Morning Plenary and Ceremonies
September 24, 25, and 26, 2026
8:00 am - 9:00 am PST
This year, IVAT will host a Plenary each morning prior to Summit sessions.
September 24th Plenary
Chemical Submission: Drugging an Intimate Partner as an Abuse Tactic
In criminal and violating acts, some domestic abusers give drugs to an intimate partner without their knowledge. We don’t really know how common this is. Most of the time, victim-survivors who have been drugged are not certain what happened. They may wake up groggy and believe they are hungover, or that their head is clouded from a medication or illness. If the abuser drugs them often, they may routinely feel weak, confused and physically or mentally ill. They may feel grateful and dependent on the (abusive) partner who seems to be taking care of them.
Coercively controlling abusers drug their partners to control, disable, discredit, and sexually assault them. We will discuss high profile cases in the news such as Pelicot in France, Sean Diddy Combs, and Bill Cosby. We will also discuss more everyday manifestations that may be in your caseload and mine. We will also learn about terms such as chemsex, pharmacosex, chemical submission, and needle spiking.
September 25th Plenary
More information to come!
September 26th Plenary
Dana Tingey and Leah Moses
More information to come!