‘People just don’t know what drugs they are buying’

With more reports of drug deaths in our festivals and clubs, what is happening to our rave community?

MDMA and ecstasy pills have been the drug-of-choice for the British rave scene for over three decades, but with pill strengths sky rocketing in recent years, there have been growing reports of tragic drug related deaths and closures of iconic night clubs.

This isn’t your parents rave scene. Back in the 1990’s to early 2000’s your average pill would contain 80-100mg MDMA (among other unregulated things). Recent reports have seen the strength of pills double and then some. Fiona Measham, member of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs and founder of The Loop (the charity which pioneered this year’s free drugs-testing service at Secret Garden Party) has reported finding pills containing as much as 250mg MDMA.

The fatalities in recent years are likely to be attributed to such high dosing. Dr Adam Winstock, founder of the Global Drugs Survey, has warned, “Higher dose preparations and high purity powders can make it more difficult to dose safely and it can be easy to take too much.”

As Fiona Maeasham puts it, “People just don’t know what they are buying. I’d liken it to buying alcohol and not knowing if you are going to get bitter shandy or whisky,”

So how do we combat this?

With the festival season still in full swing and the student party season about to kick off, local charity Bristol Drugs Project (BDP) are here to help provide you with free and confidential harm reduction advice to help keep yourself safe when you’re having fun.

Their wonderful (and sometimes glittery) team have been working in Bristol for 30 years and can often be found in places such as Motion, Love Saves the Day and Tokyo World. If you spot them out and about, come on over and meet the team.

Feeling your partying is getting a little out of hand?

BDP also have a dedicated team who can work specifically with people who use ‘recreational’ drugs, problematically. Whether you’ve used a bit more MDMA or cocaine over the party season than planned, or you’re smoking a bit more weed than you’d like, BDP can offer you 1-to-1 support to get you back on track.

Our message is ‘Start Low, Take It Slow’. With such uncertainty around dose levels, it’s hard to know how to stay safe in the party season.

Top Tips

·         Ask around. If you’re taking a pill for the first time, try to do your research. Although forums are not ‘gospel truth’, they are useful for others users negative feedback.

·         If you’re using new MDMA powder, follow the advice of The Loop: #CrushDabWait. You don’t know the purity, and crushing to a fine powder is safer in dosing.

·         Less, is often more. As Dr Adam Winstock says, “Higher doses tend to leave people feeling too wasted for too long and being less able to enjoy the people around them and their environment.” Always try to quarter or half your pills. Try to wait 1 ½ hours before re-dosing. Some pills and powders are slow acting, and the ‘come up’ could take a while.

·         Stick with your friends. If it’s your first time using a new pill or powder, be around people you trust. Try having a ‘sober’ friend within your group to keep an eye on you.

·         It’s important to keep hydrated but try not to over do it. In a normal club environment, sip no more than a pint of water an hour is necessary. If you are drinking alcohol, be aware that this also dehydrates you.

·         If you or anyone you know has an adverse reaction, call 999 immediately, you could save their life!

For more information get in touch with BDP by calling 0117 987 6000 or visiting their Advice & Information Centre: 11 Brunswick Square, BS2 8PE. Mon-Fri: 9am – 8pm. Sat: 10am – 5pm.