Most people who have used the drug ecstasy know that it can provide a euphoric feeling. However, that great feeling could be setting users up for a long battle with depression.

A recent study out of Canada reported by CBS news, revealed that teens who get high on MDMA (ecstasy), methamphetamine and/or amphetamine could be setting themselves up for feeling depressed long after they take the drugs, according to a new Canadian study.

Frightening Findings

Researchers interviewed about 3,900 10th graders in Quebec and followed up with them when they were in the 11th grade. Those who admitted to using the drugs had a 60 to 70 percent risk of experiencing depression symptoms a year after they said they used the substances. Teens who used both the drugs had double the risk for signs of depression compared to those who didn't use the drugs.

How accurate are these findings? Really the only true way to see the effects of these drugs on depression would be to have a test group using a placebo which will never happen.

In my opinion, these drugs mess with the body’s nature chemical balance, altering serotonin levels and making it more difficult to appreciate life without the aid of chemicals.

Drugs are evil. There is no need to make life more difficult by using drugs and getting addicted to chemical substances. The best way to steer clear of depression is to steer clear of addictions. If you or someone you care about has a drug problem seek help. There are also online drug classes.

Drug addiction is quite prevalent among the world’s prostitutes. For whatever reason, a huge percentage of them are drug users. Jamaica is having a terrible time right now.

As reported in the Jamaica Gleaner, simmering beneath the surface of Jamaica's illicit sex trade are melancholy tales of drug abuse as local sex workers have turned to ecstasy - the party drug - to cope with the physical and psychological rigors of their job.

A retired prostitute said many use the party drug known on the street as 'X' to alter their persona.

The use of ecstasy by prostitutes compounds Jamaica's 'new' drug problem as earlier this year it was revealed that a shortage of medication containing pseudoephedrine, the main ingredient in many cold and flu medicines sold in Jamaica, is being linked to the illegal manufacturing and sale of methamphetamine (commonly called meth).

It is a powerful stimulant that alters the functions of the central nervous system, and pseudoephedrine, it is believed, is being used to 'cook' the hard drug meth.

Ecstasy is a cousin to methamphetamine, because both of them are from the amphetamine class and both drugs have pseudo ephedrine as a precursor.

Ecstasy usually takes the form of a small tablet but it packs a whack. It is a drug that makes you feel close to everybody and your guard comes down.

Other Jamaican prostitutes have resorted to strange concoctions that include energy drinks and other uppers just to make it through their nightly 'ordeal'.

Ecstasy use can produce psychedelic and stimulant side effects such as anxiety attacks, tachycardia, hypertension and hyperthermia. Addiction, high blood pressure, heat stroke and kidney failure are also linked to ecstasy use.

Drug addiction is a serious issue. I can only imagine what goes through the minds of the Jamaican prostitutes and can understand their need to transform themselves into something different. But ecstasy and other drugs are not the answer. As many of the women admit, they do the job because they have kids at home and they need to be fed. A good drug class would educate them on why not to use these substances.

That headline is no typo, it is true that ecstasy could have positive benefits for some people.

The first clinical trial of ecstasy in the UK to discover if the drug can help victims of child abuse, rape and war is being planned.

Public concerns and media exposure has made it almost impossible to explore the therapeutic benefits of ecstasy, claim scientists.

But they believe that the illegal drug and others like LSD and magic mushrooms could useful in the treatment of people with serious psychological issues who cannot face their problems.

The Test

They hope to repeat successful U.S. trials on 20 patients in South Carolina who had suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder for an average of 19 years. One of the patients was an army veteran, while the others had been victims of sexual abuse or rape.

Twelve were given MDMA, or 3,4- methylenedioxymethamphetamine, the chemical compound found pure in ecstasy tablets.

The rest had placebo pills but were later also given the chance to take MDMA. Each patients had a therapy session, lying back in a reclining chair in a pleasant flower-decorated room wearing an eye mask.

They listened to music on headphones or talked to a therapist while thinking about the events they had been unable to contemplate in past consultations.

Ten out of the 12 patients showed dramatic improvement to their condition two months after the second of two MDMA sessions.

That figure compared with 25 per cent of those on the placebo. There were no serious side-effects and no long-term problems.

Mr. Michael Mithoefer, the psychiatrist who ran the U.S. study and carried out the psychotherapy with his wife, Ann, said he expected the trials to be a success.

He described the improvement in the patients' condition as 'the icing on the cake.'

Shrooms Medicinal Too

Meanwhile, a single high dose of so-called 'magic' mushrooms has been found to change people's personalities, not for a few hours, but for at least a year - making them more 'open'.

The personality disruptions were so intense they were equivalent to the slow changes that occur in people over entire decades - and the researchers found that even after terrifying drug trips, the changes were the same.

The mushrooms - which grow wild in the UK and parts of the US, as well as countries such as Mexico and Thailand, contain the hallucinogen psilocybin.

The experiment with a high dose was enough to bring about a measurable personality change lasting at least a year in nearly 60 per cent of the people.

If these two drugs are medicinal they need to be highly-regulated. I would like to see how these studies work out.

In our series on addictive drugs we next look at ecstasy. Ecstasy, scientifically known as MDMA, can induce euphoria, a sense of intimacy with others, and diminished anxiety. Did you know of all the major addictive drugs, ecstasy is the least addictive? On a scale from 0 to 3, with 3 being the most addictive (heroin), MDMA rated a 1.2 for psychological dependence and a 0.7 for physical dependence.

Can Ecstasy Be Good for You?

Many studies, particularly in the fields of psychology and cognitive therapy, have suggested that MDMA has therapeutic benefits and facilitates therapy sessions in certain individuals, a practice for which it had formally been used in the past. Clinical trials are now testing the therapeutic potential of MDMA for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and anxiety associated with terminal cancer.

Most recently, studies have shown that psilocybin, often found in “magic mushrooms” can have a positive effect on personality with as little as one use.

MDMA is criminalized in most countries under a United Nations (UN) agreement, and its possession, manufacture, or sale may result in criminal prosecution, although some limited exceptions exist for scientific and medical research.

MDMA is one of the most widely used recreational drugs in the world and is taken in a variety of contexts far removed from its roots in psychotherapeutic settings.

As a counselor for both in class and online drug classes my advice is that there is no medical benefit from doing ecstasy.