What Is Rohypnol?

Rohypnol and GHB are silent, invisible, potent, and destructive.  When hidden in a drink, they may be completely undetectable. They can seriously harm or even kill you.

What is Rohypnol?
Rohypnol is the brand name for flunitrazepam, a benzodiazepine drug. It is in the same family of medications as Valium and Xanax. But, unlike these other drugs, Rohypnol has never been approved for any medical use in the United States. It is illegal to manufacture, distribute, or possess Rohypnol in this country.

What are Rohypnol’s effects?
Rohypnol is a potent and fast-acting sedative. The physical effects of the drug may be noticeable within 20 to 30 minutes after ingestion. Rohypnol causes drowsiness, confusion, impaired motor skills, dizziness, disinhibition, impaired judgment, and reduced levels of consciousness. You may look and act like someone who is drunk. Your speech may be slurred and you may have difficulty walking, or you may become completely unconscious.

It is very dangerous to mix Rohypnol 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 means that you may not be able to remember what you did – or what was done to you – while you are under the influence of the drug, which may be a significant period of time. This “amnesic” effect is especially likely when Rohypnol is ingested with alcohol.

What does it look like?
Rohypnol is most commonly found in tablet form. It is usually smuggled into this country in its original packaging – foil-backed, clear plastic “blister packs” or “bubble packs.” Sometimes the packages are opened and the pills are put into vitamin jars or other medication bottles. The pills may be ground into a powder. Rohypnol is occasionally found in liquid form.

Street names
Ruffies, Roofies, Rophies, Roches, Roaches, La Rochas, Rope, Rib, Forget Pill, Poor Man’s Quaalude, R-2’s, Roach-2’s, Circles, Dulcitas, Whiteys, Trip-and-Fall, Mind-Erasers, Mexican Valium, Lunch Money (referring to the drugs low street price), Pappas or Potatoes (describing the mental capacity of someone under the influence of the drug), Negatives or Minuses (referring to the markings on the 1 mg. Tablets), Pluses or Roches Dos (referring to the markings on the 2 mg. Tablets).

How is Rohypnol being abused?
Across the country there are reports of people “closing” other people without their knowledge by dropping whole or crushed Rohypnol tablets into their drinks. When Rohypnol is dissolved in a drink, you cannot see it, smell it, or taste it. Therefore, if you are “closed,” you probably will not know that you are being drugged. Soft drinks, punch, beer, or other alcoholic beverages can provide the disguise.

What Is GHB?

GHB is gamma-hydroxybutyrate. It has been tested for potential medical uses in the United States, but has never been approved for any use outside of FDA-approved research trials. GHB also has been promoted for body building, although the efficacy of the drug for this use has never been documented. In 1990, the FDA issued a warning to consumers to stop using GHB because of its numerous deleterious effects.

What are the effects of GHB?
GHB is a powerful synthetic drug that acts as a depressant on the central nervous system. It is rapidly metabolized by the body. The effects of the drug can be felt within 15 minutes after ingestion.

GHB can cause dizziness, nausea, vomiting, confusion, seizures, respiratory depression, intense drowsiness, unconsciousness, and coma. In some cases, GHB also can cause “anterograde amnesia” (memory loss for the events following ingestion). This means that you may not be able to recall what happened to you while you were under the influence of the drug.

When GHB is ingested with alcohol or other drugs, the consequences may be life threatening. Without immediate and appropriate medical care, the results may be fatal.

Two characteristics of GHB make it especially dangerous: First, most of the GHB used today is the “homegrown” variety made by non-professionals in their own “street labs,” kitchens, or bathtubs by mixing various chemical ingredients, which include solvents and caustic soda. Homebrewed GHB can be particularly dangerous. There are significant differences in the purity, concentration, and potency of various batches. The same amount taken from two separate batches may have very different effects. The second reason GHB is dangerous is that there is a very narrow margin between the dose that will produce intoxication and the amount that will cause the harmful effects described above.

