Navigating intimacy with ecstasy: The emotional, spatial and boundaried dynamics of couples’ MDMA experiences
Research Open 2017 DOI: 10.18744/pub.001844 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Qualitative study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 10 |
| Population | Ten couples in romantic relationships who use MDMA |
| Intervention | MDMA |
| Topics | MDMA |
| Key findings | Argues that a 'bubble' organically forms around couples on MDMA, producing an affective atmosphere of muted fear, worry, and shame alongside heightened safety and love that mediates practices of intimacy. Movement, spaces, and objects are argued to facilitate intimacy and produce new subjectivities altering boundaries between self and world, within the self, and between self and other, while couples construct symbolic boundaries separating these experiences from everyday life and other people. The author contends drug use is relational, not only individual. |
Abstract
MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine or ‘ecstasy’) is well-known for its empathic and sociable effects (Bogt, Engels, Hibbel & Van Wel, 2002). Indeed, there is a body of work that discusses the role the drug plays in social bonding (Beck & Rosenbaum, 1998; Duff, 2008; Farrugia, 2015; Hinchliff, 2001; Solowij, Hall & Lee, 1992). However, there has been extremely limited research looking at MDMA’s impact specifically on romantic relationships (Vervaeke & Korf, 2006). Hence, this thesis explored couples’ experiences of intimacy on MDMA and how this intertwines with their relationship. Semi-structured interviews with ten couples, using visual methods (Reavey, 2011; Del Busso, 2009; Majumdar, 2011), and eight individual written diaries (Kenten, 2010) were analysed using a thematic approach (Braun & Clarke, 2006). A ‘bubble’ (Sloterdijk, 1999 cited in Klauser, 2010) is argued to organically form around couples on MDMA, producing a distinct affective atmosphere of muted fear, worry and shame and heightened feelings of safety and love, which mediates emotional and discursive ‘practices’ of intimacy (Gabb & Fink, 2015). Movement, spaces and objects are also argued to facilitate intimacy, producing new subjectivities which alter boundaries: between self and world; within the self; and between self and other (Brown & Stenner, 2009). Yet beneath the seeming ‘flow’ to MDMA experiences, couples construct clear, symbolic boundaries, segmenting these experiences from both everyday life (Douglas, 2001), and other people (Stenner, 2013). The research is argued to have key implications for drug theory and practice, namely that drug use is not only an individual act (Duff, 2008) but also relational in nature – its meaning partly determined by how it interweaves with important relationships in people’s lives.
Comparable studies
Other qualitative studies on MDMA, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phenomenology and Sequelae of 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine Use Psychiatrists who had taken MDMA | 1992 | Qualitative study | n = 20 |
| MDMA and Sexual Behavior: Ecstasy Users' Perceptions About Sexuality and Sexual Risk Current and former users of MDMA | 2005 | Qualitative study | n = 98 |
| Perceived Benefits of MDMA-Assisted Psychotherapy beyond Symptom Reduction: Qualitative Follow-Up Study of a Clinical Trial for Individuals with Treatment-Resistant PTSD Veterans, firefighters, and police officers with chronic, treatment-resistant PTSD | 2019 | Qualitative study using interpretative phenomenological analysis | n = 19 |
| Negative Experiences on Ecstasy: The Role of Drug, Set, and Setting Current or former users of Ecstasy | 2002 | Qualitative study | n = 98 |
| A Qualitative Exploration of Relational Ethical Challenges and Practices in Psychedelic Healing Practitioners who have administered MDMA and psilocybin to clients in underground... | 2021 | Qualitative study | n = 23 |