Propofol is a fast-acting, fast-exit anesthetic. It is the modern replacement for the well-known and notorious Sodium Pentathol (AKA ‘truth serum.’) It is a hospital-environment anesthetic administered by IV, and it requires a monitoring physician and crash teams in the event of blood pressure or respiratory collapse.

Propofol’s ‘tranquilization’ is a one-way street: there’s no way to reverse its chemical effects once they’ve begun. You can only rescue someone’s vitals, like blood pressure and breathing, by the usual methods. It certainly isn’t a better version of Nyquil, it’s dangerous as hell.

‘Marc E. Koch, MD, MBA, an anesthesiologist and President and Chief Executive Officer of Somnia, Inc., New Rochelle, N.Y., testified about the administration of propofol before the FDA:

Used in a normal hospital setting, when a patient’s vitals collapse, the anesthetic will be stopped, doctors will actively assist the patient’s breathing and blood pressure, the drug will begin to wear off, and then everything will return to ‘normal’. Unless it’s a prolonged episode, I’m not even sure they’ll tell the patient about it because, hey, that’s just the risk of anesthesia.

But anyone toying with Propofol outside of a clinical setting, outside of a place staffed with professional personnel familiar with the drug’s potential, courts death. The people who have easy access to it–smart, experienced doctors–sometimes sneak it home to combat insomnia, occasionally becoming habitual users. And then they die.