Author: John Carter
These Are The Signs That Someone Has Been Roofied
Knowing the signs of being “roofied” (being drugged with Rohypnol) can help you stay safe on a night out and reduce the risks of you or a friend being date raped. Below we look at the meaning of being roofied, how long before roofies take effect, the symptoms of being roofied, how to stay safe, and what to do if you think you or a friend have been spiked. Because of the powerful effects of these drugs, many people don’t realize they’ve been roofied until the next day.
“These drugs can also dull your sense of hearing, making it more difficult to know what is happening around you or what is being said to you,” she explained. Remember what your drink looks and tastes like to identify even the smallest changes. Some varieties of Rohypnol turn drinks blue, and GHB can make your drink taste salty.
Date Rape & Sexual Assault Support Resources
“Date rape” is a term that refers to a person forcing someone who they’re socially, romantically, or casually involved with to have sex without consent. This type of sexual assault is often facilitated through the use of date rape drugs or roofies. Date rape can happen to anyone and with anyone, regardless of where you are.
Avoid changing, bathing, urinating, washing your hands, or douching before going to the emergency room. Since spiking a drink aims to make the victim helpless, most drugs used to roofie cause muscle relaxation. The sedative effects of Rohypnol are up to 10 times stronger than Valium. This means the onset of roofies’ actions on the body can appear within 20 minutes of being ingested and can last for over six hours. Some of the residual effects, such as memory loss and confusion and can last 12 hours or more after administration.
If the emergency services are required, then speak to the attending paramedic and let them know what you know they have consumed as accurately as you can. If there are any concerns about content we have published, please reach out to us at Also referred to as cherry meth, GHB is a prescription medication for the condition known as narcolepsy.
Fortunately, there are plenty of ways you can practice date rape drug prevention and stay safe when you go out with friends or meet new people. If you believe you were roofied the night before, seek medical attention. A doctor can perform a medical examination to determine if you have been sexually assaulted. If you’ve been roofied (or had your drink spiked with drugs), you might experience mental fogginess, muscle relaxation, and blackouts. But you may have been roofied if the symptoms are stronger than you expect based on the amount you drank.
Signs of Being Roofied: Drink spiking and how to stay safe
A 2016 study found that 7.8% of female college students and 8.5% of non-college women in the U.S. are victims of being roofied. The word “roofied” refers to getting drugged without your knowledge or consent. You may exhibit roofied symptoms when someone tampers your drink by spiking it with drugs. Roofies have become so synonymous with rape that the act of drugging someone’s drink with any substance is collectively called “roofying”.
- It is often used by cocaine addicts to alleviate undesirable side effects and to commit sexual assault.
- It’s not uncommon for those who’ve been slipped drugs to never really know what actually happened to them.
- They may interact badly with other drugs already in the person’s system, such as heroin and alcohol, or the dosage may have been high enough to cause an overdose.
- Some side effects can be long-lasting, depending on how much of the drug you ingested and how your body reacts to it.
- Over-the-counter or prescription sleeping medicines and antidepressants are also effective roofie drugs.
Rohypnol is a benzodiazepine that’s approximately 10 times as potent as Xanax. Although not approved for use in the United States, this drug is nonetheless widely available on the black market. When dissolved in a light-colored beverage, Rohypnol will dye the drink blue so that it’s more visible. It’s not possible, however, to see it in dark beverages like bourbon or cola, and some versions don’t include the dye.
How Can You Help If You Suspect Someone Has Been Roofied?
Please contact FHE Health for more information if you find yourself struggling with mental health issues after an experience with being roofied. In the United States, Rohypnol is used recreationally at lower doses as a party or club drug, more often by males. Its use among adolescents has decreased significantly but not as much as GBH or ketamine have.
If you’re at a bar, keep an eye on the person preparing your drink, remembering that expert predators need less than a second to spike your drink. Nobody seeks to get roofied, and when it happens, it’s important to remember that it’s not your fault. However, you can do several things to lower the chances of getting roofied. However, you can be roofied through substances such as marijuana and cocaine.
Some side effects can be long-lasting, depending on how much of the drug you ingested and how your body reacts to it. Rohypnol is a central nervous system (CNS) depressant, which means that if you have been roofied you will often feel overly relaxed, sleepy, disorientated, and calm. This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data.
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While it is never the victim’s fault for being exposed to roofies, there are some steps that can be taken to reduce the risk of becoming a victim. While some of these may seem like common sense, many people who have been roofied fall victim to simple techniques used by criminals. Regardless of why roofies are used on others, any instance of someone using the drug on another person is a criminal offence. In fact, despite being a Schedule IV substance, possession, distribution and manufacturing of Rohypnol carry the same criminal charges as Schedule I substances such as heroin. You can read more here about how long GHB lasts and how to spot signs of GHB spiking.
Parents and caregivers of teens and young adults should be aware of the signs of drug use, while everyone should consider preventive steps like never leaving your drink unattended. You may wake up feeling unusually intoxicated with no memory of having drunk much (or any) alcohol, or find yourself in a location without knowing how you got there. Most people who take the drug have no memory of what happened while under its influence. Blood pressure will drop and people will become drowsy and eventually black out (lose consciousness.) Side effects of Rohypnol typically peak within two hours but can persist for up to 12 hours.