Monday, January 9, 2023
Women worry that, at some point, someone will slip something into their drink (no matter what drink it might be) and they will be taken advantage of. It happens all over the country and is in epidemic proportion.
This also doesn’t have to be put into a drink, they can take a pill by going along with the crowd, they could be under the influence and not realize what they are taking, and when under like this they cannot give legal consent to sex or anything else for that matter. This is against the law.
When you think about where this can happen…think anywhere actually. Most of the time it is by someone spiking your drink. It also can be done by injection or nasal inhalation (snorting drugs) by taking a pill/s. The drug to do this usually has no color or smell.
Many people think that this only happens when you’re like out in a nightclub, but that is not true. It can happen anywhere you are, and you can be totally unaware. People are even so brazen as to give someone something in their own homes or while other friends are all hanging out.
These rapes that happen due to this are premeditated as the perpetrator will be carrying the drug of choice with them just waiting to use it. Premedicated! Read that again and again.
The drugs begin to work sometimes in as little as 10-30 minutes. Maybe you were with someone you trusted and got up to go to the bathroom and they were going to watch your drink for you. Yeah….right!
The person gets tired or called “out of it”, dizzy, sleepy, and disorientated and the drugs are taking effect. The person doesn’t even realize what is happening or what will happen to them. When the drug takes effect, and the person is pretty much out of it…it might look to those around that the person just had too much to drink so the person was going to take them home, etc. These drugs leave very little if any memory of what happened. If it was someone you trusted, you might still not believe they would do that to you.
This is sexual assault and is against the law. For this reason, it’s important that the young people (or anyone of any age) in your life understand the danger and are aware of the facts to protect themselves from becoming victims.
What Drugs are Most Often Used for Drug-facilitated Sexual Assault?
I found this and it might be helpful to you.
- GHB (gamma-hydroxybutyric acid). This is a depressant that has many nicknames: easy lay, Georgia home boy, liquid X, liquid ecstasy, liquid E, grievous bodily harm, Gib, G-riffic, scoop, soap, salty water, organic Quaalude, or fantasy. Doctors sometimes prescribe it to treat a sleep disorder called narcolepsy.
- Rohypnol (flunitrazepam). This is a strong benzodiazepine (a class of tranquilizers) also known as Mexican Valium, circles, roofies, la rocha, roche, R2, rope, and forget-me pill. It’s not available legally in the United States. In other countries, doctors sometimes use it as anesthesia before surgery.
- Ketamine. This is a dissociative drug that makes you feel detached from reality. Its nicknames include Special K, vitamin K, and cat Valium. Doctors and veterinarians use it as anesthesia. It is being used for treatment-resistant depression in supervised settings.
- Alcohol. Many attackers use one of those three drugs along with alcohol. It can boost the medicine’s effects. But alcohol by itself can also keep someone from defending themselves, knowing what’s happening to them, or remembering it later.
What Do Date-Rape Drugs Look Like?
- GHB is usually a liquid that can be mixed with other liquids. It also comes as a powder. Neither form has a smell or a taste.
- Rohypnol used to come as a white tablet that didn’t have a smell or taste. Drug companies now make it as a light green pill with a blue core. If someone puts it in a clear drink, the liquid turns blue. Some generic pills may not have the blue dye.
- Ketamine is a clear liquid or an off-white powder that’s often injected. You can’t smell or taste it.
Date-Rape Drug Effects
- GHB can make you sleepy, forgetful, or weak. It can also cause seizures, slow heartbeat, slow breathing, and a coma. The effects start in 15 to 30 minutes and last 3 to 6 hours.
- Rohypnol relaxes you. In high doses, it can cause trouble controlling your muscles, amnesia, loss of inhibitions, and loss of consciousness. Its effects usually start within 30 minutes and peak about 2 hours after you take it. As little as 1 milligram can affect you for 8 to 12 hours.
- Ketamine might make you hallucinate or feel woozy. It can also cause an upset stomach, vomiting, high blood pressure, changes in your heart rate, seizures, or a coma. It usually takes effect within 30 minutes and lasts an hour or two. But you could be affected for a day or more. Treatment of depression with ketamine is carefully monitored.
- Alcohol may make you relaxed, chatty, and confident. As you drink more, your emotions become unstable, you become less inhibited, and you lose control of your body. Drinking too much can put you in a coma. Alcohol usually enters your brain within a few minutes.
How to Avoid Date-Rape Drugs
A few tips can help keep you safe when you’re out:
- Pour your own drinks. Avoid open containers that could be spiked, like punch bowls. Don’t accept drinks from other people.
- Keep control of your drink at all times. Carry it yourself, even if you have to take it to the bathroom with you.
- Don’t drink anything that tastes strange.
- Stick with your friends. Ask them for help if you
- start to feel odd.
What Should I Do If I Think I’ve Been Drugged and Raped?
If you suspect that someone drugged and assaulted you, call 911 or have someone you trust take you to the emergency room. The authorities will collect any evidence they can, so try not to pee, douche, bathe, wash your hands, or change clothes before you go to the hospital.
Tell your medical team what happened. Ask for a urine test as soon as possible so they can look for drugs before your body flushes them out.
No matter how much you drank or what drugs you took, sexual assault is never your fault. It’s common to go through a range of emotions afterward.
More helpful information for you:
Need help?
Call 800.656.HOPE (4673) to be connected with a trained staff member from a sexual assault service provider in your area.
How does it work?
When you call 800.656.HOPE (4673), you’ll be routed to a local RAINN affiliate organization based on the first six digits of your phone number. Cell phone callers have the option to enter the ZIP code of their current location to more accurately locate the nearest sexual assault service provider.
