The use of psychoactive substances during sex is now widespread, including in the LGBTQI+ community. Men who have sex with men in particular use various drugs to have more fun at sex parties and last longer. However, inhaling, snorting, smoking, swallowing, injecting or inserting drugs into the anus exposes you to health risks. If you want to avoid contracting STIs or other diseases, you should follow tips on so-called safer-use hygiene.
Protect yourself with simple basic rules
The most important rule when using drugs is always safety first. This means that consumption during pregnancy and breastfeeding should be just as taboo as before and while driving. Especially if you have to drive a car, motorbike or bicycle, keep your hands off drugs.
An old saying goes that good planning makes life easier. This also applies if you use drugs. For example, if you’re going to a ChemSex party, ask yourself beforehand what you need before, during and after the party to stay safe and protect yourself as much as possible. An important basic rule for you should always be that you alone decide what is good for you and which rules for consumption (and also for sex) should apply to you. Others may have different rules, but you should stick to the ones you set.
A wise person once said that knowledge is power. For this reason, before using drugs, you should get the most important information about the substances themselves, their side effects and interactions and, above all, the risks associated with their use. A good way to obtain such information is through “drug-checking”. Although such an analysis is not always possible in a hurry, if you have the chance, take it.
A healthy self-assessment can protect you from health consequences. If you don’t overestimate yourself and don’t underestimate the dose or the risks, this will contribute to your safety. Incidentally, you should always keep your friends up to date with what you are consuming. That way, they will be able to help you in an emergency.
Testing and experimenting in a safe environment
Safer use hygiene also means that you should first test the effects of substances that were previously unknown to you with great caution. Don’t just take them to any party, but try them in the smallest possible quantities, ideally in the presence of friends at home. Watch out for signs of possible poisoning or defence reactions. If you notice that your body reacts negatively to a substance, leave it alone. It is also a good idea to slowly approach higher doses. Above all, it is advisable to wait at least 90 minutes before re-dosing.
Snorting or swallowing can have a delayed effect. At events that last the whole weekend (e.g. raver parties, but also ChemSex parties), you should incorporate a cool down for your own safety, cool down and take a break from consumption. Don’t forget to drink enough water so that you don’t become dehydrated.
Use clean utensils when consuming
To protect yourself as well as possible from pathogens, only use the utensils you need for consumption alone. When injecting drugs, for example, diseases can be transmitted not only via the syringe, but also via other utensils such as filters, blowtorches or lighters. Tools that have already been used increase your risk of contracting hepatitis. However, you should not only keep your consumption utensils clean, but also ensure the best possible hygiene before and after consumption.
This includes thoroughly washing your hands before taking a shot. Afterwards, it is advisable to disinfect the injection site with an alcohol swab, as there are bacteria and germs on the skin that could enter the wound when injecting. After the injection, press a clean piece of cellulose or a fresh alcohol swab onto the injection site for a few minutes.
Hygiene is also important when buying substances to minimise the risk of infection. Once you have bought something, it is best to put it in its own container immediately and then wash your hands thoroughly.
Important note: The water used for washing can also carry diseases because it is a breeding ground for fungi and bacteria. If possible, boil it before use. This will kill most germs, and you can use it without worrying.
Crack pipe & vaporiser: Smoking substances
Utensils that you use to consume psychoactive substances should only be the only ones you use. Andshould also always be spotless, i.e. disinfected or boiled. If you share your joint, crack pipe and vaporiser with others, you can easily catch viruses and bacteria.
Smoking crack or methamphetamine with a crack pipe is popular, but there are risks involved. For one thing, you can injure your lips and mucous membranes when smoking because very high temperatures are generated. Due to the numbing effect, any injuries may only become noticeable afterwards.
Tip: Unlike activated charcoal filters, vaporisers do not filter out any non-psychoactive substances from the smoke. This is why the substances used in a vaporiser develop their effect more efficiently.
Up the Bum or the rush through the “Backdoor”
Many people know that inhaling, smoking, swallowing or intravenously injecting psychoactive substances can damage the nose, stomach and veins. Many people therefore switch to the anal administration of substances (using a syringe without a needle or in a capsule). With this type of consumption, you not only protect the aforementioned body parts, but also benefit from the fact that the effect is just as intense as when injecting into a vein. However, to avoid hurting your bum and pain during insertion, it is advisable to use water-based lube. To avoid infections during this procedure, you should wear gloves when inserting syringes or capsules. In addition, every bottom gets its own syringe.
When you consume solid or liquid substances via the anus, the bloodstream absorbs them through the intestinal mucosa of the rectum or rectum, i.e. it resorbs them. If a substance is absorbed in the lowest part of the rectum, the portal circulation and the liver are bypassed (first-pass effect). This means that the substance reaches the target organs without any initial enzymatic processing having taken place in the liver. This can significantly increase the effect of the substance.
Safer-use hygiene even during sex itself
While we’re on the subject of safer use, we must of course also address the topic of safer sex. Especially if you consume psychoactive substances at the same time. Then you should make sure that you don’t forget to use condoms during anal sex, for example. At a ChemSex party, you may not use a condom. Which increases the risk of contracting HIV, hepatitis, gonorrhoea, syphilis, genital warts (STIs = sexually transmitted diseases) or similarly unpleasant diseases. At chemsex parties or during anonymous sex while cruising, you almost never have this security. Therefore, to be on the safe side, put a condom on yourself or your partner and keep yourself “clean” this way.
You should only ever have unprotected sex with partners who you can be sure are healthy. Or, if they are HIV-positive, are below the so-called detection limit and are therefore not infectious. Unprotected sex with partners who are protected by PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) is also low-risk because the prophylaxis prevents HIV infection.
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