Club drug

thumb|right|A selection of [[MDMA pills, which are often nicknamed "Ecstasy" or "E".]]

Club drugs, also called rave drugs or party drugs, are a loosely defined category of recreational drugs which are associated with discothèques in the 1970s and nightclubs, dance clubs, electronic dance music (EDM) parties, and raves in the 1980s to today. Unlike many other categories, such as opiates and benzodiazepines, which are established according to pharmaceutical or chemical properties, club drugs are a "category of convenience", in which drugs are included due to the locations they are consumed and/or where the user goes while under the influence of the drugs. Club drugs are generally used by adolescents and young adults.

thumb|right|Club drug users take the drugs because the substances' effects enhance the experience of [[rave and electronic dance music clubs' pulsating lights, brightly colored projected images and massive sound systems with heavy basslines.]]

Club drugs range from entactogens such as MDMA ("ecstasy"), 2C-B ("nexus") and inhalants (e.g., nitrous oxide and poppers) to stimulants (e.g., amphetamine and cocaine), depressants/sedatives (Quaaludes, GHB, Rohypnol) and psychedelic and hallucinogenic drugs (LSD and DMT). Dancers at all-night parties and dance events have used some of these drugs for their stimulating properties since the 1960s mod subculture in U.K., whose members took amphetamine to stay up all night. In the 1970s disco scene, the club drugs of choice shifted to the stimulant cocaine and the depressant Quaaludes. Quaaludes were so common at disco clubs that the drug was nicknamed "disco biscuits". In the 1990s and 2000s, methamphetamine and MDMA were commonly sold and used in many clubs. "Club drugs" vary by country and region; in some regions, even opiates such as heroin and morphine have been sold at clubs, though this practice is relatively uncommon. Narconon states that other synthetic drugs used in clubs, or which are sold as "ecstasy", include piperazines (e.g., BZP and TFMPP); PMA/PMMA; mephedrone (generally used outside the US) and MDPV.

The legal status of club drugs varies according to the region and the drug. Some drugs are legal in some jurisdictions. Other club drugs, such as amphetamine, are generally illegal unless the individual has a medical prescription. Some club drugs are almost always illegal, such as cocaine and MDMA.

There are a range of risks from using club drugs. Usage can increase the risk of injury due to falls, dangerous or risky behavior (e.g., unsafe sex) and, if the user drives, injury or death due to impaired driving accidents. Some club drugs, such as cocaine and amphetamines, are addictive, and regular use can lead to the user craving more of the drug. Some club drugs are more associated with overdoses. Some club drugs can cause adverse health effects which can be harmful to the user, such as the dehydration associated with MDMA use in an all-night dance club setting.

Types

Ecstasy

MDMA (ecstasy) is a popular club drug in the rave and electronic dance music scenes and in nightclubs. It is known under many nicknames, including "e" and "Molly". MDMA is often considered the drug of choice within the rave culture and is also used at clubs, festivals, house parties and free parties. In the rave environment, the sensory effects from the music and lighting are often highly synergistic with the drug. The psychedelic quality of MDMA and its amphetamine-like energizing effect offers multiple reasons for its appeal to users in the rave setting. Some users enjoy the feeling of mass communion from the inhibition-reducing effects of the drug, while others use it as "party fuel" for all-night dancing.

MDMA is taken by users less frequently than other stimulants, typically less than once per week. Effects include "[g]reater enjoyment of dancing", "[d]istortions of perceptions, particularly light, music and touch"; and "[a]rtificial feelings of empathy and emotional warmth".

Stimulants

thumb|left|120px|A blue form of [[crystal meth.]]

A number of stimulants are used as club drugs. Various amphetamines and methamphetamines are used as stimulants, as is cocaine. These drugs enable clubgoers to dance all night. Cocaine is a powerful nervous system stimulant. Its effects can last from fifteen or thirty minutes to an hour. The duration of cocaine's effects depends on the amount taken and the route of administration. Cocaine can be in the form of fine white powder, bitter to the taste. When inhaled or injected, it causes a numbing effect. Cocaine increases alertness, feelings of well-being and euphoria, energy and motor activity, feelings of competence and sexuality. Cocaine's stimulant effects are similar to that of amphetamine, however, these effects tend to be much shorter lasting and more prominent.

Depressants/sedatives

thumb|right|200px|A variety of Quaalude pills and capsules.

Methaqualone (Quaaludes) became increasingly popular as a recreational drug in the late 1960s and 1970s, known variously as "ludes" or "sopers" (also "soaps") in the U.S. and "mandrakes" and "mandies" in the UK, Australia and New Zealand. The drug was often used by hippies and by people who went dancing at glam rock clubs in the 1970s and at discos (one slang term for Quaaludes in the disco era was "disco biscuits"). In the mid-1970s, there were bars in Manhattan called "juice bars" that only served non-alcoholic drinks that catered to people who liked to dance on methaqualone. Purported methaqualone is in a significant minority of cases found to be inert, or contain diphenhydramine or benzodiazepines. Methaqualone is one of the most commonly used recreational drugs in South Africa. It is also popular elsewhere in Africa and in India.

The depressant GHB (also used by assailants as a date rape drug, in which case they slip it into a victim's drink) is intentionally taken by some users as a party drug and club drug.

Rohypnol (also used as a date rape drug) is a sedative/hypnotic that causes intoxication and impairs cognitive functions. This may appear as lack of concentration, confusion and anterograde amnesia. It can be described as a hangover-like effect which can persist to the next day. It also impairs psychomotor functions similar to other benzodiazepines and nonbenzodiazepine hypnotic drugs.

Although the previously mentioned drugs are generally categorized as club drugs by the media and the United States government, this distinction probably does not have an accurate correlation to real usage patterns. For example, alcoholic beverages (beer, wine, hard liquor) are generally not included under the category of club drugs, even though they are probably used more than any other drug at clubs, particularly those that are liquor-licensed nightclubs or bars.

In 2023, California passed Assembly Bill 1013 which requires bars and nightclubs to provide drug checking strips for drinks. A similar bill is also being considered in Olympia, Washington for 2026.

Psychedelic drugs

A psychedelic is a psychoactive drug whose primary action is to alter cognition and perception, typically by agonising serotonin receptors, causing thought and visual/auditory changes, and heightened state of consciousness. Major psychedelic drugs include Bufotenin, Racemorphan, LSD, DMT, and psilocybin mushrooms.

Not to be confused with psychoactive drugs, such as stimulants and opioids, which induce states of altered consciousness, psychedelics tend to affect the mind in ways that result in the experience being qualitatively different from those of ordinary consciousness. Whereas stimulants cause an energized feeling and opiates produce a dreamy, relaxed state, the psychedelic experience is often compared to non-ordinary forms of consciousness such as trance, meditation, yoga, religious ecstasy, dreaming and even near-death experiences. With a few exceptions, most psychedelic drugs fall into one of the three following families of chemical compounds; tryptamines, phenethylamines, and lysergamides. Many psychedelic drugs are illegal worldwide under the UN conventions unless used in a medical or religious context. Despite these regulations, recreational use of psychedelics is common, including at raves and EDM concerts and festivals.

Inhalants

thumb|right|A selection of small bottles of poppers, a volatile drug inhaled at dance clubs for the "rush" it can provide.

"Poppers" are small bottles of volatile drugs which are inhaled by clubgoers for the "rush" or "high" that they can create. Nitrites such as alkyl nitrite originally came as small glass capsules that were popped open, which led to the nickname "poppers." The drug became popular in the US first on the disco/club scene of the 1970s, where dancers used the drug for the "rush" it provides, and because it was perceived to enhance the experience of dancing to loud, bass-heavy disco. The drug became popular again in the mid-1980s and 1990s rave and EDM scenes. As with disco clubgoers, rave participants and EDM enthusiasts used the drug because its "rush" or "high" was perceived to enhance the experience of dancing to pulsating music and lights.

Nitrous oxide is a dissociative inhalant that can cause depersonalization, derealization (feeling like the world is not real), dizziness, euphoria, and some sound distortion (flanging). In some cases, it may cause slight hallucinations and have a mild aphrodisiac effect. While medical grade nitrous oxide is only available to dentists and other licensed health care providers, recreational users often obtain the drug by inhaling the nitrous oxide used in whipped cream aerosol cans. Nitrous oxide users also buy small "whippet" canisters of nitrous oxide intended for use in restaurant whipped cream dispensers and then "crack" open these canisters to inhale the gas. Users typically transfer the gas to a plastic bag or balloon prior to inhaling it.

Ketamine

thumb|right|200px|Ketamine from the street drug trade, in the form of crystals.

Ketamine, a dissociative anesthetic, has a long history of being used in clubs and was one of the most popular substances used in the New York Club Kid scene. Ketamine produces a dissociative state, characterized by a sense of detachment from one's physical body and the external world which is known as depersonalization and derealization. Effects include hallucinations, changes in the perception of distances, relative scale, color and durations/time, as well as a slowing of the visual system's ability to update what the user is seeing.

Other

In the 2000s, synthetic phenethylamines such as 2C-I, 2C-B and DOB have been referred to as club drugs due to their stimulating and psychedelic nature (and their chemical relationship with MDMA). By late 2012, derivates of the psychedelic 2C-X drugs, the NBOMes and especially 25I-NBOMe, had become common at raves in Europe. The drug organization Norconon states that other synthetic drugs used in clubs, or which are sold as "Ecstasy", include piperazines (e.g., BZP and TFMPP); PMA/PMMA; mephedrone (generally used outside the US) and MDPV. Some club drugs' popularity stems from their ability to induce euphoria, lowered inhibition and an intoxicated feeling. Some drugs, such as amphetamine and cocaine, give the dancer hyperactivity and energy to dance all night. Many drugs produce a feeling of heightened physical sensation, and increased libido and sexual pleasure. Some club drugs, such as LSD, DMT, MDMA, 2C-B and ketamine enhance the experience of being in a nightclub with pulsating lights and flashing lasers and throbbing dance music, because they cause hallucinations or unusual perception effects.

