Ecstasy as a means of helping quit cocaine?

[ramjet]

Sorry if this has been dealt with before. I couldn't find anything with the search engine.

My friend Gurner used to use cocaine fairly regularly on a social basis, purchasing an eight ball every month - every two weeks. In September last year he was caught by the police and cautioned for possession following a drugs test going into a bar. This caused Gurner to re-assess his habit, which, among other things, was costing him about 1/3 - 1/4 of his income every month, so he decided to take a break, and maybe even quit completely. It's now been 5 months since Gurner last snorted.

One of the things that helped Gurner stay off the chang was ecstasy. He found that sometimes the temptation to buy coke was overwhelming and he new he would give in unless he found a replacement of sorts. As such, around once a month on big nights out he would buy some ecstasy tabs and his overwhelming cravings to do coke was replaced with a wonderful feeling of peace, love and well-being. He knows that swapping one addiction for another isn't really ideal, but he doesn't crave pills in the same way he craves coke and finds that they are ideal when it comes to beating his coke cravings, which are gradually fading away. He also finds them a lot cheaper and is starting to appreciate E in a different way. As well as feeling incredibly sociable and happy on E, he also finds that E can have good introspective qualities, allowing him to analyse himself and distance himself from his immediate desires.

Has anyone else had a similar experience using ecstasy to beat an addiction to another drug?

[The Doors]

SWIM has read about various reports that people who have used Ecstacy said that their usual habits or even "illness" (ie: asthma, smoking cigarettes, weed...) were reduced during their trip or even after it. Ecstacy, in SWIM's opinion, can be life altering in so many ways, it has been for him. SWIM's pot consumation has greatly reduced since his E trip, though it cant be compared to a cocaine addiction. Good to see that E has benefited Gurder and keep going strong!

[mattprice]

SWIM used to be addicted to coke real bad. It's probably THE worst drug SWIM has ever done. He wishes he would've never started, because he would be a lot richer right now. Anyway, one day while SWIM and his friend were trying to get some coke, he ran into a friend that sold E. SWIM ended up buying some and trying it. SWIM has never looked back to coke since....

[zaven]

Hmmmm....that's interesting, Swim has alos heard that from other friends, Swim may have to give that option a go-around....

[Nagognog2]

Yes, MDMA can help break a dependency on a drug. But if you are of an addictive nature (no fault of your own), then you could end up replacing the cocaine - in this instance - with a dependency on MDMA. Rather like the alcoholic who replaces his evenings in a bar with an evening in an AA meeting drinking coffee. One might be healthier, but the central issue remains unaddressed.