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This week, TheJournal.ie is taking a closer look at Ireland’s relationship with illegal substances. More people in Ireland are using drugs than ever before. We’ll look at why that is… and the possible consequences.
AT THE END of the day who wouldn’t like to fuck like a porn star, fuck for two or three days?
Genuinely this is the most difficult substance I’ve ever worked with in over 20 years of addiction treatment. The dynamics of the drug, what it does to you, what it takes from you – depression, anxiety, isolation – can be crippling.
Sex and drugs often go hand in hand – they have done for decades.
In recent years, one drug in particular keeps popping up in discussions about sexual activity: G.
GHB (gamma hydroxybutyrate) or GBL (gamma butyrolactone), both often shortened to G or Gina, are drugs used socially and for the purposes of chemsex.
Chemsex is the use of drugs such as G, crystal methamphetamine, ketamine and mephedrone to enhance sexual activity. The practice is usually associated with men who have sex with men (MSM), often involves multiple people and can lead to sexual encounters that last for hours or days.
Slamsex is the term used when the above drugs are injected for a more intense high.
GHB is a synthetic drug used as an anaesthetic. It comes in a clear liquid or powder form and its potency varies. GBL is sold as a substitute for GHB. It’s found in cleaning solvents and converts to GHB when you swallow it.
“Sex and drugs have been synonymous for a very, very, very long time,” Adam Shanley, outreach worker with the Gay Men’s Health Service and coordinator with rapid HIV testing service KnowNow, said.
Many of the people who engage in chemsex do so simply for pleasure. Drugs such as G reduce inhibitions and can create a euphoric effect.
Others take part in chemsex for more complex reasons, Shanley said, such as intimacy issues; internalised homophobia; and religious or cultural shame associated with sex, and gay sex in particular.
Like many substances, some people use G socially and don’t become addicted. However, others find themselves becoming dependent on it.
Chemsex partners often meet via dating apps such as Tinder and Grindr. Dangers associated with the practice include overdosing and an increased risk of contracting an STI or HIV if protection is not used.
The practice is gaining traction in Ireland but is more common in the UK – where a number of men have died as a result of overdosing. London, for example, has developed a reputation as the “chemsex capital“.
David Stuart, manager of the chemsex support programmes at a sexual health centre in Soho said, of the 7,000 to 8,000 gay men who come through the clinic’s doors each month “3,000 are using chems and are coming here with the consequences of chemsex”.
Lining up G with tea
Shanley first became concerned about chemsex in Ireland about three years ago.
“There was a direct connection to a friend of mine. We were out one night and I was there the next morning when he was getting ready for work. He was making a cup of tea and dosing out his G for the day.
“I had heard about it happening elsewhere, in London for example. But I didn’t realise that it was so under the radar here that I didn’t even notice my friend was doing it.
“Then I started to hear about friends passing out at parties and about non-consensual sex at parties – both through my own circle of friends and work,” he told TheJournal.ie.
Overdoses and deaths
Shanley noted that G is “a really, really addictive drug”, adding: “It’s not just used for chemsex, it’s a club drug too.
“Some people might have started to use it for chemsex but their dependency grew and it started to become something that they needed to take more often just to stave off any sort of come down.
Before they knew it they were falling into a proper addiction. I know some people who were waking up in the middle of the night to take it.
Shanley said he’s aware of a number of people who have died as a result of overdosing on G.
“It’s a very easy substance to overdose on. Unfortunately we know of a number of people over the last number of months and years who have died … Last year, three people that I know of died.”
Shanley said it’s difficult to quantify how many people have died as a result of this in Ireland because G usually only shows up in a person’s system for 12 hours and many toxicology tests don’t screen specifically for the drug.
“That skews the reality of problem,” he stated.
Shanley said some people overdose or become ill after taking G “due to naive drug use” or being unaware of the dangers of the drug.
The Gay Men’s Health Service and others are trying to make people aware that the potency of G can vary hugely, as can people’s reactions to the same amount.
“I might find 0.5ml euphoric, the same amount might be enough to send you into a coma,” Shanley said.
One in four men
A paper, compiled by Dublin-based researchers, published in the International Journal of Drug Policy last year assessed the prevalence of chemsex, associated behaviours and STIs among attendees at Ireland’s only MSM-specific sexual health clinic over a six-week period in 2016.
