Man opens up about his drink being spiked at a bar and other men share their stories

Getting drugged on a night out is a nightmare but it can be even worse when your friends poke fun at you over it. As an Imgur user recently found, men often view such incidents as a laughing matter, especially when a man's at the receiving end of it. Imgur user HerculesSnoochSlammer had been drugged on a night out and was shocked to see his friends have a laugh at him when he felt vulnerable and scared about it. The double standards are stark. 'Hercules' had his drink spiked and ended up waking up naked on his couch with a cracked TV. He was “disoriented and almost in shock or disbelief” at what had happened. 

After opening up to his friends about it, he learned that they didn't share his apprehension or fear. “I believe it’s more dangerous for women just because of what we hear and see with the awful stories of what happens,” he told Bored Panda. "Unfortunately, men aren't taken as seriously just because most people think ‘we’re always down for a good time.’"

His story posted on Imgur is a heartbreaking one. "I wanted to get out just before a bit. I wanted a rum and coke and watch my baseball team play on TV as I don't pay for cable. I went from having a peaceful drink and banter with local fans to waking up the next morning naked on my couch with a cracked TV," wrote Hercules. "I sent out an erratic Snapchat that was completely incoherent to a handful of people. I had no idea what I sent them and over half of them laughed and said something along the lines of "sounds like you had a GREAT night!! Lol" after I told them I was drugged," he added.

He said it hurt to see his close friends and loved ones laugh at him despite sharing the ordeal. "I'm 6'4" 215 and am an avid drinker. I don't promote it but I can handle my own. I didn't drink even nearly enough to have a block of 12 hours of lost time. But the fact that people laughed, actually hurt. I wouldn't wish that on anyone. Especially women who would be a bigger target than me. I'm very thankful I made it home safe with some bumps and bruises but with my keys, wallet, and phone. I had somehow managed to break my TV in my blackout and have a 91 dollar charge to my card which I assume came from someone buying drinks on me," he wrote. 

A study by researchers from the University of South Carolina found that 7.8 per cent of students reported incidents of being drugged while 1.4 percent admitted that they had drugged someone or knew someone who had done that to someone else. 'Hercules' urged everyone to be cautious on a night out. "Always keep an eye on your drinks no matter male or female. People out there either want something from you or want to do harm to you," he added. "Let's all look out for each other from now on and be more vigilant. We can't stop bad people from being bad. But we can look out for one another."

The post has been viewed close to 140,000 times and upvoted 5,000 times. 'Hercules' said he wants people to take such incidents seriously irrespective of gender. “Just take things your male friends say seriously. They don’t want to be a bother 99 percent of the time but are trying their best to swallow their pride and ask for help,” he said. He received overwhelming support in the comments section with many men opening up about their personal stories of having their drinks spiked.