KCL Mephedrone Survey 2010

Thanks for taking a little time to take part in our survey on Mephedrone. We are a research group at King's College London that is studying what people think about this drug, what effects they are getting, both good things and also the less good things. Our aim is to develop health information for Mephedrone users. To take part you must be at least 18 years old and have used Mephedrone at least once.

By ticking this box you are confirming you are over 18 and have taken Mephedrone.

If you decide to complete this questionnaire, please be assured that the information you give us is entirely anonymous and your answers will be confidential. If you have any questions about the survey or our work in this area please contact: Dr Adam R Winstock on 0207 848 0832 or adam.winstock@kcl.ac.uk.

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Depending on your answers to some questions, certain items may appear greyed out. Please skip any fields greyed out.

1.1

How old are you? (age last birthday)

1.2

Gender

1.3

Are you:

Working (full time)
Working (part time)
College (full time)
College (part time)
Unemployed

1.4

Do you currently live in the UK?

Yes No

If you live in the UK which county do you live in?

If you live outside the UK, which country do you live in?

2.1	Have you:
						How often taken in most recent month used?
	Ever taken?	Yes	No	If Yes	Age first used?	Number of sessions...	...or number of times per week

	Ecstasy
	Cocaine

2.2	Thinking about the ecstasy and cocaine that is generally around now, using a scale from 0 to 10, how would you rate:
		Ecstasy	Cocaine	Mephedrone
	The pleasurable high: (where 10 = best ever had)
	Strength of effect: (where 10 = extremely strong)
	Negative effects when high: (where 10 = extremely strong)
	Value-for-money of: (where 10 = best experienced)
	The urge to want more of the drug when using: (where 10 = extremely)
	Negative effects after use- 'the comedown': (where 10 = extremely bad comedown)

2.3	Since the time you started taking mephedrone, have you:
			Ecstasy	Cocaine
	Been using more:
	Been using less:
	Or, has using mephedrone not changed how often you take:
	Has there ever been a time when you took mephedrone instead of:

	If there was a choice to make between...
	...mephedrone or ecstasy, would you choose to take mephedrone?	Yes No
	...mephedrone or cocaine, would you choose to take mephedrone?	Yes No

3.1	Can you now think back to the first time you ever took MEPHEDRONE:
	First time you took:	About how much was this dose?	How did you take it?


	If other (type), please specify:
	If other (how ), please specify:

3.2	On that first session, how many more doses did you take?	Dose(s)

3.3	How long would you say that first session lasted for in total?	Hour(s)
	(the time between first dose on that session and when you had come down form the last dose but were still awake)

3.4	About how much would you estimate you took in total on that first session?

3.5	Did you take it any other way, apart from your answer to 3.1 above?	No Snort Bomb In drink Rubbed on gums Smoked Injected Swallowed Other
	If other, please describe:

3.6	Did you drink alcohol during that first session?	Yes No
	Did you take any other drugs during the session (before you slept)?
	If other, please describe:

4.1	So, when was that first session you used?	(Year)	(Month)
4.1	And when was the last time you used?	(Year)	(Month)

4.2	Can you give us an estimate of your mephedrone usage over the last 10 months:
	Apr 2009 (no of days used that month)...
	May 2009 (no of days used that month)...
	Jun 2009 (no of days used that month)...
	Jul 2009 (no of days used that month)...
	Aug 2009 (no of days used that month)...
	Sep 2009 (no of days used that month)...
	Oct 2009 (no of days used that month)...
	Nov 2009 (no of days used that month)...
	Dec 2009 (no of days used that month)...
	Jan 2010 (no of days used that month)...
	Feb 2010 (no of days used that month)...
	Mar 2010 (no of days used that month)...
	Apr 2010 (no of days used that month)...

4.3	Have you used mephedrone for 2 or more days in a row?		Yes No
	If Yes: what's the total number of consecutive days you have used?

4.4	Generally, do you use alone or are other people using with you?
	If use with others, about how many other people use as well?

