My Experiences with Date-Rape Drugs

My Experiences with Date-Rape Drugs

First and foremost, let us be clear, date rape is never your fault. Whether it is someone you hardly know, or know well, it is never ok for someone to use your body against your will; and it is never, ever your fault.

I have been raped several times in my life. Once was in high school, and it was followed up with threats of death if I ever told anyone. Once was in my early twenties with similar death threats. Both of those experiences were with men that I knew well. And for the record, yes, I did seek help but was not helped by the people I went to for support. But that is a different story! What I wanted to share with you today are two stories of when I was drugged by strangers with the intention of harming me.

Let’s start with defining date-rape drugs, and afterwards I will tell you my date-rape drug experiences. The drug information below is excerpted from this article on WebMD HERE

What are Date-Rape Drugs?

Any substance that makes is easier for someone to rape or sexually assault another person can be categorized as a date-rape drug. They can include alcohol, legal prescription medications or illegal drugs.

You do not have to be on a date to be a victim of date-rape drugs. Date rape does not necessarily have to happen on “a date”. You can be attacked by a stranger, an acquaintance or someone you know well.

When someone has become a victim of a date-rape drug, they can become confused, lose control of their body or mind, have trouble defending themselves, or suffer from memory loss and not remember what happened at all.

Common Types of Date-Rape Drugs

• (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. Researchers are also studying it in people who have severe depression.
• 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.
• Alcohol may make you relaxed, chatty, and confident. As you drink more, your emotions become unstable, 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. Talk to someone you trust or call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) at any time, day or night.  Learn more about addiction support groups.

My Date-Rape Drug Stories

Eilat, Israel: 2001

I was married, living in Israel, and on a weekend getaway with my former husband in Eilat, which is a southern border town on the Red Sea. For the purpose of sharing this story I will call him Steve (not his real name). We were at a bar drinking beer and chatting with the bartender. I met a stray rottweiler dog and made friends with him. The dog kept me company while Steve was more interested in chatting with the bartender and other friends than me. We had a couple of beers, then walked back to our hotel.

Steve took a phone call and that was the last memory I had until I woke up later, naked except for my panties, and laying on a lounge chair at a pool with two men watching over me. As I was coming to my senses, I had no idea where I was or what I was doing, and something made me think I had been kidnapped. I thought the two men standing over me were guards making sure I didn’t escape. I was extremely groggy and very confused. I didn’t move – looking back I’m not sure if I was paralyzed in fear or just too confused to know what to do yet. I wanted to come up with a plan before I let them know I was awake, or so I told myself as I was terrified and trying to make sense of it all.

I have no idea how much time passed. However, some time later Steve came storming out to the pool area screaming at me. He accused me of trying to get the attention of the two men watching over me. I had no idea what he was talking about. I woke up there. After getting screamed at for hours, once he calmed down, we were able to piece the story together and realized I had been drugged at the bar, and instead of walking to my bed to sleep, somehow in my drugged state I walked out to the pool at our hotel. From his sober state, he told me the time lapse was only a 30-minute phone call he had been on. I am extremely lucky that this drugged episode ended so safely. But it has burned a permanent spot in my brain. 

Taba, Egypt: 2001

The Eilat experience came on the heels of another strange evening only two days earlier. While staying in Eilat, Israel, we crossed the border into Egypt to visit Taba. It wasn’t safe to travel all the way to Cairo or Giza at that time, but because I had a lifelong dream of going to Egypt, I was happy to even get the passport stamp. We walked into a casino in the border town of Taba, and it was empty. Strange. We ordered drinks, and they tasted very strange. Steve overheard a conversation between waiters watching us from the corner, he spit out his drink, told me to do the same, we left immediately, and he refused to tell me what they said about me. In hindsight considering what happened just days later in Eilat, that day in Taba, Egypt will haunt me forever. 

Naples, Florida 2014

I was single and spending a happy hour at a local upscale bar with my girlfriends one evening. One of my girlfriends met a guy who was a local business owner and he wanted to impress her by buying all of her girlfriends’ drinks. I didn’t like him and had a bad feeling about it, but I brushed off my concerns and accepted the drink. I am a two-drink maximum girl, and this was my second drink of the night.

The man went to the opposite side of the bar to order our drinks, which in hindsight was a red flag, but at the time I was arguing with my friend because I didn’t like him and wanted to go home. But I also didn’t want to leave my friend alone with him. I accepted his drink, took one sip, and then he said something that really upset me. I excused myself to go to the ladies room, thinking the walk and the space might give me more clarity and patience for the situation. I took the long way and didn’t rush back to them.

When I returned, my girlfriend was gone, and the guy was there. He said she left! I was so mad! I texted her and called her. No answer. So I left and stood in line for valet to retrieve my car. In the time it took for my car to arrive, I lost feeling in my legs and fell into a flowerpot behind me. The valet man saw what happened and came up to me. I was really confused, disoriented and I knew I had been drugged – even if it was only 1 sip! I did not have enough alcohol to be this inebriated and I told him I needed help. He said this happens all the time at this bar and that I should either be more careful who I accept drinks from or don’t come back. I sat in my car and called several people before I found someone to come pick me up. I was too confused and disoriented to think to go back into the bar, find the guy, and contact the authorities. And I was used to being victim shamed and afraid of being laughed at and told I was a drunk fool.

Any chance since then, I have shared my stories with younger women to warn them that date rape drugs are not just given to you by your date! They can be given to you by strangers with the intention of doing all kinds of harm, including sexual assault but could include so much more, too. Human trafficking, sexual assault, robbery, and so many other crimes are easier to commit when your victim is incapacitated.

Always, always, always be aware of your surroundings. Always pay attention to your intuition. And always believe in your right to say no. No to a drink, no to a smile, no to a conversation, no to a phone number, no to a date, and no to any physical contact.

Kristin Omdahl is the best-selling author of dozens of knit and crochet books; designer of almost 1000 knit and crochet patterns; producer of award-winning videos; and curator of gorgeous yarns and products. You can join Kristin LIVE 5 days a week for The Kristin Omdahl Show on YouTube and browse through thousands of tutorial videos there, too. Kristin donates a portion of every sale to help survivors of domestic violence. Learn more about Kristin’s charity, Project Kristin Cares HERE.

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