Club drugs
Club drugs are a category of substances often used in social settings like nightclubs or dance parties, typically associated with a vibrant nightlife culture. Common examples include ecstasy (MDMA), GHB, ketamine, Rohypnol, LSD, and methamphetamine. These drugs can have varied effects, including euphoria and emotional clarity, but they can also lead to serious adverse reactions such as panic, impaired judgment, and even overdose. Due to their lower cost and perceived safety, particularly among younger individuals, club drugs are frequently experimented with at social gatherings. However, misconceptions about their safety can result in regular use and dangerous combinations with other substances, such as alcohol or prescription drugs. The potential for harmful effects is heightened in environments like raves, where dehydration and heat exhaustion can also occur. Awareness and education about the risks of club drugs are crucial, especially given the rise in their use among younger populations and the emergence of new synthetic variants. Access to drug-testing kits at events has been a proactive measure to help users understand what substances they are consuming, aiming to mitigate some of the associated risks.
Club drugs
ALSO KNOWN AS: Designer drugs, psychedelics
DEFINITION: Club drug is a slang term for a wide variety of substances of abuse that generally are used in social situations, such as at clubs or dance parties. Common club drugs include ecstasy, GHB (gamma-hydroxybutyrate), ketamine, Rohypnol (flunitrazepam), LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) and methamphetamine. Club drugs often have hallucinogenic properties, and may have either excitatory or sedative effects.
Causes and Symptoms
Club drugs are often less expensive and more accessible than other controlled substances, making them particularly attractive to young people who want to experiment with drugs at a rave, dance party, or bar with friends. This desire, combined with a false belief that club drugs are safer than other drugs, can lead people to try drugs and sometimes begin using them regularly. Club drugs are often first used at dance clubs or with friends. The belief that such drugs are natural analogs of prescription drugs or are not illegal fuels a misconception of their safety. Because the drugs are psychedelic, reactions of individual users will vary significantly depending on the user’s emotional state, concurrent use of other substances, underlying psychiatric conditions, personality, and previous experience with the drugs. Additionally, because these substances are street drugs, their contents are usually subject to some variability, such as being mixed with less expensive drugs, and their quality may vary substantially.
Club drugs go by many different names. They include substances such as gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB, Georgia homeboy, liquid ecstasy, liquid X, soap), ketamine hydrochloride (ketamine, special K, jet, vitamin K), lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD, acid, blotter, dots), methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, Adam, ecstasy, E, X, XTC, Molly, hug beans, love drug), and Rohypnol (roofies, roach, roche). They also include herbal ecstasy (herbal X, cloud nine, herbal bliss), which is a drug made from ephedrine or pseudoephedrine and caffeine; synthetic cannabinoids (spice); methamphetamine (chalk, crank, crystal meth, glass, ice, speed); and synthetic cathinones (bath salts, Bliss, Cloud Nine, Lunar Wave, Vanilla Sky, White Lightning).
The effects of club drugs vary, but as a group, they cause several reactions, including euphoria, feelings of well-being, emotional clarity, a decreased sense of personal boundaries, and feelings of empathy and closeness to others. However, they can also cause significant adverse reactions, including panic, impaired judgment, amnesia, impaired motor control, insomnia, paranoia, irrational behavior, flashbacks, hallucinations, rapid heartbeat, high blood pressure, chills, sweating, tremors, respiratory distress, convulsions, and violence. It is not uncommon for individuals to mix these drugs with alcohol, prescription drugs, or other illegal drugs. When drugs are taken in combination, the drugs can interact and cause dangerous and unexpected reactions.
Treatment and Therapy
The effects of club drugs vary by substance, and the treatment for drug abuse varies by substance as well. In general, club drugs tend to be seen more in emergency care settings than in primary health care settings. This is because some of the problems they cause are often critical and require emergency care. For instance, overdose, strokes, allergic shock reactions, blackouts, loss of consciousness, and accidents related to these conditions may require emergency care. Similarly, dehydration and heat exhaustion can result from prolonged periods of dancing or other physical exertion, as can occur in rave situations. Date rapes have been known to occur with these drugs, particularly Rohypnol, and injuries due to sexual assault may also require emergency care.
The long-term impact of problems, such as those described above, may require psychotherapy. In addition, problems related to the abuse of or dependence upon club drugs will be addressed in much the same manner as for other substances of abuse. General addiction treatment is advised.
Perspective and Prospects
The dangers of club drugs underscore the continuing need for social awareness of these substances that may otherwise seem harmless. Just because a substance is not listed as an illegal drug does not mean that it cannot be dangerous. Any drug, whether sold over the counter, by prescription, or in any other way, can be misused and be dangerous or even fatal to the user.
While the experimental use of psychedelic substances for psychotherapeutic work may prove beneficial to certain groups of patients, such work is balanced by investigations into neurology, physiology, psychopharmacology, and psychology, which emphasize that the proposed benefits do not outweigh the risks. Continued exploration of the neuronal, developmental, social, and other health effects of using club drugs is necessary as they pose a significant danger to public health, particularly to younger populations.
While the use of club drugs in the general population remains relatively low, trends indicate a rise in the use of these substances by younger people, especially those aged in their twenties. The use of club drugs remains an issue among specific demographics and within certain social settings. Complicating the problem is the fact that many new substances are developed each year, including research chemicals and novel substances like “pink cocaine,” which can contain both unstudied chemicals and known dangerous drugs like fentanyl. Social media has only exacerbated this issue. One successful tactic in combatting club drugs has been to offer free drug-testing kits to partygoers to at least ensure they are aware of the substance they are consuming.
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