MOLLY
Local Experts Warn Against
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‘MOLLY’
As Teens Experiment With Club Drug
Photo Source: abcnews.go.com
Many parents have never even heard of the potentially
dangerous drug that their kids could be using.
There’s a new drug of choice among
teens in the United States and according to
experts, most parents have no clue that the
drug exists--or that their teens are hooked.
The drug, called “Molly,” is the powder
or crystal form of MDMA, the chemical used
in making ecstasy, said Susan Toman, of
the Guidance Center in Southold. MDMA,
she said, is a synthetic, psychoactive drug
that produces feelings of increased energy,
euphoria, emotional warmth and empathy
toward others, and distortions in sensory and
time perception.
According to the United States Drug
Enforcement Administration, Molly’s technical name is 1-(3-Trifluoromethylphenyl) piperazine, or TFMPP.
Taken in large doses, Molly causes hallucinogenic reactions; the DEA considers MDMA
to be a schedule I controlled substance, and
can cause confusion, anxiety, depression,
paranoia, sleep problems, and drug craving. The drug also can cause muscle tension,
tremors, involuntary teeth clenching, muscle
cramps, nausea, faintness, chills, sweating,
and blurred vision.
In addition, the DEA reported that high
doses of MDMA can interfere with the ability to regulate body temperature, resulting
in a sharp increase in body temperature and
hyperthermia, leading to liver, kidney and
cardiovascular failure. Severe dehydration
can result, the DEA said.
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Experts warn Molly is being used by area
teens. “Molly is being experimented with by
youth through out the United States,” Toman
said. “The hip hop community promotes it in
music,” she said.
A Huffington Post report, Madonna was
criticized in March for asking, at a music festival, “How many people in this crowd have
seen Molly?” The crowd, the article stated,
cheered.
Toman said the drug can cause euphoric
feelings. “They’re walking around with rose-
color glasses that last for a few hours. Students have been known to attend school and
be able to function on Molly,” she said.
In addition, Toman said, teens are experimenting with other synthetic substances,
such as Smiles, a hallucinogenic drug—and
others that can be smoked in “e-cigarettes,”
electronic cigarettes that look like nicotine
cigarettes but can be filled with synthetic
drugs and masked with pleasant scents so
parents remain unaware.
John Corbett, clinical coordinator at Mary
Haven Center of Hope, works with teens and
adults addicted to Molly and other synthetic
drugs in “Steps to Life” program.
Corbett recently addressed the alarming
topic of widespread Molly use at a forum
held at Mattituck High School in December.
“Molly is like the 70s version of crack,”
he said. Teens, Corbett said, are combining
Molly with other drugs, including marijuana
and alcohol.
“This is not just happening in Mattituck
and Riverhead,” Corbett said. “It’s everywhere. It begins with adolescents—it’s their
drug of choice. Gone are the days when kids
smoked marijuana and had a can of beer.”
Today, Corbett said, teens are shooting
dope, sniffing heroin, injecting “oxys and
roxies,” or the pill form of heroin, and opiate,
and using Smiles, a form of K2, another dangerous synthetic “designer” drug.
But, Bennett said, although kids love the
“highs and lows,” of Molly, the crash is a hard
one; body chemicals are being reconfigured
and body temperatures being manipulated -something that can cause dangerous medical
issues, he said.
“Kids are experimenting with this on a
regular basis,” Bennett said.
Molly can sell for anywhere from $8 to
$25, but because the drug is so highly addicting, he said, “They’re buying a lot of it.”
Corbett said his agency works with the
Source: http://riverhead.patch.com/groups/around-town/p/local-experts-warnagainst-molly-as-teens-experiment-6d85b73a64