About half of women have or will experience sexual assault that involves some form of physical contact over the course of their lives. As for men, one in three will have experienced a sex crime committed against them. If you believe you or someone else has been roofied, get to a safe place as soon as possible. Try to alert your friends about the danger and stay where people can see you until help arrives.
Commonly Abused Drugs
- Since some drugs take more than 10 hours to leave the system, the doctors may be able to detect the exact roofie drug that was administered and provide the appropriate treatment.
- We have certified counselors and medical professionals available to guide you toward healing and reclaiming your strength.
- The drug most commonly used in roofies, Rohypnol, is illegal in the United States and is classified as a Schedule IV substance under the Controlled Substances Act.
- Urine samples need to be collected in just 72 hours and saliva and drug tests are normally ineffective in under 24 hours.
- If you feel that you have been roofied and subsequently assaulted, know that you are not to blame.
For the first time, we’re offering an ad-free experience to qualifying contributors who support our fearless journalism. “You can make all other decisions about reporting, pursuing an investigation later once you are medically safe and back to complete coherence,” Michonski added. Stick with your group and don’t go anywhere alone with someone you don’t know. Definitely don’t attempt to “ride it out” without medical assistance, and don’t keep information to yourself, Michonski said. “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.
The FHE Health team is committed to providing accurate information that adheres to the highest standards of writing. This is part of our ongoing commitment to ensure FHE Health is trusted as a leader in mental health and addiction care. In the sections that follow, you’ll find important safety information that will help you better protect yourself from the dangers of being roofied. We’ll cover the signs of being roofied, its prevalence, what to do if you suspect you’ve been a victim, and other roofie prevention tips and considerations.
What is the Date Rape Drug Called?
Because these drugs incapacitate victims, they may fall or be unable to protect themselves, leading to injuries they cannot remember acquiring. Extreme drowsiness or sudden unconsciousness can also indicate being roofied. While alcohol can cause sleepiness, the level of sedation from drugs like Rohypnol is much more intense, often leading to complete unconsciousness for several hours. Society must support more proactive prevention strategies, honest communication, and awareness-raising campaigns if it is to properly solve the issue of being roofied. It all boils down to encouraging a society in which everyone feels safe and supported and drugging someone is unacceptable. Let’s make sure this dark cloud vanishes from above our get-togethers together.
Date Rape & Sexual Assault Support Resources
As roofies cause gaps in memory, it is often difficult to recognize if you have been a victim the following day. Drugs like Rohypnol, GHB, and ketamine are the most commonly used date-rape drugs, but it’s hard to know exactly how commonly they are used because many cases go unreported. If you have been roofied, it is important to get medical care and to have someone to help monitor you as the drugs leave your system.
Emotional and Psychological Symptoms
Victims often experience difficulty walking, an inability to stand and a sense of heavy limbs. This loss of coordination is far more severe than typical alcohol-induced inebriation. Dr. Mitchell G. Cohen is a board-certified Internal Medicine specialist with over 34 years of experience in patient-centered healthcare.
Unfortunately, these drugs can result in permanent cognitive impairment in some cases, particularly if seizures occur. However, it’s more common for victims to experience psychological issues, such as post-traumatic stress disorder. This can lead to struggling with work and school obligations, an inability to form and maintain positive relationships and using drugs and/or alcohol to self-medicate.
Since spiking a drink aims to make the victim helpless, most drugs used to roofie cause muscle relaxation. Thus, alcohol is the most common and readily available date rape drug. A mental health provider can not only support you in the weeks and months following your assault, but they can also help you begin to find peace again after a traumatic event. Know that you will get through this, and there are people out there who want to help you heal and feel like your best self again. Unfortunately, being roofied is quite common as the drug is easy to obtain.
- If you don’t receive a consent form to sign before starting treatment, ask for one.
- Typically, the drug starts working within 20 minutes, and its sedative effects can last up to 12 hours.
- If you or someone you know has been the victim of sexual assault or rape and need guidance and support, it is important to speak to a rape crisis team in your area.
- Since it can be so hard to tell if a drink has been roofied, it is important to keep your own drinks close to you when you are going out and to not accept drinks from strangers.
The risks of Rohypnol are both physical and psychological, with potentially life-threatening consequences. Physically, it can cause severe sedation, dangerously slow breathing, and a drop in blood pressure. Going to a hospital can help ensure a person gets proper care and monitoring to make sure they are safe. Other benzodiazepines and date rape drugs can also show up on a blood test panel.
However, in average conversation, “roofies” meaning is usually any date-rape drug that is used to target victims for sexual violence. This amnesia (memory loss) is more likely to occur when a roofie is mixed with alcohol. Someone who has ingested date rape drugs may not be able to speak, walk, or function on their own. If you believe your friend (or even a stranger) has been roofied, stick by their side at all times. Don’t go anywhere alone, and don’t try to leave unless you believe you’re in severe danger. Stay with a group of trusted people if you start to feel dizzy, weak, or like you might faint.
However, it will likely need to involve both physical and mental care. Getting medical attention is essential to make sure that the drugs are safely leaving the body and to check for any underlying injuries or interactions. Date rape is sexual assault during a social situation like a date or party. It can happen when someone is drugged with substances like roofies (Rohypnol) or alcohol to make them unable to resist. Create a buddy system to prevent one person from getting separated from the group and, if necessary, take your drink to the bathroom with you. If you’re feeling distressed in the days, weeks, months or even years after being drugged, reach out for help.
Roofies affect each person differently, especially if they have alcohol or other drugs in their system. This is why it is critical to consult medical professionals to make sure there is nothing that can cause long-term harm still in the victim’s system. Unfortunately, roofies are commonly used to make victims weaker to sexual assault.
It’s also important to seek medical care afterward if you wake up the next day suspecting you’ve been roofied. Research gleaned from three large universities suggests that as many as one in 13 college students has been slipped drugs without their knowledge or consent. Seventy-nine percent of those who reported being drugged were women, and women were more likely to experience sexual assault after being drugged. Although it does seem to be more prevalent among the college crowd than among the population as a whole, middle and high school students, as well as older adults, have all reported being roofied. Being roofied is a verb form of roofie, commonly used to indicate being drugged by a roofie, or someone’s drink being spiked by a roofie without their knowledge. Roofies are commonly used in clubs, parties, and raves to facilitate sexual violence and sexually assault someone without their consent.
Some of the residual effects, such as memory loss and confusion, can last 12 hours or more after administration. Roofies have become so synonymous with rape that the act of drugging someone’s drink with any substance is collectively called “roofying”. Other substances that are often used in date rape offenses include Ketamine (K, Special K) and Gamma-Hydroxybutyrate (GHB) as they have similar effects to roofies. Sometimes, people who engage in excessive binge drinking may “blackout” and not remember certain things that happened throughout the night the next day.
However, it’s how do you feel after being roofied more common for victims to experience psychological issues such as post-traumatic stress disorder. Contact emergency services if you feel faint or like you might pass out. Date rape drugs can make you lose consciousness, which can be dangerous.
In social settings, particularly nightlife environments, the risk of being drugged without consent is an unfortunate reality. Understanding the symptoms of being roofied, especially with common date rape drugs like benzodiazepines (including Xanax) and gamma-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB), is crucial for personal safety. This article aims to shed light on the symptoms of being roofied and provide guidance on what actions to take if you suspect you’ve been drugged, so keep reading to learn more about this topic. If you notice any of these signs, it is essential to seek immediate medical attention and report the incident to the authorities.
Once intoxication sets in—roughly minutes after ingestion—a person will pass out and remain unconscious for at least a few hours.