4.5	In a typical session, think about your first dose:
	First dose is:	What amount?	How taken?


	If other (type), please specify:
	If other (how ), please specify:
	If taken as line: How many lines would you say you would get out of a 1g?
	If bombed/oral ask: How many bombs/doses would you say you would get out of a 1g?

4.6	On average, how many more doses do you take over a typical session?

4.7	If more than one dose, about how much time is there on average between doses?
	If longer than 3hrs, how long?

4.8	How long would you say a typical session lasts for in total (hours)?
	(the time between first dose on that session and when you had come down form the last dose but were still awake)

4.9	How much would you estimate you take in total during a typical session?

4.10	Do you take it another way, apart from your answer to 3.5 above?	No Snort Bomb In drink Rubbed on gums Smoked Injected Swallowed Other
	If other, please describe:

4.11	Do you drink alcohol during a typical session?	Yes No
	Do you take any other drugs?
	If other, please describe:

4.12	Could you estimate how much mephedrone in total you use in the most recent month?

4.13	What is the most mephedrone you have ever taken in one session?

4.14	How long would you say that session lasted for in total (hours)?
	(the time between first dose on that session and when you had come down form the last dose but were still awake)

4.15	Did you drink alcohol during that big session?	Yes No
	Did you take any other drugs?
	If other, please describe:

4.16	Thinking about how you have obtained mephedrone, have you ever:	Been given mephedrone by a friend? Bought from a dealer? Bought from a head shop? Bought from an internet site?
	Which of these do you most commonly obtain from?:

4.17	If bought on the internet: can you recall the name of the website, or websites, you have most commonly bought mephedrone from:

4.18	What has the mephedrone you have most commonly taken looked like when first taken out of the wrap or packet?
	If other, please describe:

	Before using, did you notice that this had a particular smell?
	If other, please describe:

4.19	Can you indicate the different situations (places) you've ever taken mephedrone?	At your home At a friend's home At a house party At a club A festival At a pub/bar Other
	If other, please describe:

	Which of these have you taken mephedrone most often?

4.20	Here's a list of some things that can motivate someone to use mephedrone. On a scale from 0 to 10 where 0 is "no influence at all" and 10 would be "the maximum influence possible", how motivating have the following been when you've taken mephedrone:

	It was legal to buy it
	It was easy to buy mephedrone on the internet and delivered to my home
	It has a high level of of purity, compared to illegal stimulants
	It was good value for money
	It is a more consistent product
	You get a better high from mephedrone, compared to illegal stimulants
	There are fewer side effects, compared to illegal stimulants
	A single dose of mephedrone doesn't last too long
	No other drug was available to me at the time, so I bought mephedrone

4.21	When taking mephedrone, how often you have experienced each of these effects and with what intensity:
	How often did you feel:	How often	If experienced	How intense

	Euphoric
	Increased energy
	Improved concentration
	Empathy with others
	Urge to talk

	Urge to move, do things
	Increased sexual desire
	Restless or anxious
	Angry or aggressive
	Agitated
	How often did you feel:	How often	If experienced	How intense

	No appetite for food
	You were forgetting things
	Panicky
	Paranoid
	Blurred vision

	Seeing things not there
	Hearing things not there
	Body sweating
	Overheating
	Heart racing or erratic
	How often did you feel:	How often	If experienced	How intense

	Shortness of breath
	Headache
	Chest pain
	Clenching jaw, grinding teeth
	Shaky hands, fingers

	Fingers/toes cold or numb
	Skin discoloured (blue/red)
	Skin rash
	Vomiting
	Hard to sleep, end of session

4.22	Across all the sessions you've had, what's the way you've most commonly taken mephedrone?
	If other, please describe:

4.23	Are there any ways of taking mephedrone you probably wouldn't do again?	Snort Bomb In drink Rubbed on gums Smoke Inject Swallowed Other
	If other, please describe:

4.24	Thinking about how you felt during the next day or two after a session, please summarise how often you have experienced each of the following and how intense the effect was:
	How often did you feel:	How often	If experienced	How intense

	Increased appetite
	You had a stuffy nose
	Tired or fatigued
	Your sweat smelled unusual
	Anxious
	Depressed
	Emotional or tearful
	Irritable
	Unable to concentrate
	You lost memory of session
	An urge or craving to take more mephedrone

