“Wait,” you say. “GHB. That sounds familiar…. Isn’t that a date rape drug?”
It has been called that, yes. And I’ll go into why. But it’s also a known party drug. The damage is in the dosage.
You may recall that GHB plays a role in The West Wing episode in which Zoey Bartlet gets kidnapped. I’ll touch briefly on that as well.
So all that is GHB. What’s that GBL thing also in the title? GBL is a prodrug of GHB; it converts to GHB in your body. But it’s also three to four times stronger than GHB. You need to know which you are dealing with to figure out your dosage.
But because GBL converts to GHB, the effects are identical. From here on out, I’ll just be talking about GHB.
Interestingly, we tried GHB several times in the past and had little success with it leading to sexy times. Either it didn’t do much (too much) or it upset Erin’s stomach (too much). We never found the right dose, and Erin wasn’t interested in experimenting more. I used the remainder of the supply as a sleep aid when my insomnia hit.
We were going to write it off until a friend of the blog recommended it. I got a new supply (of both GHB and GBL) to experiment with. Low and behold, we found a better dosage.
As it turns out, GBL works better for Erin because it requires less of the drug (1 mL GBL versus 3 mL GHB at the solution potency that we have, more on that later) so there’s no stomach harshness.
Science!
The Positive Effects of GHB
GHB is sometimes referred to as Liquid E because people find it comparable to MDMA. We don’t get much MDMA feeling from it. It’s more like adding a few extra shots of alcohol while retaining mental clarity. Which is a weird concept, I know. But if I have a few beers, just enough to start feeling tipsy, then GHB would be like adding a couple shots to that, except I wouldn’t be slurring my words or making bad decisions.
It lowers inhibitions, instills confidence, improves tactile sensation, and enhances sex. All of which I would say a decent alcohol buzz can also provide, but I feel more lucid on GHB. And there’s no hangover. So there are a few bonuses over alcohol.
But it’s not nearly as intense as MDMA for us. We don’t get nearly the same level of empathogenic effects. It’s also a depressant, not a stimulant. The come up feels different—again, to me it feels more like getting drunk. And it’s easy to just go to sleep after the sex is over. Bonus that there is no serotonin depletion, so no MDMA comedown or hangover.
Also, it being a relatively mild depressant, it can be used to bring someone down who is feeling over-stimmed on something like MDMA or other amphetamines or who is having a bad psychedelic trip. That said, be cautious before you combo. There are risks to mixing things.
Always consult The Chart.
GHB: The Warning
GHB is a depressant. Taking too much can lead to falling unconscious and uncontrollable vomiting. And death. But really, the death bit is rare. It’s a relatively safe drug if dosed properly.
GHB is often consumed in liquid form. If you have a GHB powder, it’s usually meant to be dissolved in liquid and then diluted. It’s caustic and can burn your esophagus if taken as a concentrate.
The biggest danger with GHB on the party scene is dosing. The dilution of the liquid isn’t regulated. One person might have a vial that’s dosed at 1g to 1 mL of fluid (a common dose) and another might have 3g to 1 mL (a fairly strong dose). Furthermore, in a club scene, people might not be precisely measuring out doses but giving out “capfuls.” Different caps, different doses. This laissez-faire approach makes overdosing more likely.
Alcohol is also a depressant, and mixing depressants can be dangerous. You’ll see in my examples that Erin and I do this regularly, but I am familiar with our dosing based on experimenting and recording the results. For Science!
Mixing stimulants and depressants can be dangerous if they have different durations. The stimulant might counter dangerous effects of overdosing a depressant, but if the stimulant wears off and the depressant is in full effect, down you go.
Also read a story about a guy who regularly did massive doses of GHB and MDMA together (like 10g and 500mg, which is a lot). He thought those were acceptable doses of each substance. The first time he did GHB without MDMA, he overdosed himself into unconsciousness.
Start low. Start slow. Don’t combo…until you know.
Whoah! I just came up with a harm reduction mantra!
Why/How Is GHB a Date Rape Drug?
I equate GHB to alcohol, the most common date rape drug out there. Even at relatively small doses, both substances lower inhibitions, which makes people pliable. Surreptitiously slip an extra shot or two of hard alcohol into someone’s drink, and suddenly they are drunker than they expected to be, and someone can take advantage of that. The same thing happens with a small dose of GHB. Suddenly that single mojito is as strong as three drinks, and you’ve got someone wasted and dancing on the bar.
Heavy doses of GHB are also akin to heavy intoxication and include being conscious but unable to form memories or even just passing out. Similar to getting blackout drunk. But with less chance of nausea and a fair bit more confusion.
It’s one thing to wake up after a night of doing 20 shots and not remember how you got home and why you are sitting naked on the bathroom floor but understanding exactly why you have that terrible hangover.
It would be a bit weirder for that to happen when you only had two rum and cokes.
That The West Wing Episode
The crux of The West Wing scene relies on Zoey Barlet’s drug-experienced boyfriend Jean-Paul accidentally dosing her with GHB when he thinks he’s dosing her with ecstasy. This scene is dramatic and terrifying, set to the tune of “Angel” by Massive Attack. It was an incredible season finale.
I thought this all very reasonable when I first watched the episode. Now that I have more experience and knowledge, this doesn’t jive a few reasons:
- GHB is often in a liquid form. Ecstasy rarely is. I’d have thought the boyfriend would get pressed ecstasy pills; I’ve never seen GHB sold that way. But I suppose if he knew he needed to spike her drink (which breaks Commandment Number 1 of ethical drug use) because she wouldn’t take it otherwise, he could have asked for a liquid solution of ecstasy.
