Hello,
A friend of mine recently used MDMA and it greatly reduced his tinnitus, for weeks now. I remember reading about a potential study years ago regarding MDMA and tinnitus, Googled a little and here I am. I've read large parts of this topic and I have quite a bit of experience with MDMA, as well as a degree in bio-chemistry and am now studying medicine. I felt it was necessary to write a post here, because while there is some great information in this topic, there is also some misinformation, as well as a few dangerous questions/suggestions. I'm a firm believer of harm reduction policies regarding drugs, so that's why I'm writing this somewhat lengthy post. I hope you find the time to read it.
First of all, MDMA is a relatively safe drug. It ranks quite low when comparing it to other drugs. It's addictive potential is also quite low. See this
link
That said, there are some very serious potential dangers when taking MDMA, almost all of which can be prevented when taking the right precautions.
1.
Never mix MDMA with SSRIs, MAOIs or any kind of other anti-depressants. This can cause serotonin syndrome which can be fatal. MDMA releases a lot of serotonin (also dopamine, adrenaline, oxytocin and many more). The combination of anti-depressants and MDMA is potentially lethal, as there could be way too much serotonin released and not broken down. It's also not okay to stop your SSRIs for a day and take MDMA the next. SSRIs have a long-lasting effect, even after use is stopped. I figure most of you who take anti-depressants for your tinnitus know this, but it can't hurt to mention this.
2.
Don't mix MDMA with benzodiazepines. Benzos have a depressing effect on the CNS and MDMA has a stimulating effect. It's almost always a bad idea to combine "uppers" with "downers". See the infamous
speedball.
3.
You should always test your drugs! You can,
legally, purchase testing kits online. These are reagent tests, which change color based on the drug that is in your sample. Scrape a bit off of the pill or crystal, pour some reagent on it and the color will tell you the main component of the drug. Key word: main. If your compound is 90% MDMA and 10% speed, it will color perfectly positive for MDMA. It is impossible to detect small impurities with a reagent test. If you live in Switzerland, The Netherlands or Spain, you are in luck, there are testing services available. As mentioned, you can send samples to Energy Control in Spain, but it'll cost 50 euro. While it is true MDMA was almost always mixed with other drugs in the past, this is no longer the case. New routes for synthesis have been found and this has caused a flood of MDMA. Prices have dropped by massive amounts and purity has gone up, as well as doses per pill. In The Netherlands, 92% of all pills sold as XTC contain only MDMA. That said, The Netherlands is probably the best place for XTC production, whereas in the United States MDMA is often methylone or other drugs. So there are still impure pills/powders being sold, but the relative amount of these has greatly gone down.
4. It is recommended you put some effort into finding a good source for your MDMA. Do not trust strangers or even friends that have "good stuff".
Always test! The most reliable source is still the darknet. I am not going to write a guide on how to use it, that's what Google is for. There are an incredible amount of sellers, many of whom have thousands of transactions and many reviews.
Do your research.
5.
Take precautions. I assume most of you would want to try this at home (or are you going to a loud party to cure your tinnitus?), so overheating is not that big of a risk. Don't dress warm and drink a little every once in a while. A glass of water per 1,5h should do it if you are not in a hot environment. Don't drink too much, as MDMA causes the body to produce ADH. This makes you hold water, so when you drink liters of water it can be potentially fatal. This is not an issue if you don't drink incredible amounts. If at all possible, have a sober friend be with you.
6.
A safe dose of MDMA is between 1.0 and 1.5 mg/kg. That means if you weigh 70kgs, you would want to take between 70mg and 105mg of MDMA. This will give you some effects, but nothing overwhelming. It's totally fine to be conservative, although I think doses like 20-30mg are unlikely to produce any effects, also regarding tinnitus.
7.
Don't redose! The neurotoxic potential of MDMA is overrated, but re-dosing MDMA is definitely a bad idea. Take a single dose and leave it at that. Many studies show that single use of MDMA has no ill effects. It is frequent use, with high doses and re-dosing that can cause brain damage. While the effects of brain damage are greatly overstated (thanks war on drugs!), it's definitely possible to hurt your brain. Do not take MDMA more than once every 3 months.
8. I already said this, but
please read and do your research. MDMA can be great and it might be a beautiful experience, that could (potentially) help with tinnitus, but it's not a plaything. High doses of stimulants are lethal, as well as mixing it with any other drugs, such as other stimulants or alcohol. Please be safe and do your research, from proper resources!
9. MDMA is still
illegal. That comes with its own risks. Be careful.
10.
If you are young, please do not take MDMA! A young brain is still developing and the effects of MDMA on the brain could potentially be much more severe. The doses I posted are also for adults, not adolescents. I would wait at least until you are 21 years old, before using MDMA!
If you would like to read more, websites such as
Erowid and the subreddit /
r/drugs and
/r/MDMA are good sources.
I feel like I'm intruding a little, but again, I felt it was necessary to post this. Some of you seem interested in doing this and you should be as safe as possible if you decide to. This post isn't meant to encourage anyone, but simply to inform you, so that those of you who might want to use MDMA, can do so safely and with as little harm as possible.
Be safe and I wish you all the best!