Due to the overwhelming amount of overdoses in Washtenaw County this year, this blog is intended to educate and help users with some lifesaving tips found throughout the article.
If you or someone you know is using and needs help, please contact Home of New Vision at 734-975-1602.
Overdose happens when a toxic amount of a drug, or a combination of drugs, overwhelm the body. All sedating medications carry overdose risks, but combining drugs substantially increases the risk of fatal overdose. Combining opiates and alcohol and/or benzodiazepines can be a lethal combination. They all affect the central nervous system which slows breathing and heart rate. Combining stimulants and depressants does not cancel out the risk of overdose. It actually increases the risk of overdose because the stimulant uses more oxygen in the body, and the depressant reduces breathing rates.
Tolerance is the body’s ability to process a certain amount of a drug. A low tolerance means that the body can only process a small amount of a drug. A high tolerance means that the body can process a higher amount of drugs. Tolerance develops over a period of time with continued drug use. Tolerance can decrease rapidly when someone has taken a break from using drugs. Decreased tolerance increases the risk of overdose.
Quality refers to the purity or strength of a drug, and affects overdose potential. The content and purity of street drugs is always unpredictable, and can’t be gauged by looking at the drug. A person can use a drug that’s stronger than they are used to, and that will increase the risk for overdose. Knowing the strength and understanding dosage when taking pills is important.
Using alone increases the chance of fatally overdosing because there is no one there to call for help if an overdose occurs.
Age and physical health impact your body’s ability to process drugs. Older people are at increased risk for fatal overdose. While experience with substances is a protective factor, other issues such as hepatitis, HIV, endocarditis, current infection, compromised immune system, current abscesses, or other chronic ailments put a person at increased risk for overdose because the body is in a weakened state.
There are many ways to ingest drugs, such as swallowing, snorting, smoking, intravenous or intramuscular injection, and skin popping. When someone changes their mode of administration, heightened overdose prevention strategies should be utilized. Regardless of the mode of administration, if enough drugs are ingested in a short enough period of time, overdose is possible.
A previous overdose increases your chance of having a fatal overdose in the future. This is because they may have drug use patterns that put them at risk for overdose in the future.
A person may be overdosing if they are unconscious, awake but unable to talk, their body is limp, face is pale, fingernails, lips, and skin are a bluish tint (for darker skinned people, lips and skin may turn a greyish color), breathing is slow, shallow or erratic, heartbeat is slow or nonexistent, they are vomiting, or unresponsive to outside stimuli.
Surviving an opiate overdose depends on breathing and oxygen. If a person overdoses, call 911. If you have to leave them alone to call for help, put them on their side, with their legs pulled up toward their chest. CALL 911, and follow their directions.
Some tips to prevent overdose:
1) Use with a friend, and let one person go first. If an overdose occurs, the other person can call for help.
2) Use one drug at a time. If you use more than one drug, decrease the dose of each drug.
3) Avoid using alcohol with heroin, benzodiazepines or other pills. These can be lethal combinations.
4) If your tolerance is down, use less, and go slowly.
5) If using street drugs, use a smaller amount to test it, especially if it’s a new batch, or you’re getting it from an unfamiliar source.
6) Know the pills you’re taking. If you don’t know, look them up. Many pharmaceuticals contain drugs such as Acetaminophen which can be harmful to the liver, even fatal in large amounts.
7) If you’ve been sick, use less drugs. Your body is in a weakened state and may not be able to process the drugs.
8) Find a non-judgmental doctor that you can confide in regarding your substance abuse.
9) Consider snorting instead of injecting, especially if you’re using alone and/or your tolerance is low.
10) Make an overdose plan. Consider getting Naloxone if you use opiates. Naloxone is an opiate antagonist that can reverse the effects of opiates. It is shorter acting than opiates, so the person should still be seen by a medical professional.
If you know someone who is using and wants help with their substance abuse problem, contact Home of New Vision at (734) 975-1602.
Adapted from Be a Lifesaver! – Harm Reduction Coalition
By Debbie Wright
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