The response rate was 90% (510/568). One in four men (27%) reported engaging in chemsex within the previous 12 months, and half had taken two drugs during their last chemsex experience. One in five people (23%) reported that they or their partners had lost consciousness as a result of chemsex.
One in four men (25%) reported that chemsex was impacting negatively on their lives and almost one-third (31%) reported that they would like help or advice about chemsex.
Shanley said that, while the risks of chemsex must be highlighted, it’s important to note that, based on the snapshot provided in the survey, 75% of men who engage in chemsex said it didn’t impact negatively on their lives.
‘Fuck like a porn star’
“The gay scene, historically it’s a party scene,” Graham Ryall, Treatment Services Coordinator at the Rialto Community Drug Team, noted.
“At the end of the day who wouldn’t like to fuck like a porn star, fuck for two or three days? That is the effect that these drugs can have on someone.”
However, there is a darker side.
Genuinely, this is the most difficult substance I’ve ever worked with in over 20 years of addiction treatment. The dynamics of the drug, what it does to you, what it takes from you – depression, anxiety, isolation – can be crippling.
“If someone experiences loss, if someone has a medical diagnosis, loses a job etc – the effect of that on them … If there’s this tiny little bottle that you know will take away all the pain for two hours, you’ll continue to take that,” Ryall said.
He added that G is highly addictive and “can prey on very vulnerable people”.
Like heroin in Fatima Mansions in the 1980s, it can also destroy people.
Some people who use G at the weekend can have a terrible comedown on Monday morning, which leads to them starting to take the drug during the week.
“If you’re riddled with anxiety you might think, ‘One shot and I’ll be fine’, but then you need another one at 11am,” Ryall said.
He knows some people who “have to take G every 60-90 mins, 24-7″.
“That really does bring it home to you. You could be in a [counselling] session with people needing heroin – they would wait to take it afterwards.
“People needing G – they would start to shake, get convulsions, visually start to go. I’ll ask, ‘Can I get you a glass of water’ because they need another shot of G (then and there).”
Ryall has helped to secure a detox bed in Beaumont Hospital in Dublin for people who become addicted to G.
Numbing the pain
Ryall said G and meth have had a “far more detrimental effect” on the gay community in recent years than more ‘established’ drugs like cocaine and ecstasy.
Some club owners don’t want such drugs being taken on their premises so this “puts things underground”. Not everyone who uses G or meth engages in chemsex but an increasing number of people appear to be doing so.
Ryall said some people turn to drugs when they’re new to the gay clubbing scene – as a way to lose inhibitions and “heighten social ability”. Others use drugs to help numb the pain they’re feeling due to various personal issues.
“As soon as the (chemex) session starts off, the inhibition is gone, it’s all good again … When drugs become a problem, those issues can come to the fore,” he said.
Ryall said safety information about G and chemsex needs to be spread in pubs, clubs and colleges.
‘Going under’
Consent often comes up in discussions about chemsex. Ryall said there’s an issue with people “going under” or passing out post-G, adding:
People are at risk when they are gone under.
“I don’t want to put across that this is about gay boys being promiscuous. A person who has become addicted to G may have a very poor sleeping pattern, they could be up for two or three days and want to sleep so they take a little more than usual, go under – certainly they are vulnerable.”
Ryall said a “large number” of people have engaged with him about chemsex – ranging in age from early 20s to early 50s. Some don’t necessarily want to stop using drugs there and then. They might be seeking advice or information, or come back further down the line if they think they have a problem and need support.
Others are not willing to stop using certain drugs altogether but may want to reduce their use.
“I engage with individuals where they are at and where they want to be at. You can’t impose what you want – just say, ‘Stop taking drugs.’”
Ryall said giving up certain drugs can be particularly difficult for some people as it could mean changing habits they’ve had for years, as well as relationships.
“If they are part of a scene and everyone around them is perhaps part of that scene, it’s very difficult to come out of it.”
Rising HIV rates
More than 200 people in Ireland were diagnosed with HIV in the first five months of this year. A total of 504 people were newly diagnosed with HIV in 2017, on a par with the 503 new HIV diagnoses in 2016.
