past 20 years.

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This is an ecstasy tablet
that's got the Mitsubishi logo on.

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Many pills have street names
that reference famous brands,

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and tests have shown a huge
variation in their quality.

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I'm sure people do believe that
if they buy the same brand marking,
they'll get the same product.

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But of course, the amount
of drug varies significantly
from tablet to tablet.

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At the 2009 Glastonbury Festival,
John Ramsey's tests

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on confiscated pills showed
just 8% contained MDMA.

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Today, he's testing three different
pills with the same logo

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to find out if they are
the genuine article.

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So this one here is forming
the colour and these two aren't,
so this one has MDMA in.

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They're all tablets with
a Mitsubishi logo on, but only

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one of them contains the active
drug that people actually want.

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The trend at the moment is very much
for pills not to contain MDMA at all,

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and to contain CPP, which is
what I expect one of these contains.

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and I suspect the other one
is probably plaster of Paris,
which is just a complete rip-off.

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CPP is a fairly nasty compound.

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It causes headaches, it makes
people feel nauseous and in fact,

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CPP's even been used
experimentally to induce migraine.

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It's a very unpleasant compound.

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What happened recently, I think,
is people have lost confidence in

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ecstasy tablets so you've seen the
appearance of MDMA in crystal form,

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and I think the general idea
that crystals are pure caught on.

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But just because the drug is pure,
doesn't necessarily make it safe.

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Safety is difficult, because
we know that MDMA kills people.

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At the height, probably 40 or 50
people a year were dying from MDMA.

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We've seen very few, if any,
deaths from CPP.

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So it's probably no more dangerous,
it just isn't what you expect.

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19-year-old Robert has just
successfully completed his A-levels

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and has been enjoying
the freedom of his gap year.

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This has been the
longest summer of my life.

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It's been incredible, really.
I mean, it started, you know,

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with festivals and parties early on
in the summer when I'd just finished

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my A-levels and I'm finally
letting my hair down after
two years of quite hard work.

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Robert discovered MDMA when
he was 17, and takes the drug
every few weeks at raves.

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I don't want to go so far as to say
that it's changed, like, my life,

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but it has definitely had some sort
of an impact on my outlook on life.

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As a result of having more open and
frank and honest conversations with
my friends when I'm on the drug,

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it's enabled me to be more open
and honest with my friends
when I'm off the drug.

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Shall we call this number up? Yeah.

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Tonight, Robert and his mates
are planning to go to
a secret Halloween rave.

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The details of the party location
are released on a mobile phone

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answering service just two hours
before the event starts.

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'Tonight's party is at 80...Street'

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What?

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What station?
Battersea Park rail, Vauxhall.

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MAN: Are they legal, these parties?

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I think... Are they...?
They're topsy-turvy.

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The police can't shut them down
unless they've got a warrant.

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Do you buy the MDMA
when you get in the rave?

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Nah. I've already got it.
THEY LAUGH

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This is half a gram.

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How much did that cost? £20.

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Everyone is on the same sort of
level and a lot of them are
on acid and things like that.

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We're all just happy, happy hippies.

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'The first time I took it,
it was at this mansion party.'

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I was running around, sort of...

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filled with momentum and energy
and full of pep and fire.

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And I felt like I wanted to talk
to everyone about everything,

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and I felt much more interested
in what other people had to say.

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I felt like my views were
a lot more worthwhile.

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'It was a very, very interesting
experience. Lots of fun.'

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Shoes are off. Stripping!

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Robert doesn't usually
dress up at raves,

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but as it's Halloween,
he gets into the spirit.

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He looks like the dude
from The Big Lebowski.

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It's a bit of a transformation,
I'll admit.

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It's a pretty strange location.

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It looks to be like
three or four different rooms
connected by a big joint car park.

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It's sort of ridiculous how
often you get offered drugs.

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Every fourth person you pass says,
"MDMA, ket, speed, pills?"

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"MDMA, ket, speed, pills?"

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"MDMA, acid, ket, speed, pills,
weed, skunk..." Anything.

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Anything you want, you can get here.
It's sort of absurd.

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After half an hour in the rave,
Robert feels settled enough
for his first hit of MDMA.

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He crushes the crystals into
a powder, so he can sniff the drug.

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When MDMA is snorted,
it rockets up the nostril
and coats the nasal walls.

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MDMA molecules are absorbed through
the nasal membrane directly into
capillaries on the other side.

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Within 20 minutes, the blood has
carried the MDMA around the body

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and into the brain,
where it's ready to start work.

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Snorting MDMA is not a particularly
pleasant experience.

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The crystals are quite large
and it hurts a little,

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but it helps you feel
the effects faster.

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I've only just got here and I'm
just sort of getting the party off
to a flying start, I suppose.

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I mean, it hasn't hit me yet,
and once it does, I'll be talking at

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a mile a minute and making friends
with everyone you see there.

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Complete strangers,
but it'll be the empathy kicking in.

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It's been over 45 minutes since
Katie took her first MDMA bomb,

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and signs of its effects
are becoming apparent.

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This is going to be such a good
night. I know, I can feel it.

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But I love you. I love you too.

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The key to how we act and feel
lies deep inside the brain,

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where millions of nerve cells
communicate by sending electrical
messages through networks.

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Where one nerve meets another,
there are tiny gaps.

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Here, the messages are relayed
by the release of chemicals.

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In one network, ecstasy disrupts how
these chemical messages are sent,

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and this can create intensely
sociable feelings in the user.

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I don't feel cold any more.

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I'm just feeling full of love,
full of warmth...

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Once ecstasy gets inside the brain,
in the gaps between nerve cells,

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it releases the chemical serotonin,
which affects our mood.

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Serotonin latches on to receptors
on the neighbouring nerve cell,

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starting a chain reaction
of feelgood messages.

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Normally, excess serotonin is
reabsorbed into the nerve cell

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that released it, but MDMA
stops this process happening.

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It means serotonin
builds up in the gap,

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and the loved-up messages increase.

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I wish every single person on
the street was my best friend.

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Can you give me a hug?

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And they will be by the end
of the night, believe you me.

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Will you give me a hug?

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Wheeeeeeey!

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Let's get in there
and skank all over, babe,
to some dirty dubstep beats.

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There's definitely a connection
when you do it with a good
group of people.

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It really is "I love you!",
cos you love everything,
like nothing could be better.

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At the time, anyway, you think
you're making these lifelong bonds.

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I've made friends
with about 25% of the club,

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but we've still got
a long way to go. Long way.

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People are just
on the level in there.
Everyone's loving everything.

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And everyone's good and I'm good
and you're good and we're good.

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It's perfect, and it's MDMA-zing!

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The loved-up experience is
heightened because the flood

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of serotonin also triggers the
release of a hormone called oxytocin
from a gland in the brain.

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Oxytocin is known as the "cuddle
chemical", and is naturally released

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to help human bonding,
for example, after sex.

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It could almost be equivalent
to a post-orgasmic bliss,

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as some people have described it.

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00:15:38,440 --> 00:15:46,440
Even in the wild environment of the
rave, perhaps there is this
bonding happening between strangers.

218
00:15:46,440 --> 00:15:50,760
I know the kind of communal spirit
it is when everyone's
on the same drug

219
00:15:50,760 --> 00:15:55,160
and everyone's loving something
the same way. It's special.

220
00:15:57,240 --> 00:16:01,640
And a lot of people there
are loving it the same way, trust me.

221
00:16:01,640 --> 00:16:09,240
Whilst users have long raved
about ecstasy's ability
to create empathy,

222
00:16:09,240 --> 00:16:13,560
scientists still know
relatively little about
how this effect of the drug works.

223
00:16:16,760 --> 00:16:20,120
At the University of Chicago,
scientists have been granted

224
00:16:20,120 --> 00:16:25,480
permission to observe recreational
users under the influence of MDMA.

225
00:16:25,480 --> 00:16:28,680
31-year-old Svet
has volunteered to take part.

226
00:16:28,680 --> 00:16:32,240
He's been an occasional user
for around ten years.

227
00:16:32,240 --> 00:16:36,440
Every time is different. Last time,
it was just me and my girlfriend.