How can the hotline help me?
Calling the National Sexual Assault Hotline gives you access to a range of free services including:
- Confidential support from a trained staff member
- Support finding a local health facility that is trained to care for survivors of sexual assault and offers services like sexual assault forensic exams
- Someone to help you talk through what happened
- Local resources that can assist with your next steps toward healing and recovery
- Referrals for long term support in your area
- Information about the laws in your community
- Basic information about medical concerns
Is it confidential?
The National Sexual Assault Hotline is a safe, confidential service. When you call the hotline, only the first six numbers of the phone number are used to route the call, and your complete phone number is never stored in our system. Most states do have laws that require local staff to contact authorities in certain situations, like if there is a child or vulnerable adult who is in danger.
While almost all callers are connected directly to a staff member or volunteer at a local sexual assault service provider, a handful of providers use an answering service after daytime business hours. This service helps manage the flow of calls. If all staff members are busy, you may choose to leave a phone number with the answering service. In this case, the number will be confidential and will be given directly to the organization’s staff member for a callback. If you reach an answering service, you can try calling back after some time has passed, or you can choose to call during regular business hours when more staff members are available. You can also access 24/7 help online by visiting online.rainn.org.
Who are the sexual assault service providers?
Sexual assault service providers are organizations or agencies dedicated to supporting survivors of sexual assault. The providers who answer calls placed to the hotline are known as RAINN affiliates. To be part of the National Sexual Assault Hotline, affiliates must agree to uphold RAINN’s confidentiality standards. That means:
- Never releasing records or information about the call without the consent of the caller, except when obligated by law
- Only making reports to the police or other agencies when the caller consents, unless obligated by law
- Agreeing to RAINN’s non-discrimination policy
To learn more about how a provider can become an affiliate of the National Sexual Assault Hotline, visit the Sexual Assault Service Provider information page. Volunteer opportunities for the National Sexual Assault Hotline are coordinated through these local providers. Search for volunteer opportunities near you.
Anyone affected by sexual assault, whether it happened to you or someone you care about, can find support on the National Sexual Assault Hotline. You can also visit online.rainn.org to receive support via confidential online chat.
A person who sexually assaults another person uses these drugs because they’re easy to slip into a drink. They’re tasteless, odorless, and colorless. Also, these drugs act fast and leave your system quickly, so if the assault isn’t reported right away, it may be too late to test for the drugs. And the drugs aren’t part of a routine screening, so unless the doctor knows to test for these specific drugs, they won’t show up in the results. All of this makes it difficult to conduct a criminal investigation, or bring someone to justice for what they have done.
Because these drugs can affect a victim’s memory, they may not remember the details or even be able to identify the person who assaulted them. In some cases, victims don’t know what happened until much later.
What Should Your Teen Look Out For?
Before a night out, give your teen the following tips to ensure they have a fun and safe time:
- Don’t drink from a can or bottle that you didn’t open yourself
- Don’t take a drink from a punch bowl
- Don’t drink from a container that’s being passed around
- If someone offers you a drink from the bar at a club or party, don’t take it. Instead, go to the bar to order your own drink, watch it being poured, and carry the drink yourself.
- Don’t leave your drink unattended while talking, dancing, using the restroom, or making a phone call
- If you realize that your drink has been left unattended, throw it out and get a new one
- Don’t drink anything that has an unusual taste or appearance, like a salty taste or unexplained residue
- Don’t mix drugs and alcohol. Even over-the-counter drugs like cold medicine can react with alcohol and other substances in negative ways.
- Watch out for your friends and ask them to watch out for you. Have a plan to periodically check up on each other.
- If your friend appears very intoxicated, gets sick after drinking a beverage, passes out and is difficult to wake up, seems to have trouble breathing, or behaves in unusual ways, do what you need to do to make sure your friend is safe. Call 911 if necessary.
Date-Rape Drug Effects
- GHB can make you sleepy, forgetful, or weak. It can also cause seizures, slow heartbeat, slow breathing, and a coma. The effects start in 15 to 30 minutes and last 3 to 6 hours.
- Rohypnol relaxes you. In high doses, it can cause trouble controlling your muscles, amnesia, loss of inhibitions, and loss of consciousness. Its effects usually start within 30 minutes and peak about 2 hours after you take it. As little as 1 milligram can affect you for 8 to 12 hours.
- Ketamine might make you hallucinate or feel woozy. It can also cause an upset stomach, vomiting, high blood pressure, changes in your heart rate, seizures, or a coma. It usually takes effect within 30 minutes and lasts an hour or two. But you could be affected for a day or more. Treatment of depression with ketamine is carefully monitored.
- Alcohol may make you relaxed, chatty, and confident. As you drink more, your emotions become unstable, you become less inhibited, and you lose control of your body. Drinking too much can put you in a coma. Alcohol usually enters your brain within a few minutes.
No matter how much you drank or what drugs you took, sexual assault is never your fault. It’s common to go through a range of emotions afterward. Talk to someone you trust or call the National Sexual Assault Hotline that is listed above, or call one you know of in your area…but get help.
We all want to know we are safe and that our family is safe, but we live in a fallen evil world now and it will get worse. We must learn what to watch out for, be diligent in watching what is going on around us, who is there, how people are acting, and look for ways out if anything seems off. Better by far is to avoid any situation where anyone or anything can do any of these things. School events and college like frat parties are breeding grounds at times (not all nor all times so don’t get upset here). There are evil people out there and it is all of our jobs to watch not just for ourselves, but to watch out for our friends and family as well.
Now, may God protect you, and give you insight into all situations that presents themselves to you. May you stay safe, and healthy, and always stay safe.
God bless you.