diff --git a/lib/BaseSlackHandler.js b/lib/BaseSlackHandler.js
index 5e23e4c7..f3e377bf 100644
--- a/lib/BaseSlackHandler.js
+++ b/lib/BaseSlackHandler.js
@@ -113,8 +113,7 @@ BaseSlackHandler.prototype.replaceUserIdsWithNames = function(message, token) {
             if (response && response.user && response.user.name) {
                 log.info("users.info: " + id + " mapped to " + response.user.name);
                 const pill = `<https://matrix.to/#/${user_id}|${response.user.name}>`;
-                message.text = message.text.replace(USER_ID_REGEX_FIRST, response.user.name);
-                message.markdownText = message.markdownText.replace(
+                message.text = message.text.replace(
                     USER_ID_REGEX_FIRST,
                     pill
                 );
@@ -134,8 +133,7 @@ BaseSlackHandler.prototype.replaceUserIdsWithNames = function(message, token) {
                 // It's possible not to have a displayname set.
                 name = result[0].display_name || result[0].id;
             }
-            message.text = message.text.replace(USER_ID_REGEX_FIRST, name);
-            message.markdownText = message.markdownText.replace(
+            message.text = message.text.replace(
                 USER_ID_REGEX_FIRST,
                 `<https://matrix.to/#/${user_id}|${name}>`
             );
diff --git a/lib/BridgedRoom.js b/lib/BridgedRoom.js
index 3c600be6..c554fbdd 100644
--- a/lib/BridgedRoom.js
+++ b/lib/BridgedRoom.js
@@ -246,25 +246,21 @@ BridgedRoom.prototype._handleSlackMessage = function(message, ghost) {
 
     var subtype = message.subtype;
 
-    if (!subtype || subtype === "bot_message") {
-        let text = substitutions.slackToMatrix(message.text);
-        let markdownText = null;
-        if (message.markdownText) {
-            markdownText = substitutions.slackToMatrix(message.markdownText);
-        }
-        return ghost.sendText(roomID, text, markdownText);
+    if (message.text) {
+        const text = substitutions.slackToMatrix(message.text,
+            subtype === "file_comment" ? message.file : undefined);
+    }
+
+    if ([undefined, "bot_message", "file_comment"].includes(subtype)) {
+        return ghost.sendText(roomID, message.text);
     }
     else if (subtype === "me_message") {
-        var message = {
+        const message = {
             msgtype: "m.emote",
-            body: substitutions.slackToMatrix(message.text)
+            body: message.text
         };
         return ghost.sendMessage(roomID, message);
     }
-    else if (subtype === "file_comment") {
-        var text = substitutions.slackToMatrix(message.text, message.file);
-        return ghost.sendText(roomID, text);
-    }
     else if (message.files) {
         for (var i = 0; i < message.files.length; i++) {
             const file = message.files[i];
@@ -298,8 +294,7 @@ BridgedRoom.prototype._handleSlackMessage = function(message, ghost) {
                 //   so we just send a separate `m.image` and `m.text` message
                 // See https://github.com/matrix-org/matrix-doc/issues/906
                 if (message.text) {
-                    const text = substitutions.slackToMatrix(message.text);
-                    return ghost.sendText(roomID, text);
+                    return ghost.sendText(roomID, message.text);
                 }
             });
         }
diff --git a/lib/SlackEventHandler.js b/lib/SlackEventHandler.js
index 214363b6..e6721219 100644
--- a/lib/SlackEventHandler.js
+++ b/lib/SlackEventHandler.js
@@ -205,8 +205,6 @@ SlackEventHandler.prototype.handleMessageEvent = function (params) {
         result = Promise.resolve();
     }
 
-    msg.markdownText = msg.text;
-
     return result.then(() => msg)
         .then((msg) => this.replaceChannelIdsWithNames(msg, token))
         .then((msg) => this.replaceUserIdsWithNames(msg, token))
diff --git a/lib/SlackGhost.js b/lib/SlackGhost.js
index 27227689..9d6e820c 100644
--- a/lib/SlackGhost.js
+++ b/lib/SlackGhost.js
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
 var url = require('url');
 var https = require('https');
 var rp = require('request-promise');
-var slackdown = require('Slackdown');
+const slackdown = require('Slackdown');
 const substitutions = require("./substitutions");
 const log = require("matrix-appservice-bridge").Logging.get("SlackGhost");
 
@@ -157,14 +157,15 @@ SlackGhost.prototype.updateAvatar = function(message, room) {
     });
 };
 
-SlackGhost.prototype.sendText = function(room_id, text, markdownText=null) {
-    if (markdownText === null) {
-        markdownText = text;
-    }
+SlackGhost.prototype.sendText = function(room_id, text) {
+    // TODO: Slack's markdown is their own thing that isn't really markdown,
+    // but the only parser we have for it is slackdown. However, Matrix expects
+    // a variant of markdown that is in the realm of sanity. Currently text
+    // will be slack's markdown until we've got a slack -> markdown parser.
     const content = {
         body: text,
         msgtype: "m.text",
-        formatted_body: slackdown.parse(markdownText),
+        formatted_body: Slackdown.parse(text),
         format: "org.matrix.custom.html"
     };
     return this.getIntent().sendMessage(room_id, content).then(() => {
diff --git a/lib/SlackHookHandler.js b/lib/SlackHookHandler.js
index 09313a7a..f7c12d57 100644
--- a/lib/SlackHookHandler.js
+++ b/lib/SlackHookHandler.js
@@ -237,7 +237,6 @@ SlackHookHandler.prototype.handlePost = function(room, params) {
         // Restore the original parameters, because we've forgotten a lot of
         // them by now
         PRESERVE_KEYS.forEach((k) => msg[k] = params[k]);
-        msg.markdownText = msg.text;
         return this.replaceChannelIdsWithNames(msg, token);
     }).then((msg) => {
         return this.replaceUserIdsWithNames(msg, token);