The lowest-risk option is not taking an unknown drug.
You already know that.
If that sentence was enough to change your plan, great.
If it was not, you still deserve a plan.
Start here
The plan before the substance
Most of this is logistics, not chemistry.
Know your people
At least one person should notice if you disappear or stop acting like yourself.
Know your exit
Phone charged, payment accessible, actual ride home.
Know what you can verify
A stranger saying 'trust me' is not drug identification.
Know where help is
Find the medical / first-aid point before you need it.
Do not use alone
If something goes wrong, another person can:
- notice;
- call for help;
- tell medical staff what they know;
- keep you from wandering away;
- keep track of time;
- stop the group from assuming somebody else is handling it.
This is especially important when nobody is fully sure what the substance contains.
“My friend gave it to me” is not the same as knowing what it is
Your friend may be honest.
Your friend can still be wrong.
A pill, powder, liquid, vape, or other substance can be:
- mislabeled;
- mixed;
- stronger than expected;
- different from what the seller claimed.
Do not treat packaging, color, logo, or somebody’s confidence as proof.
If checking tools are available, use them according to their instructions.
A test can sometimes warn you about a problem.
It cannot prove the entire supply is safe or tell you everything that is in it.
Avoid casual mixing
Do not build a cocktail because:
“I feel fine so far.”
Different substances can interact in ways that are hard to predict, especially when you do not know exactly what is in them.
If you take prescribed medication, that can matter too.
If you do not know whether a combination is risky, do not rely on a random person at the party to answer.
Do not take more just because nothing happened immediately
“Nothing yet” is not the same thing as “nothing is going to happen.”
The exact timing depends on the substance, form, amount, and what is actually in it.
This page is not going to give you a redosing schedule.
If you are uncertain what you took or what strength it is, more uncertainty is not solved by taking more.
Tell one person what you believe you took
This does not need to be dramatic.
Use the words
Things to tell a friend
The point is that somebody else has the information if you stop being able to explain.
I’m taking this. This is what I was told it is.
I took it around [time].
If I start acting really wrong, get me to medical.
If we get separated, meet me at [place].
If I disappear, don’t assume I’m fine.
If you are worried about being judged, choose the friend who is most likely to act rather than lecture.
If you are at a festival, find medical before you need it
When you arrive, notice where:
- medical / first aid is;
- security is;
- the meeting point is;
- exits are.
That is easier while everybody feels normal.
If somebody later needs help, you should not be trying to discover the venue layout for the first time.
If your friend stops being okay
Get help if they are:
- hard to wake;
- breathing strangely;
- having a seizure;
- blue or gray;
- dangerously hot;
- severely confused;
- clearly getting worse.
Do not rely on:
“They just need to sleep.”
“They always get weird.”
“Let’s wait another hour.”
If you are worried enough to debate whether medical staff should see them, ask medical staff.
Tell medical staff the truth you actually know
You are not helping your friend by giving the medic a cleaner story.
Say:
“We think they took ____. I’m not certain.”
“They took it around ____.”
“They also drank / took another substance.”
“I don’t know what it was. It came from someone at the event.”
“This is what changed.”
The person treating them needs the truth you know, not a morally impressive version of the night.
Do not leave a severely impaired person alone
Someone stays with them if it is safe, or hands them directly to medical staff or security.
If that means missing the set, missing the party, or going home early, that is what happens.
A person who cannot safely walk, communicate, stay oriented, or care for themselves is not somebody you leave sitting somewhere while the group continues the night.
Getting home counts
Before everybody splits up:
- account for the group;
- identify who is still impaired;
- make sure each person has an actual ride;
- do not send a severely impaired person off alone just because the event ended.
If somebody is still medically concerning, home is not a substitute for medical care.
Things this page will not give you
No:
- magic “safe dose” copied from Reddit;
- exact hydration formula;
- color/logo guide to pills;
- home remedy for overdose;
- recipe for mixing substances;
- promise that a test means the substance is safe.
Those answers can hurt people when the substance, person, or situation is different.
Bottom line
Harm reduction is not:
“This makes the dangerous thing safe.”
It is:
“If the dangerous thing is already happening, what gives us more chances to notice trouble, leave, and get help?”
For the friend-is-already-not-okay version, see Your Friend Is Not Okay at the Festival.
If somebody is hard to wake, breathing strangely, having a seizure, blue or gray, dangerously hot, or severely confused, get medical help.