4.25	Thinking overall across the time since you have been taking mephedrone:
	Have you found that your usual dose hasn't had the same effect as when you first starting taking it?	Yes No

	Have you taken mephedrone for longer or in larger amounts that you had intended?	Yes No

	Have you had a persistent desire or strong urge to take it?	Yes No

	Have you wanted to cut down or take it less often but not been successful ?	Yes No

	Would you say you have spent a great deal of time either getting mephedrone, taking it or recovering?	Yes No

	Have you given up important social, occupational, or recreational activities because of it?	Yes No

	Have you continued to take it even though you've had physical/psychological problems?	Yes No

	Have friends or family expressed concern to you about your use of mephedrone?	Yes No

	Have you been concerned about your use of mephedrone?	Yes No

	Have you taken mephedrone or another stimulant drug to help relieve mephedrone withdrawals?	Yes No

4.26 & 4.27	After taking mephedrone, have you ever had emergency medical treatment or gone to hospital?	Yes No

	If yes....
	How much mephedrone had you taken?
	How long had the session been that time (in hours)?
	Had you been drinking alcohol?	Yes No
	Had you taken any other drugs in that session?	Cocaine Amphetamine Cannabis Ketamine Other
	If other, please specify:

	Did you have chest pain?	Yes No
	Were you feeling panicky, or agitated?	Yes No
	Had you been seeing or hearing things that weren't there?	Yes No
	Had you fainted, or collapsed	Yes No

4.28	Now that Mephedrone has become illegal, have you continued to take it?	Yes No

	If yes....
	How much do you pay on average for a gram (in your currency)?
	How has your use of Mephedrone changed?
	How has mephedrone becoming illegal impacted on your use of Ecstasy?
	How has mephedrone becoming illegal impacted on your use of Cocaine?
	Did you put aside a stash of Mephedrone before it became illegal?	Yes No

5.1	Have you ever heard of methylone? (meth-e-lone) [aka M1 or Bk-MDMA or MDMC; chemical name: 4-methylenedioxy-N-methylcathinone]	Yes No
	If "Yes", have you used it?	Yes No
	If "Yes", how many times?

5.2	Have you ever heard of butylone? (bew-til-one) [aka B1, or Bk-MDBD or Mitzseezs; chemical name: 2-methylamino-1-(3,4-methylenedioxyphenyl)butan-1-one)]	Yes No
	If "Yes", have you used it?	Yes No
	If "Yes", how many times?

5.3	Have you ever heard of M.D.P.V.? [aka SuperCoke; chemical name: MethyleneDioxyPyroValerone]	Yes No
	If "Yes", have you used it?	Yes No
	If "Yes", how many times?

5.4	Have you ever heard of flephedrone? [aka4FMC; chemical name: 4-fluoromethcathinone; 4-FMC]	Yes No
	If "Yes", have you used it?	Yes No
	If "Yes", how many times?

5.5	Have you ever heard of MDAI? [chemical name: naphthylpyrovalerone]	Yes No
	If "Yes", have you used it?	Yes No
	If "Yes", how many times?

5.6	Have you ever heard of NRG1? [chemical name: 5,6-Methylenedioxy-2-aminoindane]	Yes No
	If "Yes", have you used it?	Yes No
	If "Yes", how many times?

5.7	Do you think that using mephedrone has made it more likely that you will try other stimulant drugs?	Yes No

5.8	Do you think you will take mephedrone again:
	If No, is there a main reason why you don't think you'll use again?

Finally do you have any friends who might be interested in helping us with our study?	Yes No
IF YES, ask them to email interest to: adam.winstock@kcl.ac.uk

Would you mind if we contacted you in the future to invite you to participate in other studies?	Yes No

If so please give us some contact details so we can contact you in confidence [these details are stored seperately]
Contact number or email:
What name should we ask for?:

When ready, please read and tick the consent statement below and click the Submit Answers button to complete the questionnaire

I consent to take part and am happy for my data to be used in this survey.