Why Is the Drug Ecstasy So Unusual?

On the show, ecstasy is a very unusual drug in a kit that also includes psilocybin and LSD. Psilocybin and LSD promote heavy serotonin release and ramp up lateralized connections. Ecstasy is different because of the way the drug is designed: dopamine is very high, dopamine release goes through the roof, people feel great, they want to move, and they have a lot of energy, while serotonin levels are also high. The show calls the combination a very unnatural state.

Dopamine is the molecule of pursuit, reward, and more and more. Serotonin is one of bliss and of being content right where a person already is. As far as the show knows, human history had never offered a way to open dopaminergic and serotonergic states at the same time. The show marks the depression claim as uncertain and leaves it as an interesting question: whether ecstasy has particularly high potential for the treatment of certain forms of depression.