A night of risks

Negative experiences and dangers in night life.

Increasing safety for people going out is a huge priority for us. The problems in the night are beginning to gain more exposure. Almost everyone knows that you should pay attention to your drink while going out. Unfortunately, not everyone will respect your boundaries and behave appropriately, especially when alcohol and drugs are involved. You could be exposed to things like being touched inappropriately, or worse. The way home is traveled in the dark, and often filled with people made unreliable by intoxication or group mentality. From the time you step out the door for an evening of fun, till the moment that you return home safely, you expose yourself to many risks.

Example Situations

There are numerous situations where the risks of sexual assault, rape and abuse you are exposed to increase:

- Riding a bicycle during the night or early morning.
- Walking alone through or past a park.
- Passing through a dark or poorly lit alleyway.
- Being alone in a parking lot of bicycle storage.
- Traveling alone with public transportation.
- When dealing with a stalker.
- When you are a subject of grooming.
- The journey back home after a night of going out.
- When you are in the company of an unfamiliar person.
- Someone you don’t or barely know is escorting you home.
- You hitch a ride with a stranger.
- You are under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
- Your drink has been spiked.
- Someone is taking advantage of the impaired situation you are in, such as when you have drunk too much.
- When you find yourself in a situation where you are vulnerable or dependant on another.

Consequences of Drink Spiking

Spiking of drinks can be a great danger. Someone that drugs drinks, is doing this with the intent of being able to abuse their victim. It is often difficult to find hard numbers about the spiking of drinks. There are a number of reasons for this. Even if a victim’s claim of being drugged is proven, this does not prove to a court that this happened against his or her will, and especially not that the culprit was responsible for this.
The priority of caregivers also isn’t with proving if someone has been drugged, but with ensuring the wellbeing and recovery of a victim.
In addition; for the person who was drugged it is a very confusing situation, which can lead to drugging not being expected to have occurred at first, or not being recognized at all. If a victim, alone or through assistance, manages to make it home safely despite being drugged, this generally does not lead to reports at all. Feelings of doubt, confusion, shame, and powerlessness may also cause there not being made a report.

The consequences for someone that is drugged can be heavy, even when no sexual abuse occurs. Some of the potential consequences are:
Unconsciousness, blackout, decreased inhibitions, paralyzation, inability to protect yourself, memory loss, nausea, vomiting, muscle contractions, reduced coordination, feelings of euphoria, sleepiness, breathing complications, reduced articulation, and dizziness.