228
00:16:36,440 --> 00:16:43,120
The time before, it was a birthday
party of a friend of mine and
it was just purely dancing.

229
00:16:44,640 --> 00:16:48,640
Scientists hope
that if they can learn more
about why ecstasy creates empathy,

230
00:16:48,640 --> 00:16:54,320
it could show how the drug might be
used as a prescription medicine,
for example, for people in therapy.

231
00:16:54,320 --> 00:16:56,400
Morning. How are you?

232
00:16:56,400 --> 00:16:59,240
Good to see you. I'm going
to give you your capsule now.

233
00:16:59,240 --> 00:17:00,320
There's two capsules.

234
00:17:00,320 --> 00:17:02,320
Svet is given 95mg of MDMA,

235
00:17:02,320 --> 00:17:06,960
although he is unaware if this
is the real thing or a placebo.

236
00:17:06,960 --> 00:17:10,480
If the participant knew, they
might have, sort of, expectations.

237
00:17:10,480 --> 00:17:13,360
They know that, you know, maybe
receiving a stimulant

238
00:17:13,360 --> 00:17:16,720
is supposed to make them
sort of excited and upbeat.

239
00:17:16,720 --> 00:17:22,280
But an hour after taking
the drug, Svet is pretty sure
he knows what he's taken.

240
00:17:23,440 --> 00:17:28,680
Well, I believe I get some
ecstasy today for free.

241
00:17:28,680 --> 00:17:31,640
You all right? Quite delightful.

242
00:17:31,640 --> 00:17:33,760
Quite delightful? OK.

243
00:17:33,760 --> 00:17:39,360
In his first task,
Svet is shown pictures of people
with different facial expressions.

244
00:17:39,360 --> 00:17:46,360
For each one, he must decide
if the expression is happy, sad,
angry, fearful or neutral.

245
00:17:46,360 --> 00:17:50,880
The exercise is designed to find out
if ecstasy increases or decreases

246
00:17:50,880 --> 00:17:54,080
our ability to recognise
emotions in others.

247
00:17:55,640 --> 00:18:00,400
We would like to see really whether
it increases the ability to,
kind of, discriminate

248
00:18:00,400 --> 00:18:05,520
more finely tuned emotions or
whether, if a fearful face comes up,

249
00:18:05,520 --> 00:18:10,880
are they good at recognising that
that's actually a fearful face,
or do they mistake it for anger?

250
00:18:10,880 --> 00:18:14,280
Results so far suggest that
ecstasy actually decreases

251
00:18:14,280 --> 00:18:18,360
the user's ability to read
negative emotions in others.

252
00:18:18,360 --> 00:18:21,880
This could be why they are able
to socialise more confidently after

253
00:18:21,880 --> 00:18:27,120
taking the drug, because they are
oblivious to the negative emotional
cues others may be giving off.

254
00:18:29,600 --> 00:18:31,960
All right,
so this is your last task.

255
00:18:31,960 --> 00:18:35,760
Basically, you're going
to see a series of photos
of different people,

256
00:18:35,760 --> 00:18:39,960
and it's going to ask you to rate
those faces on how
you feel about them

257
00:18:39,960 --> 00:18:42,600
for a variety of,
kind of, adjectives. OK.

258
00:18:42,600 --> 00:18:47,240
In this task, Svet must rate each
person he sees on how attractive,

259
00:18:47,240 --> 00:18:50,640
intelligent and
trustworthy they look.

260
00:18:50,640 --> 00:18:54,440
I think that it would
increase empathetic feelings,
kind of pro-social feelings.

261
00:18:54,440 --> 00:18:58,320
So we would expect that it
would increase feelings
of trustworthiness,

262
00:18:58,320 --> 00:19:02,960
of friendliness,
possibly attractiveness.

263
00:19:02,960 --> 00:19:07,960
So not only does MDMA
make users miss negative
emotional cues in others,

264
00:19:07,960 --> 00:19:14,240
experts believe it could
also lead them to apply positive
attributes to people they meet.

265
00:19:14,240 --> 00:19:18,360
Having completed all his tasks,

266
00:19:18,360 --> 00:19:23,680
Svet has a craving
to test the effects of MDMA
in a more familiar environment.

267
00:19:23,680 --> 00:19:29,880
It's really weird to take something
here in a small room.

268
00:19:29,880 --> 00:19:32,800
For me personally,
this is a party drug.

269
00:19:32,800 --> 00:19:39,320
If there is a house, I would dance,
like some frisky dance,

270
00:19:39,320 --> 00:19:41,800
with a lovely lady.

271
00:19:41,800 --> 00:19:44,960
I want to dance my ass, though.

272
00:19:54,160 --> 00:19:59,960
At the rave in south London,
the line of MDMA Robert took earlier
is starting to kick in.

273
00:20:04,280 --> 00:20:06,040
It is hitting me a bit now.

274
00:20:06,040 --> 00:20:09,560
I feel more forced
to move to the music that I hear.

275
00:20:09,560 --> 00:20:13,120
You sort of feel full of energy
once it's hit you.

276
00:20:13,120 --> 00:20:17,440
I mean, they call it
rolling in America,
and that's almost what it feels like.

277
00:20:17,440 --> 00:20:20,520
You're sort of rolling with
the momentum that it gives you.

278
00:20:23,680 --> 00:20:26,720
The classic view that people have
of someone that's taken ecstasy is

279
00:20:26,720 --> 00:20:29,920
someone dancing all night in a
nightclub, and if you ever look

280
00:20:29,920 --> 00:20:33,800
at old footage of clubs in the early
'90s, people are gurning away,

281
00:20:33,800 --> 00:20:37,640
doing their "big fish,
little fish, box" dances.

282
00:20:39,440 --> 00:20:41,360
MUSIC: "We Call It Acieed"
by D Mob

283
00:20:41,360 --> 00:20:45,280
Ecstasy's reputation as the drug
that makes you dance was sealed

284
00:20:45,280 --> 00:20:48,960
during the acid house scene of
the late '80s and early '90s.

285
00:20:48,960 --> 00:20:52,680
People who hated dance music dropped
a pill and started to like it.

286
00:20:52,680 --> 00:20:57,480
At its height, there were over 100
illegal outdoor raves every weekend,

287
00:20:57,480 --> 00:21:00,840
some attracting up
to 20,000 revellers.

288
00:21:00,840 --> 00:21:02,920
dancing for days at a time.

289
00:21:02,920 --> 00:21:05,840
The dancing was very visual,
it was very hands, you know?

290
00:21:05,840 --> 00:21:08,400
It was like... you know,

291
00:21:08,400 --> 00:21:14,440
it was...everyone's moving
and doing that all night, all night.

292
00:21:14,440 --> 00:21:16,520
The whole club.

293
00:21:20,440 --> 00:21:23,840
The energetic high that ravers
feel on the dancefloor happens

294
00:21:23,840 --> 00:21:27,400
because ecstasy triggers activity
in another network in the brain.

295
00:21:29,600 --> 00:21:35,760
In this network, a chemical
messenger called dopamine transmits
messages that control movement.

296
00:21:37,440 --> 00:21:41,040
It all results in a burst
of physical energy.

297
00:21:42,640 --> 00:21:45,320
You will dance to anything.

298
00:21:45,320 --> 00:21:47,360
Anything.

299
00:21:47,360 --> 00:21:51,160
Even Soldier Boy by Justin Bieber.

300
00:21:51,160 --> 00:21:55,040
But...actually, maybe not Justin.
Nah, let me take that out!

301
00:21:56,560 --> 00:22:03,160
What we see after high doses
of MDMA, in humans and in particular
laboratory animals,

302
00:22:03,160 --> 00:22:06,120
is that we see
quite stereotypical movements.

303
00:22:06,120 --> 00:22:11,040
A rat will start running round
its cage in a predictable manner.

304
00:22:11,040 --> 00:22:13,000
We can also see that in humans.

305
00:22:14,520 --> 00:22:19,840
Ecstasy users are famous for
dancing in a repetitive style,
hour after hour.

306
00:22:19,840 --> 00:22:23,320
That's because dopamine release
in this part of the brain,

307
00:22:23,320 --> 00:22:28,160
the prefrontal cortex,
makes them focus attention
on one particular task -

308
00:22:28,160 --> 00:22:29,920
in this case, dancing.

