Dear Crankin',

Sedatives are depressant drugs. They cause restfulness in low doses, sleep in higher doses, and death in high to very high doses. High dose sedatives are called hypnotics. Sedatives include alcohol, barbiturates, and minor tranquilizers. A tranquilizer is a drug used to calm or pacify.

Special K is the street name for the drug Ketamine. Other names by which it is known are Ketalar, Ketaject, and Super-K. Ketamine is closely related to PCP, and it produces very similar effects. Like PCP, Ketamine use produces a reaction called a dissociative state, and also like PCP, Ketamine is known to cause bad reactions in some of its users. However, unlike PCP, Special K is a legal prescription drug intended for use as an anesthetic for people and large animals. In recent years, Ketamine has begun to be used recreationally. Similar to PCP, Ketamine can have a significant impact on coordination, thought, and judgment, and it can produce agitation, violence, confusion, and communication difficulties.

X, formally called MDMA, with street alias Ecstasy, XTC, and Adam, among others, is a designer drug. Designer drugs are made in underground laboratories by chemists who alter the molecular structure of both legal and illegal drugs, creating drugs with high potency which are not explicitly banned by federal law. MDMA is an amphetamine derivative. It is considered to be a strong stimulant, but, taken in reasonable doses, it can calm people. The effect of MDMA usually lasts four to six hours, and can cause some day-after fatigue in its users. For years, after its introduction in the early 1980s, MDMA was an uncontrolled substance which had gained a reputation for enhancing empathy (and sensuality) between people. It became illegal following the suggestion by government scientists that it caused permanent damage to nerve cells in the brain. Today, X is often present at Raves, where people plan to dance all night and get "real close." There is definitely a possibility of having a bad reaction to MDMA, and it's not clear at what point and why a certain amount can be a lethal overdose for some and fine for others. Combining it with alcohol or other depressants can increase the possibility of negative effects. If the user has sexual intercourse while high, it can interfere with erection capabilities and with orgasm for both men and women. For more information about X, see the archived answers to Ecstasy Effects and Ecstasy drain spinal fluid?.

Alice

Related Q&As

Trippin' on cough medicine

We take ecstasy, and then pass out on purpose - What's going on here?