And because money shouldn’t stand between someone and their chance at life, we accept Medicaid insurance and work with patients to navigate financial options. In Akron, Ohio, our approach recognizes that healing doesn’t happen in isolated pieces. Our team understands that each person’s journey into fentanyl addiction came through a unique door, and our way out needs to be equally personalized. Former users often describe feeling decades older than their actual age – dealing with chronic pain, damaged organs, and a body that can’t quite remember how to function normally.

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This is a national problem, and not at all exclusive to San Francisco. Someone with a mental health condition, physical health issues, or exposure to trauma may try to cope with symptoms by misusing alcohol or drugs, including fentanyl. At Still Detox in Boca Raton, Florida, our comprehensive treatment program addresses the physical and psychological impacts of heroin addiction. Our approach includes chiropractic care and tailored exercise regimens to support spinal alignment, muscle strength, and overall health recovery. Contact us today to learn how Still Detox can help you or a loved one on the path to lasting wellness. Naloxone can reverse a fentanyl overdose, although in some cases it may take more doses because fentanyl is so potent.

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Due to its potency, it has a high potential for addiction and overdose. Social media platforms have circulated images and videos of individuals Alcoholics Anonymous exhibiting the fentanyl fold, sometimes accompanied by mocking or judgmental commentary. This online behavior exacerbates the stigma faced by those struggling with addiction, potentially deterring them from seeking help and perpetuating negative stereotypes. Fentanyl can be illegally mixed into other substances, including heroin, cocaine, ecstasy, and methamphetamine (NIDA, 2021). This combination can result in an individual consuming a much stronger substance than they are used to, resulting in overdose and possibly death. The DEA has found an average of 2.4 milligrams of fentanyl in the pills they test (DEA, 2024).

Respiratory Depression

Do not take more of it or take it more often than prescribed by your doctor. It works by changing the way the brain and nervous system respond to pain. Some users unknowingly consume marijuana laced with fentanyl, leading to unexpected and dangerous effects. This contamination can cause severe reactions, including the bending over posture, as the powerful opioid takes effect. Users who are https://ecosoberhouse.com/ not accustomed to opioids may experience intense and dangerous side effects, even with small amounts. While the colossal scale of the opioid epidemic demands extensive nationwide prevention campaigns and widespread harm reduction initiatives, the journey toward healing can also begin at an individual and community level.

The dose in a medical setting aims to use the least amount of the drug to achieve the desired effect of pain control. However, illicit use is usually aimed at using a dose that will maximize euphoria, therefore increasing the dangers. Due to the risk of the drug being mixed with other substances, it is now essential to obtain test strips, which can tell a person if fentanyl is present in the tested substance. Valley Spring Recovery Center offers comprehensive addiction and mental health treatment services. Contact our admissions team, available 24/7, to start your journey towards recovery.

Risk of Overdose

• Illegal fentanyl, however, has an unknown amount of fentanyl and may be mixed with other drugs, which may result in harmful behaviors.
• The fentanyl fold describes the characteristic posture adopted by individuals under the influence of fentanyl or other powerful opioids.
• Contact a treatment provider today to learn more about your treatment options.
• They may also mix fentanyl with other prescription opioids, alcohol, or illicit drugs.

Over the past decade, fentanyl that is made and distributed illegally has become increasingly common in the illegal drug supply and has contributed to a surge in drug overdose deaths. “In health care, we dose fentanyl in micrograms,” explains Amanda N. Donald, MD, an addiction medicine physician at Northwestern Medicine. Illegal drugs, such as heroin and cocaine, are sometimes mixed with fentanyl, which makes the drugs more potent. If someone with a substance use disorder is unaware of the added fentanyl, this can put them at a higher risk of accidental overdose or death.

“It’s a degree of loss of consciousness and a degree of lost muscular control,” said Dr. Daniel Ciccarone, a UCSF professor of addiction medicine. We aim to support the widest array of browsers and assistive technologies as possible, so our users can choose the best fitting tools for them, with as few limitations as possible. This website utilizes various technologies that are meant to make it as accessible as possible at all times. We utilize an accessibility interface that allows persons with specific disabilities to adjust the website’s UI (user interface) and design it to their personal needs.

• While there are empty benches where friends once gathered, there are also vibrant community centers where people come together to support each other.
• Life saving intervention such as Narcan or Naloxone can reverse the effects of an overdose when administered in a timely manner.
• Narcan is a medication that can reverse an overdose and save someone’s life.

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Fentanyl’s strength increases this risk of overdose substantially. Synthetic opioids sold illicitly can be mixed with heroin or cocaine, which amplifies its potency and potential danger. This is particularly dangerous if an individual who uses illegal substances like heroin or intentionally misuses prescription drugs is unaware that fentanyl could be in it. Beyond the muscular rigidity that contributes to the fentanyl fold, fentanyl’s most lethal characteristic is its fentanyl hunch profound ability to depress the respiratory system. As an incredibly potent opioid, it directly impacts the brainstem’s control centers for breathing. Even minuscule amounts can drastically slow or completely halt respiration, leading to severe hypoxia—a critical lack of oxygen to vital organs, especially the brain—which is the primary cause of fatal overdoses.