Street names
Grievous Bodily Harm (GHB), Liquid X, Liquid E, Liquid Ecstasy, Easy Lay, G, Vita-G, G-juice, Georgia Home Boy, Great Hormones, Somatomax, Bedtime Scoop, Soap, Gook, Gamma 10, and Energy Drink.

What does it look like?
GHB is most commonly made in a clear liquid form that is colorless and odorless. It has also been produced as a white crystalline powder.

How is GHB being abused?
Across the country there are reports of GHB being distributed at clubs, bars, raves and other parties. GHB is usually doled out by capfuls, teaspoons, drops or “swigs”. It may be sold or passed around in containers of varying sizes including sports bottles, designer water bottles, eye dropper bottles, baby food jars, sample size shampoo bottles or plastic water jugs. It may be offered as a small paper cup of clear liquid.

A potential victim may be unknowingly drugged with GHB. The clear liquid GHB is easily dropped or squirted into a drink. When it is dissolved in a drink, it is colorless and odorless. However, it may be recognizable by its slightly salty taste. Sometimes people who lace drinks with GHB attempt to mask the salty taste of the drug by mixing it with a sweet liqueur, or they may try to explain the salty taste by calling it a special potion or “energy drink.”

Is Everyone Affected The Same Way?

It is difficult to predict the exact effects of any drug on a particular individual. The effects vary depending upon the drug, the dose you ingest, whether the drug is mixed with alcohol or other drugs, your weight, gender, metabolism, and other factors, including how soon you receive medical assistance. There is one thing you can be sure of – the danger of serious and harmful effects is greatly increased when drugs like Rohypnol and GHB are taken in combination with alcohol or other drugs.

Ways to Avoid Rohypnol and GHB

• Do not drink beverages that you did not open yourself.
• Do not share or exchange drinks with anyone.
• Do not take a drink from a punch bowl.
• Do not drink from a container that is being passed around.
• If possible, bring your own drinks to parties.
• If someone offers you a drink from the bar at a club or a party, accompany the person to the bar to order your drink, watch the drink being poured, and carry the drink with you.
• Do not leave your drink unattended while talking, dancing, using the restroom, or making a phone call.
• If you realize that your drink has been left unattended, discard it.
• Do not drink anything that has an unusual taste or appearance (e.g., salty taste, excessive foam, unexplained residue).
• Party in groups and watch out for you friends. •Appoint a designated “sober” person when you go to parties, clubs, or bars. Have a plan to periodically check up on each other.
• If one of your friends appears very intoxicated, gets sick after drinking a beverage, passes out, and is difficult to awaken, seems to be having difficulty breathing, or is behaving in an uncharacteristic way, take steps to ensure your friend’s safety. If necessary, call 911 for emergency medical assistance.
• If you see or hear that someone is “dosing” a drink or a punch bowl, warn potential victims, discard the drink, and / or get help.
• Warn friends about high-risk situations, such as clubs where “dosing” is known to have occurred.

Signs That You May Have Been Drugged

• If you feel a lot more intoxicated than your usual response to the amount of alcohol you consumed.
• If you wake up very hung over, feeling “fuzzy,” experiencing memory lapse and cannot account for a period of time.
• If you feel as though someone had sex with you, but you cannot remember any or all of the incident.

What To Do If It Happens to You

• Get to a safe place.
• Get help immediately.
• Ask a trusted friend to stay with you and assist you in getting the help you need.
• Call the police.
• Go to a hospital emergency department as soon as possible for an examination and evidence collection.
• Request that the hospital take a urine sample for drug toxicology testing. A special test must be conducted to detect Rohypnol in a urine sample.
• Preserve as much physical evidence as possible. Do not shower, bathe, or throw away the clothing you were wearing during the incident. If possible, save any other materials that might provide evidence, such as the glass that held your drink.