DO NOT TAKE CHANCES - LEAVE ECSTASY ALONE

Ecstasy can kill you.

Can that message be driven home any more acutely than it has in
communties 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 - 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
"recreational" 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, 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 - parents, teachers, police - 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.

- - Abbotsford News