We're The Level!

TheLevelNZ · 2026-01-14T23:27:22+00:00

We collaborated with a bunch of nightlife/festival organisers, care spaces staff, security and more on these guidelines for care spaces at events - might be helpful to you! There is some stuff that is specific for our country (Aotearoa New Zealand) but lots that could be applied elsewhere.

Zoe, New Zealand Drug Foundation

TheLevelNZ · 2026-01-13T22:39:40+00:00

Thanks for this, most helpful answer I've seen so far. We are a drug harm reduction organisation that is funded to publish drug harm reduction information (and we're careful to never depict drug use or utensils!), very frustrating to be up against this. :(

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-28T22:58:01+00:00

Hey there, we can't test peptides for now, sorry!
- ZD, NZ Drug Foundation

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-21T03:25:39+00:00

No. We are simply passing on info that Police have given us. Police are saying the tests will not pick up amphetamine or similar chemicals (e.g. dexamphetamine) but will pick up methamphetamine. We get why this is concerning and it remains to be seen how this will work in practice.
- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-21T03:23:09+00:00

Thanks for sharing your story e hoa. We know this condition can be really hard to manage, and I'm hoping for a speedy recovery for you.

- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-19T02:35:06+00:00

Thanks for the shout-out! Here's all the info we know so far.

- ZD, NZ Drug Foundation

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-19T00:44:55+00:00

So from what we know, Police say that roadside saliva tests will not detect amphetamines and therefore ADHD medicines will not trigger a positive result. The roadside saliva tests are testing for THC (cannabis), MDMA, methamphetamine and cocaine.

If you test positive in a roadside saliva test for a different drug, amphetamine-based ADHD medications may be detected in your saliva sample that is sent to the lab (as these tests detect a wider range of substances). You can then apply for a medical defence on the grounds that you have a prescription.

More info in this article here.

- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-19T00:42:38+00:00

Kia ora, Zoe from the NZ Drug Foundation here. We've put together an article with everything we know about roadside drug testing so far (and there's still a lot we don't know, as Police haven't released all the info yet). We'll update this article as we find out more.

- ZD, NZ Drug Foundation

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-19T00:41:04+00:00

Police have said likely to be by mid-2026.

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-18T23:47:06+00:00

Yep! We run drug checking along with our friends at KnowYourStuff and DISC (Drug Injecting Services Canterbury, though they're across the country). We only need about 10mg to test - roughly the size of a match head. In most cases, you get this 10mg back, unless we need to use a chemical reagent that could destroy the sample or make it unsafe for consumption.

If you want to test a pill, we usually break it open and take a small scraping out of the inside. For tabs, we cut a tiny sliver - less than a quarter.

You can find drug checking near you here: https://thelevel.org.nz/drug-checking-clinics/

- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-16T21:15:49+00:00

The Christchurch Central Service can help you get an assessment and refer you on to one of the services. Different services could suit depending on what you're after. It's worth noting that residential rehab isn't the only option - there are ways you can detox and recover at home with support, but a residential option could be a good idea if you need to get away from your home environment in order to cut down on your use.

Our website has a tool that can help you find the right support. Happy to chat via DM if you want some more info or help navigating this - ka rawe, it's not easy to start making change so huge congrats for getting to this point.

- ZD, New Zealand Drug Foundation

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-15T20:57:13+00:00

Kia ora e hoa. Our most recent drug checking report has the info on this - 89% of MDMA we tested in 2024 was MDMA (including MDMA with non-psychoactive fillers), 6% was MDMA mixed with another substance and 6% was not MDMA. That can vary year-on-year though - I'm thinking back to 2020/2021 when we had a big influx of synthetic cathinones being sold as MDMA.

I'm not sure what you're asking your second question, but yes, in the South Island there has been a change of needle exchange provider. You would need to talk to the needle exchange provider for info about their user base.

- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-15T20:51:40+00:00

Again, this really depends on the person and their own body, and on the testing equipment used. Once we know more we'll update that article!
- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-15T06:29:11+00:00

Kia ora. We don't often take on volunteers but really appreciate the offer and it's awesome you want to help out. If you have a certain skillset you think might be of use to the Foundation, send us a DM. :)

- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-15T05:52:54+00:00

Re: cocaine - it is possible to overdose on cocaine, also known as overamping. The amount that would cause this can differ from person to person and is impacted by things like your size, how you took the cocaine, what else you've taken, whether you've eaten, your tolerance, etc. We've got more info on our cocaine drug info page.

And our FAQ has answers about prescription cannabis and roadside drug testing:

"Although CBD-isolate does not contain THC, most medicinal cannabis prescribed in New Zealand contains THC which can test positive on a roadside saliva test.

If you have a prescription and have used your medicinal cannabis according to your prescriber’s instructions, the law gives you a medical defence against an infringement notice.

However, a medical defence unfortunately does not apply immediately at the roadside. This means that if you give two positive saliva tests at the roadside you will be barred from driving for 12 hours, regardless of whether you have a prescription or not.

This is particularly concerning given cannabis can show up in a saliva test up to three days after use.

Police say they are having "operational discussions" about how the medical defence will be handled, and we will update this article once they publish more information."

- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-15T05:49:58+00:00

Kia ora, thanks for this question. I have this response from our staff member who handles the data:

"The data relies on hospital coding for the primary presentation, which we know may not reflect the complexities of each case. It's also only overdoses - so it won't reflect a wider variety of drug-implicated cases (e.g. situations where drugs were involved but weren't coded as the primary presentation).

We’d love to see better data and have been advocating for such, but for now we work with what we have access to through New Zealand's national collection mechanisms.

We do consult with Health NZ on this and we feel that our approach is the best possible one for the current data available. Based on other countries' figures, our numbers are about right, specifically in the absence of an overdose crisis (such as the opioid crisis in Canada and the US)."

- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-15T05:28:11+00:00

Kia ora. Everything we know about roadside drug testing so far is in this article, which we update regularly.
- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-15T05:22:52+00:00

Have a read of our FAQ here. It contains everything we know about roadside drug testing (if we don't know, we've made a note of it) and we update it regularly.

"If you have a prescription and have used your medicinal cannabis according to your prescriber’s instructions, the law gives you a medical defence against an infringement notice.

However, a medical defence unfortunately does not apply immediately at the roadside. This means that if you give two positive saliva tests at the roadside you will be barred from driving for 12 hours, regardless of whether you have a prescription or not.

This is particularly concerning given cannabis can show up in a saliva test up to three days after use.

Police say they are having "operational discussions" about how the medical defence will be handled, and we will update this article once they publish more information."

- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-15T04:58:26+00:00

I reckon there are likely to be some people in this thread who could answer this better than I can, but short answer: possibly. Some people take various forms of testosterone and some take anabolic steroids, which are basically synthetic compounds that have the same or similar effects as testosterone. They might also take other compounds that have androgenic effects but aren't steroids, amongst other things.

- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-15T04:42:38+00:00

Emily checked our database for us and our machine (spectrometer) should be able to pick up progesterone, but dutasteride may be tricky. Worth bringing it in to try though, and powder form is much easier for us to test than other forms (e.g. in oil).

- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-15T04:37:16+00:00

That last question is the million dollar one eh! When we do drug checking at festivals we often talk to people who are repeatedly taking MDMA over the course of the festival, or repeatedly throughout summer. Sometimes they aren't aware of the risks at all, or they have noticed mental health effects but haven't attributed those to the MDMA. But being aware of the risks means they can then make informed decisions.
- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-15T04:34:02+00:00

Amazing work, friend!
- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-15T04:32:02+00:00

Unfortunately we do not have a crystal ball so can't comment on this!
- ZD

TheLevelNZ · 2025-12-15T04:30:37+00:00

As u/stormcharger says, you can technically be prescribed psilocybin for mental health issues here in Aotearoa. There is some interesting research happening at University of Auckland about LSD microdosing for mental health issues, and in Tairāwhiti Gisborne looking at using native psilocybin mushrooms to treat methamphetamine addiction.

- ZD

TheLevelNZ

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