DMXE – The Ultimate Guide

Introduction

Last updated on May 4th 2024.

DMXE, the abbreviation of Deoxymethocetamine, is a relatively new chemical  from the arylcyclohexylamine family. It is an analogue of methoxetamine (a well-known and revered dissociative, commonly known as MXE) and was first synthesised in October 2020. Despite being so young, DMXE’s popularity has grown exponentially in a very short period of time, largely due to its reported similarities to MXE. Nervewing, a Poet, psychonaut, and much-loved member of the psychedelics community, described DMXE as both “delightful and exciting”. 

Reports of DMXE vary from feelings of euphoria, dissociation and intense stimulation. Although it was originally intended to be a replacement of MXE, DMXE is a unique compound in its own right, as many research reports comment that there are substantial differences between the two.

How does DMXE work?

DMXE mainly functions as an NMDA receptor antagonist. NMDA receptors are located in the excitatory synapses and participate in neurotransmissions in the central nervous system. They also play a crucial role in regulating neurological functions, such as memory formation and locomotion. 

Similar to that of ketamine and PCP, DMXE inhibits the actions of these receptors, inducing a feeling of “dissociative anaesthesia”. Like its close relative, MXE, DMXE has been often reported to cause  k-hole-like effects – its blocking of our NMDA receptors causes that familiar loss of feeling and difficulty moving. DMXE is often reported by researchers to have a longer trip duration and a higher potency than many common dissociatives.

Often described as similar to MXPr or MXiPr, but with more “psychedelia and body-high”, DMXE brings back strong feelings of nostalgia for our fellow MXE enthusiasts. 

Potential effects

• Stimulation – most reports of DMXE mention an increase in sociability, unlike most other dissociatives. While DMXE doesn’t usually provide the same ‘rush’ of energy as amphetamine, it is generally considered to be one of the more stimulating dissociatives. The researcher’s experiences tend to be more active and functional, compared to reports of, for example, 2-FDCK. 
• Euphoria – while you shouldn’t expect the same level of elation as with benzofurans such as 5-MAPB and 6-APB, DMXE is often reported to produce mild to moderate feelings of euphoria. This is likely due to its presumed method of action (based on the pharmacology of MXE) as a serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SRI), effectively exposing your 5HT receptors to more of your body’s serotonin. 
• Dissociation – as with all arylcyclohexylamines, DMXE causes feelings of dissociation and disconnection from one’s mind and body, sometimes leading to a complete dissolution of the sense of self (AKA “ego death”), especially at higher doses. 
• Hallucinations – some users (though not all) experience visual hallucinations on DMXE. These visuals generally consist of distortions of depth perception (objects that are very close can look very far and vice versa; or very small objects can look very large) and tracers/double-vision (where moving objects produce a blur/tracer behind them. 
• Lightheadedness – reports of “dizziness” and “rushes” are often mentioned. This is most likely related to those feelings of euphoria and is mostly experienced in the “come-up” stage of your trip.
• Loss of motor control – the physical inhibition associated with most dissociatives. Researchers often talk about feeling “droopy”, when your body’s physical sensories are delayed or muted and some reports discuss an acute lack of coordination. This effect will often become more prominent at higher doses.

Please note that this list is not exhaustive. Always do your own research before doing any experiments with any compound. 

Trip Reports

Nervewing has a beautifully written trip report you can read here. The following are some excerpts, but I highly recommend checking out the full piece and her website for more in-depth reports:

The great cavalry charge of this drug has mustered its forces and descends on my mind- Coming up was a pleasant rush, but now comes a second wave of energy- though overall still relatively gentle and very pleasant. I feel like I am being soaked in a torrent- sounds around me begin to reverberate ever so slightly, their waves bubbling to the surface of an iridescent pond. There is a sudden sense of being sucked into myself, like my skin and flesh are being pulled into my bones and turning me inside out, and while this sounds alarming I found the sensation to be pleasant and exhilarating. I feel smaller and more compact than I really am.

With my eyes open, the visuals are dominated with a field of interlocking hexagons, flashing in bright turquoise and pink. It looks and feels like everything is melting, a glowing polychrome ice cream losing its form under a neon summer sun. Sudden flashes of patches of color sweep and dot their way across my field of vision like brushstrokes from a timorous artist.

Sitting in the dark it feels like no world exists beyond the glow of my computer, it feels like objects are floating and swirling around my head like I am telekinetic. Each keystroke so precise, each thing exactly where it needs to be. My notes are entirely coherent and typo-free, unlike the peak of many other dissociatives.

There is a colorful fire through my nerves. The darkness is adorned with a neon brickwork of tessellated shapes, projected in a sphere around me. My own personal hallucinatory office. little indiscernible forms in translucent blue and pink dash and dance across my screen but begin to trace and duplicate and repeat in a radiant fashion when I pay them enough heed, blossoming into ever yet more intricate and beautiful forms. I am floating down a river on my back, eyes towards the dark tranquil sky with bands of shimmering stars, cascades of flower petals floating around me. The effects creep and hit me with a steady rhythm, the heartbeat of a moon in an unfamiliar realm. While all these images sound clear and vivid, they were ultimately ephemeral, translucent, faint imaginings.

Their closing thoughts:

Oh what a lovely substance! There is so much this drug has to offer and I am excited to see it explored further. I will start with the negatives though, and I can only think of two- the short duration and the high dosage. Perhaps another to note is that there wasn’t much depth or introspection to the experience at its peak, though sometimes I do just want to have fun, it doesn’t always need to be profound, and perhaps higher doses or different settings would prove different. This sets it apart from the predecessor it is named for, good ol’ MXE, but enough of that, DMXE is something special in its own right. It is colorful and visual, stimulating and psychedelic, pleasant to the body and disinhibiting without being entirely incapacitating, just a bit manic and quite bubbly and sociable. There is something of a hole though it is largely functional and lucid- pushing doses higher though may yield something even more powerful and spectacular. Low doses are euphoric and fiery and electric, this would make such an excellent party drug (in which case the short duration may in fact be a virtue). This would probably shine in combinations, perhaps something like 3-MeO-PCP or 3-MeO-PCE to drag the experience out a little longer. The visual space is characterized by blues and pinks and violets in tessellated patterns, and with eyes closed there is a distinct sense of motion and blossoming or radiating. I found myself able to pull myself out of the dark space easily though and retain much of my lucidity. The comeup is a euphoric rush, sociable and manic and distinctly warm and energetic. The peak adorned with fields of dark visuals with flashes of light, lucid but able to turn into something of a hole if a user lets themself sink into it. The comedown is gentle, warm, euphoric, mentally stimulating and psychedelic. Overall this is a drug that has so many pleasant qualities to its name, it is interesting, fun and ultimately a very worthwhile compound for any psychonaut, particularly a fan of other dissociatives.

Please remember that self-reported experiences are entirely subjective and should therefore be approached with a healthy dose of skepticism. It’s also worth noting that these effects will not necessarily occur consistently or reliably. Each experience differs to a greater or lesser extent. 

As an extremely new chemical, DMXE should be treated with caution and researched at the lowest doses first.

Written by Gigi McCath | Guest Blogger at Chemical Collective