Yesterday, we talked a lot about what ecstasy does to your body physically. Like most drugs, ecstasy can also have a profound on your mind and emotions. In fact, many people use the drug to change their emotions, but they encounter side effects they never anticipated.

Drugs like ecstasy always seemed scary to me. They’re easy to take and can make you feel good initially, but they can be so dangerous. Cocaine, you have to snort, and that doesn’t seem appealing. Heroin, you inject, so you have to involve needles. But ecstasy comes in the form of little pills.

And the side effects? At first, it gives you a sense of well-being. It helps you feel closer to people. Sometimes we don’t feel so well or so close to people, so I understand why people want to pursue that. But pursuing those goals through a pill is dangerous, obviously.

Even if ecstasy gives us a sense of well-being, this feeling is only temporary. The short-lived nature of ecstasy encourages people to take it frequently to maintain these feelings. But taking something frequently could create tolerance, a condition where our bodies become used to the affect of foreign substances. If we tolerate something, we have to use more of it (and use it more often) in order to feel its effects.

In fact, our bodies might become so used to ecstasy that the drug could disrupt the way that chemicals in our brain work, a condition known as serotonin syndrome. Needless to say, if your drug habit harms the chemicals in your brain, you are dealing with a serious problem.

Instead of using ecstasy, then, it seems better to pursue well-being and emotional closeness the old-fashioned ways. Eating well, exercising, visiting medical professionals, and consulting with therapists and other forms of mental health services are healthier ways to maintain your physical and mental health.