309
00:22:32,600 --> 00:22:35,720
For Katie,
the way ecstasy allows her to focus

310
00:22:35,720 --> 00:22:39,640
on her favourite drum and bass music
is a key attraction of the drug.

311
00:22:39,640 --> 00:22:41,520
RUMBLING BASS SOUNDS IN BACKGROUND

312
00:22:41,520 --> 00:22:42,800
That noise right there.

313
00:22:42,800 --> 00:22:45,920
I don't know if you can hear that,
but that "waah, waah, waah",

314
00:22:45,920 --> 00:22:47,640
that is my call to nature.

315
00:22:52,680 --> 00:22:56,480
It's almost like
an out-of-body experience.

316
00:22:56,480 --> 00:22:59,560
You actually feel
connected to the music.

317
00:22:59,560 --> 00:23:02,560
I just can't stop.
I don't want the music to stop.

318
00:23:02,560 --> 00:23:05,320
You can hear every level
of it and other levels.

319
00:23:07,040 --> 00:23:10,880
Ravers can focus on music more
intensely after taking ecstasy

320
00:23:10,880 --> 00:23:15,360
because of how the drug affects
the brain's basic operating system.

321
00:23:15,360 --> 00:23:20,520
Nerves in this network control
and order what's going on
all over the brain,

322
00:23:20,520 --> 00:23:23,680
and make sure we stay focused
on the stuff that's important.

323
00:23:25,200 --> 00:23:30,600
When chemical messengers are
released from cells in this network,
instead of stimulating activity,

324
00:23:30,600 --> 00:23:36,200
it dampens things down,
allowing other more creative
areas of the brain to run free.

325
00:23:36,200 --> 00:23:39,440
There's a lot of serotonin receptors
in that part of the brain,

326
00:23:39,440 --> 00:23:41,440
and we think
if you switch on serotonin,

327
00:23:41,440 --> 00:23:43,960
you actually dampen down
that brain's ability,

328
00:23:43,960 --> 00:23:47,560
so the headmaster is no longer there
and the kids can run riot.

329
00:23:47,560 --> 00:23:51,800
So for example, the part of
the brain that processes sound

330
00:23:51,800 --> 00:23:55,600
allows us to hear and interpret
music in new and interesting ways.

331
00:23:59,520 --> 00:24:03,760
Because I've
always been into drum and bass,
it just makes it so much better.

332
00:24:03,760 --> 00:24:08,600
The music's chaotic,
everything's going off,
so you can get into it a lot more.

333
00:24:08,600 --> 00:24:11,040
I think people that are into pop,

334
00:24:11,040 --> 00:24:16,600
and going to watch a Spice Girls gig,
wouldn't necessarily be taking MD.

335
00:24:16,600 --> 00:24:23,000
As appealing as many people find
ecstasy, no-one knows for sure if it
causes significant long term damage.

336
00:24:23,000 --> 00:24:26,680
But we do know that in rare cases,
ecstasy can kill.

337
00:24:26,680 --> 00:24:31,440
And when such tragedies happen,
the affect on family and
friends is devastating.

338
00:24:35,840 --> 00:24:40,680
18-year-old Leah Betts became front
page news in 1995, when she died

339
00:24:40,680 --> 00:24:46,080
after taking an ecstasy pill and her
father launched a campaign to raise
awareness of the drug's dangers.

340
00:24:48,240 --> 00:24:50,840
There's a picture of my daughter

341
00:24:50,840 --> 00:24:53,320
as she's laying in bed now.

342
00:24:53,320 --> 00:24:57,120
My daughter paid £10 for this pill

343
00:24:57,120 --> 00:25:01,440
that's very likely to cost her
her life...

344
00:25:03,720 --> 00:25:06,080
..and break up the family.

345
00:25:11,720 --> 00:25:17,680
When Des Delaney lost his daughter
Siobhan in 2005, ecstasy was
implicated in the tragedy.

346
00:25:19,600 --> 00:25:26,480
I never really heard about ecstasy
until the death of Leah Betts
and the publicity over it.

347
00:25:26,480 --> 00:25:30,320
Raves and things like that,
we didn't really have anything
like that around this area.

348
00:25:34,240 --> 00:25:37,560
We used to explain to
Siobhan about Leah Betts,

349
00:25:37,560 --> 00:25:39,880
about the dangers what are out there.

350
00:25:41,600 --> 00:25:47,080
We just go through life, don't we,
thinking everything's perfect.

351
00:25:47,080 --> 00:25:51,080
On the night before Siobhan died,
she had been out
at a bar in Liverpool,

352
00:25:51,080 --> 00:25:53,320
where she was
alleged to have taken ecstasy.

353
00:25:53,320 --> 00:25:58,680
The following day at home,
she started having seizures
and was rushed to hospital.

354
00:26:00,560 --> 00:26:04,400
Doctors said Siobhan had suffered
a condition called hyponatremia,

355
00:26:04,400 --> 00:26:07,920
which was also implicated
in the death of Leah Betts.

356
00:26:09,760 --> 00:26:16,800
Hyponatremia is a rare condition
in which the levels of water in
the blood become dangerously high.

357
00:26:16,800 --> 00:26:22,280
Ecstasy users are at risk
because MDMA triggers a hormone that
can make it difficult to urinate,

358
00:26:22,280 --> 00:26:26,000
so they conserve
more water than usual.

359
00:26:26,000 --> 00:26:32,400
Also, people on ecstasy may drink
more because they are dancing all
night in hot, sweaty nightclubs.

360
00:26:32,400 --> 00:26:37,200
This can raise the water
levels in the body even further.

361
00:26:37,200 --> 00:26:42,320
High levels of water in the blood
can cause massive problems when the
blood reaches the brain.

362
00:26:42,320 --> 00:26:47,160
The cells swell with water,
causing the brain to
crush against the skull.

363
00:26:47,160 --> 00:26:52,000
In catastrophic cases,
the swollen brain pushes
down on the spinal column.

364
00:26:54,760 --> 00:26:58,480
Ecstasy was the initial cause
of Siobhan's death.

365
00:26:58,480 --> 00:27:03,400
How many ecstasy tables were
said to have been taken by Siobhan?

366
00:27:03,400 --> 00:27:05,360
Half a tablet.

367
00:27:05,360 --> 00:27:08,520
But that's how dangerous
the drug is, isn't it?

368
00:27:08,520 --> 00:27:11,680
People have got to know what's
out there, the dangers out there.

369
00:27:16,360 --> 00:27:22,080
Katie is all too aware of the
worry her teenage use of ecstasy
caused her own family.

370
00:27:22,080 --> 00:27:25,360
I feel like I was too young,
when I look back on it now.

371
00:27:25,360 --> 00:27:28,000
You look at a 16-year-old
when they're off their head,

372
00:27:28,000 --> 00:27:30,560
walking down the road,
it just doesn't look nice,

373
00:27:30,560 --> 00:27:35,160
and for the stress that it
put my family through, that's not
nice for any parent to go through.

374
00:27:35,160 --> 00:27:39,560
And I understand that now.
What do you think you'll say about
drugs when you're a parent?

375
00:27:39,560 --> 00:27:44,680
I can't be a hypocrite,
so I think...I'm
never going to condone it.

376
00:27:44,680 --> 00:27:50,440
I'm never going to buy
my kids drugs, but I will
hopefully educate them on it.

377
00:27:50,440 --> 00:27:54,440
I think that's what's important,
guidance, not just saying no,

378
00:27:54,440 --> 00:28:00,800
you can't do this,
because that, on some ears,
sounds like "you should do it".

379
00:28:02,320 --> 00:28:06,240
Robert is also aware
how controversial illegal drugs
can be in society.

380
00:28:06,240 --> 00:28:09,640
In an effort to limit the
documentary's impact on his future,

381
00:28:09,640 --> 00:28:12,600
he's decided not to
use his real name.

382
00:28:12,600 --> 00:28:15,520
I can't say I'm completely open.

383
00:28:15,520 --> 00:28:19,080
I mean, naturally,
because it is illegal,

384
00:28:19,080 --> 00:28:23,400
I have to keep it sort of
hidden from most of society.