Of the new diagnoses in 2016, just over half (51%) were among MSM. According to the Health Protection Surveillance Centre, this was the largest number of diagnoses ever reported in MSM, who remain the group most affected by HIV in this country. According to provisional figures, 235 MSM were diagnosed with HIV last year.
Shanley said the increase in the number of MSM being diagnosed with HIV in recent years is multifaceted but that chemsex may have played a role.
“One of the desired effects (of using drugs like G) is disinhibition during sex so safer sex practices are perhaps less of a priority.”
G cards
Shanley said stakeholders from various organisation such as the HSE, HIV Ireland, the Ana Liffey Drug Project and the Gay Men’s Health Service (GMHS) have come together to discuss chemsex and how to best support those who need help.
As part of his work with the GMHS, Shanley provides training for healthcare professionals and others who work in relevant areas on how to best support people seeking help or advice about chemsex.
“We need to make sure that staff are asking the right questions and providing a supportive environment when people present. They need to be clued in with the language that is used [about chemsex] and the supports that are needed and available.
“People need to feel they can open up and have that conversation.
At a very basic level, we need to get information to those who need it. If we improve that cultural competence in regard to chemsex culture in our support services, people are more likely to present and seek help.
Shanley said one or two people a week could contact him about chemsex – in person and online.
The GMHS has a profile on Grindr, for example, and some men feel more comfortable seeking information from an anonymous source.
“When they’re behind a keyboard people are more comfortable to talk,” Shanley said.
As well as always encouraging condom-use, the GMHS urges G-users to carry a ‘G card’ (available at various service providers and sexual health clinics), so first responders will know what they’ve taken if they do end up in hospital.
By carrying the card, medical professionals know how to best proceed and “that definitely helps”, Shanley said. He noted that people are often reluctant to carry such a card due to the potential stigma of saying they use drugs.
“People are much more likely to carry the card when they have experienced a negative outcome in the past, such as a stint in A & E. Then they’re a lot more likely to see its benefit or worth,” he added.
Another piece of advice given to people who use liquid G is to add a food colourant to the drug, making it easily distinguishable from water.
“One guy ended up in A and E because he overdosed after he picked up a glass which he thought was water and knocked it back, actually it was a large dose of G,” Shanley told us. He said the man in question ended up in a coma but luckily pulled through.
How chemsex-use in Ireland will develop is unclear, as is the long-term impact of G.
Ryall said: “I worry for sure about the long-term effect. It’s a very serious chemical you’re putting into your body.
“We’re in the first five to seven years [of this scene] in Ireland … That’ll be an interesting study to have in a few years’ time. The long-term damage, we don’t fully know.”
Want to talk about G or chemsex? Here are some of the support services available:
The Ana Liffey Drugs Project is a hosting town hall event entitled ‘Towards a health-led approach to possession of drugs’ in Dublin tomorrow evening. Entry is free and you can find details here.
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Go somewhere on average 5 days of the week at a time set by somebody else’s schedule and tasked to carry out labour at the behest of a superior, compensated for your time with a pittance of the overall profits so you can then go and enhance the profits of banks and the food industry just so you can be permitted a roof and sustenance to survive. Oh and because you were a good worker you can have a little excess money to go and waste on any array of useless material possessions to try make yourself feel a little better. That’s the slavery we should be focussing on!! Not more whataboutery from history. And yes I am aware not every employer fits in this category of obscene profiteering but the more we succomb to corporatism then this is what we are left with, a population of vassals!
@LD: see in the real world, people chose to go to work for someone else and accept a contract.
@LD: Thats the kind of slavery we should be concentrating on and not history? are you for real?
when white coppers and supremist militias in American shoot black people today because of the skin colour, do you not think the mind-sets of those gun toting racists are motivated and shaped by historic precedent?
@Angela McCarthy: When White cops shoot black people YOU ASSUME it’s because of skin colour, Angela.
@Angela McCarthy:
https://www.statista.com/statistics/585152/people-shot-to-death-by-us-police-by-race/
@Angela McCarthy: its people like you that’s peddling that kind of absolute bollock there is absolutely is no war on black people from the police in the USA nearly everyone who was killed by police was because they could not or would not follow instructions from the police yes there is some bad cops obviously but they’re few and far between
@LD: No gods, no masters!