- MDMA tastes terrible. So does GHB. But they do not taste similar. If Zoey’s drink was large enough or flavorful enough, that would cover up the taste of either. But Jaen-Paul wouldn’t have needed to hide his dose in a drink. He’d have just taken it straight. He should have been able to tell what he took wasn’t MDMA.
- MDMA has a distinct come up that should be noticeable within 15–30 minutes of taking it and prominent by 45–60. I don’t know how he could confuse the two.
I have a difficult time with the idea that an experienced drug user (which Zoey’s boyfriend was), wouldn’t know something was up.
Why am I harping on this? Cause this scene was scary as fuck and shows how misrepresentation in the media damages public perception of substances and substance users.
A Brief Interlude
I feel this is also an important place to once again point out that you should always test your substances.
The scene from The West Wing not only is based on inaccurate information about two different party drugs but also situates the substance users as irresponsible and down-right unethical.
That first part stems from the writers not caring about accuracy in order to create the drama.
The second is at least some level of character development. Jean-Paul is French royalty and an experienced substance user by all accounts. He probably has a normal vendor through whom he got his product—likely a very high-end vendor who is dealing to all the diplomats’ and politicians’ kids in D.C. Maybe the seller was the “house dealer” at the club they attended, and it being an up-scale place for D.C. party kids, they assumed the guy was legit. It’s understandable why someone like Jean-Paul wouldn’t test anything he bought.
Although it is not likely your vendor was bribed by terrorists to give you GHB instead of MDMA in an elaborate (actually quite ridiculous and unlikely to succeed) scheme to kidnap your girlfriend, it is entirely possible your dealer sometimes mixes up roofies and ecstasy, and that’s something best avoided.
Being a responsible substance user means testing everything—particularly before sharing with friends. I’ve had vendors send me the wrong stuff. Fortunately these mix-ups have never been so bad as to be dangerous. Vendors have a reputation to maintain and have always worked to make good an order that’s had issues.
Until the prohibition on these substances is lifted and the market is regulated, test everything.
Our Experiences on GHB
Now that we have figured out our dosing (and are using GBL), we’ve had several good experiences on GHB.
I like fucking while intoxicated because I can get out of my own way. As I’ve said before (all the way back in the first post!), when intoxicated I can fuck the way I want to fuck…which is also the way Erin likes to be fucked. I’m more likely to let go, be rough, toss her around, and get a bit kinky.
Not just because I’m intoxicated but also because we got intoxicated.
Confused? Lemme ‘splain.
Erin and I don’t get intoxicated on the regular. Which means when we’re drinking or doing any substance, there is generally an understanding that sex is likely to happen. So the act of getting intoxicated together is a kind of foreplay. If we’re drinking cocktails while watching a movie, I’m aware that we’re probably having drunken sex after, which creates a buildup that leads to more passionate fucking later. Same effect as if she decided to watch a movie wearing sexy lingerie.
This becomes even hotter when I’m spiking Erin’s drinks with GHB.
Dosing Erin’s Drinks
As I mentioned before, I’ve got a kink for chemsex, chemdom, and wanting to drug my wife (I’m allowed, I have preconsent). Now that we have the dosing right, I’m able to spike Erin’s drinks surreptitiously. Even if she knows I’m doing it.
Confused? Lemme ‘splain.
Even though I have preconsent, there are still times where I check with Erin about consent before drugging her. A few months back we celebrated our anniversary with a trip to a winery, a brew pub, and a cocktail bar (back when COVID restrictions were lighter). When we got home, I asked Erin if she wanted anything else to drink.
She was leaning on the side of no, but I said, “How can I dose you if we aren’t drinking?”
At that point, she agreed to a cocktail. Which was a way of giving her consent for me to dose her drink…though she wasn’t actually sure if I did so.
She asked a bit later, “Did you dose me?”
I replied, “I don’t know. Did I?”
“I don’t know. Did you?”
This happened a few times that night and the next day. If I did, it wasn’t a heavy dose, but she thought she felt something.
I was purposefully being playful. Had she asked in such a way that suggested she needed the answer, I would have told her.
There have been times when Erin has even mentioned if I wanted to add something to her drink, she’d be down for it.
Which is basically the same as her telling me she wants to get a little altered and get absolutely smashed in the bedroom. Just like walking into the room wearing sexy lingerie.
Surprise lingerie wearing isn’t common in our house.
Five Out of Five Stars, Would Do Again
Which is not what I would have said a year ago. In fact, my post about wanting to drug my wife was from December 2019, and I noted in that post that we’ve not had much success with GHB.
Not that we’d hadn’t felt anything, but it had always felt so light as to not be much of an experience. Or that the few times we did feel it strongly, Erin got nauseous (likely from me giving her booster doses that were too much).
I’m glad that our readers reached out to us with their experiences. We would have given up on GHB entirely had it not been for them.
This also shows that getting doses right is important to create a good experience, and that takes time, effort, and at least some record keeping. All of which I believe should be done in a safe environment before heading out to party with substances.
Know your doses and reactions before taking substances in public and be cautious about accepting anything from someone you can’t trust to have done their homework. GHB has a bad rep as a dangerous date rape drug, but the poison is in the dose. Unfortunately, due to it being in liquid form (and not knowing the dilution within the liquid), it’s difficult to get the dosage right just by eyeballing it.
If you have your own supply, enjoy. But be wary about accepting a splash from strangers.