Risks and adverse effects

Although research continues into the full scope of the effects of illegal drugs, regular and unsafe use of club drugs is widely accepted to have damaging side effects and carry a risk of addiction. Increased heart rate, a steep increase in body temperature, increase in blood pressure, spasms and dehydration are all common side effects of MDMA and methamphetamine. Breathing and respiratory issues, drowsiness, nausea and confusion are common side effects of said drugs. They can also make the user anxious, stressed and panicked, or even hallucinate. Withdrawal is also a risk with many club drugs. Drug cravings as the chemical leaves the user's body can be complicated by sleep deprivation, dehydration and hypoglycaemia to result in debilitating 'come downs' which can result in depression-like symptoms. In the worst instance, club drugs result in the death of the user from cardiac arrest or water intoxication due to the increase in heart rate and thirstiness induced. Inconsistency in the strength and exact composition of the supplied drug causing users to overdose. Wide variance in the measured rate of deaths caused by drugs such as ecstasy across countries suggest that user and societal/environmental factors may also affect the lethality of club drugs.

Drug interactions

Another risk is drug interactions. Some club drug users take multiple drugs at the same time. "Club drugs often are taken together, with alcohol, or with other drugs to enhance their effect."

A common methamphetamine adulterant is dimethyl sulfone, a solvent and cosmetic base without known effect on the nervous system; other adulterants include dimethylamphetamine HCl, ephedrine HCl, sodium thiosulfate, sodium chloride, sodium glutamate, and a mixture of caffeine with sodium benzoate.

Addiction

While not all club drugs are addictive (e.g. nitrous oxide), some can pose a risk of addiction when used recreationally (e.g. amphetamines).

Cocaine addiction is a psychological desire to use cocaine regularly. Cocaine overdose may result in cardiovascular and brain damage, such as: constricting blood vessels in the brain, causing strokes and constricting arteries in the heart; causing heart attacks. The use of cocaine creates euphoria and high amounts of energy. If taken in large, unsafe doses, it is possible to cause mood swings, paranoia, insomnia, psychosis, high blood pressure, a fast heart rate, panic attacks, cognitive impairments and drastic changes in personality. The symptoms of cocaine withdrawal (also known as comedown or crash) range from moderate to severe: dysphoria, depression, anxiety, psychological and physical weakness, pain, and compulsive cravings.

thumb|right|200px|A video warning about the dangers of GHB.

GHB addiction occurs when repeated drug use disrupts the normal balance of brain circuits that control rewards, memory and cognition, ultimately leading to compulsive drug taking. Although there have been reported fatalities due to GHB withdrawal, reports are inconclusive and further research is needed.

Ketamine risks

Ketamine use as a recreational drug has been implicated in deaths globally, with more than 90 deaths in England and Wales in the years of 2005–2013. The majority of deaths were among young people. This has led to increased regulation (e.g., upgrading ketamine from a Class C to a Class B banned substance in the U.K.). At sufficiently high doses, Ketamine users may experience what is called the "K-hole", a state of extreme dissociation with visual and auditory hallucinations.

Acute treatment

thumb|right|200px|A music fan who has had a drug overdose at the [[Woodstock Music Festival is placed onto a wheeled cot by paramedics.]]

The main treatment for individuals facing acute medical issues due to club drug consumption or overdoses is "cardiorespiratory maintenance". (nicknamed "blow"), amyl nitrite ("poppers"), and Quaaludes. Quaaludes were described as [the] "...other quintessential 1970s club drug", which suspends motor coordination.") According to Peter Braunstein, "massive quantities of drugs were ingested in discothèques."

Throughout the 1980s, the use of club drugs expanded into colleges, social parties, and raves. As raves grew in popularity through the late 1980s and into the late 1990s, drug usage, especially MDMA, grew with them. Much like discos, raves made use of flashing lights, loud techno/electronic dance music to enhance the user experience. Before their scheduling, some club drugs (especially designer drugs referred to as research chemicals) were advertised as alcohol-free and drug-free. Another reason that drug producers create new drugs is to avoid drug laws.

Since the early 2000s, medical professionals have acknowledged and addressed the problem of the increasing consumption of alcoholic drinks and club drugs (such as MDMA, cocaine, rohypnol, GHB, ketamine, PCP, LSD, and methamphetamine) associated with rave culture among adolescents and young adults in the Western world. Studies have shown that adolescents are more likely than young adults to use multiple drugs, and the consumption of club drugs is highly associated with the presence of criminal behaviors and recent alcohol abuse or dependence.

In Australia

Club drugs are used in Australia in a variety of dance clubs and nightclubs. Today, these drugs are widely used across age and socioeconomic groups and often sold in nightclubs and pubs throughout Australia.

References

External links

Clubdrugs.gov, from the National Institute on Drug Abuse
Erowid reference 6889

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