It’s important to kick back and enjoy life, but not every setting is safe for doing so. You should be aware of your surroundings, have a buddy system, and, most importantly, be sharply aware if your drinks have been spiked.
Not to scare you, but according to the National Sexual Violence Research Center, one in five women in the U.S. alone will experience completed or attempted rape during their lifetime. And it’s important to note that false reporting on sexual assault is very low, between 2% to 10%.
Look around the room and count five women. Will it be you?
RELATED: Expert survivalists recommend stocking up on these emergency kits
“Test kits are a simplistic answer to a deeply complex issue,” said Farrell Brenner, Senior Manager of Consulting Services for the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN). She stressed that if you feel safer with a test kit, by all means, do it, but drink spiking is just a small percentage of date rape issues.
According to a study conducted by ScienceDirect, alcohol is the “most commonly detected substance” used for drug-facilitated assaults, and the study showed intoxication combined with voluntary drug consumption presented a greater risk.
“Many survivors have strong feelings of self-blame,” said Brenner. “When you choose to use drugs or alcohol, you are not choosing to be sexually assaulted. The blame for this crime falls only on the perpetrator.”
Let’s do everything possible to protect you from date rape drugs by normalizing testing drinks and keeping them safely guarded. Whether it be yourself or your college kid, be sure to have this essential: a testing kit.
- Best for Precaution: Night Cap College Safety Box
- Detects GHB and Ketamine: TEST MY DRINK
- Best Value: Think Twice Ketamine & GHB Test Strips
What are date rape drugs?
Roofies come from Rohypnol, Ketamine, or Gamma Hydroxybutyrate (GHB). Each acts as a sedative, impacting motor skills, memory, and one’s ability to function fully.
If you suspect your drink may have been tampered with, date rate drug symptoms include:
- Involuntary teeth clenching
- Nausea
- Feeling faint or chilled
- Blurred vision
Additionally, you could experience an increased heart rate and blood pressure, a loss of appetite, or unusual feelings of empathy. It’s crucial to seek medical attention immediately and report the incident to the authorities if you believe you’ve been drugged.
Don’t listen to any voice that tells you to be embarrassed or feel shameful; no matter how hot you looked or flirtatious you were, slipping drugs into someone’s drink without consent is a crime. Brenner reminded us that “no single or specific drug causes sexual violence — perpetrators and the people who teach, encourage, and accommodate their behaviors do.” Anyone who tells you otherwise doesn’t deserve space inside your head.
We’ve rounded up a few quick and easy tests to try at the bar (especially when a drink is sent to you from across the room), along with a few hacks to keep your evening safe and carefree. There is everything from lip gloss to scrunchies and testing strips.
Skip to our very detailed FAQ section to learn more.
TEST MY DRINK ( 10 Strips – 20 Tests)
Pros:
- Detects GHB and Ketamine
- Compact, portable, and easy to use
Cons:
- May show faint lines
- Not useful if the paper kit gets wet before use
TEST MY DRINK detects GHB and Ketamine in both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. Each kit contains 10 test strips for 20 tests, providing a quick and user-friendly way to identify these colorless, odorless, and tasteless drugs. Test by placing a drop of your drink on the designated test spots, wait for the results, and if either spot turns darker blue, the presence of date rape drugs has been detected.
Night Cap College Safety Box
Pros:
- Great value
- Excellent gift for college students and bridal parties
- Easy to carry scrunchie in your hair and convert to a lid topper
Cons:
- Pricepoint is a little high, but individual scrunchies are as low as $9.99
- Not a drug detector but a drug protector
As seen on Shark Tank, the Night Cap College Safety Box is packed full of safety kits that feature discreet and lightweight products such as scrunchie drink covers and StopTopps stickers, which fit easily into bags or pockets. In fact, the scrunchie can be worn in your hair and then turned into a drink topper to keep you safe.
The package includes two black NightCap Scrunchies; ten StopTopps drink spiking prevention stickers; one NightCap keychain; one NightCap Beer Bottle Top Pouch with three tops inside; one NightCap seltzer can cooler; one NightCap beer can cooler; one Maxxm personal alarm; two NightCap Handy Bottle Tops; and two NightCap Straw Tops with a NightCap Straw Kit.
