DateableHow to keep your drink safe on a date
Watch your drink from bar to hand and never return to one you left unattended. It is impossible to tell if a drink has been spiked, so stay alert on dates.
Keep your drink in your hand from the moment you get it at the bar, and never return to a drink you left unattended. Watch it while you hold it, and be aware of who is near it. If you cannot watch your drink at all times, it is safer to leave it behind than to finish it.
Spiking is possible but rare
Spiking is giving someone a substance without their knowledge or consent, most often by adding extra alcohol or drugs to a drink 1. It is impossible to tell whether a drink has been spiked without testing 1. Symptoms include sudden drunkenness, dizziness, confusion, nausea, blurred vision, hallucinations and memory loss 1.
Spiking is a crime, but it happens far less than people fear. The bigger risk is that you lose track of how much alcohol you have had, which is why pacing yourself matters more than spotting the rare spike.
Order and collect your own drink
Order your own drink at the bar or ask the server to bring it directly to your table. Watching it being made means you know nothing went into it before it reached your hand. If your date insists on ordering for you and it makes you uncomfortable, that is a sign to end the date early.
If a drink arrives and you do not remember ordering it, or the taste is unusual, leave it. You are not obliged to drink anything a date gives you, and no gift or meal means you owe them your safety.
Keep your drink in your hand
In a crowded bar or venue, hold your glass the entire time you are there. Do not set it on a table, a counter or a friend's bag. If you need both hands for something, finish the drink first, or leave it behind and order a new one.
If you step away from the bar to dance, use the bathroom or talk to someone, take the drink with you or leave it. Finishing or abandoning it is safer than returning to it.
I'm going to grab a fresh drink from the bar. Would you like me to order you another one while I'm there?
Plan your bathroom breaks
Finish your drink before you go to the bathroom, or leave it behind. Ask a trusted friend to watch your date if you need to leave the table, and return as soon as you are done. If you are on a date with someone new, it is fine to use the bathroom during the date, but do not leave a drink waiting for you.
Spiking often means extra alcohol, not only drugs
Most spiking involves adding more alcohol to a drink, not illegal drugs 1. This means the risk applies as much to soft drinks as to alcoholic ones, and that pacing your drinking protects you from both the rare spike and the common one: losing track of how much you have had.
Pace yourself by alternating alcoholic drinks with water or soft drinks throughout the date. Order a smaller size of any drink, or eat something before and during the date so the alcohol does not hit as fast. Notice how you feel after each drink, and stop if you feel unwell or more drunk than expected.
If you suspect spiking
If you feel suddenly unwell, dizzy, confused or much more drunk than usual, stop drinking immediately. Tell someone you trust or venue staff, get somewhere safe with someone you trust, and get medical help 1.
Spiking is a crime. Many drugs leave the body within eight to 72 hours, so if you suspect it happened, get a test and report it quickly 1. Keep the glass or cup if you can, and tell police or a sexual assault service. On a date, your safety is more important than avoiding awkwardness or hurting the other person's feelings.
- Order your own drink and watch it being made
- Hold your glass at all times in crowded venues
- Never return to a drink you left unattended
- Finish your drink before you leave the table or go to the bathroom
- Pace yourself by mixing alcohol with water
- Tell someone you trust where you are and when you expect home
- If something feels wrong, end the date and leave
On a first date, keep your phone charged, plan your way home, and do not feel bad about cutting it short if it does not feel right 2. Meet in a public place with other people around, and take your own transport so you control when you leave. These steps protect you far more than worrying about spiking.
For sugar dating and other arrangements, the same rules apply: stay alert, keep your drink in your hand, and trust your instinct if something feels off. Nobody worth meeting will be upset if you refuse a drink or leave early.
Sources
- Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (2025). Spiking.
- New Zealand Police (2026). Safety advice.
