In case you were wondering, Glastonbury has released a handy guide to drugs at the festival

It has advice like ‘stay hydrated’ 👍👍👍

3 years ago

News

Fish and chips. Salt and pepper. Festivals and drugs. It’s near-on impossible to get one without the other, they just go together so damn well. After literal YEARS of waiting for festival season to come back properly, at long last Glastonbury is here – and helpfully, the festival has released on its website a handy guide to taking drugs at festivals.

Glastonbury’s official website says it does not condone dealing in or use of illegal drugs (obvs), and there are police officers on-site to deal with any offences. If you have any drugs on you, you’re at risk of having them confiscated and could even be evicted from the festival.

On its website, Glastonbury also links to a drugs information page by Festival Medical Service. Its advice ranges from “don’t do drugs” to “stay hydrated” and “keep an eye on your mates”. Glastonbury’s website reminds people that experimenting with drug use can lead to adverse reactions, and the size of the festival can make this disorientating. “If you do take drugs and you become ill, depressed or frightened please ask a steward to direct you to one of the many facilities on site which can help and support you”, it says.

Here’s what the full 10-point drugs guide, which Glastonbury links to on its website, says:

1. Don’t take drugs

I mean, duh, but it’s safer not to do drugs. “You don’t know what’s in the drugs or how much, how they might affect you or how they will mix with anything else you’ve taken or drunk”, the Glastonbury guide says. “There’s a lot of potential for a seriously bad time.”

If you *do* take drugs, you should focus on harm reduction, it says.

2. Line your stomach

Be prepared before you take anything – line your stomach and fuel your body with eating, and have some water back in your tent ready for the morning after. Take another bottle of water out with you during the day.

3. Don’t use everything on the first night

Don’t be that person who takes everything on the first night and then has to go home, or even worse to hospital. Pace yourself.

4. Take a small amount and then wait

Take half a pill, a small dab, or another small amount of drugs first and then wait a couple of hours before you decide if you want to take more, the Glastonbury guide advises. If it’s strong you’ll thank yourself for not taking it all at once, but if you feel like it’s not doing anything don’t just keep taking more because it might all hit you at once.

It also says: “Beware the bottom of the bag – where the active drug may have collected.”

5. Don’t mix drugs, including alcohol

Mixing drugs makes it only more likely you’ll end up in a bad state, or the things you take might reduce the effect of each other and you’ll have just wasted it all. Obviously, there can also be potentially fatal interactions.

6. Stay hydrated

“Aim to drink a pint of water an hour – but not all in one go”, the guide says. It can be harder to stay hydrated at a festival but this only makes it more important that you do.

7. Keep an eye on your mates

Look after your mates, keep an eye out for each other and tell them what you’ve taken, just in case. Don’t take drugs alone, obviously don’t be a dick and pressure anyone into taking something they don’t want, and if someone’s not having a good time (or even too much of a good time), make sure they’re okay.

8. Pure doesn’t mean safe

Cheap doesn’t mean weak, and pure doesn’t mean safe. So-called “legal highs” are now illegal (some never were in the first place), and “legal” also doesn’t mean safe or mild – some can even be more dangerous than “traditional” illegal drugs, the guide days.

Remember that whatever it says on the packet isn’t necessarily what’s in it, and you don’t know what effect something is likely to have.

9. Remember not all drugs are the same

Some drugs might not be ideal for the festival environment, whether that’s Glastonbury or other events. Some like ket and LSD can make you lose track of what’s happening around you and might not be the best.

10. Get help if you need

Remember help is available if things aren’t going well. If you’re having a bad time, remember the feeling won’t last forever and will pass – and tell the people you’re with how you’re feeling.

You can go to the Welfare Tent if you need “a calm, safe and judgement-free place to cool down and recover”. If you or someone you’re with needs medical help, speak to a member of staff or go to the Medical Tent. “Tell medical staff what you or your friend have taken”, it says.

“Medical staff aren’t looking to get you into trouble, they just want to give you the best treatment.”

Information on how you can get your drugs tested can be found at The Loop’s website. Other sites like Pill Report offer home-testing kits and information about drugs in circulation.