Date Rape Drug Detection
Pros:
- Easy to use and portable
- Instant results
Cons:
- It’s not clear from the packaging when the date expires
These are ideal for date rape drug detection and easy to use. There are 10 cards in a pack with 2 test areas. Simply place a few droplets on the indicated spot. They’ll test for GHB and Ketamine in realistic dosages designed to make you very out of touch with your body. If the test visibly changes color, it confirms, it’s positive.
New York Post Review: “I recently went on a girls’ trip where I wanted to keep an extra close eye on my drinks. I found this test to be very easy to use. However, I’ll admit I felt embarrassed pulling it out in public. It did send a clear signal to onlookers that I was keeping a sharp eye out and not completely oblivious to possible attackers. The results appeared quickly, even if I looked a little unclassy, dipping my finger in my wine glass to get a sample.”
Think Twice Ketamine & GHB Test Strips
Pros:
- Long shelf life
- Dual detection
- Kit has 125 test strips
Cons:
- It can be expensive, but for the 145 drinks you’ll have over the next five years, it will cost you $1 per drink and put your mind at ease.
With a simple yet effective design, these strips can detect Ketamine and (GHB) with just a drop of your drink. Apply a drop to the pink and yellow strips on the test. If either turns orange or blue, you’ve got a positive result.
The date rape drug test kit comes with 25 pouches, each containing 5 test strips, providing 125 tests for both substances. Each 5-pack is sealed in a resealable, airtight pouch to ensure the strips stay fresh and effective for up to 5 years. They’re ideal for those who like to plan ahead or who take last-minute trips or outings.
FAQ
Brenner kindly provided information regarding date-rape drugs and precautions you can take to prevent it. She is deeply committed to creating safer spaces and advocating for systemic change to prevent sexual violence.
RAINN works with industries like hospitality and alcohol to train staff, review policies, and create safer spaces. Education on healthy relationships and consent in schools is also a key focus to reduce intimate partner violence. Check out its website to learn more about RAINN’s services.
If you or someone else begins to experience symptoms like difficulty breathing, feeling unusually intoxicated, nausea, dizziness, or memory loss, get help immediately.
Contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800.656.HOPE.
What are the most common date rape drugs?
While drugs like Rohypnol (“roofies”) and GHB are often associated with sexual assault, studies show alcohol is actually the most commonly involved substance in drug-facilitated sexual assault. Many substances, both legal and illegal, can act as central nervous system depressants, impairing judgment and inhibiting memory.
How common is date rape drugging?
According to the Office of Women’s Health, “nearly 11 million” women in the United States have been sexually assaulted while under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
If you think you’ve been drugged, now what?
If you suspect you were drugged, try to save your urine in a clean, sealable container and refrigerate or freeze it. This can help preserve evidence for up to 72 hours.
Most perpetrators of drug-facilitated sexual assault are someone close to the victim, an acquaintance, or an intimate partner, and assaults tend to happen in private spaces, like homes, rather than public places like bars.
Some victims are not believed or are blamed when they report being drugged. Test kits may not detect all substances used in drug-facilitated assault, and they don’t cover situations where a victim may have consumed alcohol or drugs voluntarily or from a trusted source.
Focusing too much on safety measures like drink tests can shift responsibility to potential victims to prevent assault rather than addressing the root issue: holding perpetrators accountable for their actions. Even if you voluntarily drank and took drugs, you are not to be blamed, no matter what others may say.
What are the warning signs and symptoms of date rape drugs?
Roofie/date rape drug symptoms are the following:
- Having a hard time breathing
- Having consumed no alcohol but feeling drunk
- Loss of bowel or bladder control
- Nausea
- A sudden change in body temperature
- Dizziness, disorientation or blurred vision
- Waking up with no memory, or missing large portions of memories
If you observe any of the following warning signs in yourself or someone you know, it’s important to reach out to someone you trust right away.
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