385
00:28:23,400 --> 00:28:28,280
People like my parents definitely
would see it as a very dangerous drug

386
00:28:28,280 --> 00:28:32,080
just because of the negative
image it's got in the press.

387
00:28:33,480 --> 00:28:37,080
I have heard a few horrific
and catastrophic stories,

388
00:28:37,080 --> 00:28:43,000
but there is always a risk
when you're taking a drug
like ecstasy or MDMA.

389
00:28:43,000 --> 00:28:45,520
But you play a risk
when you do anything fun.

390
00:28:49,320 --> 00:28:53,040
It's 3am, and Robert's first line
of MDMA is starting to wear off,

391
00:28:53,040 --> 00:28:55,000
so he plugs up with his second hit.

392
00:29:01,240 --> 00:29:03,520
Katie does the same.

393
00:29:06,720 --> 00:29:08,400
Well, I'm currently up.

394
00:29:08,400 --> 00:29:13,200
I am buzzing, I suppose. My eyes
are sort of darting around the place.

395
00:29:13,200 --> 00:29:18,520
I'm keeping...I've got a smile on my
face I can't seem to wipe off.

396
00:29:21,360 --> 00:29:28,480
I'm off my tits. I've only done
two bombs so far, and I'm fucked.

397
00:29:28,480 --> 00:29:34,640
I've still got a few more in a
secret compartment, and I'll
pull them out as and when.

398
00:29:34,640 --> 00:29:40,240
As the ravers take more MDMA,
the physical effects start
to become more visible.

399
00:29:40,240 --> 00:29:43,640
This is mainly down to the way MDMA
triggers the release

400
00:29:43,640 --> 00:29:47,760
of a chemical called noradrenaline
all over the body.

401
00:29:47,760 --> 00:29:51,520
Noradrenaline is something we're all
familiar with, as it's the classic

402
00:29:51,520 --> 00:29:55,520
fight/flight chemical.
When people are frightened,
noradrenaline is released.

403
00:29:55,520 --> 00:29:59,120
It makes the pupils dilate,
makes the heart go fast,
makes you sweat a bit.

404
00:29:59,120 --> 00:30:03,520
I've only done two bombs so far,
and I'm fucked.

405
00:30:03,520 --> 00:30:06,840
I'm not gonna lie,
you can probably tell by my eyes.

406
00:30:10,040 --> 00:30:13,320
Where nerve endings
meet muscles in the eye,

407
00:30:13,320 --> 00:30:17,880
noradrenaline triggers the muscle,
making the pupil dilate.

408
00:30:17,880 --> 00:30:22,720
Ravers are also notorious
for clenching their jaw.

409
00:30:22,720 --> 00:30:29,720
That's because noradrenaline excites
the jaw muscles, resulting in
the distinctive gurning action.

410
00:30:29,720 --> 00:30:35,880
I've come out of a rave with a
few bites on my tongue or a few
teeth feeling a bit more sensitive.

411
00:30:35,880 --> 00:30:40,440
Some dentists actually argue that
one of the leading causes of loss

412
00:30:40,440 --> 00:30:44,800
of teeth eventually is the fact that
people are taking stimulant drugs

413
00:30:44,800 --> 00:30:46,880
and also drinking fizzy drinks.

414
00:30:48,400 --> 00:30:53,840
So all this stuff, when you're seeing
someone on this, if you haven't done
MD, it's definitely terrifying.

415
00:30:53,840 --> 00:30:56,040
But for me when I
see people doing it,

416
00:30:56,040 --> 00:31:00,080
I know that the messier they look,
the better time that they're having.

417
00:31:01,720 --> 00:31:06,640
Getting too hot is another possible
physical effect of ecstasy.

418
00:31:06,640 --> 00:31:11,440
In rare cases, this can lead to
a condition called hyperthermia.

419
00:31:11,440 --> 00:31:16,040
We know that if you get your
body temperature over 100, 102,
you get into problems.

420
00:31:16,040 --> 00:31:20,720
People become delirious, and in fact
you can also damage other organs.

421
00:31:20,720 --> 00:31:24,800
The muscles can be damaged,
the heart can be damaged,
the liver can be damaged.

422
00:31:24,800 --> 00:31:28,880
Hyperthermia starts in a part of
the brain called the hypothalmus.

423
00:31:28,880 --> 00:31:31,440
This acts as our thermostat.

424
00:31:31,440 --> 00:31:35,440
It's the part of the brain that's in
charge of regulating temperature

425
00:31:35,440 --> 00:31:38,560
all over the body and telling us
how hot or cold we are.

426
00:31:38,560 --> 00:31:42,080
Experts think the big release of
serotonin in this part of the brain

427
00:31:42,080 --> 00:31:45,880
could be enough to stop the
body's thermostat working properly.

428
00:31:45,880 --> 00:31:51,720
And in hot clubs, the body
temperature can rise rapidly.

429
00:31:53,640 --> 00:32:00,560
Without cooling the body,
overheating can quickly set in
in major organs like the liver.

430
00:32:00,560 --> 00:32:03,440
When the body temperature
tips over 40 degrees,

431
00:32:03,440 --> 00:32:07,320
the proteins that make up our cells
stop functioning properly.

432
00:32:07,320 --> 00:32:10,840
They change their structure,
a bit like when you heat milk.

433
00:32:10,840 --> 00:32:14,720
When you heat milk, you get
a skin on because the proteins
in the milk lock together.

434
00:32:14,720 --> 00:32:20,840
The proteins bind,
causing the cells to stop working
and the organ to shut down.

435
00:32:22,440 --> 00:32:28,000
Every three months, Sarah Phillips
and her fiance Pete come to Kings
College Hospital in London

436
00:32:28,000 --> 00:32:29,920
for a checkup at the liver unit.

437
00:32:31,960 --> 00:32:35,680
It's been a regular appointment
since Sarah was given an urgent

438
00:32:35,680 --> 00:32:40,240
liver transplant as a result of her
use of ecstasy nearly ten years ago.

439
00:32:41,760 --> 00:32:46,880
Sarah's problems with ecstasy
started when she took the
drug on holiday in Ibiza.

440
00:32:46,880 --> 00:32:52,920
She'd taken pills for the first
time a few weeks earlier and was
up for repeating the experience.

441
00:32:52,920 --> 00:32:55,920
We met a group of lads
and hit it off.

442
00:32:55,920 --> 00:32:58,400
We got on the subject of
talking about ecstasy,

443
00:32:58,400 --> 00:33:00,400
and he said,
"Have you ever done it before?",

444
00:33:00,400 --> 00:33:02,040
and I said,
"Yeah, I've done it once".

445
00:33:02,040 --> 00:33:04,760
And he was like,
"Do you wanna do half with me?"

446
00:33:04,760 --> 00:33:08,400
I thought, "I can't see much damage,
it's only half an ecstasy tablet",

447
00:33:08,400 --> 00:33:15,280
so I took the small half and...yeah,
I had no effect from it whatsoever.

448
00:33:15,280 --> 00:33:17,840
The next day, I felt really ill.

449
00:33:17,840 --> 00:33:21,360
Had a really bad come-down,
constant diarrhoea, sickness.

450
00:33:21,360 --> 00:33:25,480
Sarah's illness continued
for the rest of her holiday

451
00:33:25,480 --> 00:33:29,720
and when she returned home,
she was admitted to hospital.

452
00:33:29,720 --> 00:33:34,920
After a couple of days of
being in hospital, they said
I'd done damage to my liver.

453
00:33:34,920 --> 00:33:37,800
They said "Did you do drugs?"
I said "No I didn't do drugs".

454
00:33:37,800 --> 00:33:42,280
They said "Well, if you done drugs,
we need to know, cos then we can
get down to the bottom of this".

455
00:33:42,280 --> 00:33:44,880
I said no. Unless your mum buggers
off, you can't say nothing.

456
00:33:44,880 --> 00:33:46,920
So yeah, I just denied
doing any drugs.

457
00:33:46,920 --> 00:33:51,160
I didn't think it'd be that half an
ecstasy tablet that done the damage.

458
00:33:51,160 --> 00:33:56,960
After two weeks in hospital,
Sarah made a full recovery
and returned to normal life.