@Edmund Spencer: Racism is racism and blatant racism and murder when its caught on camera and carried out in the name of Law and Order is still racism. Nothing to assume there.
Your deflection attempt, and near apology for racism is both sad and pathetic.
@Angela McCarthy: pony
@Michael Patrick: Grow up lad – next you;ll tell me that white people follow instructions better from the police than Black people, and That white police officers who choke black people to death with their boots on their necks are merely instructing them how to breath properly.
Absolute bollock? are you reading that line from your racist/trump beginners manual? give us a break will ya!
@Angela McCarthy: I’m actually finding it difficult to tell if you’re trolling or not. If not, you are ideologically possessed and it’s very unhealthy.
@Edmund Spencer: No Troll Edmund, so would please explain to me what sort of ideological possession has taken me over?
More to the point – whats your excuse of an affliction that has you denying blatant racist acts when they are witnessed on our TV screens?
Perhaps some of us just Assume what we see, when we see it and are therefore ideologically possessed!
@Angela McCarthy: Explain to me how the shooting of Jacob Blake was racist. Don’t start talking about anything else. Just explain how that particular incident was racist.
@Edmund Spencer: I will Edmund, but first, why do you insist that we should only discuss that one case? Why dont you explain to me how George Floyds killing was not murder or racially motivated?
As for the Jacob Blakes killing. I dont pretend to know all the facts surrounding that case, though its understandable why many people would shout foul play when they heard the man was shot seven times in the back in front of his kids while opening the door of his car. on the face of it, he was posing no danger to anyone, and if he was – why seven shots in the back and not one in the legs, or a taser etc?. If he was somehow resisting arrest or not following police instructions – then you are going to need to explain why seven bullets in the back were justified.
Now, the Jacob Blake case to one side – Tell me please why you believe racism among some white police officers in the US does not exist?
If however, you are going to concede that some racism amongst some white police officers do exist, then why did you question my first post and dismiss it as a mere assumption?
@Angela McCarthy: Literally nothing you said in any way indicates that the Jacob Blake shooting was racially motivated. What you did was outline the ways in which you think it was unjust. Where does race come into it? If it had happened to a white man would that have been racially motivated? Or an Hispanic man?
@Angela McCarthy: As for your other point, I’m sure there are racist white police officers. Likewise I’m sure there are racist police officers of all races. That doesn’t mean that the police force is out to target a specific race of people though. You also mentioned George Floyd. There’s also no evidence that his killing was racially motivated…it doesn’t mean Chauvin wasn’t out of line but nothing about it explicitly indicates racism…
@Michael Patrick: No they are NOT “few and far between”, there is a culture of racism and brutality in some police depts in the US (Phoenix, Arizona and Louisville, Kentucky are two of the most notoriously violent and corrupt), but many others are barely any better. There are exceptions such as Atlanta where real efforts have been made to reduce racism and violence toward black citizens and suspects.
@Angela McCarthy: I’m sure the US police and Militias love tuning into the proms each year to help galvanise their inherent racism.
@Angela McCarthy: Angela nothing in my post dismissed racism exists and of course a large element of that is down to historical segregation and fear of a culture you are not part of. My point is that to my mind the pervasive factor in the world’s problems is an Economic oppression and spiritual disillusionment (as in the inner core not religious). In a system where the predominant narrative is based around competition then you will create an environment of fear, distrust, and corruption, tensions in communities escalate and when you want somebody to Blame you will pick on the person who is culturally different to you. If we don’t accept this rampant capitalist economics is largely responsible for so much of our destruction, reading history books and removing song lyrics is meaningless.
@Edmund Spencer: Give up lad. You just lost any sense of credibility with that last post!
@Angela McCarthy: Says the person who plays the race card without any evidence of racism…
@Angela McCarthy: history happened. As much as you don’t like it or even willing to accept it, there is no point in bashing the people of today for the sins of their forefathers of yesterday. Build a brigde and get over it.
@Daniel Dunne: I don’t think it’s about bashing people today. I think it’s no longer glorifying centuries of systemic brutality and slavery.
IMO it’s perfectly rational that people are challenging the dark underbelly of imperialism, are willing to acknowledge that serious and lasting harm was done by imperialism, and are suggesting that we should stop celebrating it.
To my mind that’s not hysterical at all. It’s just that these changes are happening much faster than before because of social media, so people perceive it to be hysterical and overcooked.
But Germany doesn’t pretend its ugly past never happened. They go out of their way to face their past and take responsibility for it, rather than celebrate it under the guise of ‘empire’.
That’s important, no?
Good job BBC always lookin for ways to f things up
They’ve little enough to be worrying about!
Super – the UK has its own Confederate flag.
No, the black people they transported to America were slaves though.
@Seán Ó Briain: this song is about establishing a navy to prevent an invasion by the Vikings to prevent enslaving the early Britons. What the hell does Africa or America have to do with every conversation?
@Seán Ó Briain: If you think about it, we are all slaves to someone or another
@Brynþór Patrekursson: it’s a triumphant song proclaiming that they themselves would never be slaves and written at a time when they were transporting millions of black slaves to America’s. The fact that modern day Brits have no problem with this reflects poorly on them as a people. But given they don’t teach the atrocities of the British empire at school it is no surprise.
@Seán Ó Briain: slave owner/traders and imperialists in general, would never, ever have seen themselves as slaves, so much so much so that they’d write a song about it.
@Brendan Walsh: No ruling power in the world has ever taught its own true history to its people, for fear to do so would greatly impede its ability to raise armies in future conquests.
Most Americans have only learned in recent years what their country was doing in Vietnam. Remember the Fake weapons of mass destruction that took the US and UK into IRAQ in 2003? Which version of that story is being taught in US schools today?
You simply cannot send an educated man or women to war these days. You have to keep them ignorant and by extension give them an edited version of their own history.
@Brynþór Patrekursson: The Britons as we know them today werent in existence and speaking the english language at the time of the Vikings, let alone write a song about it.
Britannia Rules the waves, was very much an imperialist song – It Thatchers time it was more – “Britannia Waives The Rules!
@Brynþór Patrekursson: Rule Britannia! was concocted in the1700s (when the Atlantic Slave Trade was at its busiest) to create a sense of destiny and Providence to Britain’s maritime exploits, mainly by linking the mythological exploits of King Alfred’s defence against the Vikings with Britain’s contemporary expansion as a naval power.
@WreckDefier: bitter sweet symphony,were a slave to money till the day we die
@Brynþór Patrekursson: should be apologising for all the grief they caused to other people’s when they were empire building. They are directly and indirectly linked to causes that are causing mayhem to struggling states. Their oldest colony here still bears the scars to their adventures in ruling and conduct.
@John Nolan: Oh stop it if thats the case the italians are up next followed by many other nations
@Robert Preston: truth hurts
At least they are not claiming to be singing soldiers!
It’ their emoire nostalgia and inability to accept their current place in 21st century world order that has them in the mess they’re in. Let them off
@How is it only Wednesday?: empire look it up
@Mary Oliver: commas, use them
@How is it only Wednesday?: Thats right British people want the empire back ???????? You do write some nonsense
@Robert Preston: you would be surprised. Look on YouTube for the C4 news montage post-brexit referendum with folks who voted leave and why. It was complaints about immigrants and people wanting Britain to be “back on the map”. 100% there are people in the UK who are nostalgic for a time when the country was sitting pretty atop the global and economic pile.
I’ve sung Humpty Dumpty many times but I admit I never really believed the giant Eggman required the urgent military assistance of a cavalry regiment led by a sovereign monarch.
I say let them sing their little imperialistic droning ditty. The Albert Hall is the perfect echo chamber for those who somehow think this event is profound.
Check your history uk slave trade was a massive part of your empire expansion
In fairness both pieces of music are excellent. Land of Hope and Glory would easily be voted National Anthem in the absence of God Save The Queen.
@Micheal S. O’ Ceilleachair: Exactly and Proms in the Park is a great fun night out. You would be surprised how many Irish with tricolours you meet there. People trying to read too much into it. I never met anyone there who yearned for a return of the Empire, they just wanted to have a good night out.
This woke brigade is getting out of hand….they need to be culled.
Manya time that was sung on the bus going home from a football match; let me see…
Rule Britannia! With marmalade and jam;
With five Chinese crackers up your *ss
Goes bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!
St patrick was a british slave
With irony…..
Somewhere in the empire the sun is setting, let’s drink to that old boy
have your say