Name: A. G., 22yrs old
City, State: Toronto
Date: January 31, 2003

Comments:

Hi I have been reading up as much as I can on GHB. My name is Amanda and as so many others out there I was also led to believe that GHB was ok and good for your body. Wow what a crock. In September after a wild summer in Montreal with my friends partying almost every weekend it was a great time. Thinking as long as I am drinking a lot of water, exercising and eating good while I was binging on GHB then I would be ok. Well to anyone who has ever taken the drug the high is an amazing high and when you come down it is the worst feeling you cant sleep cant eat your scared about everything, so in my case I would drink alcohol to "cut the sketch". To make a long story short my summer lasted three months and when I returned to my home in Toronto I was a very sick girl I had developed a condition called Fatty Liver Syndrome I went to the hospital still feeling ok but not that great spent the night and halfway through the night I started seeing things stuff that could not possible be there. At three o'clock in the morning I went into shock the next week was a blur. It's not a very nice feeling when you cant go to the bathroom by yourself or even brush your own teeth. I was in the hospital for two and a half weeks. After I started to get better and coherent I was talking to the doctor and he told me that if I had of waited 12/24 more hours I would have had to have surgery another 48 hours they probably could have only made me comfortable. Its has been 5 months and I have not touched drugs or alcohol. I hope my story can help out even one person to stay away from this poison. I don't ever want to put myself or my family through that ever again and I think the more people know the better off everyone is. Thank you for listening to my story.

City, State: Atlanta, GA
Date: January 15, 2003

Comments:

GHB ruined my son's life and ended it, we believe. It is a long tragic story and would have been unbelievable to me a few years ago: how someone very concerned with physical fitness and averse to drugs, gradually changed into an addict.

Chris was in his mid-twenties with a background of being a pretty normal guy (I mean just a great son with so much promise!) except very shy - that might be one reason he got into weight-lifting. Shyness was a factor in his drinking also, but at that time no more alcohol than a normal twenty-something man on weekend evenings. But GHB caused his life to spiral out of control (I mean ABUSE of GHB, but abuse of that drug can be any use at all). At first it seemed to be one of the many health food supplements that he got at GNC or from other over-the-counter sources.

In 2000, he finally "quit" taking GHB on his own, having refused to go to a treatment center. But I now know that quitting for him was not forever and always, and he must have never given up on GHB and the good effects it had once had for him. So after a year of abstinence (I believe he was off GHB during all that time) he went to visit someone who had the drug in her house, and she found him unconscious. Nothing was found in his blood at the hospital, nor in the autopsy a week later; you see, my son died in spite of treatment in the ICU on a respirator.

The cause of death appeared to be accidental drug overdosing; he vomited while unconscious and destroyed his lungs. Although I had seen the drug cause all kinds of behavior changes in him, I never believed it would kill my big strong 29-year-old son.

We had a wonderful life with Chris for most of those years, and even during the drug use, I loved him so much and hoped that he would overcome the terrible addiction. This is just a brief description of events and experiences that have devastated our family - indescribably - but I wanted to tell my story to others who know about this awful drug.

Sent: Sunday, January 05, 2003 2:33 PM
Subject: Emergency Room--last night

Hi.

I live in Springfield, MO.  Last night, January 4th, I spent most of the latter part of the evening until 6am at St. Johns Emergency Room.

I called one of my friends that I saw out dancing to see if he needed a ride home.  The first time I called through, he didn't answer.  I had thought maybe he hooked up with someone.  About 10 minutes later, I called again and a woman answered his phone.  I asked her if Tony was there (no one ever answers his phone other than himself).  She said he was...passed out on a sofa at this club we were all dancing at.

A friend and I drove back over (that is where we were dancing as well) and when I walked in....at first I thought he was really drunk and had gotten sick.  But when I got closer, I could tell he wasn't drunk, but on something.  I ask this woman who she is and what he has taken.  She says, "the guys say he took GHB."

I don't know anything about drugs other than what I have been told by friends or have read on the Internet.  "Tony" was passed out, barely moving, his eyes fixated and every 5 minutes or so he would convulse and this woman and I had to lean him over so he could vomit bile.  It was bad.

