A woman's post online has gone viral detailing her experience of 'needle spiking' that likely took place during a night out in Wexford town in recent days.
She shared her story on a Facebook post that was shared anonymously on the 'Wexford Mammy's' page.
Posts are shared directly from the administrator to the page where the authors name is not shown.
It was described as a 'potential horror story' and thanked the bar staff for their help as the incident unfolded.
She outlined that she collapsed during the evening, lost consciousness and developed severe nausea and sweating.
After getting home safely, she was unwell into the following day and was advised to check for evidence on her body of a possible 'needle' prick.
She explained that she found a blood dot on her dress which matched the location of a small bruise with a red prick mark found on the outside of her leg.
People were quick to react online by sharing her story to spread awareness with one use commenting; 'Thank God the bar staff were quick enough to recognise what was happening and looked after you. Pity is that they probably have seen this happen so often."
The post read:
"From a fan
"I want to share an incident that happened to me on a night out, a potential horror story had it not been for the quick reactions and care from the bar staff.
"I entered a premises in Wexford town and before I even got a drink, I collapsed and was taken to a quiet area by staff who looked after me.
"Once I regained consciousness I had to rush to the bathroom and was violently sick, sweating and feeling faint!
"The staff were excellent, insisted I had a family member collect me, and was kept under watchful eye until they arrived.
"I was advised me to check for potential prick/injection marks as they feared that I may have been spiked and spiking by a prick-like injection method is becoming more frequent.
"I knew something wasn't right, nothing was adding up, I only had 4 drinks over the space of a 5 hours in the previous venue.
"I was so sick the next day but thought I was just being paranoid.
"On Monday, by chance, I was made aware that I wasn't the only one that this happened to on the same night.
"This started to frighten me and raised concern among my family and friends who advised to check the dress I had worn, I found a blood dot on my dress which matched the location of a small bruise with a red prick mark found on the outside of my leg.
"By all accounts from speaking to various people from bar staff, members of security and friends, this is not as uncommon as you might think.
"So if you were out on Saturday and felt unwell and like me thought it was the heat or maybe you had a few too many, just check for marks (prick/dot marks with potential small bruise) and get in contact with the Garda to report it & your doctor to get bloods done as soon as possible!
"The Garda can’t look into these incidents, track down perpetrators and protect potential victims unless this is reported.
"I was lucky, but it’s frightening to think of what could have happened and what may have actually happened to other people targeted."
To report an incident to An Garda Síochána, visit garda.ie to find your nearest Garda station.