459
00:33:56,960 --> 00:34:00,320
Convinced ecstasy had not
been the cause of her illness,

460
00:34:00,320 --> 00:34:03,640
she started clubbing again and
took the drug several more times.

461
00:34:05,280 --> 00:34:09,360
Gradually, Sarah's health
started to deteriorate.

462
00:34:09,360 --> 00:34:13,080
One night, she collapsed
and was rushed back to casualty.

463
00:34:13,080 --> 00:34:16,040
My mum then come to hospital
and tried waking me up.

464
00:34:16,040 --> 00:34:21,560
The doctors and nurses tried waking
me up, and that's when they sedated
me, before I slipped into a coma.

465
00:34:21,560 --> 00:34:24,640
Sarah's liver was under attack.

466
00:34:26,880 --> 00:34:32,200
The liver is where drugs are
processed to remove toxic elements.

467
00:34:32,200 --> 00:34:36,240
Enzymes normally break down ecstasy
and send the toxic elements on to

468
00:34:36,240 --> 00:34:39,040
the kidneys, where they
leave the body through urine.

469
00:34:41,160 --> 00:34:46,280
But some people can't break down
ecstasy properly because they don't
have enough of these enzymes,

470
00:34:46,280 --> 00:34:49,920
so more of the toxic waste from
the drug is left in the liver.

471
00:34:51,440 --> 00:34:53,360
This waste can kill liver tissue,

472
00:34:53,360 --> 00:34:58,960
and when more than 90%
of it is destroyed,
a transplant may be the only option.

473
00:35:00,480 --> 00:35:02,720
I had a 50-50 chance of survival,

474
00:35:02,720 --> 00:35:07,280
and then the following day it went
down to a 5% chance of survival.

475
00:35:07,280 --> 00:35:09,040
And they said to my mum and dad,

476
00:35:09,040 --> 00:35:13,200
"I think you might need
to sort the funeral arrangements
out for your daughter.

477
00:35:13,200 --> 00:35:15,960
"It's that bad, and we don't
think we'll get a liver".

478
00:35:15,960 --> 00:35:21,560
And I only had until the Friday
to get a new liver, otherwise they'd
turn my life support machine off.

479
00:35:21,560 --> 00:35:24,600
Obviously, hope
was going down the pan.

480
00:35:24,600 --> 00:35:27,680
And then at three o'clock
that morning, Mum got a phone call

481
00:35:27,680 --> 00:35:30,320
saying "We've got a
liver for your daughter".

482
00:35:30,320 --> 00:35:36,200
After the transplant was over, there
was a tense wait to see if Sarah's
body would accept the new liver.

483
00:35:36,200 --> 00:35:41,000
Several days after the operation,
she regained consciousness.

484
00:35:41,000 --> 00:35:45,520
It was horrible, because I couldn't
talk to people and my mum
shouted at me.

485
00:35:45,520 --> 00:35:48,000
"You should have just
told me the truth.

486
00:35:48,000 --> 00:35:50,720
"You know I'm very anti-drugs,
but you're my daughter.

487
00:35:50,720 --> 00:35:55,600
"You're an idiot". Yeah, she told me
off pretty much as soon as I woke up!

488
00:35:58,080 --> 00:36:03,680
Sarah's liver transplant was
successful, but it still has
a huge impact on her life.

489
00:36:03,680 --> 00:36:08,960
Last year she became pregnant,
but gave birth prematurely
and lost her baby.

490
00:36:08,960 --> 00:36:13,240
Complications due to the liver
transplant were thought
to have played a part.

491
00:36:13,240 --> 00:36:18,720
Despite this, Sarah and Pete still
hope to have a baby in the future.

492
00:36:18,720 --> 00:36:21,720
If and when Sarah and myself,
you know, she does fall pregnant,

493
00:36:21,720 --> 00:36:24,680
will I have to be looking out
for any complications or what...?

494
00:36:24,680 --> 00:36:27,760
Again, I don't think you should
be looking out for anything,

495
00:36:27,760 --> 00:36:31,080
but you would fit into what we
call a high-risk pregnancy.

496
00:36:31,080 --> 00:36:32,800
The biggest risk is prematurity,

497
00:36:32,800 --> 00:36:37,160
but actually in general, we would
aspire to making sure with our

498
00:36:37,160 --> 00:36:41,920
obsterics colleagues that you
actually have a normal pregnancy
and you have a normal baby.

499
00:36:41,920 --> 00:36:45,800
That's what we should aim for,
that's one of the reasons
to keep you alive and well.

500
00:36:45,800 --> 00:36:50,280
I know so many people that do it
every weekend, and they don't just
do one or two,

501
00:36:50,280 --> 00:36:53,440
they maybe do six or seven in one
night, and I'd do a couple.

502
00:36:53,440 --> 00:36:57,240
I've done less than ten in my life,

503
00:36:57,240 --> 00:37:02,080
and I had that
big impact on my life which...

504
00:37:02,080 --> 00:37:05,080
still, to this day, has a big
impact on my life.

505
00:37:08,440 --> 00:37:12,800
It's 5am, and Katie and her
mates have left the club.

506
00:37:12,800 --> 00:37:14,680
What a group of people.

507
00:37:14,680 --> 00:37:16,520
We literally smashed it.

508
00:37:16,520 --> 00:37:21,960
Complete strangers, united for a few
hours on the dancefloor, going nuts.

509
00:37:21,960 --> 00:37:26,000
The girls head to a friend's flat
to wind down.

510
00:37:26,000 --> 00:37:31,040
After a few hours, the effects
of the MDMA start to wear off

511
00:37:31,040 --> 00:37:33,920
and the loved-up high subsides.

512
00:37:33,920 --> 00:37:37,880
The receptors in the brain become
tired of the frenzy of activity

513
00:37:37,880 --> 00:37:40,960
and are less stimulated
by the serotonin.

514
00:37:40,960 --> 00:37:46,160
Gradually, the feelgood
chemical starts to break down
and drifts away.

515
00:37:46,160 --> 00:37:49,480
I'm absolutely off my pickle.

516
00:37:49,480 --> 00:37:52,800
My eyes are going
"rrrrr", up and down.

517
00:37:52,800 --> 00:37:55,920
So my vision's not quite there yet.

518
00:37:55,920 --> 00:37:58,360
And I can't remember what
we were talking about again.

519
00:37:58,360 --> 00:38:04,000
So out of half a gram, I've still got
two pretty big ones left.

520
00:38:04,000 --> 00:38:07,960
So what do you think, do
you think you'll save those
for anther time, then?

521
00:38:07,960 --> 00:38:09,800
Probably not. We'll see what happens.

522
00:38:09,800 --> 00:38:15,640
It all depends on what everyone else
is doing, because I don't want to be
on this mission for no reason.

523
00:38:15,640 --> 00:38:20,240
Because you've got this connection,
and it is a really fucking good
cool connection when you're all

524
00:38:20,240 --> 00:38:25,720
on the same level and you don't
really need to explain things to
each other, everyone just knows.

525
00:38:25,720 --> 00:38:29,080
It's like, "Yes. I know where
you're coming from".

526
00:38:29,080 --> 00:38:32,840
That's what I love. And I still
can't remember what the question was.

527
00:38:36,120 --> 00:38:38,880
In south London,
the end of the night is in sight,

528
00:38:38,880 --> 00:38:43,000
and Robert is considering
whether to finish his MDMA stash.

529
00:38:43,000 --> 00:38:47,920
The sun's up now, but
we might still be here for

530
00:38:47,920 --> 00:38:49,440
another hour or so, probably.

531
00:38:49,440 --> 00:38:51,200
So I'm

532
00:38:51,200 --> 00:38:56,160
going to take a little bit more,
just to sort of keep me energised.

533
00:38:56,160 --> 00:38:59,400
I feel fine now, but I know in
about half an hour or so,

534
00:38:59,400 --> 00:39:03,440
I'll start dragging myself about
and then it will only go downhill.

535
00:39:09,960 --> 00:39:14,680
Many ecstasy users try to
keep up until morning by
taking more of the drug.

536
00:39:16,200 --> 00:39:19,920
But often,
the loved-up feelings elude them.