She kept telling me that he would "sleep it off."   Then the manager of this club comes out and downplays the entire situation.  "Oh, he'll be ok."  Just put him on his side, place a bucket by him so he can puke and he'll be fine in the morning."   I thought to myself, he is NOT going to be okay.  It's not that simple.

I don't know what time he was found on the sofa in this state.  I am assuming it was around 1:30am ---when the club closed.   I checked his pulse and could barely get a read.  Close to 2am, I announce that he is leaving.  I ask for help and I have my friend pull his truck up to the door.  3 people had to help us carry him out to the truck.  Tony couldn't move by himself.

I sat in the back seat with him, talking to him......hoping he could hear me.  I had a cool washcloth in one hand and his head was leaning on my chest.  We had the windows rolled a down a bit ---trying to get some air in.  I knew.....it was a gut feeling that he wasn't going to make it.......and that is when I told my friend to speed up----turn his hazard lights on and just get us to the hospital.

We pulled up and I don't think the nurses understood how serious this was.  They finally get him in one of the rooms, get him undressed and cleaned up a bit.  Needless to say, he was covered in vomit.

A nurse comes out and tells me that his heart rate is 20 bpm and he is barely breathing.  They have to get him on an E-2 (breathing machine).  I call his parents and the entire family arrives.  We all huddle together and await any news of the outcome.

To make a long story short......

A nurse came out and told me that I had saved his life by getting him to the emergency room when I did.  "Tony" had to be transferred to ICU (Intensive Care Unit) where I last saw him with all sorts of machines around him, a tube for everything you could imagine.  He was still on the breathing machine and they were running an IV as well as a few other odd looking tubes.  They had pumped his stomach and ran all sorts of tests.  I think he is going to be okay, I don't know.......I am going to see him in a few hours.

When I saw him, he mouthed, "What happened?"  I told him a bit about him being passed out on sofa and taking him to the hospital.  I didn't want to tell him the entire story with his parents standing there.

I about cried....he was trying to talk to me.....and just held my hand tightly.  We all knew that it was by the grace of God that he was as conscious as he was.......and I thank God for listening to my gut feeling and getting him there as soon as possible.

The police were there as well.  No one knows whether or not he took it himself knowingly or if someone slipped it into his drink.  His billfold is missing, so the chances of someone intentionally doing this to him are high.

I hope you post this letter on your website.  Anytime we go out with friends we MUST watch out for them.  Watch who is giving them drinks and make sure you leave with who you arrived with.  If you see a friend at a club, that you didn't arrive with, MAKE SURE THEY HAVE A RIDE HOME! 

My thoughts are with those families who have lost a friend or family member due to GHB.  Last night is something I will never forget.

---Sidney

City, State: Lubbock TX
Date: January 03, 2003

Comments:

It sickens me to see the increased incidences of GHB-induced rape, but I also have hope because there are people like you guys spreading the word! I was raped 6 1/2 years ago and have found it hard to come to grips with because of the shame I felt, along with my belief that no one would take me seriously about what had happened. I am determined to do my part in spreading the word to inform other young women about this increasingly rampant and very serious threat.

Name: Staci
City, State: Ohio
Date: January 17, 2003
Comments:

I wanted to let all the women know to please go to the hospital if you feel you have been slipped this. Back in May 2002 I was raped and slipped this GHB. I knew something was not right because I only had a few drinks. When I started to majorly vomit I should of known then. But being from a small town we were not educated on that. I did take the right steps. I contacted the police and got to the hospital. At that time I felt like someone hit me in the head with a sledge hammer, I still wanted to vomit, and I just felt like hell. When my test results came in I found that I had a level of 3.2 grams (which should of killed me, but I'm a "thick" girl. So it just put me in a coma for 7 hours.) I followed through with the rape case. He was found guilty of rape and sexual battery and sentenced to 10 years. (which he has to do everyday of his sentence) And he also has to register as a sexual predator every 90 days for the rest of his life. So don't be afraid or ashamed.