WORKERS 'ROLL' TOO

It's commonly known as a club drug or the rave-goer's pill, but to think
ecstasy use is exclusive to the young or the club culture would be a mistake.

The illegal drug can be found in Boulder outside the rave scene, being used
by educated professionals.

Recreational users say ecstasy, though not the most popular drug, is more
socially acceptable than others, with the exception of marijuana and alcohol.

Area adults may have first tried ecstasy as teens, or have been exposed to
the drug later at raves or socially.

"I know some older people mess around with it," said Boulder artist Cisco
Manzo, 34, a former regular user of ecstasy. "Everyone is experimenting
with it right now."

Five local professionals, men in their mid-20s to early 30s, spoke about
ecstasy use this week — their own use and their peers'.

All spoke on condition of anonymity, expressing fear about damaging their
professional standing.

While their reasons for doing the drug differed, they estimated that nearly
a quarter of the people they socialize with do the drug occasionally.

One Boulder 33-year-old who works in the computer industry and travels to
other high-tech cities — San Jose, Calif., and elsewhere — said a portion
of workers in technology circles everywhere turn to the drug as a
recreational release.

In the May 2000 issue of the technology magazine Wired, credits on page 315
included an homage to the drug.

Where the magazine's list of "what made this issue possible" routinely
runs, a section called "drugs of choice" ran instead and was led off by
MDMA, the acronym for the chemical methylenedioxymethamphetamine, better
known as ecstasy.

The Boulder man theorized that the culture of the high-tech world lends
itself to the drug. Educated people used to taking risks professionally
aren't going to let "propaganda" about drugs turn them away, he said.

"These are people who are accustomed to the vanguard — what's new, what's
next, what's cool," he said. "They're willing to apply that to their
personal life. ... They're going to find out for themselves."

Other professions are not immune to the drug's allure. Some mortgage
brokers, teachers, attorneys and scientists are included in the mix.

Ecstasy's draw can be found in its reputation as a "good time" drug, and as
a mildly psychedelic sexual stimulant.

Users talk of the drug as a social experience, typically taken in groups on
nights out and then followed by late night conversation.

Unlike alcohol or other drugs, ecstasy promotes emotional ties and empathy
among them while they are "rolling," or high. Shared experiences like music
seem more profound, they said.

It's an easy form of intimacy and euphoria that relieves the stress of the
work week, said one.

Ultimately, though, the drug wears off and the intimate feelings it
generates prove superficial, he said, and the drug can leave users feeling
stupefied for days.

He said he has witnessed regular ecstasy use pull people into bouts of
depression, and his friends plan regular weeks-long stretches of abstinence
from the drug as a precaution.

Local addiction counselors say alcohol, cocaine and prescription drugs are
the dominant chemicals that lead Boulder-area adults to seek help, but
ecstasy also comes up.

"Occasionally I see somebody who's taken it, but they seem to be
conservative about it," said Tim Stokes, a Boulder psychologist who
provides drug treatment with Corporate Psychological Services. "They're not
taking excess dosages, and they're careful not to mix it with things.
People don't come in because they're strung out on ecstasy."

Boulder professionals interviewed said they are careful about how much they
take and whom they buy it from.

They said several of their peers who do ecstasy don't do other drugs, and
some don't drink alcohol or smoke. The perception is that ecstasy is safe
when correctly taken.

One user, a 27-year-old state employee who takes ecstasy several times a
year before concerts or going dancing, speculated that the reputation is a
result of "marketing" behind the drug.

"Just look at its name. Ecstasy, who wouldn't want that?" he said.

He said some people he knows who are generally careful about their health
feel comfortable using ecstasy.

Stokes was quick to point out that ecstasy, like any drug, can be dangerous.

"It kills people, so you can't say its benign," he said. "Is it as
addictive as cocaine or amphetamine? Probably not, but that doesn't mean
it's not harmful."