Ecstasy: It's no party; A little pill is threatening the lives of teens. (News Special).

Clarissa McKennie was 13 when she took her first hit. "It was great. It definitely put me in ecstasy," she told JS. "My body tingled, and I got to be a person that I wasn't. It made me talkative. Made me feel like I was friends with everybody."

At first, Clarissa took the little pills every other weekend. Then it was every weekend, then four to five times a week. Soon she started using other drugs.

Finally, at 17, Clarissa was arrested for grand larceny-stealing to fund her drug habit. Ecstasy, the little pills that once made her feel so good, had helped Clarissa to crash and mess up her life.

Ecstasy is a deceptive (misleading) drug. The candy-colored tablets, most of which are made in the Netherlands, often come stamped with cute designs. At first, they trigger an energy surge coupled with warm, loving feelings. That's why kids call Ecstasy the "love drug" or the "hug drug." But it can also quickly drop users into a nightmare of depression, self-destruction- and even death.

Surveys show that teen use of Ecstasy has skyrocketed in recent years, even as use of other drugs has stayed steady. Now lawmakers and antidrug organizations, as well as former users like Clarissa, are getting the word out: Ecstasy is addictive and sometimes deadly. It can wreck your life and damage your brain.

And, according to laboratory analysis, as many as 30 percent of Ecstasy pills contain other dangerous drugs-such as PCP, Ketamine, or DXM-that dealers are unlikely to tell users about.

Altering Brain Chemistry

Many teens discovered Ecstasy in the 1990s as part of the "rave culture"-a scene centered on all-night dance parties with huge crowds, techno music, and flashing lights. Many "ravers" use the drug to fuel their marathon dancing. The hyperactivity alone has led to dozens of heatstroke deaths.

Along with energizing the body, Ecstasy often generates feelings of happiness and affection. It does this, research suggests, by changing brain chemistry, specifically by releasing a chemical called serotonin (sehr-ah-TONE-nin).

Serotonin helps regulate appetite, sleep patterns, memory, and moods. The brain releases serotonin during pleasant experiences, like falling in love or watching a great movie. Ecstasy, though, tricks the brain into releasing all of its serotonin supply at once. Usually, the high lasts for about an hour.

"When you come off the Ecstasy high," warns Clarissa, "depression is waiting for you on the downside." Having dumped the serotonin, the brain no longer has the chemical it needs to help counter feelings of sadness or depression.

Some users try to overcome this by taking more Ecstasy. But since the serotonin has already been exhausted--it takes about two weeks for serotonin levels to return to normal--the drug can't reproduce the happy feelings.

Permanent Damage

New research indicates that Ecstasy may lead to permanent brain damage. One of the chemical reactions caused by the drug creates a neurotoxin--a poison that damages the neurons that use serotonin. Without proper functioning of these neurons, the brain cannot generate positive feelings.

Imaging of heavy users shows that their brains have been harmed. (See photo at right.) And, says John Walters, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, "the damage may be irreparable [unable to be repaired]."

Studies also suggest that Ecstasy may sabotage the brain's memory centers. "I've blacked out at times, and parts of my life I don't remember," says Clarissa, now 19.

A resident of Phoenix House, a drug treatment center in New York City, Clarissa does not want to undergo brain imaging. "I'm too scared to see what it looks like," she says. "I'm sure there's a lot of permanent damage."

Teens Ignore Warnings

Many teens seem to dismiss the dangers and think that Ecstasy is harmless. According to surveys, use of the drug has swelled in high schools and middle schools.

"Teen experimentation with Ecstasy is now equal to or greater than adolescent consumption of cocaine, crack, heroin, LSD, and methamphetamine," says Stephen J. Pasierb, president of the Partnership for a Drug-Free America (PDFA).

A University of Michigan study indicates that Ecstasy use grew 78 percent among high school seniors from 1995 to 2000. And, between 2000 and 2001, it grew 82 percent among 8th-graders.

These statistics lit a fire under lawmakers and antidrug organizations. Television networks now air anti-Ecstasy commercials. And the U.S. Congress is finalizing the Ecstasy Prevention Act, which will fund drug research and education efforts. The new law will also toughen prison sentences for Ecstasy dealers.

But it is not up to adults alone to address the issue, says Clarissa. Teens have a huge role to play, since Ecstasy hits them the hardest.

"Kids need to educate themselves on Ecstasy and other drugs that are being used now, and communicate with each other: Stay away from it," says Clarissa. "They can't ignore the danger Ecstasy poses to them and their friends."

The major task is to convince teens that Ecstasy can ruin lives. "I hear people say that Ecstasy is a harmless, happy drug," writes former user Lynn Smith, 21, on the PDFA Web site (www.drugfreeamerica.org). "There's nothing happy about the way that 'harmless' drug chipped away at my life. Ecstasy took my strength, my motivation, my dreams, my friends, my apartment, my money, and most of all, my sanity."