What happens to you when your drink gets spiked: A doctor breaks down what to do

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What happens to you when your drink gets spiked: A doctor breaks down what to do

How to deal in a scary sitch

A fun night out can turn frightening so fast if you or your friend's drink gets spiked. It's a totally disorienting waking up hours later not knowing how you got there. Dr. John Shufeldt broke down the different types of drugs most frequently used, what to do when it happens, and the morning after when you're wondering, "How do I know if my drink was spiked?"

The usual suspects

Dr. Shufeldt said that GHB, Ketamine, and Rohypnol are the drugs most commonly used to spike drinks. GHB has a slightly salty taste, but is still hard to detect and can come in liquid form. It tends to make the person who took it feel sleepy.

Ketamine is actually still used by medical professionals for procedures. It's known as a disassociative and has one of the shorter acting times. "Meaning that people look awake, but they are disassociated, almost like they’re outside of their own bodies," Dr. Shufeldt said. "They kind of look like they’re catatonic almost. They stare off into space."

Rohypnol is a pill that can be crushed up and dissolved in liquid. It's tasteless. "Rohypnol and GHB you’d be more awake. You’d act probably more drunk than catatonic," he told us.

Are there warning symptoms?

"Unfortunately, by the time you notice the so-called warning signs it’s probably too late," Dr. Shufeldt said. He did add that if you don't feel right and the change came on extremely suddenly then you should tell someone.

If your friend worries that her drink might have been spiked or her behavior becomes dazed and "out of it" very fast, remove yourselves immediately. Dr. Shufedlt recommended taking the drink in question with you so it can be tested. You should take your friend to the emergency room as soon as you can.

What if you suspect you were drugged the next morning?

The morning after your drink was spiked can be disorienting and scary. You should still go to the hopsital to get tested. Dr. Shufedlt said you should bring your unwashed clothes from the night before, including the underwear you were wearing.

When you or your friend go to the hopsital, they should do a rape kit even if you don't think you were assaulted and check for STDs and bodily trauma. Unfortunately a standard drug screening won't catch all three of the most common drugs. GHB will show up in most urine tests, but Ketamine and Rohypnol won't. Dr. Shufedlt recommended asking for a serum test, a type of blood test, at the hospital. "You get all three of them under the serum, but you have to ask them specifically," he said.