What You Should Know About Club Drugs

Overview

Many teens and young adults are being introduced to the “rave” or “club culture” of today. The club or rave experience revolves around techno music, high energy dancing, and socializing, usually throughout the night. The drugs commonly used in these settings often go beyond the “traditional” drugs such as heroin, cocaine, and marijuana. These drugs are referred to as “designer drugs” and are becoming increasingly more popular.

Designer drugs are similar in structure and effects to other abused drugs. Many of these drugs are produced in illegal clandestine laboratories. Unfortunately, most young people are not aware of the health risks associated with these designer drugs, especially when combined with alcohol and other substances.

Ketamine

Ketamine hydrochloride (known as “Special K” and “K”) is a general anesthetic for veterinary use. Ketamine produces effects similar to PCP and DXM. In club doses (“K bumps”), the drug causes dreamlike states and hallucinations. In higher doses, users may experience a state lasting 30 or more minutes. Side effects include delirium, amnesia, impaired motor function, high blood pressure, depression, and potentially fatal respiratory problems.

Ketamine, used on the streets, comes from diverted legitimate supplies, primarily veterinary clinics. In appearance it is similar to that of pharmaceutical-grade cocaine, and it is snorted, placed in alcoholic beverages, or smoked in combination with marijuana. Ketamine is listed as a Schedule III controlled substance. As of August 1999, individuals arrested while in possession of Ketamine are arrested feloniously.

Ketamine Street Names

Baby Food, Bump, Cat Valium, Fort Dodge, God, Green, Green K, Honey Oil, Jet, K, K-Hole, K Sand, Kit, Kit Kat, Psychedelic Heroin, Purple, Special K

PCP (Phencyclidine)

PCP or Phencyclidine was first used as an anesthetic, but due to its side effects of confusion and delirium it was discontinued for humans. Veterinarians used it for a short time for animals, but it was again discontinued because of the side effects the drug caused.

PCP can be found in a powder or a liquid which may be applied to leafy material and smoked. It can also appear in a visible crystallized form. The drug’s effects are as varied as its appearance. It produces hallucinations, confusion, and an inability to feel pain. Users may experience a sense of strength and invulnerability, as well as nausea and depression associated with the drug.

Many experts believe that PCP is one of the most dangerous drugs. Modification of the manufacturing process may yield chemically similar analogs of the drug.

PCP Street Names

Angel Dust, Supergrass, Killer Weed, Embalming Fluid, Rocket Fuel

DXM (Dextromethorphan)

Dextromethorphan is an over-the-counter cough suppressant found in many cold medicines and cough syrups. When taken in excessive amounts, it produces dissociative effects similar to PCP and Ketamine. The drug interacts with other medications and can have serious side effects. Abuse of DXM-containing products, sometimes called “robotripping,” is particularly concerning among young people due to the easy availability of these products.

DXM Street Names

DM, CCC, Triple C, Skittles, Robo, Poor Man’s PCP

Rohypnol (Flunitrazepam)

Rohypnol is the brand name for flunitrazepam, a benzodiazepine drug. It is a potent sedative that is up to 10 times more powerful than diazepam (Valium). Like other benzodiazepines, Rohypnol has not been approved for medical use in the United States. It is illegal to manufacture, distribute, or possess Rohypnol in this country. The physical effects of the drug may be noticeable within 20 to 30 minutes after ingestion. It causes drowsiness, confusion, impaired motor skills, dizziness, disorientation, disinhibition, impaired judgment, and reduced levels of consciousness. Users may appear to be drunk or may be completely unconscious. When mixed with alcohol or other drugs, the combination may produce extremely low blood pressure, respiratory depression, difficulty breathing, coma, or death.

One of the most disturbing effects of Rohypnol is that it can produce complete or partial amnesia (loss of memory) for the events that take place after it is ingested. This effect is heightened when Rohypnol is combined with alcohol.

Rohypnol Street Names

Roofies, Rophies, Ruffies, La Rocha, Rope, Rib, Forget Me Pills, Roach, Roachies, R-2, Circles, Darkies, Wolfies, Tic and Tac, Mind Erasers, Mexican Valium, Lunch Money (referring to the low street price), Pappas, Potatoes, Negatives, Whiteys (referring to the markings on the mg tablets), Pluses or Roche Dos (referring to the markings on the 2 mg tablets)

GHB (Gamma Hydroxybutyrate)

GHB (Gamma Hydroxybutyrate) has been tested for potential medical use such as an aid in sleep disorders, alcohol dependence, and as a nutritional supplement. Currently, there is no legal use for GHB in the United States except under FDA-approved protocols.

GHB is a powerful synthetic drug that acts as a depressant on the nervous system. It is capable of rendering someone unconscious. Like Rohypnol, the drug can be difficult to detect after ingestion. GHB can cause dizziness, nausea, vomiting, confusion, seizures, respiratory depression, intense drowsiness, unconsciousness, coma, and death. When GHB is mixed with alcohol or other drugs its impact is amplified.

GHB Street Names

Georgia Home Boy (GHB), Liquid E, Liquid X, Liquid Ecstasy, Easy Lay, G, Scoop, Gamma 10, Salt Water, Somatomax, Bedtime Scoop, Soap, Gunk, Gamma G, and G Juice

Ecstasy (MDMA)

Ecstasy is a stimulant that combines the properties of methamphetamine and hallucinogens. Ecstasy (MDMA) has been promoted as a “feel good” drug. It is used for its appetite suppression and mood-lifting properties. MDMA is a Schedule I controlled substance.

A “high” can last from 20 minutes to over 6 hours, but typically lasts four hours. At moderate doses, Ecstasy causes euphoria, enhanced mental and physical energy, a sense of closeness. At higher doses it can cause hallucinations, neurotoxicity (damage to brain serotonin neurons), agitation, hyperthermia, and potentially death. MDMA is commonly taken orally in tablet, capsule, or powder form.

Ecstasy is usually organized in capsules, tablets, or powder. It can be taken orally or snorted. Physical reactions can include loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, rapid heart rate, blurred vision, faintness, chills, sweating, and involuntary body movements. Some reactions have been reported to persist.

MDMA Street Names

Ecstasy, Adam, X, XTC, E, Lover’s Speed, Clarity, Essence, Hug Drug

LSD (Lysergic Acid Diethylamide)

LSD is the most potent hallucinogen known to man. It is found in a fungus that grows on rye and other grains. LSD is an extremely powerful mood-altering chemical, a Schedule I controlled substance.

Reactions to LSD may include dilated pupils, increased body temperature, increased heart rate, sweating, loss of appetite, dry mouth, and tremors. LSD users may experience flashbacks, a recurrence of certain aspects of a person’s experience even without having taken the drug. A flashback occurs suddenly, often without warning, and may occur within a few days or more than a year after LSD use. Users also may experience anxiety or depression, distortion in their ability to recognize reality, think rationally, or communicate with others.

LSD is packaged in dosage units that the user refers to as “hits.” It is sold on blotted paper, Necco-type wafers, thin squares of gelatin, liquid, and in tiny squares of colored paper which each are placed on the tongue, licked off an envelope, or taken by other means.

LSD Street Names

Acid, Dots, Windowpane, Blossits, White Lightning, Blue Heaven, Sugar Cubes, Battery Acid, Dots, Pink, Zen

Emergency Information

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