Student News

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Student news team

Take drugs? What’s in the bag? 

The only way to ensure you aren’t harmed by drugs is to avoid using them. If you choose to use drugs anyway, there are steps you can take to reduce your risk of harm. If you don’t use drugs, these tips can help you support others that might.

Has a mate ever offered you drugs on a night out? Did you know what was *really* in the bag?

Since 2022, we have been running our Harm Reduction campaign dedicated to ensuring your wellbeing is a priority. In this article, you can read through our tips to help you the understand the risks associated with drugs and the steps you can take to reduce these.  

  1. Know the risks

Get informed as much as possible about the drug you’re taking before you take it. Organisations like Frank walk you through the effects of drugs, how they can be taken, what happens when mixing with other illegal drugs and prescription drugs, and risks of dependence.

We also share drug safety alerts on Student News, informed by the Manchester Drug Analysis and Knowledge Exchange (MANDRAKE), so you know about substances in Manchester that we are aware of being mis-sold or have contaminants in them. With the latest alert detecting dangerous synthetic opioids, like nitazenes, in drugs, we recommend reading Eclypse’s resource on Drugs contaminated with nitazenes for more information.

Be aware that MANDRAKE doesn’t pick up everything that is in circulation so if you’re planning on taking a drug that hasn’t come up on MANDRAKE’S alerts, this doesn’t mean the drug you’re taking is ‘safe’.

2. What’s in the bag?

The Students’ Union Advice Service offers free and anonymous drug testing kits available on campus, designed to test for the presence of a specific substance. These single use testing kits test for the following substances: ecstasy, ketamine, cocaine, benzos, synthetic cannabinoids (ie. spice), LSD and GHB.

These tests don’t tell you how pure a substance is. If the test tells you that there is a specific substance in your sample, it does not mean the absence of other (potentially more dangerous) substances.

If you have had the same substance before, do not assume that it will be the same this time, even if it looks the same and you got it from the same person. It might be a completely different substance or a completely different strength.

3. Go Slow, Stay Low

In line with advice from drug safety sites such as The Loop, we recommend you follow their advice to Crush, Dab, Wait with substances. You should always follow this advice, even if you have used a drug testing kit:

Crush: Always start with a small amount of the substance to prevent taking too much. Crush crystals into a powder or break a pill into quarters.

Dab: Start with a small dab of powder or ¼ of a pill. Don’t consume whole crystals.

Wait: Wait until you can feel the effects before considering whether you want to take more – this may take up to 90 minutes or more. If it is taking a while for the effects to come on, do not assume that you haven’t taken enough. For example, different formulations of ‘ecstasy’ take much longer than others to take effect.

4. Know when to seek help

If you feel unwell, seek medical help immediately:

  • If you are concerned or if somebody becomes unconscious or is having difficulty breathing, then put them in the recovery position and call 999 for an ambulance immediately. Do not wait to see if they get better by themselves.
  • In halls or on campus, use our SafeZone app to contact the Campus Support and Security team. We can assure you that you won’t get into trouble with our Security team.
  • At events, go to a bar and ask for medical help. Look for someone with a radio and ask them to call for medics.

FRANK have a useful guide on what to do in an emergency.

5. Is the comedown worth it?

Like how you may get ‘hangxiety’ after a night-out drinking, you can also have a ‘comedown’ after using drugs, especially with stimulants, where they deplete your brain of serotonin and dopamine. Comedowns can exacerbate symptoms of anxiety and depression, especially with excessive use of cocaine and MDMA, for example.

If you’d like to explore reducing your drug use, or if you want to stop entirely, you can access free, non-judgemental help. Speak to the SU Advice Centre or the University’s Counselling and Mental Health Service for more information about how to get specialist support.

  1. Finally, not everyone is getting on it 

Be mindful of those around you, your friends, housemates and neighbours, who might not want to see you take drugs or get high. Be kind. Loud music and noise can have a real impact on people’s mental health and their quality of life.

It’s worth remembering some professional bodies have conduct requirements around drugs and alcohol, and when applying for placements and graduate schemes, some organisations require you to do drug testing as part of the recruitment process. 

More support available: