If your drink has been spiked, your symptoms will depend on what drug has been used.
The effect of any drug will depend on your body shape and size, your age, how much of the spiked drink you have consumed, and how much alcohol (if any) you have already drunk.
Any drug could be slipped into your drink without your knowledge. Drugs can come in powder or liquid form, and may not have an unusual taste or smell. See the A-Z of drugs on the Talk to Frank website for more information about illegal substances and their effects.
Date rape drugs
The most common drugs that are used in drink spiking are often referred to as date rape drugs. This is because they make it harder for you to resist an assault. The most common date rape drugs are:
- alcohol
- gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB) and gamma-butyrolactone (GBL)
- tranquilisers, most often benzodiazepines, including valium and rohypnol
- ketamine
These drugs are depressants, which work by slowing down your nervous system, dulling your responses and instincts and affecting your memory. In moderation, alcohol can help to relax you, and some date rape drugs are legally prescribed for anxiety and insomnia. However, when taken without knowing, these substances leave you vulnerable to danger.
Date rape drugs will affect your behaviour and the messages that you give out to other people. You will not be fully in control of yourself, and someone could take advantage of you.
Date rape drugs can start to take effect within 20 minutes of being taken. The symptoms for the above drugs, including alcohol, are quite similar, and will include some of the following:
- drowsiness or light-headedness
- difficulty concentrating
- feeling confused or disorientated, particularly after waking up (if you have been asleep)
- difficulty speaking, or slurring your words
- loss of balance and finding it hard to move
- lowered inhibitions
- paranoia (a feeling of fear or distrust of others)
- amnesia (memory loss) or a "black-out" of events (when you can't remember large sections of your evening)
- temporary loss of body sensation (feeling like you are floating above your body, or having an "out of body" experience)
- visual problems, particularly blurred vision
- hallucinations (seeing, hearing or touching things that aren't there)
- nausea and vomiting
- unconsciousness
All date rape drugs are particularly dangerous when mixed with alcohol because they combine to have a very powerful anaesthetic effect. This causes unconsciousness and, in more extreme cases, it can cause coma or even death.
How long the drugs' effects last will depend on how much has been taken and how much alcohol you have drunk. The symptoms could last three to seven hours (12 hours maximum), but if you pass out it will be hard to know the full effect. You may still feel some of the symptoms of a date rape drug after a night’s sleep, such as confusion, amnesia or nausea.
The most common date rape drugs are described below.
Alcohol
Alcohol is the most common date rape drug. It can be added to a soft (non-alcoholic) drink without you knowing, or double measures can be used instead of singles. If you've had a drink already, you may find it harder to tell how much alcohol you're drinking. The effects of alcohol will depend how much you drink.
Large amounts of alcohol can be dangerous, particularly if you pass out and vomit in your sleep. It takes your body one hour to process a unit of alcohol, so the length of the effects will depend on how many units of alcohol you have consumed. See alcohol misuse for an explanation of units of alcohol, with examples.
Gamma-hydroxybutyrate and gamma-butyrolactone
Gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB) usually comes in the form of a slightly oily colourless liquid, or less often as a powder.
Gamma-butyrolactone (GBL) is a more basic form of GHB and another possible date rape drug. It comes in liquid form and is found in some household products. After entering the body, GBL changes into GHB.
Only a very small amount of GHB is needed in order to have an effect, and it can be dissolved easily into other liquids. GHB has an unpleasant taste and a weak odour. But you are unlikely to notice it in very small doses or when it is mixed with a strong-flavoured drink.
Tranquilisers
Tranquilisers come in hundreds of different forms. The most common are called benzodiazepines. You may hear of these as valium, rohypnol, roofies or benzos. They are sometimes legally prescribed to treat anxiety or insomnia. Tranquilisers work by slowing down your body, relieving tension and making you feel very relaxed. They normally come as a tablet.
Ketamine
Ketamine, sometimes called K, is a powerful anaesthetic that is used for both animals and humans. In its legal form it is a liquid. Illegally, it is normally a grainy white powder or a tablet. Ketamine can cause hallucinations (when you see or hear things that are not real) or it can create a feeling of your mind being separate from your body.
