April 6, 2007

Date rape drugs

"The Girls" and I were at a singles social in a neighbouring town last weekend - I danced my face off, and paid dearly for it the next day. No, I am not talking about a hangover, I am talking tender tootsies! That'll teach me to wear killer high heels on the dance floor! (but damn I looked good!)

The only thing that marred our evening was when one of our friends got sick. We'd only been at the bar a little over an hour and the poor woman became violently ill. After walking her around in the parking lot didn't appear to help matters, a couple of the girls were dispatched to get her home safely and they returned to finish the evening. Now we can be Monday morning quarterbacks, but in hind sight we are all thinking that her symptoms reek of ghb/Rohypnol. She wasn't drunk by any stretch of the imagination - I believe she was still on her first drink. She was violently ill both at the bar and at home. She claims certain portions of the night are "blacked out" in her memory and her symptoms the following morning were akin to an extreme hangover.

It goes to show that even us "thirty and forty somethings" have to be careful when out socially in mixed company. Date rape drugs aren't just something that hits the twenty year olds on the club scene. Thankfully authorities here in Ontario recently acknowledged this problem and are now allowing bar owners to apply to have their liquor licences amended to include areas like washrooms, so that drinks don't need to be left unattended. Not all bar owners have taken advantage of this yet, but hopefully more will.

I Googled ghb just to see what information is out there...and the results are startling. Everything from how to order it, make it at home, dosage, long term effects...even people who are addicted to it.

2 comments:

Jennytc said...

You can't be too careful these day, I think, Sue, whatever age group you are in. Enjoy the Easter weekend.

Josh Houghtelin said...

Fortunately those drugs are a two step program. It tends to take an attacker and a victim to make it happen. Regardless, everyone should always look out for their people and who they go home with. Sounds like you go out with some pretty good people.