FIRST ECSTASY, THEN OBLIVION

Ecstasy can kill you.

Can that message be driven home any more acutely
than it has in communities in B.C. and Alberta?
In the past five weeks, the popular man-made drug
has taken several lives and is responsible for
another that hangs in the balance.

The drugs were laced with paramethoxy-metamphetamine.

On Nov. 27, Tyler Miller, 20, took ecstasy. He
was a gifted Abbotsford musician and student,
with great career plans. It's all over. He was dead in eight hours.

On Dec. 19, 17-year-old Cheryl McCormack of
Abbotsford ingested ecstasy with some friends =AD
ostensibly as a weight-loss aid. She became
unresponsive and, three days later, she died. She
was a bright, fun and athletic teen.

On New Year's Eve, a 24-year-old Abbotsford woman
engaged in =93recreational=94 use of ecstasy with
three friends. By 6 a.m., she was in critical
condition in hospital, where she remains.

The grief and suffering of the family and friends
of these victims is excruciating.

In that context, it is such cruel irony,
considering ecstasy is known for inducing euphoria and a sense of
well-being.

It's chemical Russian roulette.

You can feel good and survive=82 perhaps many
times. Or, you can end up dead or on life support.

It doesn't take prolonged use or abuse of ecstasy to court disaster.

Ecstasy, or MDMA, is notorious for being laced
with other drugs, including ketamine, methamphetamine and cocaine.

Depending on the circumstances, the physiology of
the user and other factors, the mix can be lethal.

It seems an insane risk, yet ecstasy is popular
among a segment of young people who have so much to lose.

Please =AD parents, teachers, police =AD speak with
your children, your students, your young contacts.

Teens, counsel your peers who may be tempted to
use ecstasy or are already using it.

Give them the cold facts. Implore them to think, to make good decisions.

=AD Abbotsford News