Natasha Moor, a 19-year-old student from Leeds shares her story about being spiked by injection.
Across the country, women are experiencing a new form of spiking.
Whilst club goers were covering their drinks and checking to see if their vodka tonics seemed strangely foggy, predators were getting inventive.
Women are now being injected with date rape drugs. The epidemic has travelled across the nation, and needles can now be added to the list of things to watch out for on a night out.
Natasha Moor, 19-year-old criminology student at Leeds Beckett, was out celebrating Halloween when she was injected. The last thing she remembers is queuing for the club. Between that and waking up in the hospital, everything is a terrifying blur.
Natasha recalls feeling apprehensive about the night out, to begin with.
"I was drifting in and out of consciousness in the toilets."
“We’d read warnings on social media about girls being injected, so I already felt nervous. I never buy drinks in clubs anyway because I’m so scared of being spiked.”
Purposefully avoiding clubs with reports of spiking incidents, Natasha and her friends set out to party at ‘The Space’, in Leeds.
Natasha expressed frustration towards people’s curiosity about what she was wearing that night, as if this would have enhanced her chances of being spiked.
“I hate when people ask, what were you wearing? I do wear revealing clothing, but that shouldn’t matter at all. Compared to some of the outfits I’ve worn this wasn’t even that revealing!”
At the beginning of what seemed like a normal night out, Natasha says she was enjoying herself in the queue despite her anxieties.
“We’d just come from pres (pre-drinks), where I’d only had two vodka and cokes. I was barely tipsy.”
After entering the club, Natasha’s night took a turn.
“I don’t remember anything after being in the queue.
“Everything I tell you from this point is just what my friends have told me.”
According to Natasha’s friends, after around 20 minutes of being in the club, she said she was going to be sick and ran to the toilet.
Natasha knew she hadn’t drunk enough to be in such a state, which is when she started to panic.
“I was crying and shouting for help. I knew I’d been spiked because I’d barely drank anything. I’m never the one to get legless on a night out. I was drifting in and out of consciousness in the toilets.
“My friends said I was dead weight when they carried me out of the club.”
Natasha’s friends managed to carry her out of the club whilst she was unconscious, where a security guard offered to drive her to the hospital.
“He was amazing, he ran and got his car and rushed us there because he knew an ambulance would take too long. He even gave Emma his number and insisted that she keep him updated.”
Natasha recalls waking up in hospital and having no idea where she was.
“I was completely in shock when the nurse explained what had happened to me. I just burst into tears.”
After testing Natasha’s blood, the doctors explained she had been spiked with ketamine and flunitrazepam.
It wasn’t until the next day when Natasha got in the shower that she noticed the mark on her thigh.
“That’s when I noticed these two scratches. It was a big bruise around where it looked like a needle could have gone in.
"I had messages saying I was lying"
Natasha suspects she was injected whilst she was in the queue for the club.
“I don’t know what happened for certain, and that’s the frustrating part.
“Maybe this is the wrong word, but I felt almost embarrassed that this happened to me. I’m a criminology student, I should want to go to the police and try and find out who did it but somethings stopping me.”
“I didn’t want to report it, I just wanted it to be over.”
Expressing concerns of victim-blaming, Natasha said she feared the police would think it was her fault.
“I thought people would think it happened because of what I was wearing, or just assume I was too drunk or took drugs.
“My friends eventually convinced me to share my story on Instagram to raise awareness. At first, I just wanted to keep it a secret. Eventually, I realised a simple post could stop this from happening to someone else.
Although most of the responses to Natasha’s post were supportive, she did receive some negativity.
“I had messages saying I was lying, which is what I was afraid of.”
When asked about how the experience has affected her, Natasha admits the incident has caused her a lot of anxiety.
“I just didn’t think it was going to happen, especially to me. I didn’t go out for a few weeks after. I feel like I’m missing out on so much because I’m too scared to go out.
“When I do go out now I feel petrified and end up leaving early. I feel like its ruined clubbing for me because I’m just paranoid the whole time.
“I walked past the club where it happened and my heart dropped. It’s one of the most popular clubs in Leeds, but I don’t know if I’ll ever go back.”
The night club has responded to the rise in spiking, promising to implement more entry security and thorough searches.
In a statement posted to Instagram they said: “Like many others in our industry we have been extremely worried about a recent rise in the reports of drinks spiking and other such vile acts.
“We remain strongly intent on improving the safety of our customers and workers alike and will be working closely with local authorities to ensure everyone feels safe.”
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