537
00:39:19,920 --> 00:39:23,360
That's because there's a limited
supply of serotonin available,

538
00:39:23,360 --> 00:39:28,120
and the massive release earlier
has left the stores depleted.

539
00:39:28,120 --> 00:39:33,480
I'll feel like my entire
body is exhausted,

540
00:39:33,480 --> 00:39:37,680
but my mind will still
be racing a little bit.

541
00:39:37,680 --> 00:39:42,560
The draining effects
of the comedown don't just
last for the day after use.

542
00:39:42,560 --> 00:39:49,080
It can take up to a week for the
brain to recover back to its normal
concentrations of serotonin.

543
00:39:49,080 --> 00:39:54,680
So some researchers actually think
that these midweek blues are actually
a combination of the fact that people

544
00:39:54,680 --> 00:39:59,480
have stayed up all weekend
and that their brain is trying
to resynthesise serotonin.

545
00:39:59,480 --> 00:40:04,040
The short-term depressive
effects of ecstasy are well known.

546
00:40:04,040 --> 00:40:08,240
But there are some who believe
that, far from causing depression,

547
00:40:08,240 --> 00:40:10,280
ecstasy can be used to treat it.

548
00:40:10,280 --> 00:40:15,200
The roots of MDMA as a therapy drug
go back to the late 1960s,

549
00:40:15,200 --> 00:40:20,480
when psychedelic pharmacist
Alexander Shulgin, since dubbed
the Godfather of ecstasy,

550
00:40:20,480 --> 00:40:24,560
synthesised the compound
in his garden laboratory.

551
00:40:24,560 --> 00:40:28,960
He was immediately
impressed by its effects.

552
00:40:28,960 --> 00:40:31,160
I saw that it was
almost like an intoxicant.

553
00:40:31,160 --> 00:40:35,240
I could see where I could have
gotten into the knack of using it,

554
00:40:35,240 --> 00:40:38,240
except my search was not being
pleasurably turned on,

555
00:40:38,240 --> 00:40:40,000
my search was finding new things.

556
00:40:41,840 --> 00:40:45,080
Shulgin gave MDMA to
psychologist friends,

557
00:40:45,080 --> 00:40:50,240
and before long the drug was being
widely used during therapy sessions.

558
00:40:50,240 --> 00:40:54,240
This use for the drug
went underground when it was banned.

559
00:40:54,240 --> 00:40:58,240
Recently, though, a movement
has been pushing to legalise MDMA

560
00:40:58,240 --> 00:41:02,600
in therapy for people with
post-traumatic stress disorder.

561
00:41:02,600 --> 00:41:05,600
The reason MDMA
is such as effective drug

562
00:41:05,600 --> 00:41:10,160
is because it reduces the fear
response to emotional threats.

563
00:41:10,160 --> 00:41:12,560
People who have post-traumatic
stress disorder,

564
00:41:12,560 --> 00:41:15,240
they have a trauma that they
have been unable to get past.

565
00:41:15,240 --> 00:41:18,960
But with MDMA,
in a very short amount of time,

566
00:41:18,960 --> 00:41:26,440
it strengthens people's ability
to accept and integrate
emotional challenges.

567
00:41:26,440 --> 00:41:33,440
This year, a major trial will begin
testing MDMA in therapy with Iraq
and Afghanistan military veterans

568
00:41:33,440 --> 00:41:36,040
suffering post-traumatic
stress disorder.

569
00:41:36,040 --> 00:41:40,760
It comes on the back of recent
successes treating PTSD patients

570
00:41:40,760 --> 00:41:42,880
and those dealing with
a terminal illness.

571
00:41:42,880 --> 00:41:48,200
What we showed is that people who had
post-traumatic stress disorder
for an average of 19 years,

572
00:41:48,200 --> 00:41:54,560
and had been resistant to treatment
after a treatment process

573
00:41:54,560 --> 00:41:57,360
of around three to
three-and-a-half months of MDMA,

574
00:41:57,360 --> 00:42:01,360
over 80% of them no longer have
post-traumatic stress disorder.

575
00:42:01,360 --> 00:42:06,080
I think we're about ten years away
from MDMA as a prescription medicine.

576
00:42:07,800 --> 00:42:13,720
Sue Stevens first came across MDMA
when her husband was diagnosed
with kidney cancer.

577
00:42:13,720 --> 00:42:19,080
Shane definitely was, and is,
the love of my life, yeah.

578
00:42:21,240 --> 00:42:22,920
Soon after Shane's cancer diagnosis,

579
00:42:22,920 --> 00:42:25,600
tensions appeared in the
relationship for the first time.

580
00:42:25,600 --> 00:42:28,400
If he brought up "I gotta
go to a doctor's appointment"

581
00:42:28,400 --> 00:42:34,800
or "this is going on", I would
tense up and I would think
"Cancer, doctor's appointment,

582
00:42:34,800 --> 00:42:38,000
"death", and my head would start
spinning and I would start crying.

583
00:42:38,000 --> 00:42:42,120
We had a total breakdown
in communication.

584
00:42:42,120 --> 00:42:44,240
Our house wasn't a happy place to be.

585
00:42:44,240 --> 00:42:46,560
There was a lot of stress there.

586
00:42:46,560 --> 00:42:51,800
A friend, who had heard of the use
of MDMA for relationship therapy,

587
00:42:51,800 --> 00:42:56,520
suggested the couple try
the drug together
to work through their problems.

588
00:42:56,520 --> 00:43:00,200
My reaction was "What? It's illegal
drugs. We can't have this.

589
00:43:00,200 --> 00:43:05,640
"That's the last thing we need
right now, cops beating down the
door", so that was my gut reaction.

590
00:43:05,640 --> 00:43:10,360
We never would have thought
that a street drug would be
what we would need.

591
00:43:12,560 --> 00:43:17,040
Because ecstasy is illegal
and not recognised as a therapy
tool by mainstream doctors,

592
00:43:17,040 --> 00:43:19,760
Sue and Shane sought advice
from an underground therapist

593
00:43:19,760 --> 00:43:23,280
who was on call
the night they took the drug
together for the first time.

594
00:43:24,800 --> 00:43:27,560
We're sitting there, watching movies.

595
00:43:27,560 --> 00:43:30,040
Pretty Woman was on,
I do recall that.

596
00:43:30,040 --> 00:43:33,240
And about a half hour into it,
we're sitting there going,

597
00:43:33,240 --> 00:43:35,480
"Wow, this is a crappy movie,
what are we waiting for",

598
00:43:35,480 --> 00:43:38,160
and all of a sudden - poof -
it all came to life.

599
00:43:38,160 --> 00:43:43,200
Like the drug kicked in, and he just
looks at me and he's holding my hand
and going "all right, let's talk.

600
00:43:43,200 --> 00:43:46,040
"I know what you wanna talk about.
Come on, let's go.

601
00:43:46,040 --> 00:43:49,120
"Let's get this out of the way,
let's get the cancer out of the way.

602
00:43:49,120 --> 00:43:51,240
"Let's become allies on it,
let's talk".

603
00:43:52,760 --> 00:43:56,920
When you take MDMA, things don't
hurt you, the words don't hurt you.

604
00:43:56,920 --> 00:44:01,280
You can feel them, but the
pain doesn't come along with it.

605
00:44:01,280 --> 00:44:03,880
The words definitely
make their impact.

606
00:44:03,880 --> 00:44:08,680
Had we not done that first session,
we would not have been together
at the time of his death.

607
00:44:10,200 --> 00:44:13,880
Sue and Shane took MDMA together
on three more occasions,

608
00:44:13,880 --> 00:44:17,320
and found the experiences radically
improved their ability

609
00:44:17,320 --> 00:44:20,600
to discuss Shane's terminal
illness between sessions.

610
00:44:20,600 --> 00:44:25,840
Our final therapy session
was 28 days before he died.

611
00:44:25,840 --> 00:44:28,720
Why we taped it,
I'm still not entirely sure.

612
00:44:28,720 --> 00:44:34,760
I kind of think I just taped it
for me, even though I still have
a really hard time watching it.

613
00:44:37,760 --> 00:44:41,720
We were just doing MDMA to be close.

