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'I was too scared to move': Alarming reports of drug reactions at New Year festivals 8 Jan, 2021 04:00 PM 12 minutes to read By: Russell Brown Hundreds of New Year festival-goers have reported alarming symptoms – including paranoia, seizures, severe nausea and inability to sleep for days – after taking chemicals sold to them as MDMA, or ecstasy. The wave of bad reactions may be yet another consequence of the disruption caused by the Covid pandemic. The reports, nearly 1000 so far, have come in messages to the harm reduction service Know Your Stuff. "I was lying in bed thinking I might die...

Supplied Tuari Potiki, departing chair of the NZ Drug Foundation, addressing the UN in New York on drug law reform. It took him seven months to get a visa for the visit, because he had a drugs conviction in his youth. OPINION: When the cannabis referendum failed despite being so close, my daughter, having watched me over decades fight for health-based, fair drug laws, wrote something on Facebook that has compelled me to write this as the departing chairperson of the NZ Drug Foundation. My tamāhine, in justifiable, youthful anger, said the laws we have are ‘’racist, because they unjustly...

Photo: 123rf Police say officers will be at events across the country this holiday period and want people to know they are there to help. "It is important to remember that our primary focus is on the well-being and safety of all, ensuring revellers stay safe while also being able to enjoy themselves." They've offered the following advice to party safe: If you are planning on drinking, then it's a good idea to have something substantial to eat before you start Have a glass of water between each alcoholic drink Plan how you are getting home at the end of your night, and have the cash, eftpos ca...

Cathinones can cause vomiting, paranoia and seizures — and they're "bloody everywhere" this summer, drug-checking service says.

A supply of MDMA. (file pic) Photo: 123RF The drug-checking agency, Know Your Stuff, said testers had seen a big jump in the amount of eutylone masquerading as MDMA this year. At least two people, including one having seizures, needed emergency medical treatment. Spokesperson Jez Weston warned that eutylone could cause vomiting, psychosis, convulsions and even death. He said it was impossible to tell the difference between the drugs by sight or smell alone, and no one should take a drug without testing it. "We know that Covid has affected global supply chains for all sorts of different prod...