Widespread spiking of drinks with date-rape drugs such as Rohypnol and GHB is an "urban legend" fuelled by young women unwilling to accept they have simply consumed too much alcohol, academics believe.
A study of more than 200 students revealed many wrongly blamed the effects of a "bad night out" on date-rape drugs, when they had just drunk excessively.
Many are in "active denial" that drinking large amounts of alcohol can leave them "incoherent and incapacitated", the Kent University researchers concluded.
Young women's fears about date-rape drugs are so ingrained that students mistakenly think it is a more important factor in sexual assault than being drunk, taking drugs or walking alone at night.
The study, published in the British Journal of Criminology, found three-quarters of students identified drink spiking as an important risk – more than alcohol or drugs.
More than half said they knew someone whose drink had been spiked.
But despite popular beliefs, police have found no evidence that rape victims are commonly drugged with such substances, the researchers said.
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Earlier this year, Australian researchers found that none one of 97 young men and women admitted to hospital over 19 months to two Perth hospital claiming to have had their drinks spiked, had in fact been drugged.
So they we go, drink spiking by drugs like GHB and Rohypnol is largely an urban hysteria. According to several studies both in the UK and Australia.
Anyone on TSR who thinks that they've had their drink spiked or claims to know someone who's had it done? Views and opinions people
(I'm not claiming that rapists don't take advantage of drunk women, just that in the vast majority of cases where supposed spiking by date rape drugs occurred nothing of the sort happened)
I think most people who regularly go 'out' realised that it isn't as prevalent as some choose to believe. Alcohol can always affect you in unexpected ways and for strange reasons: there's very little rhyme or reason to getting pissed, or indeed the after-effects. It is bizarre simply to credit feeling a bit out of it with your drink being drugged.
Location: Charlottesville, VA, DC, Louisville, KY and Bristol, UK
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Re: Date rape drink spiking is an urban legend.
This is just like all of the girls that go out and drunkenly leave their purses/phones at the bar/in the toilet and when they realize it convince themselves and everyone else that it was "stolen"...
It's very true that people underestimate the effects of drinking lots or drinking quickly. A couple of times I've drank way too fast and ended up being much drunker than normal and having no memory of things that have happened which doesn't normally happen to me at all. So I do understand how people convince themselves that they've had their drink spiked when this happens, because it really does seem different from being drunk normally (to me anyway). I've never thought my drink was spiked because I knew I'd drank more and more quickly than normal. Maybe people are trying to convince themselves that alcohol is safer than it is or that they couldn't possibly misuse it?
Although just because it's not drink spiking putting people in this state doesn't mean it's not a problem. It makes it seem quite hypocritical that during Freshers week there was a whole awareness raising thing about drink spiking yet we were encouraged to drink a lot by the same people.
I've had my drink spiked before on a night out and the after effects are just not like a hangover, i went from being co-ordinated, aware of my surroundings just being my normal self, to sprawled out on the floor violently throwing up. the next day i was ill, not like a hangover i mean ive had them and i know the experience and im fine after some rest water and food, i just felt bizarre really, shivering and sweating and if i attempted anything i would throw up. I had left my drink for like a minute on the bar whilst i spoke to someone and traces did get found when tested for stuff. glad my mates were around or lord knows what might have happened. lots of lasses drink more than they can handle but its unfair to say this is always the case.
Ok obviously that research is wrong and it does happen, but I do believe that it happens a lot less than people say, here's my experience.
My friend recons hers was, tbh, I'm not sure I don't think it was I just think she mis-judged how much she drank, as it was only us two buying each others drinks, and I was fine...
Last edited by theronkinator : 1 Week Ago at 03:27.
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Re: Date rape drink spiking is an urban legend.
Originally Posted by northern-vic
I've had my drink spiked before on a night out and the after effects are just not like a hangover, i went from being co-ordinated, aware of my surroundings just being my normal self, to sprawled out on the floor violently throwing up. the next day i was ill, not like a hangover i mean ive had them and i know the experience and im fine after some rest water and food, i just felt bizarre really, shivering and sweating and if i attempted anything i would throw up. I had left my drink for like a minute on the bar whilst i spoke to someone and traces did get found when tested for stuff. glad my mates were around or lord knows what might have happened. lots of lasses drink more than they can handle but its unfair to say this is always the case.
While I appreciate that "traces were found", the symptons just sound like me when really ****ing drunk.
Yet I never blame anyone but myself.
It may be rarer than people say, but calling it "a myth" is idiotic. My best friend's sister had her drink spiked once, realised something had gone wrong and managed to tell her flatmate in time to get helped home before she passed out. This was very early in the night and she'd only had two drinks. It's stupid to just pass this off with some comment like "Hurr, what a load of ****, she's just a drunk slut" -- her drink was definitely spiked.
A girl at my sixth form had a fit in a bar because she was allergic to rohypnol that had been put in her drink
I agree there are SOME owmen who drink too mcuh and blame it on 'spiking' rather than their ability to know when to stop drinking, but date rape is real and you should be vigilant and watch your drinks.
Also this is only one article, I've read tonnes of articles about real life cases (men and women btw)
Aaahh , this is such a nice idea, a lot like witchcraft, and "i didnt do it i was possesed" kind of thinking. only diffidence is that this is remotely possible. people always prefer to blame someone (or someting) else, its easier to deal with, than "man im dumb and irresponsible, and its all my fault"
As someone who had their drink spiked once, I'm seriously unhappy with results like that being bandied about (there was no possible way I could have been drunk in the situation) - it just suggests that the people who really DO have their drinks spiked will be taken less seriously than they should be, and that's worrying.
Another thing to remember is that they surveryed students at the University of Kent
I don't mean to be a bitch but it is a lower grade uni, and lower grade unis TEND to take students of lower intelligence that the high grade unis
I find it difficult to imagine half the women I know thinking they know someone who's had their drink spiked, so I imagine a lot of the girls surveyed are just idiots with idiot friends who drink way too much and then believe that because they can't remember stuff they were 'spiked'
It was a bit silly of the researchers to only survey Kent students, hardly representative of all women
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Date rape drink spiking is an urban legend.