614
00:44:41,720 --> 00:44:46,160
To live all those years that were
about to be taken away from us.

615
00:44:46,160 --> 00:44:50,760
To have one more really strong
bonding before he's gone.

616
00:44:52,320 --> 00:44:55,880
There's a spot on here
somewhere where he sits back

617
00:44:55,880 --> 00:44:59,880
and says its really nice
not to have cancer tonight,

618
00:44:59,880 --> 00:45:03,440
because in a sense
that night was cancer-free.

619
00:45:07,440 --> 00:45:09,000
I miss that.

620
00:45:12,360 --> 00:45:15,920
After Shane's death,
Sue turned to MDMA again,

621
00:45:15,920 --> 00:45:21,160
this time taking the drug
with a trained therapist who
helped her work through her grief.

622
00:45:21,160 --> 00:45:24,480
For me, calling it a drug,

623
00:45:26,360 --> 00:45:28,640
it's more of a medication to me.

624
00:45:30,160 --> 00:45:31,800
It saved my life.

625
00:45:31,800 --> 00:45:35,680
I've watched it do that to many
people. To me, it's medication.

626
00:45:39,560 --> 00:45:46,800
MDMA therapy remains controversial
though, given the problems reported
by some recreational users.

627
00:45:46,800 --> 00:45:52,520
Some experts have suggested a danger
might be ecstasy's possible role
as a gateway drug.

628
00:45:52,520 --> 00:45:54,960
When we first started looking
at MDMA,

629
00:45:54,960 --> 00:45:57,920
many of the users were
single users of the drug.

630
00:45:57,920 --> 00:45:59,440
They only took ecstasy.

631
00:45:59,440 --> 00:46:03,680
In the past ten years, we've found
far more users of the polydrug,

632
00:46:03,680 --> 00:46:05,920
so they take ecstasy
combined with other drugs.

633
00:46:05,920 --> 00:46:11,400
Once you're an ecstasy user, the
likelihood of using other illicit
drugs is certainly increased.

634
00:46:16,000 --> 00:46:20,520
Glenn Le Santo's son, Nimai,
started out taking ecstasy and MDMA,

635
00:46:20,520 --> 00:46:24,000
but soon began using
other drugs alongside it.

636
00:46:24,000 --> 00:46:28,840
I think it you look at that picture,
you can see there is some evidence

637
00:46:28,840 --> 00:46:33,520
of where his life was going and where
drugs were becoming involved.

638
00:46:33,520 --> 00:46:35,800
Nimai was a very bright young man.

639
00:46:35,800 --> 00:46:40,680
It was obvious really from
very early on, babyhood.

640
00:46:40,680 --> 00:46:46,240
Interestingly, his first written
words were disk, file and save.

641
00:46:46,240 --> 00:46:48,120
I kid you not, they really were.

642
00:46:48,120 --> 00:46:49,920
He had a thirst for knowledge,

643
00:46:49,920 --> 00:46:53,760
if you like, he was drinking
information all through his life.

644
00:46:53,760 --> 00:46:56,400
Unfortunately that often
leads to boredom, doesn't it?

645
00:46:56,400 --> 00:47:02,280
Because society doesn't seem
to be geared up deal with
that type of hyper-intellect.

646
00:47:03,680 --> 00:47:08,320
During secondary school,
Nimai became disillusioned
with formal education.

647
00:47:08,320 --> 00:47:12,320
He started to spend less time
at school and more time DJ-ing.

648
00:47:14,520 --> 00:47:17,760
Nimai's clubbing lifestyle
introduced him to ecstasy,

649
00:47:17,760 --> 00:47:23,440
but before long, it started to
have a negative impact on his life.

650
00:47:23,440 --> 00:47:27,600
If you're living in a city
like Brighton, you can go
raving every single night.

651
00:47:27,600 --> 00:47:30,160
You really can,
you can go out and do it.

652
00:47:30,160 --> 00:47:36,480
Or, and I think this is
probably what began to happen,
you can stay in and do it.

653
00:47:36,480 --> 00:47:41,720
We all know the difference even
between drinking a bottle of wine out
in a restaurant with some friends,

654
00:47:41,720 --> 00:47:45,680
while sinking a bottle of wine
in a miserable evening
in front of the television.

655
00:47:45,680 --> 00:47:49,800
You are going to definitely get
into this situation where you're

656
00:47:49,800 --> 00:47:55,160
trying to fill in the troughs and
how are you going to fill them in?
You're going to take more drugs.

657
00:47:56,800 --> 00:48:02,160
Nimai was living away from home in
Brighton and was using ecstasy with
a range of other drugs,

658
00:48:02,160 --> 00:48:04,320
including ketamine and GHB.

659
00:48:05,640 --> 00:48:11,960
Glenn heard rumours his son was in
trouble and persuaded him to come
back and stay at the family home.

660
00:48:11,960 --> 00:48:16,400
The first night he was here,
he vomited all over the room,

661
00:48:16,400 --> 00:48:20,640
and I think that was the point
when I realised that there
was serious trouble here.

662
00:48:20,640 --> 00:48:26,160
And I challenged him and he said
"No, no, I'm not taking anything,
honest, I'm not taking anything",

663
00:48:26,160 --> 00:48:27,600
and I knew he was lying.

664
00:48:29,160 --> 00:48:34,600
Things improved and Nimai
got a job and made plans to enrol
at the local university.

665
00:48:34,600 --> 00:48:38,680
But before long, signs of his
old life started to creep in.

666
00:48:38,680 --> 00:48:43,840
He started to going to Brighton
again, ostensibly on social trips

667
00:48:43,840 --> 00:48:45,680
but I knew what was going on,

668
00:48:45,680 --> 00:48:49,920
and I knew what was going on because
he was failing to go to work
on the following Monday,

669
00:48:49,920 --> 00:48:52,120
so he obviously
got battered on the weekend.

670
00:48:52,120 --> 00:48:55,720
And he came here
on the Friday before he died,

671
00:48:55,720 --> 00:49:00,600
and as he left to cycle down
to the station I said, "be careful",

672
00:49:00,600 --> 00:49:03,440
because I knew where he was
going and what he was doing,

673
00:49:03,440 --> 00:49:07,960
and I made a mental note
to recapture him physically,

674
00:49:07,960 --> 00:49:13,880
quite literally when he came back,
that's it. He's coming back here.

675
00:49:13,880 --> 00:49:15,480
We're going to drag
him out of his digs,

676
00:49:15,480 --> 00:49:19,520
and he'll live here for a few more
weeks before he starts his course.

677
00:49:19,520 --> 00:49:21,160
Of course, he never came back.

678
00:49:22,680 --> 00:49:29,760
Him and his friend were basically
tooled up to party the whole weekend
and he didn't go out,

679
00:49:29,760 --> 00:49:36,920
they stayed in his friend's flat
and they just took maximum amounts
of drugs, they took everything.

680
00:49:36,920 --> 00:49:41,400
They took cocaine, amphetamines,

681
00:49:41,400 --> 00:49:45,640
ketamine, liquid ecstasy, MDMA,

682
00:49:45,640 --> 00:49:50,080
G, and apparently,
they also smoked heroin.

683
00:49:50,080 --> 00:49:55,520
They'd been banging their way through
their stash, Friday night, Saturday,

684
00:49:55,520 --> 00:50:00,840
Sunday morning, his friend had to go
to work, so he left Nimai sleeping.

685
00:50:00,840 --> 00:50:04,640
There's text messages on Nimai's
phone from his friend saying,

686
00:50:04,640 --> 00:50:07,480
"Don't take all the mandy,
save some for me."

687
00:50:07,480 --> 00:50:11,160
Nimai was probably already dead
by the time his friend sent that.

688
00:50:15,240 --> 00:50:21,200
The toxicology blamed MDMA, but
subsequently the inquest suggested

689
00:50:21,200 --> 00:50:24,480
it was just layer upon layer
upon layer of abuse.

690
00:50:26,640 --> 00:50:29,760
I'm a realist,
I know that he had a horrible death.

691
00:50:29,760 --> 00:50:32,640
Death in this situation is drowning.

692
00:50:32,640 --> 00:50:37,760
Your central nervous system
stops working,
so your lungs stop moving,

693
00:50:37,760 --> 00:50:41,200
when your lungs stop moving,
they fill up with body fluid.

694
00:50:41,200 --> 00:50:46,120
That means that your brain
stays alive while you die.

695
00:50:46,120 --> 00:50:48,520
But your body can't
do anything about it.

696
00:50:48,520 --> 00:50:52,080
And people out there who think,
"I don't even care if it kills me

697
00:50:52,080 --> 00:50:55,560
"because I'll just fall asleep
and I'll be high and it'll be great",

698
00:50:55,560 --> 00:50:58,280
it's bullshit.
It's not going to be like that.

699
00:50:58,280 --> 00:51:00,000
It's going to be terrible.

700
00:51:02,080 --> 00:51:05,960
Here's a comment says, "You always
smashed it at Vibe Alive, mate.

701
00:51:05,960 --> 00:51:10,760
"Rest in peace." Meaning that when
he was on the decks, he tore it up.

702
00:51:10,760 --> 00:51:14,200
He was very, very good at it.

703
00:51:14,200 --> 00:51:18,520
"I only met you a few times,
man, but good times were had."

704
00:51:18,520 --> 00:51:23,280
"To the big club in the sky and
to you, we all raise our glasses."

705
00:51:23,280 --> 00:51:25,960
I can't read any more, sorry.

706
00:51:29,600 --> 00:51:33,560
People say time is a healer.

707
00:51:33,560 --> 00:51:35,200
It isn't. It really isn't.

708
00:51:35,200 --> 00:51:39,920
All that you do is put on a slightly
thicker skin to deal with the pain.

709
00:51:39,920 --> 00:51:43,960
He would've been dead
two years in a couple of weeks time,

710
00:51:43,960 --> 00:51:49,040
it's as fresh and as raw as it
was the day I got that phone call.

711
00:51:49,040 --> 00:51:51,040
And in fact, sometimes it's worse.

712
00:51:52,760 --> 00:51:56,520
I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy,
I really wouldn't.

713
00:52:04,560 --> 00:52:06,640
# Statements, statement

714
00:52:08,080 --> 00:52:11,520
# Investigation department

715
00:52:11,520 --> 00:52:14,640
# Hey, hey. Hey, hey... #

716
00:52:24,280 --> 00:52:26,800
It's 8am, Sunday morning.

717
00:52:26,800 --> 00:52:30,960
Robert took his last MDMA
of the night two hours ago.

718
00:52:30,960 --> 00:52:34,080
We've gone over the mountain
and now we're on our descent.

719
00:52:34,080 --> 00:52:39,160
So, yeah, I'm on my way down a bit,
I'm not too far down but...

720
00:52:39,160 --> 00:52:40,800
But spirits are high!

721
00:52:40,800 --> 00:52:42,560
Spirits are always high.

722
00:52:42,560 --> 00:52:44,680
Villagers are always rejoicing.

723
00:52:44,680 --> 00:52:49,560
This is the sign of a good night,
when you leave the rave
with a smile on your face,

724
00:52:49,560 --> 00:52:53,360
despite the fact you're coming down
and you're feeling like crap,

725
00:52:53,360 --> 00:52:55,480
you're still walking down the street

726
00:52:55,480 --> 00:52:59,080
happy as Larry
with a bit fat grin on your face.

727
00:53:07,280 --> 00:53:09,600
They used to call me
"Comedown Katie".

728
00:53:09,600 --> 00:53:14,800
As soon as the sunlight started
coming up, I'd be very paranoid
about what a state I looked.

729
00:53:14,800 --> 00:53:16,520
Usually disgusting.

730
00:53:16,520 --> 00:53:22,760
Your stomach just feel hollow but
you can't eat, you don't want to eat
and you slowly start withering away.

731
00:53:22,760 --> 00:53:26,080
I'm a bit tired, but I'm not really.

732
00:53:26,080 --> 00:53:29,880
I'm definitely like, absolutely fine,

733
00:53:29,880 --> 00:53:32,480
but I just can't wait
to have a bit fat spliff

734
00:53:32,480 --> 00:53:36,040
and get all cuddly and wrapped in
a duvet and watch some films.

735
00:53:36,040 --> 00:53:39,960
Yay, made it!

736
00:53:42,080 --> 00:53:47,360
# 15 miles down river
that rain will clear... #

737
00:53:47,360 --> 00:53:48,960
Wow, that's amazing.

738
00:53:50,560 --> 00:53:55,240
Katie's first aid kit to help
the comedown is a vitamin pill...

739
00:53:55,240 --> 00:53:57,320
and a joint.

740
00:53:57,320 --> 00:54:00,720
Erm, I just like to do it, after
I've been out in the morning,

741
00:54:00,720 --> 00:54:02,960
when you get back
and you're like, yes.

742
00:54:02,960 --> 00:54:10,200
Now there's no more goal for the
day really, other than to just relax.

743
00:54:10,200 --> 00:54:14,480
God I'm so tired,
I can barely keep my eyes open.

744
00:54:16,960 --> 00:54:20,640
Many clubbers like to relax with
a joint when they get home,

745
00:54:20,640 --> 00:54:25,320
but the chilled-out high
can have side effects,
like anxiety and paranoia.

746
00:54:25,320 --> 00:54:27,800
I think we had a good
time, didn't we guys?

747
00:54:27,800 --> 00:54:30,040
Yeah.

748
00:54:32,840 --> 00:54:37,960
I'm slowly starting to feel
a little more groggy

749
00:54:37,960 --> 00:54:40,240
as the morning goes on.

750
00:54:40,240 --> 00:54:43,080
I'm going to end up
sleeping the day away.

751
00:54:43,080 --> 00:54:47,320
It's a Halloween Sunday,
I don't think anyone will
expect too much of me today.

752
00:54:51,720 --> 00:54:55,280
I never thought I'd be a drug user,
ever, when I was a kid,

753
00:54:55,280 --> 00:55:01,480
but with ecstasy, you feel like
a much more talkative, friendly,

754
00:55:01,480 --> 00:55:04,520
open, honest, empathetic you.

755
00:55:04,520 --> 00:55:09,400
I can't really tell right now if I'm
going to be taking ecstasy for years.

756
00:55:09,400 --> 00:55:12,320
I don't think I'll be
taking it when I'm 40 or 50.

757
00:55:12,320 --> 00:55:15,000
I think by then,
I should've calmed down a bit,

758
00:55:15,000 --> 00:55:17,360
but who knows? Who knows?

759
00:55:24,920 --> 00:55:26,680
Ah...

760
00:55:26,680 --> 00:55:31,440
I absolutely loved and adored
everyone that crossed my path

761
00:55:31,440 --> 00:55:34,480
and erm, wanted to be best
friends with them for life.

762
00:55:34,480 --> 00:55:36,840
I have no idea who any
of them are, obviously.

763
00:55:36,840 --> 00:55:38,760
Does it ever feel a bit surface?

764
00:55:38,760 --> 00:55:40,680
Do you know what I mean?
Yeah, but who cares?

765
00:55:40,680 --> 00:55:43,400
Obviously I'm not going to be
best friends with them, I don't

766
00:55:43,400 --> 00:55:48,960
care, it's just in the moment,
that just happens and you just
enjoy it while you're there.

767
00:55:48,960 --> 00:55:51,280
And it works.

768
00:55:51,280 --> 00:55:54,160
I just want to sleep
and this will help me.

769
00:55:58,600 --> 00:56:01,120
Oh, god. That's not... Right.

770
00:56:03,320 --> 00:56:08,680
I wouldn't say that MDMA
and other drugs are necessarily
important in my life.

771
00:56:08,680 --> 00:56:13,280
That's not the only thing I'm into,
I've done really well at school,
I'm now at uni.

772
00:56:13,280 --> 00:56:15,520
I've gone travelling on my own.

773
00:56:15,520 --> 00:56:17,560
It's something that I do
and I enjoy it.

774
00:56:18,560 --> 00:56:21,640
MUSIC: "I'd Do It All Again"
by Corinne Bailey Rae

775
00:56:51,120 --> 00:56:53,160
Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd

776
00:56:53,160 --> 00:56:55,200
E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk