I was given Fentanyl in an ambulance once. Instantly understood how people can get addicted to that. i went from barely being able to move due to pain, to feeling better than i've ever felt in my life.
Sat in an emergency waiting room puking my guts out, and in the worst pain I'd ever been in, in my life for six hours, turned out my gallbladder went necrotic. They gave me fentanyl in the ER, when they finally got me in there, instant pain relief, buy since it has such a short half life, they gave me Dilodid in the hospital room after they admitted me. Yeah it really is easy to see how people get addicted.
Interesting. I did not feel good at all. Just felt normal. Wonder how much they dosed you, also, some people are more sensitive to opiates than others. I got 50mcg in the ambulance for a gall bladder attack.
Fentanyl was the only thing that stopped my BFF’s horrific breakthrough pain during the final years of her ultimately fatal rectal cancer. It was an absolute godsend and I’m forever grateful she had access to it.
I appreciate you bringing up that it's a double edge sword and we shouldn't be quick to judge anyone who uses it or the drug itself. A bit of good news on fentanyl was sorely needed here and am glad your post is getting as much likes as it is!
I've been pronounced dead two separate times from fentanyl overdoses. Been locked up in state and federal custody and it got to the point that I was either going to die in prison or die in a trap house alone from. My state has some of the worst help for addiction and mental health with some of the highest rates of mental health issues and substance abuse rates in the US videos like this most definitely will help raise awareness of this problem. I'm grateful that being only 28 I've finally gotten myself together. I'll be on paper for 20 years but I couldn't care less and am grateful I will have 6 months sober in less than 2 weeks which is the longest time I've been off of everything including weed and alcohol since I was literally 6. videos like this definitely spread the truth that leads to people like me having their life saved and changed forever. Thank you for talking about this so much.
My stepdad had to use it when he was dying of cancer. My mom always was super careful applying it. She hid it from my stepdad so he didn't accidentally give himself too much. An hour after he died we had multiple people ask us for his his pain meds. We never even told anyone, they just assumed we had them. And keep in mind, this started an hour after he did. His body was still in the house!
Just for future knowledge. A dying person can not “give himself too much”. They are dying nothing they or you do can be “wrong”. I hope the scavenging people didn’t make the experience too much worse for y’all.
Fentanyl is no joke. I got it once after being hit by a car while riding a bike. I ended up on the hood of the car then on the ground within a second. (Luckily the car had just started rolling from being at a total stop). Some witnesses called an ambulance. I at first said I was fine and the EMT's were like, "Ok, but we're gonna wait around for a bit." 2 mins later the adrenaline started to wear off and I started going into shock. I changed my mind about going to the hospital and like 60 seconds was in the back of an ambulance. They immediately offered me a shot of Fentanyl and I was like, "Na, I'm fine." Shortly there after I was almost puking from laying down backwards in a fast moving vehicle and from the shock and on coming pain. I broke down and asked for the shot and within seconds the shock, pain and nausea just vanished. And I asked for a VERY small dose. It was like 1/2 the normal dose that they would give I think. It's a great drug when needed for stuff like that and chronic pain. But woosh, taking it recreationally is asking for trouble.
Frankly speaking, these days most everyone who takes street fentanyl isn't taking it for fun, its not recreational. They take it for untreated issues like chronic pain, to stave off withdrawals after their doctor cut them off or to numb a severe emotional pain (often from abuse).
Agreed. I get it occasionally for my frequent surgeries and procedures, and I was prescribed it for chronic pain around 2012 when they didn’t have the full picture of the risks of this drug. I could tell immediately that this medication meant business. Due to chronic pain from a rare genetic disorder, I have taken many different opioids at different times, some long term, shame short. Fentanyl is the only one I have asked not to take, because you feel it immediately, and the euphoria can be overwhelming. It’s wonderful for in hospital use, and people with certain severe, intractable pain, but I totally get how it could be abused.
I had it for lung cancer surgery pain management but I ordered the anesthesiologist to stop it using it right now because I had a reaction to it which was I became very itchy all over my body and I was starting to break my skin from scratching so hard.
These drugs were crucial to my grandma at the end of her stomach cancer. She raised me and I saw her cry once in my life. The second time was in so much pain when she didn’t have her meds with her. I am so grateful that she suffered so much less because of this drug. That said so many friends have died because of this drug that it’s almost a double edged sword. Use it in the right situation. As in hopefully you never will need it. Good health long life.
Sorry for your lost . I know a wonderful christian church, God manifest himself with miracles, prodigies. He talks with the people. The Lord can give you peace and happiness. Glad to send you more information.
@@peenyyt4921 Nothing at all. Just feel mercy for people and my desire is that they may know The Lord, and in His greatness mercy may heal their heart and soul.
As a chronic pain patient, I can't say how refreshing it is to see a no-nonsense, informative video that stresses the importance of prescription opioids and acknowledges the barriers to getting them. Not to mention openly acknowledges that being unable to get prescription opioids leads to using illicit ones. Thanks, SciShow!
Every time I hear about chronic pain patients I remember one news about how much opioid Brazilians use ( I'm a Brazilian ), we are one of the lowest opioid consuming countries in the world, and then the truth revealed to me, how badly and stigmatized we deal with chronic pain, it's impossible to express how heartbreak I feel when thinking about people that endure pain but even when presented with a prescription of an opioid will still not take it because of the stigma associated with it.
Based on conversations with a relative of mine whose medical focus is pain management, the opioid crisis has made a lot of doctors reluctant to prescribe needed pain medication for fear of the consequences. People in chronic pain suffer more because they're not receiving treatment, and the options just seem to be suffer more and get dismissed or try to do something about it and get demonized as a drug user. The whole situation sucks. People in pain need affordable help, period. (and drug users, yes, even recreational drug users, are people and I don't want them to die)
@@slconley remember there is NO magic bullet for pain. What helps one person does nothing for another. I am glad it helps some, unfortunately I am not one of them.. Those of us who have long term chronic pain have pretty much tried everything seeking the answer that might just work for us.
Thank you for your humanity. It matters a lot - no one's pain is meaningless, no one's death is meaningless; they all matter, and it's good to see someone acknowledge that.
I started doing drugs since my teenage, got addicted to fentanyl. I suffered severe depression and mental disorder. Fentanyl addiction actually destroyed my life. Also got diagnosed with OCD. Not until my mom recommended me to psilocybin mushrooms treatment. Psilocybin treatment saved my life honestly. 4 years totally clean. Never thought I would be saying this about mushrooms.
Hey mates! Can you help with the source? I suffer severe anxiety, panic and depression and I usually take prescription medicine, but they don't always help. Where can I find those psilocybin mushrooms? I'm really interested in treating my mental health without Rxs. I live in Australia don't know much about these. I'm so glad they helped you. I can't wait to get them too. Really need a reliable source 🙏
YES very sure of Dr.alishrooms. I have the same experience with anxiety, depression, PTSD and addiction and Mushrooms definitely made a huge huge difference to why am clean today.
Yes he's Dr.alishrooms.Shrooms to me is a natrual healer. I know a guy who has used mushrooms in the same way and they have really helped him. mah dudes have safe trips all.
wish they were readily available in my place. Microdosing was my next plan of care for my husband. He is 59 & has so many mental health issues plus probable CTE & a TBI that left him in a coma 8 days. It's too late now I had to get a TPO as he's 6'6 300+ pound homicidal maniac. He's constantly talking about killing someone. He's violent. Anyone reading this Familiar w/ BPD know if it is common for an obsession with violence.
Fentanyl was the only drug that got my wifes pain under control enough with her spinal injury to get to the next stage of treatment and management. It also relieves enormous suffering in terminal patients. It also killed my best friend. If we had better harm reduction policies, including decriminalisation he would probably still be around today.
Excellent comment to show both sides and I’m sorry for your loss. Best option at this point would be decriminalizing, but tbh I wish it was never even synthesized
I have had moderate to severe chronic pain since 1975 and this very good episode left out one huge problem facing Chronic Pain patients. That is actually getting the LEGAL Prescribed medications. Due to outside pressure many Dr.s simply will not prescribe them. The result is that people who desperately need these meds cannot get them even when they have responsibly and successfully used them for years. As a result when facing unrelieved severe pain they turn to the street in desperation.
I had bad back pain and went to the doctor. never once asked for any pain meds. The treated my like a crackhead... ordered an MRI for an area that wasn't even where the pain was originating. They said nothing we can do for you and sent me on my way.
That's an unfortunate backlash to the medical community being convinced that new opioid formulations were safe and it was their responsibility to use them to eliminate pain as much a possible, which is what led to the crisis.
The panic has even reached outside of the US, like here in the UK for example. They cut my prescription down from 100 pills per month to 60, and it's not enough for me to make it through the month without episodes. I'm tired of chronic pain patients being an afterthought to the medical community (not directing this at SciShow, I know they're trying their best and are genuinely trying to help people but there are so many in the scientific and medical communities who aren't).
I'm another chronic pain patient but...what? They specifically mention the harm caused by people not being able to access pain medication in the video. Did you not watch it?
@@michaelmicekWhy is our pain and suffering treated as an afterthought though, a "side effect" of attempting to reduce other kinds of pain and suffering? It's like as if because some people get addicted, helping us to live comfortably should not be considered. I genuinely am not trying to hate on you here but I believe just calling our suffering an "unfortunate backlash" is a bit insensitive tbh. Just because something is happening, doesn't mean it should or was always guaranteed to happen. There was always a way to prevent this, it's just that almost no medical organisation wants to put in the work to do so. And I don't even necessarily blame the doctors, I blame the institutions that are making them prescribe less - or even, at times, prescribe nothing at all. But our pain should not be brushed off, the same way the pain of people who become addicted to opioids should also not be brushed off. We should all work together with medical institutions and experts for a viable solution but right now, us chronic pain sufferers are just getting ignored and I'm tired of it. My pain genuinely makes me not want to be here. Our lives are more than just an "unfortunate backlash." Again, I'm not trying to hate on you, I'm not even trying to say that you're trying to be dismissive, I just am in general saying I want the conversation around mine and others' lives and conditions to change. I want my prescription back to the amount it used to be so that there isn't a portion of the month where I can do nothing but suffer miserably in bed. I want my life back
I remember several years ago heroin addiction destroyed my life, I suffered from severe depression and a mental disorder until I was recommended to psilocybin mushroom treatment. Psilocybin treatment saved my life honestly I'm 8 years clean now. Never thought I would be saying this about mushrooms.
they saved you from death bud, let's be honest here mushrooms are one of the most amazing things on this planet I wish people could all realize. they can solve a lot of problems, more than mental treatments.
yes, that's right, I researched and found out that shrooms are helpful in many ways but nobody talks about where to get them. Very hard to get a reliable source I can reach out to
they've helped me a lot as well I'm a war vet diagnosed with PTSD. A lot of issues spun out of control when I came home. This is something i looked up and tried after trying the roller coaster of antidepressants. Day and night difference
This was really really well done!! The difference made between illicit and legal fentanyl, is great to be aware of. And the process to which it binds to the u-opiod receptors and the slick efficiency of its binding because of its shape. Learn a tons from this one!! Well done balancing act on a somehow societal taboo subject. Wish people were more open minded through science to deal with a substance like this one and others.
Letting hobos shoot up on the street with little to no consequences is not the “scientific” way. Because hobos and addicts being “safe” matters more than the crime spikes this “treatment” brings, not to mention the fact it increases the amount of drug users in the area because they will move there for this “treatment” which is in reality free drugs. Those “safe needles” end up being left on the street. Your not a humanitarian if you support this, you are a moron.
Fentanyl is so scary. I went though some medical stuff and I was wondering why I liked getting all these procedures done and when I looked into it, they were giving me fentanyl. A VERY small amount in a medical setting was enough for me to want it more. I’ve since asked them to stop giving it to me and to use alternate medicine
A guy I know from my chronic pain support group was on Fentanyl for a while before he noticed he was starting to enjoy it a bit too much, so he asked to be switched to a different medication (excluding one other opioid he'd tried before that didn't work). THAT was seen as drug-seeking behavior which is baffling to him and to me. I'm very thankful that my chronic pain can be managed without opioids.
I've never had it to my knowledge but after repeated dental procedures I'd be given this or that drug for pain management. I don't remember which oxy variation they gave me that made me feel loopy and disconnected but on the following procedure I asked them for a different drug for pain because I didn't like the feeling. I was scared to death that I'd develop a habit and get hooked on the heavier stuff.
@@CaTastrophy427 I found luck with an inflammation reducing enzyme called serrapeptase. Not a drug or typical pain killer but helps your body reduce the inflammation that causes a lot of common chronic pain. Taking that allowed me to stop taking OTC pain killers completely.
Any opioid will do the same thing, Fentanyl isn't magically addictive. In fact, its generally considered less addictive / euphoric than Morphine or Heroin.
My cousin passed away July 29th from a fentanyl overdose in Portland, Oregon. I don’t believe he thought he was doing fentanyl, I believe he thought it was cocaine. Here in portland the drug epidemic seems to be a public health crisis in our city. Thank you for helping better understand exactly what happened with my cousin.
I believe that you believe he wasn't a drug addict, but that his drug of choice was tainted. He died from his behaviour of drug addiction. I'm sorry your family member died, but behavior and deliberate choice dominates chance.
Should have gone to where I used to package coke at. It was stark street before hitting Ruby Junction....wonder if that place is still there. This was back in early 2000's and I was from age 8 to 12.
@@sigmasquadleaderit’s a choice but it’s under the duress of addiction. Let’s not pretend like it’s choosing a to go to Denny’s for breakfast. It’s more like choosing not to cut off your arm to escape death.
@@bixmcgoo5355 It already does by paying for the arrests and imprisonment of drug users in the current system. Do you think that subsidizing for-profit prisons and paying for living costs of prisoners and police/prison guard salaries is cheaper than paying for rehab?
@@bixmcgoo5355 I don't want my taxes going to corrupt cops that kill people either but we cant always get what we want, sometimes we get what the community thinks is best. turns out governments are there to do things that individuals may not want to do for the betterment of the community.
@@bixmcgoo5355better spent on what? It's literally way better for taxpayers money to help people get off drugs. Even if you're entirely selfish and think drug addicts chose that life (completely irrational idea btw) then the reduction in revenue for the illegal drug trade is a massive benefit to society. The drug trade creates violence, it funds terrorist organisations, theft from medical facilities, child labour, slavery, cartels. Etc etc etc. Get your logic fixed.
I was a fentanyl addict, as in I was buying it from China by the half ounce. Thank god I'm many many years clean but it made life unlivable. I'd have to wake up 2x in the middle of the night to do more in order to not be in full blown withdrawals. Heroin was way less destructive.
I'm glad that by the gods I've never had need or want to be inane and skeletal with fentanyl in portland, as I was just trying to tell my dad about my new $75 shaded desert locust bullet proof goggles, and always bringing ear plugs as a new habit I'm working on, ready for the storm, but the closest lightening bolts have ever come to hitting me is at least 20-30 ft. away in the fargo field next to the apartment bee hive dumpster, and get your ears ringing even without the laser protective lenses, and driving at dusk with regular sunglasses and more blinding sun at times, or through the canyons?
I lost my brother to this garbage in September of 2020. People were barely waking up to how deadly it was and how quickly it was taking over. I miss him so damn much.
Sorry to hear this man. My brother would have died if he didn’t end up with a lengthy prison sentence. He’s not the same as he was in school but it’s better than being dead I suppose. I also had an ex gf but I still try to help her with her addiction. It’s so painful to sit back and watch, knowing there’s not much you can do. Hope you’re doing better man, keep on going 👍
Sorry for your lost . I know a wonderful christian church, God manifest himself with miracles, prodigies. He talks with the people. The Lord can give you peace and happiness. Glad to send you more information.
As a patient with chronic pain who does need to take opioids (not fentanyl but still opioid), when i saw the title at first i was lowkey a bit worried that this would be another "strong painkillers evil must ban!" video, but I'd just like to say thank you so much for clarifying the illicit fentanyl vs, pain patients actually getting it from their doctor and taking it as prescribed, difference. Its hard enough hearing people tell me I'm "too young to be dependant on such strong drugs" but it makes it way worse when people double down the OTHER way and straight up demonize it to the nth degree. I don't like that i have to take opioids at my age either tbh, but i also like being able to do things like walk and eat, so i kinda HAVE to so i can do those things 😅
@theelvenjedi I was wondering what your issue is I mean what gives you this pain is it a long term thing ? If it is my heart goes out to you and i prey you have as many pain free days as possible sending lots of love and support your way 100%💚💛💜🙏
I clicked on this video for the same reason. I use other opioids for chronic and acute pain management, and I have for well over a decade. There are so many videos that say all opioids are bad, and we know, as chronic pain patients, there is nothing farther from the truth. A responsible patient, under care of a pain management specialist, is very different than a street drug user. Opioids do have a time and place, when used responsibly.
I was a firefighter IV technician for 38 years and spent about half of my career on an ambulance until the end of 2019. We started carrying fentanyl instead of morphine about 20 years ago. One of my friends and coworkers got fired and did prison time for diverting our supply of fentanyl for personal use. He got clean in prison and stayed clean for a dozen years and then fatally overdosed on heroin on the 5th anniversary of his wife's death.
Yeah morphine is not nearly as strong as most people think. It’s crazy y’all went from morphine to fentanyl. Completely skipped oxy/hydro/codone/morphone
As a chronic pain patient I'm so tired of being judged by medical professionals and others for needing opioids to function. I use the lowest forms of opioid and still get accused of being a drug seeker by Emergency Department staff if i go there for help. I havent been to am emergency hospital for myself in over a decade for that exact reason. I have so much medical trauma because of judgement and treatment by medical staff because they assumed i was faking my pain for drugs. Its humiliating, and makes you feel like your have no worth in any way to anyone else. I will forever be grateful to doctors who have taken me seriously and actually helped me, they've genuinely saved my life.
Yep. I had to go to a methadone clinic just to get some help because I was self medicating with street fentanyl. I have almost all of my bowels removed and was using the bathroom over 40 times a day. It saved my life and now I have it back.
@@jamespope2840 The DEA put up so much red tape that doctors are threatened with the loss of their medical license if they prescribe too much. Its not that they like denying pain meds to those who need them, its that writing them out can and has cost many doctors their ability to legally practice.
Thank you for the video, I found out that investing is not for everybody, you just need a strong stomach too see your portfolio go down. It might be wiser for a novice to start with copy trading investing, but it is not easy. To invest in growth stocks it is another level, definitely you need to know what are you doing.
From my own point of view, you need to invest smartly if you need the good things of life. so far i've made over $255k in raw profits from just 6 months into the market from my diversified portfolio strategy and i believe anyone can do it you have the right strategy, mutual funds takes long time but investing smartly is the key for short term. Most of us tend to pay more attention to the shiniest position in the market to the cost of proper diversification.
I've been solely investing in real estate. But with the recent hyper home pricing i've liquidated a few things and have $45k in cash laying around idle. Would love to get your recommendations, I'm in search of something lucrative in the current crazy markets, i will be glad.
My portfolio is very much diversified so it's not like i have a particular fund i invest in, plus i dont do that by myself. i follow the trades of Mrs Karen Gaye Gray.
She is a popular broker you might have heard of. I can correctly say she's worth her salt as a financial advisor as her diversification skills are top notch, because i see that in her results as my portfolio grows by averages of 10 to 15% on a monthly basis, unlike i can say for my IRA which has just been trudging along, my portfolio just mirrors what she trades and not just on some particular industries of my choosing.
Thank you so much for this informative content. I am fourth-year medical student, hoping to go into addiction medicine/psychiatry, and I am so deeply impressed by the balance this video strikes between being accessible to a general public audience while also being technically accurate.
Through when u go. Learn that opioids r handcuffs. Thanks and a hood good luck and best wishes in your life and job. Ps I’m only 20 been stuck since 16
I lost 3 people this year alone to fentanyl, and test strips are considered drug paraphernalia in my state. Now IS NOT the time to be experimenting with drugs, this is contaminating way into way too much of what's going around. Stay safe out there yall
Perhaps leave pain relief to those who know how to administer it, instead of blaming an inanimate object. Sad to hear that you 'lost' people who apparently didn't either know how to manage their pain relief, or didn't have a competent medical practitioner to help them.
I mean you could just go to the source and cut it off. "Reducing" isn't really that helpful. Fix the problem. Remove cartel influence somehow, or thousands more will die. If you wanna save a handful of thousand instead of hundreds of thousands, go ahead, but give credit to those trying to actually solve the problem.
@@FrypodTheButt my god, why has no one thought of this yet?!?! Ohh riiiight because they did and its a complex AF problem with no magic bullet solution
@@mikel.4809Well guess what, neither is stripping the danger from the pleasure. I can understand that under normal medical circumstances but doing it exclusively so people can take it for pleasure is wrong.
I've had fentanyl administered for bone marrow biopsies several times since my cancer diagnosis. The stuff really worked and I felt nothing. I always had to go to a step down room where the nurses kept an eye on me just in case something went wrong. Nothing did but the drug is no joke and not to be messed with. When used properly, it is a very effective medication. Excellent video, and I'm glad you explained how it worked, what it is used for, and the dangers of its misuse.
Good for you. It certainly was a big help when I was going through my stage 3 colerectal cancer. It got me over the line. I don't feel like I must have it but I can totally vouch for how powerful and effective the drug is. I'm back on deck and don't crave for it. Respect the Dr's script and get a second opinion if you are not sure.
I know a wonderful christian church, God manifest himself with miracles, prodigies. He talks with the people. The Lord can give you peace and happiness and heal your medical condition. Glad to send you more information.
3:48 not sure how this error got through - but you need some sort of correction. A penny weighs over 2g, google says 2.5. If we call it 2g that means that 2mg is 1/1000 of the weight of a penny, not 1/10 as stated in the video.
I worked as an RN on a surgery ward using epidural. Some of them had Fentanyl them and it was at a concentration of microgramme per mL, perfused at micro rate. Did wonder for surgical pain control, but it was coming with a strict monitoring. It among the most potent and dangerous drogue, I had to administer. I'm glad you mention supervise injection site, they are supercontrovertial even here in Canada. But they are so helpful to reach out people with addiction outside of the coercitive boundries of the criminal system.
I had two stents installed via my wrist artery a few years ago. Fentanyl was one of the drugs used, a very tiny amount. Did the job as I didn't feel (or remember) a thing.
Does it normally smell really bad? Or is that just when people smoke it? I'm a lihi janitor so I smell it in the building I work in sometimes. Really bad
@@hemlocktea6643 What you're smelling is probably meth, not fentanyl. Meth smells like plastic and ass. As far as I know, fentanyl is injected, not smoked.
im so glad to see more awareness around fentanyl, my sister overdosed about 2 years ago and i'm so lucky that she's still here today. she had been in addiction since she was in high school, me and my family really thought she wouldn't make it after so many failed attempts at rehab and just trying to find treatment. im proud to say my big sis will be a mother in april, she and her fiance got their own house. she's been 100% clean for a little over a year now!
Thank you for doing a video on this. Addiction is complex and systemic. A lot of stigma around it and it results in a public general ready to blame and not willing to contribute to help. All of which worsens the problem.
@@zhou_sei Yeah for real. We've had over 5 decades of drug prohibition and yet drug usage and drug deaths have only gone *up*. Its a complete and utter failure on every level.
I'm just glad that they're showing people ways to test for fentanyl. Even if you do heroin, you more than likely do not want to be taking fentanyl. Test your drugs people. And all the better, don't use hard drugs
@@zhou_seithe war on drugs will never be won. Criminalisation of drug use also doesn’t work. Improving people’s lives and mental health and providing safe drugs and rehab does.
Most addicts are mentally not physically addicted. And these are illegal drug users not legimate pain patients. In WI pain clinics closed their doors and Doctors left the State due to the unmedically trained Atty Gen threatening them several times a year and threatening to withhold ssi funds which he does not have the authority to do.
Well having cuts and wounds makes the situation alot different so its best not to touch or make contact cuz you never know so dont try trust me its not worth it at all
I think there is a little misunderstanding there. I have never heard anyone claim that it can impact you without it entering the bloodstream. I think that is common sense and is implicit in what “cops say”.
@@jaredwolfe4042 well you clearly haven't seen or read about dumb cops who get scared shitless when near fentanyl due to this myth and have a panic attack and claim it's an "overdose"
The day the governments stop treating overdoses and adiction like a crime and treat it like a social, economical and health issue (including mental heath), we'll see a change. Until then. It it hell on earth in Latam :(
I work in low income housing in Seattle and we have seen a lot of tenants dying from fentanyl OD's. Thanks for making this video and helping to educate people. It should be noted that some of the illicitly made fentanyl is insanely resistant to naloxone. I had a tenant that passed away after 4 doses of nasal spray and two shots from the EMTs didn't bring her out of it. It can still be useful, but folks should be aware that it may take more than 1 dose of naloxone to help.
The fentanyl isn't resistant to Naloxone, but the other substances it's mixed or cut with, such as benzos, alcohol, and (recently) animal tranquilizers like xylazine, because they aren't opioids, so they're not affected by opioid antagonists, such as Naloxone. From experience, benzos almost 10x the sedative effects of blues (30mg oxy clones w/fentanyl), and just a small amount will cause an addict's normal dose to become deadly, hence the warnings not to mix them with alcohol or benzos, which is *extremely* dangerous.
It's also possible the deceased wasn't actually on fentanyl or not as heavily as thought unless their drugs were tested in a lab. Philadelphia has seen xylazine replacing the fentanyl in the heroin on the street. Xylazine isn't an opioid and was not intended for human use so it's not been studied very well in humans. It has no counter agent so what Philadelphia is finding out is that naloxone may reduce the influence of the heroin or fentanyl that may be mixed with xylazine but this 'tranq' or 'zombie drug' keeps them unresponsive. You also can give someone too much naloxone and cause the OD'd person worse problems if you eliminate all the opioid from their system. The EMTs are aware of the risks but they have no tools to help them with xylazine other than supportive care like you'd do with a coma patient. I feel for the addicts. They didn't ask for this tainted crap but since they're hooked on the stuff it's so difficult for them to kick it.
6:15 Don't be shy. Tell everyone that the opioids crisis is directly related to the lack of public health care policies in the USA, which pushes the increasingly poor population with little access to medical care into alternative means to cope with painful long term conditions, which sometimes leads to opioid abuse. Oh, you almost said it.
I was doing my Master of Public Health during the time this was a really big topic and a lot of things can be done with policy chanes, but the biggest problem we face (and this is true for all public health strategies but glaringly so with drug abuse) is the societal view of drug users. There is such a stigma, and honestly hatred of people who use illicit drugs. The things I have heard people say about why the programs shouldnt exist just break my heart and I do not know how people can say those words. In short form the arguments revolve around "they did this to themselves" and "they deserve what happens to them." That is the thought process that shuts down efforts to help people in need. And changing their mind is nearly impossible because they dont really look at drug users as people anymore, they really just look at them like trash. And when Narcan was made free the whole "Why is narcan free, but my insulin isnt" is another thing too, and honestly that question should really be asked, but not how they are framing it, I usually respond to it with "Yeah, why isnt it free? There is likely a reason as to why it isnt free when all over the world its extremely cheap, cuz they can profit of it"
Yeah, I grew up in a popular evangelical church and the sentiment "ban narcan, they deserve to die" is really, _really_ popular. Same as the sentiment behind banning funding for AIDS research. "They deserve to die." Never let them tell you they help those in need.
That was the whole point of the War on Drugs. Nixon hated the hippies a lot, and he wanted to punish them. He and others sought to dehumanize drug users and criminalize them so that people wouldn't care when they were persecuted. It worked.
Thank you for sharing your beautiful perspective. I believe this is the first step in lessening the stigma of drug addiction and dependence, and it could even increase the recovery rate for addicts overall by contributing to a more positive self-image. I am always happy to see a video from one of my science channels that help to shed light on this problem that I've fought since I was 13, and I can tell that the stigma is improving albeit slightly from comments just like yours. For anyone curious, The Institute for Human Anatomy also has a video on Fentanyl!
Seriously! Whenever someone asks "wHy iS nArCaN fReE bUt InSuLiN iSn'T?" their brain breaks when I say that yes, both should be free (and charging for narcan isn't going to make insulin any cheaper either). They're like NPCs that ran out of dialog options
Harm reduction is the best thing in the world and no one can change my mind. Immensely happy the Scishow brought it up becaus not enough people understand it
It's good because it saves life but there are a thread of undesired effects from this. I have been sober for over 8 years. I had a "mini stroke". I decided then enough was enough. That was when I started recovery. These safe places (harm reduction) also lessen the fear of the drug. They make it seem "more accepted" to do the drug. Also turning areas of cities into drug camps. We can not count the exact numbers of how many it's helped or hurt. We need something better in place.
@@leannaskiba1 Saving a live outweighs everything else unless you believe in eugenics. Safe injection site do not "lessen the fear of the drug", theres not even any data to suggest that. Cities will have run down areas, "drug camps" as you put it, whether or not there are harm reduction programs. Thats been true for the last 100 years at minimum. And given that the whole point of harm reduction is to help people and get them into recovery programs I don't see how its even possible for them to harm someone. People will always, always do drugs. The least we can do is make it so disease doesn't get spread and people don't OD unnecessarily.
Anyone who LOVES it or HATES it that much is brainwashed. It's a complicated issue. If you're THAT sure of your opinion, then you don't actually understand it.
@@UserNameAnonymous I am quite confident that harm reduction, by definition is a desirable pathway and sceptical about anyone who would suggest otherwise
I have been prescribed fentanyl for 12 years now for my pain management therapy. It has worked really well. My doctor assured me that as long as the meds were having positive results and i don't break the rules then i never have to stop. Which put my peace of mind at ease because withdrawal is very painful by itself. It looks like i will continue to take fentanyl patches for the foreseeable future. The insurance says they won't pay for them so I must pay out of pocket for my fentanyl prescription. It's $190 a month.
Given how many people in the comments have mentioned being, being close to, or worrying about people who are at risk of overdosing on fentanyl, I wanted to mention that - for those in the US - the FDA approved an over the counter, non-prescription version of a common overdose reverser (Narcan) not too long ago which you can now absolutely acquire & carry the way people carry epipens just in case. There are also groups working to get emergency boxes (akin to those containing defibrillators for heart attacks) with naloxone in them installed in public places
My mother and I both have chronic pain conditions (different problems). Around 2007, both of us were suddenly cut off from muscle relaxer and pain medication we needed in fear of it being addictive. What were we offered as a replacement? She was given Fentanyl. I was offered no replacement at all because my insurance decided I was young enough to "tough it out." And THIS is how many 20-somethings got addicted. I was lucky, my mother sent me her muscle relaxers (I wasn't even offered that much) and it was enough to at least help me to be functional 90% of the time. I still can't get a doctor to give me medication to help with my pain. I'm currently in a massive fibromyalgia flareup, and now THIS video pops up. Rather aptly timed, YT algorithm!
The doctor who thought that fentanyl was less addictive than a muscle relaxer, shouldn't be practicing medicine. I'm sorry you're going through all that.
@@ds5436 To be fair, that was in 2007, before the studies on Fentanyl were published, and the muscle relaxer we were on was known to be highly addictive. Neither I nor my mother had any problem going off it (it mostly just sucked that they didn't offer a replacement relaxer for me) but then again, my mother also quit smoking cold turkey the day she learned she was pregnant with her first kid and had no bad effects, and I've gone off addictive medications without withdrawals, so perhaps we're genetically immune. (Addiction does run on my dad's side of the family though, so I'm always worried about that.)
Assume you are aware of this, but just in case, f.m. pain increases exponentially when your vitamin D level plummets, which is common in f.m. patients. Blood test to check Vit. D & if low, Bolus D3 can relieve some of your suffering. Good luck.
The stigma around this drug for me has always been bad, like as bad as meth or heroin. Then I started going to the hospital for my 2 year olds cancer treatments at like 3 months into his life. We did chemo rounds and check ups (EUAs) and found out they use it every time. I was honestly shocked and started asking questions and yeah.... Its definitely the illicit use that brings out the bad look on it. Its definitely still a scary drug cos after this one chemo treatment my sons oxygen went super low while he was asleep and it was a scary time.
That's true of plenty of drugs to be fair. Amphetamines are used in ADHD treatments, opiates have always been very effective pain killers, cocaine is a powerful topical anaesthetic. There's even promising research on mental health treatments for things like psilocybin and MDMA. Drugs are tools, it's how we use them that counts.
@@mrjoe5292over 100 years ago, from the late 1880s until the 1920s cocaine was often found in toothache drops, anti-nausea pills and similar early medicines. Until 1929 Coca-Cola contained trace amounts of cocaine, that year they changed to a 100% cocaine free formula we know and enjoy today. Up until around this time I believe Bayer aspirin contained some morphine
@@mrjoe5292amphetamines in ADHD meds are a large reason why kids who use ADHD meds become drug addicts later. It’s a horrible thing to try to treat ADHD with.
I am a friend of someone who died from a fentanyl-laced heroin needle after he relapsed to an addiction. It was about 8 years ago and I still think about him a lot, even though we drifted apart in his last 3 or so years of life.
@@MrAdryan1603 Really? Was your first sentence really all that different from OP's? We're all grown-ups here. We understand that the words "heroin" and "drugs" are the same in this context.
Ps. I’m so sorry. Iv had 18 great friends and even family members die. Took a break lost there tolorance. Then it goes down to a non user then OD! That’s why the detox is so hard
⏲TIMESTAMPS by [K] 00:00 - Introduction to opioid overdose epidemic and fentanyl discussion. 00:31 - Explanation of dangers of illicit fentanyl. 01:06 - Overview of opioids and mu opioid receptors. 02:05 - History and use of fentanyl as a painkiller. 02:34 - Dangers of fentanyl on CNS and respiration. 03:05 - Clarification on fentanyl's danger and dispelling myths. 03:34 - Potency and lethal dose of fentanyl. 04:06 - Fentanyl's potency and speed of action. 04:37 - Unique binding and interaction of fentanyl with receptors. 05:08 - Fentanyl's effects on other receptors and cellular response. 06:09 - Introduction to harm reduction strategies for fentanyl overdoses. 06:39 - Importance of medical care and pain management options. 07:07 - Addressing racial disparities in pain management and prescription opioids. 07:38 - Drug contamination screening resources like fentanyl test strips. 08:06 - Safe injection sites to reduce overdoses and improve access. 09:08 - Naloxone for overdose reversal and wearable injected device concept. 10:09 - Summary of fentanyl as a powerful opioid with addictive properties. 10:36 - Gratitude for viewers and acknowledgment of supporting patrons. GIVE A LIKE AND FOLLOW ✅
So im super allergic to everything from vicodin, percoset, morphine and just aout everything else in that camp. Year before last i had to have part of my hand amputated and if it wasnt for the freak chance that im somehow not allergic to fentanyl it was the only thing the could adminester before and after the surgery, i was terrified when they asked if it was ok by me to try it at the hospital but because i knew that they would know what to do if i was allergic or if i ended up getting too much i felt reassured and agreed. Im so happy to know that now i dont have to keep avoiding major surgeries and procedures because fentanyl exists but it was also extreamly evident why people get addicted to it. I completely forgot my hand and chest had been pulverized until i was home from the hospital
My own son died of it in 2021, he was a type I diabetic who needed more help with it medically and mentally, and instead of health “insurance” we should have medical and mental help for all americans…we suck….up to big pharm..
Pharma has nothing to do with the lack of adequate health coverage. The big problem is that health care in the US is, on every level (with very few exceptions) is that it's run on a for profit basis. This incentivates insurance providers to save money, enhancing profits, by withholding services. Pharmaceutical companies make money by developing and selling drugs, not necessarily curing disease. What is needed is to take the profit incentive out of health care on all levels. That's highly unlikely to happen in a pure capitalist system. There's a reason why European socialist countries are overall happier than strict capitalist countries such as the US.
I’m sorry for your loss that’s really tragic 😔 mental health care SHOULD be a right instead of a luxury for those who can afford it. We have free healthcare but not free mental healthcare here. Which doesn’t make sense because both are equally important
I deal With pain daily and once fentanyl saved my life. I was given 50mg and it was completely safe. I was in the ER for a severe migraine. When I say severe I mean "want to end your life" type pain. I was on the ground and completely paralysed. They gave me fentanyl and it was instant relief. I thought I was going to die.
Do you mean 50mcg? 50mg would kill you. And the shot they give in the ER's for migraines is basically just a combination of an NSAIDS and benadryl, no opiates or opioids in it at all.
@@who4743 The "Migraine buster" that they gave me didn't work so they thought maybe its something physical. I still have an appointment with the mayo clinic to figure out what happened. Its happened over 20 times and they only were able to help me a couple of times. The other times they sent me home and said there was nothing they could do.
@@mickiddymichael7878 ok, your original post sounded like you were just making up stuff. What medications did they try first or did they just jump to fentanyl and that dosage , what tests did they run and specialists did they send you to or did they just jump to sending you to the mayo clinic? Sorry for all the questions, I'm sure you understand how it all seems a bit suspicious. Medical mysteries are such good teaching moments.
@@who4743 nah its all good. I am currently seeing a pain specialist, I have a regular MD, and a therapist. We have other referals to universities just in case they can help somehow. I havent heard back from any yet though. They tried alot of different types of migrain meds and headach meds. Then they were worried about addiction soo they took me off some and am currently trying out some others. The pain killers seem to be the only reliel. They didnt just jump to the mayo right away. it took a couple years before I could get a referal.
@@mickiddymichael7878 you might just be one of the unfortunate people like my kids and me. No prescription migraine medication has worked for us, they just seem to make the migraines worse. We've had to have scans to rule out tumors and lesions. The only thing that brings us any relief is zofran for the nausea be in a dark quite room, eye masks are helpful too sometimes if you can stand that little bit of pressure, sometimes it just hurts too much. And then get two ice packs. One for your forehead and the other for the base of your skull. Cover up with a light blanket if you get too chilly and have someone bring you new ice packs as needed and just try to sleep it off if possible. It's horrendous when they last for several days. But they've found that migraines are caused by small areas of inflammation in the thin membrane between your skull and the brain and that it's far more common in females than it is in males. I'm sorry you suffer with this, they absolutely suck! If you try my tip I hope it at least helps you get through one migraine attack easier. Bodies are just so mean sometimes.
I’m a manager at a pretty big convenient Store chain. So we have to deal with the homeless and other ppl on the fringes of society. And I see the effects of this drug. Seems like every other week I’m hearing someone has died. A co worker of mine’s nephew just died from fentanyl. Smells horrible when they smoke it as well. But here in OKC, it’s a damn pandemic
My wife had cancer and fentanyl was widely prescribed as a patch. At the time the way to dispose of a patch was to flush it. As there was fear that it would be touched during regular disposal. This was 5 years ago but at the time it seemed very disturbing to introduce the drug into the water system. Maybe things have changed. Also I find it strange we don’t exactly know all its binding methods. You’d think that such a powerful and widely prescribed drug wouldn’t have any unknowns still. Maybe I’m being naive.
I would guess it's because the brain is complicated-from what I remember, there's a lot of drugs regulating brain stuff for which we lack a conclusive understanding of how they work, but we have observed that they are effective at regulating various problems. Not exactly a drug, but a related example would be lithium used to treat bipolar disorder. We're not fully sure what's going on but we do know that it works for many people. Also, definitely with you on the flushing thing! I would think even the regular garbage would be better than that, but then again I'm not anywhere close to a public sanitation professional.
As said in the video, fentanyl is poorly soluble in water. However, it's a bit worrying throwing things that are not toilet paper in the toilet. Won't it cause blockages in the pipes?
Heh. In my opinion, that last bit, just seems like how the game works. "We don't know what it does or how it will affect you, but try it and let us know." My dad used to always say, "That's why they call it a practice."
My niece’s baby dad and her cousin both died of fentanyl overdose within a week of each other. They all had drug addictions But I’m glad this drug is around for people in really bad pain.
I understand completely I was born with a fentanyl spinal tap that kills pain below the injection without getting you high but I’ve lost several best friends to fentanyl. my best friend actually wasn’t even an addict he just wanted to try a Percocet once recreationally
8:00 this whole “safe drug use” point is really misleading and overused. Lived in Portland for 3 years and saw exactly what it looks like to let people do their drugs “safely”. If you don’t know that’s basically dying zombies on the side of the street and a crumbling city infrastructure. I wish people outside of cities understood what certain policies really did over the last 5 years. Drug addicts don’t care if they should do things safely, that’s why they are addicts. They will take the stuff till they are almost dead, and most people who want drugs decriminalized and safely added into society just want to do drugs or sell them. That’s the sad truth but for drug dealers this is a wonderful thing. They don’t get arrested and their customers are growing rapidly cause they can now find drugs anywhere they want. Great ecosystem for a dying community but it’s horrible if you want to live in a thriving environment with healthy people. A hot take I guess but people who do drugs are very happy about how cities are treating this issue. They can just dope up and die eventually without ever having anyone tell them it’s bad or illegal. If I liked doing drugs I would honestly rather get them in a well grounded city or state, where at least I could do drugs myself but not have to see naked people shooting up on the sidewalks.
this hits so close to home due to my cousin dying from fentanyl cut coke. it's so heartbreaking watching all these medications with good intentions become a source of addiction to the point drs are afraid to prescribe them to patients in need
I've had chronic pain for years and it took awhile before it was helped. And it was fentenal that actually helped get my pain under control. The doctor prescribed me patches. After awhile I was able to get a handle on the pain and take a lower dose medication . I don't think that without having it I would have been able to do that. I definitely would not want to take anything from the streets. But it was a Godsend for me.
They gave this to me 10 years ago during delivery as an alternative to an epidural and said, "It'll just take away the bite during contractions and will become less effective which each dose." It was so weird to hear there's a wave of the street version happening right now. It's really bad in my area. Thank you guys for making this video!
I was given it too! Coming off it thought I couldn’t stop shaking and my jaw was locked. I couldn’t even hold my newborn daughter because of the shaking and I ended up vomiting. I can’t even IMAGINE the stuff on the street. It’s horrifying!
Ive been on fentanyl in the hospital a few times. They always make me wear a monitor for my respiratory rate and pulse ox and I've definitely been in the spot where you just sort of forget to take your next breath if you're not paying attention. Then the alarm goes crazy until you start breathing again.
This is a really well handled video. They disspelled all the common misinfo surrounding fentanyl, pointed out that the opioid crisis is a multifaceted social problem that needs social and meical issues addressed first, and that its *unregulated* fent thats the issue. The mention and endorsement of harm reduction is huge because nowhere near enough people know about its benefits. I mean, its Scishow so I expected them to handle this well but still
The problem is that most people dont realize it's not just fentanyl anymore...there are these new research chemicals that arent "as illegal" and very potent and with very little long term studies. Some of them bind to your receptors permanently, causing tolerance to skyrocket quickly. And this also causes a huge amount of the overdoses, because of how long they bind, you can bring someone back with narcan, but once the narcan wears off those rc opioids are still binded and will cause the user to OD even without taking any more of the drug.
And i should say, it's impossible to find real heroin on the streets anymore, it's all fent and rc opioids, with even fent becoming more and more rare. Switzerland had what is, in my opinion, the only solution to this problem. Look it up if you are interested.
Super strong pain meds play an important role for those with chronic pain, such as cancer patients or surgery patients. I have a grandparent who took it for cancer pain before she passed from the disease. She only took it when absolutely necessary, and in the end a family member had to return her pain meds to the pharmacy for disposal. I'm proud to say no one tried to take her meds when she was ill...the door was always unlocked except overnight. Sad to say, a friend of mine who had breast cancer had a family member steal her pain meds, so it does happen.
Yikes... I often have narcotics, but if I'm going to be around anyone I don't live with normally, I tend to keep them on my person for this fear. If someone OD'd I'd just be unable to live with the guilt.
@@Memento_Mori_Morals yes, my friend who had breast cancer had her pills hidden up in a cupboard behind other things. The family member knew where they were because their family and was probably around to see her take them out. A stranger would probably not know that they were in the kitchen cupboard behind something like dishware, but close family would. My grandmother was well known in the community and had an extended family, so there was people visiting at all times during the day. When we had the funeral at the church up the road, the house door was left unlocked because there's no bathroom in the church with running water...its a very rural town...so anyone can pop into the house to pee. I remember seeing my aunt take the bag of leftover pills to the pharmacy. I'm grateful there's no addiction issues in our family and the community cared enough not to try and steal anything. I commend you on protecting others from misusing your meds. The fewer people who know that you have them, the better. I wish you health and happiness.
@@samsonsoturian6013 well, I remember my mom saying she took fentanyl and morphine for pain. She and my aunt took care if her in her home. I didn't pry or look at the bottles because it wasn't something I would want for myself, so why would I. In the moment, all I cared about wss that she was comfortable. I know she was prescribed them for the liver and stomach cancer pain, and she died a shadow of her healthy self. She was strong and loving, and I'm glad she had those meds to help with her last chapter in life. Ok...now I'm tearing up...
This has been one of the more difficult aspects of dealing with my chronic pain from Lyme disease and subsequent autoimmune illness. In recent years I have had to go to multiple pharmacies to find one willing to fill a prescription for oxycodone (extremely low-dose, in part because I didn't want more). It was my only script but they began requiring other "maintenance" meds to fill in order to justify filling the oxy for me. Some days it's the only thing that allows me to work in order to pay my bills instead of lying in bed groaning. And I have never abused it, gotten off of it multiple times to try other remedies, yet I still get looks from pharmacy staff and others that reveal contempt as if I am a junkie.
@@DoomFinger511 the chain pharmacies are not immune from this. The individual pharmacists at major pharmacies still have a lot of discretionary power when filling prescriptions and they can be very judgemental. I've heard about many people who take suboxone (a medication used by people in recovery to reduce the likelihood of relapse) getting treated poorly by pharmacists at major chain pharmacies. It's really alarming.
@@joetreadonmeYeah, to me, doesn't matter how they treat me. As long as they give me MY DRUGS, then I just don't care anymore. They can think what they want, but just so, I get to go home and dose-up. Because I count the minutes from Walmart to my front door.
Kratom might be too weak until after your tolerance goes down but I had success using it in the past. But if it doesn't work try a different strain or brand there's so many different manufacturers and sources for kratom and they all vary in effects, red vein worked best for my pain and to give me a "drive" to be productive or euphoria.
It’s the fact that street drugs are being cut and laced with fentanyl to boost their potency by people aren’t drug manufacturers or apothecaries, leading to people dying of fentanyl overdoses when they don’t even realize they’ve taken fentanyl.
Mostly from China and going to Mexico to be mixed by the cartels to be packed on illegal immigrants to sell in the U.S. to pay to get their kidnapped relatives back. If they don't pay, the kid gets whacked in the desert on the border. And with the heat index in TX right now at about 119 F they decay pretty quick.
@@hazey5736 no there's minimal to non existent use of medical cocaine, a very specific indication of amphetamines like Vyvanse, vs opioids like fentanyl which I use in the Emergency department daily with patients. Demonizing fentanyl doesn't solve the issue of its illicit use.
They gave it to my bf in the hospital with iv, he said it sucked because it only lasted about 30 mins while morphine lasted longer. Very glad that he said he didn't like the way it made him feel lol. A friend of mine had the lollipops given to him but idk how he felt about the length of working time.
Glad you clarified that its the illegally made fentyl that is dangerous. I, unfortunately, was born with a kidney diease that pretty much feels like my organs are trying to stab their way out of my back. I don't take fentyl, but I know what chronic pain was right. My aunt, who recently passed, had a truly horrific diabetes infection that ended up causing necrosis. It was painful just to watch. She was given fetnyl patches at the end of her life, and while it did nothing to slow the progress, it did help her be conscious enough that she could meet her nnewest granddaughter and had a month to spend with her family. I do take an opiod - something that a lot of people would likely to consider super strong, but honestly it only barely takes the top of my pain. However, even just having that small relief, it helps me keep a job. I cant do much other than work, unfortunately, but on my week vacation I actually got to write and hang out with people, like live a semi-normal life. Its amazing what not being at a 9 on the pain scale all day every day can do for you. However, most meds for chronic pain I know of aren't fast acting. They're meant to last a while, to give you more release. That's why its given through a patch, I believe.
Patches are simply longer acting, and less likely to cause overdoses. The only complaints that we have had, is from the families of the patient, who complain that their loved one isn't awake and paying attention to THEM, enough. Sadly, we see far too many families who withhold pain medication, because they wish that their poor ill family member is sleeping, having pain relief, instead of just 'putting up with the pain' so that they can pay attention to those insecure relatives.
@@d.e.b.b5788s that a thing? Ive never heard of anything so cruel. Im terrified of pain and would much rather spend my last days in an opium induced fugue than listen to ingrate relations
I mean, it's not the illegally made nature that makes it dangerous, it's the unregulated concentration of what gets sold, and the adulteration of other drugs with fentanyl on the illicit market
The drug is the same, whether legal or not. It’s the controlled dosing that makes medical fentanyl safe and street fentanyl dangerous. Illegal drug makers cut their drugs and add cheap fentanyl to make up for lost potency. They don’t care who dies as long as they make more money.
This video feels like it was made so carefully not to offend pharmaceutical companies that it was almost rendered ineffective. Calling it an “opioid overdose epidemic” rather than just a “opioid epidemic” it’s just an example. I get not wanting to stigmatize legitimate pain medicine, but that medicine should be used with caution and the realization that you’re taking an addictive and deadly substance…
Thank you for educating people & not throwing pain patients under the bus. The solution to ending deaths due to addiction is more public resources like supervised injection clinics as you mentioned, and giving people the resources they need for mental health treatment. (tw: sui) The only thing the goverment has done is to go after doctors to make them afraid to prescribe opioids to patients who are in pain. This has led to many suicides of folks with chronic conditions/disabilities who are choosing to end their life instead because their pain isn't controlled anymore.
I'm one of them, the thought of living like this for even five more years is a big no. So I have refused the surgeries needed to save my life, signed a DNR and am now on hospice. The irony is now that I'm on hospice, my pain is actually addressed and controlled.
I mean overprescription was a massive issue in america, you shouldn't just prescribe it for anything (which happened a lot), as many people got addicted to them. It's a fine balance, and educating people about the risks associated with what they're prescribed is really important
@@EvilTaco Lol fuc that. We need to drive sales. cause ever expanding growth(even for literal corporate manufactured heroin) and the profits it makes are all that matters!! -Sackler family
Safe injection sites are great! This way, we know who's using, what they're using, how much they're using, and when they're using, so it's easier to get such people help. If they're surrounded by an atmosphere of harm reduction, like somebody actually gives a damn, it's going to make them feel less leery about starting into a program.
This ethos is what landed us in such a shithole worldwide. This motherly smothering attitude - whatever my child does, at least he's safe - is the sole reason the current addiction situation is that bad. I have a lot of friends and acquaintances who stared into this particular abyss. Only those who were shocked back to cleanliness by hitting the rock bottom are still alive.
@@ajc-ff5cmSafe injection sites don’t “enable drug-seeking behaviour”. They provide clean needles (to prevent the transmission of blood borne diseases such as hiv and hepatitis), trained staff to intervene in case of an overdose, and resources to help people quit. They don’t supply any drugs, nor do they encourage drug use. They merely provide a safer space to those who are struggling with addiction.
@@sergeymyasnikov736Did you happen to watch the video all the way through? Where they pointed out that harm reduction strategies such as safe/supervised injection sites have drastically reduced overdose deaths, which is supported by nearly two decades of research in numerous countries? Have you considered that everyone you knew who “stared into this particular abyss” would still be alive, perhaps recovering/recovered had they had access to better supports such as supervised injection? Not everyone is going to be lucky enough to survive an overdose caused by a tainted supply.
I have been sober 8 years. Near death kept me alive. I'll tell you these safe injection sites may seem to save lives but they are also causing more harm. There needs to be stigma on drug users. Drugs use shouldn't be accepted by society.
Thank you so much for doing this video. I appreciate you going over this topic regardless of the stigma because it is much-needed and not addressed enough. You guys are awesome! ❤❤
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The scariest thing about being given prescription fentanyl was the size of syringe it came in. Seeing how little can be a fatal dose, it seems weird to me how incredibly dilute the injection must have been.
Because something weaker is ... Weaker lol. If you need fast acting pain relief, it is the thing for it, and diluting it makes there be less of a chance of dying. They want people to be medicated, not dead.
@@chrismanuel9768 working in the hospital, we often dilute medications for a 1:1 ration, meaning we have 1mg or 1mcg of medication for every ml to avoid risks of error, especially in urgent situations. It is definitely more user friendly. Might be the case here.
Thank you for making an informative (and not fearmongering clickbait) video. I have a family member who's suffered from addiction in several phases of his life and I sure wish the stigma would disappear. It was long ago that addicts were seen as people here in Sweden, sadly.
@@stevexracer4309 It seems like sadly you might've been mesmerised by the myth of neoliberalism or just plainly the capitalistic myth. Peoples worth are not determined by an arbitrary metric such as what a spreadsheet claims are their economic contributions.
@@stevexracer4309 Sounds like you're thinking with pure emotion. Drug addiction is not a moral issue no matter how badly you want it to be one. The vast majority of people who are addicted to drugs actually live normal lives and don't "ruin society". Believe it or not you could be neighbors with someone who takes heroin everyday and you'd never know.
@@mikel.4809They truly are. They deliberately cause pain for their own amusement. Addicts are trying to mitigate their own pain, whether it’s physical or emotional. Yeah, some of them do terrible things to get their next high, but they’re the outliers.
@@alexrogers777 And, if those people can handle their addiction without causing harm to people around them, more power to them. But, the people who harm others as a result of or to support their addiction are the bane of society. They don't deserve anymore sympathy than drunk drivers.
It breaks my heart that dealers out there know they are killing people but still let it out into the community. Many of these people are homeless/houseless and do not need a drug to make their lives better. The people who are making these drugs for recreational use are a plague to society.
Sadly addicts think of dealers as their friends sometimes but in reality the dealers often have a me vs them mentality. They're trying to pay their bills and live their own lives and ofentimes they really look down on addicts if they're not addicted the way the addict is. It's pretty gross.
I'm constantly accused of drug-seeking behaviour by the local ER staff whenever I have to turn up, solely due to a psychiatric diagnosis. I don't even drink tea FFS 😂
Something didn't add up in the video and I googled the weight of a US penny (2.5 grams). Well, there is indeed a mistake in the video - it's not around 1/10 the weight of a penny, it's closer to 1/1000. I think this was a missed opportunity to show how strong it really is
@@fiercecamarosscould be you bud, cuz it's a fact. I knew people that didn't survive a lower dose of fentanyl than George did. It's tragic. What's your point?
As a former coke/meth user i have experienced the fenny cut. I noticed when i felt like a zombie and asked my dude to 1. Hows my eyes "pin pricks" 2. Hows my mental condition "mostly out there" 3. Hit that dude up and have him come here to get more so when we get more to test it. Ps yes we tested it before but since it was a reliable source we only tested potency of it. After that cut him off and ruined business for him to anyone.
@@LordWaterBottle its not THAT uncommon (alltho it also still isnt common) that users started testing their drugs at this point, there are chats set up within drug communities for us to look out for one another because no one is even trying to keep us safe as we go through the worst points in our lives
Unfortunately, there are people, some in prominent political positions, that are absolutely fine with addicts dying of overdoses, and actively oppose efforts to treat addiction. They would far rather treat addiction as a criminal problem instead of a medical or social problem, and addicts as criminals instead of patients. Compassion is foreign to them.
I remember fentanyl from 2008. Me and my dad were victims of the opioid epidemic. He got his hands on EVERYTHING. He came over and gave me a fentanyl patch twice, and warned me to wear it for only an hour, because it was deadly if abused. Behind his back, I chewed the patches. I would pour sweat and fall asleep shortly after. I sobered up in 2015 and my dad died from lung cancer in 2020. I look back at myself and I wish I could go back in time and kick my own ass, because stupidity on that level is unforgivable. I'm so angry at the person I used to be.
Don’t be mad at yourself. It’s like a kid who doesn’t know any better. Are you going to yell at a child for not knowing? Do the same for yourself. You know now. We all make mistakes. It’s how we learn! ❤
It's a shame we can't just approach things pragmatically like this due to politicians and media making it about them instead of actual people. Good video. Hopefully policy changes address mental health issues, crime/punishment, and allowing professional to do their job properly without reprisal.
Thank you for talking about fentanyl and mentioning naloxone. This is a really important issue and I wish more people were talking about harm reduction strategies when discussing the opioid crisis.
@@squarz He’s currently going through treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He’s had to take a break from everything due to the chemo and all but in all likelihood he’ll be OK. Hodgkin’s is actually very treatable nowadays. So I’m sad he’s sick but I’m glad he’ll likely recover.
I grew up in a very conservative house hold and held pretty conservative ideals. growing up I heard about those safe injection sites and thought it was a really stupid idea. Well I got addicted to alcohol during the pandemic and am now in recovery. I have met alot of addicts and these peoples lives are important. They are going to do drugs. And having a safe place to do them is important.
Thank you for this video!!! I've been seeing so many ads about needing to test for fentanyl and I have had no idea why or if I should be concerned. I really appreciate this in-depth overview
Such types of drugs is good for those who are terminally ill because you're dying so anything to relieve pain is good but otherwise it shouldn't be prescribed to people.
@@johnmccallum8512 the fent is mostly out of your system before you are conscious, its standard procedure in colonoscopy, and many people dont realize that when doctors put you under, you can still feel pain and wake up, so they not only give you something to knock you out, but also something for the pain/discomfort, or a number of other compounds to do different things, so this wasnt for the pain relief it was for the anesthetic coefficient with the other compounds you were given. Also going up and down this you are going to read a lot about colonoscopies because the standard procedure is to use fent as the pain assist for putting you under, and another drug to do more of a knockout effect.
Fentynal mixed with dmso and painted on the door handles of your enemies,the dmso makes the Fentynal absorb in to the skin fast and fatal, dmso can be purchased from any horse supply shop or online. Dmso makes Fentynal an easy and super fast deal.
Morphine can be highly addicting too. I was given Morphine through an IV in an ambulance and felt a euphoric rush like I've never experienced before. It went straight to my head and i experienced complete relaxation and happiness for the first time in my life. No stress, no pain, just a feeling of peace and relaxation. I could have easily became addicted if i sought out the drug illegally because of how good Morphine made me feel and trying to recreate that feeling
Well, of course; all opioids are (despite marketing in the late 90s that some don't need to be). Fentanyl is just an especially dangerous one that is being put into street drugs (when it doesn't even make sense to... why are they killing their customers?)
@@ballistic_goat yeah, that probably is true. There are people for whom alcohol doesn't do much and those who are alcoholics essentially from their first drink. Have to be physiological differences.
@@michaelmicekIt wouldn’t surprise me if when they say someone has an “addictive personality” that instead it’s something about their body that makes them ultra susceptible.
I didn't know about fentanyl until recently someone contaminated cocaine with it in my country and several people died. Even after knowing it was contaminated and in lethal doses, their addiction was stronger, got sicker and sicker, and died. It was big on the news, as we have a big cocaine consumption issue in my country and many feared theirs could be contaminated. There was a recomendation to throw the cocaine if any of the symptoms was present.
I was given Fentanyl in an ambulance once. Instantly understood how people can get addicted to that. i went from barely being able to move due to pain, to feeling better than i've ever felt in my life.
Sat in an emergency waiting room puking my guts out, and in the worst pain I'd ever been in, in my life for six hours, turned out my gallbladder went necrotic. They gave me fentanyl in the ER, when they finally got me in there, instant pain relief, buy since it has such a short half life, they gave me Dilodid in the hospital room after they admitted me. Yeah it really is easy to see how people get addicted.
Interesting. I did not feel good at all. Just felt normal. Wonder how much they dosed you, also, some people are more sensitive to opiates than others. I got 50mcg in the ambulance for a gall bladder attack.
you “felt” better than you’ve ever felt in your life but your situation was exactly the same. just artificial reality induced by that white powder
@salasrcp90 yes. That is the whole point. And that's why I can see how such a drug could be incredibly tempting to take recreationally.
@@salasrcp90what a pointless comment. You just described every painkiller..
Fentanyl was the only thing that stopped my BFF’s horrific breakthrough pain during the final years of her ultimately fatal rectal cancer. It was an absolute godsend and I’m forever grateful she had access to it.
Did she get it from the cartels who smuggle it across the border, or did she get it legally?
Fentanyl does have some use cases but illegal use of fentanyl is a humanitarian crisis
@@Nivexity It is, demonizing fentanyl entirely would mean it can't be used for painkilling anymore.
I appreciate you bringing up that it's a double edge sword and we shouldn't be quick to judge anyone who uses it or the drug itself. A bit of good news on fentanyl was sorely needed here and am glad your post is getting as much likes as it is!
@@rikuleinonenI’m pretty sure people understand that if a doctor prescribes fentanyl, that’s different than someone buying it from a drug dealer
I've been pronounced dead two separate times from fentanyl overdoses. Been locked up in state and federal custody and it got to the point that I was either going to die in prison or die in a trap house alone from. My state has some of the worst help for addiction and mental health with some of the highest rates of mental health issues and substance abuse rates in the US videos like this most definitely will help raise awareness of this problem. I'm grateful that being only 28 I've finally gotten myself together. I'll be on paper for 20 years but I couldn't care less and am grateful I will have 6 months sober in less than 2 weeks which is the longest time I've been off of everything including weed and alcohol since I was literally 6. videos like this definitely spread the truth that leads to people like me having their life saved and changed forever. Thank you for talking about this so much.
How did you do it? Did being in custody help get sober?
Yes
Wow keep going !
how soon do you know youve overdosed?
Like if u had a narcan on the table would have been able to take it?
We are proud of you buddy, keep it up!!
My stepdad had to use it when he was dying of cancer. My mom always was super careful applying it. She hid it from my stepdad so he didn't accidentally give himself too much. An hour after he died we had multiple people ask us for his his pain meds. We never even told anyone, they just assumed we had them.
And keep in mind, this started an hour after he did. His body was still in the house!
I'm sorry you had to deal with that kind of insensitivity during what must have been such a painful time in your life. People can be so thoughtless.
Yes by and large people are disgusting, who does that to people who have just lost a loved one
@@shushup6557 Drug addicts. Nothing matters but their next dose.
Just for future knowledge. A dying person can not “give himself too much”. They are dying nothing they or you do can be “wrong”. I hope the scavenging people didn’t make the experience too much worse for y’all.
I could only imagine how horrible that must’ve felt, I’m sorry you had to go through that :/
Fentanyl is no joke. I got it once after being hit by a car while riding a bike. I ended up on the hood of the car then on the ground within a second. (Luckily the car had just started rolling from being at a total stop).
Some witnesses called an ambulance. I at first said I was fine and the EMT's were like, "Ok, but we're gonna wait around for a bit." 2 mins later the adrenaline started to wear off and I started going into shock. I changed my mind about going to the hospital and like 60 seconds was in the back of an ambulance.
They immediately offered me a shot of Fentanyl and I was like, "Na, I'm fine." Shortly there after I was almost puking from laying down backwards in a fast moving vehicle and from the shock and on coming pain. I broke down and asked for the shot and within seconds the shock, pain and nausea just vanished.
And I asked for a VERY small dose. It was like 1/2 the normal dose that they would give I think.
It's a great drug when needed for stuff like that and chronic pain.
But woosh, taking it recreationally is asking for trouble.
Frankly speaking, these days most everyone who takes street fentanyl isn't taking it for fun, its not recreational. They take it for untreated issues like chronic pain, to stave off withdrawals after their doctor cut them off or to numb a severe emotional pain (often from abuse).
Agreed. I get it occasionally for my frequent surgeries and procedures, and I was prescribed it for chronic pain around 2012 when they didn’t have the full picture of the risks of this drug. I could tell immediately that this medication meant business. Due to chronic pain from a rare genetic disorder, I have taken many different opioids at different times, some long term, shame short. Fentanyl is the only one I have asked not to take, because you feel it immediately, and the euphoria can be overwhelming. It’s wonderful for in hospital use, and people with certain severe, intractable pain, but I totally get how it could be abused.
excuses
I had it for lung cancer surgery pain management but I ordered the anesthesiologist to stop it using it right now because I had a reaction to it which was I became very itchy all over my body and I was starting to break my skin from scratching so hard.
Did you get high when taking fentanyl? Some people don’t
These drugs were crucial to my grandma at the end of her stomach cancer. She raised me and I saw her cry once in my life. The second time was in so much pain when she didn’t have her meds with her. I am so grateful that she suffered so much less because of this drug. That said so many friends have died because of this drug that it’s almost a double edged sword. Use it in the right situation. As in hopefully you never will need it.
Good health long life.
Sorry for your lost . I know a wonderful christian church, God manifest himself with miracles, prodigies.
He talks with the people. The Lord can give you peace and happiness. Glad to send you more information.
@@Gokuhssj2 what is actually wrong with you?
@@peenyyt4921 Nothing at all. Just feel mercy for people and my desire is that they may know The Lord, and in His greatness mercy may heal their heart and soul.
As a chronic pain patient, I can't say how refreshing it is to see a no-nonsense, informative video that stresses the importance of prescription opioids and acknowledges the barriers to getting them. Not to mention openly acknowledges that being unable to get prescription opioids leads to using illicit ones. Thanks, SciShow!
That's why i love this channel. Information and science regardless of the topic.
Pffft. Here's an argument that'll blow your entire statement out of the water: Drugs bad. Government smart.
Yes! I’m on it as a patch. No bs videos. I love Sci Show!!
Every time I hear about chronic pain patients I remember one news about how much opioid Brazilians use ( I'm a Brazilian ), we are one of the lowest opioid consuming countries in the world, and then the truth revealed to me, how badly and stigmatized we deal with chronic pain, it's impossible to express how heartbreak I feel when thinking about people that endure pain but even when presented with a prescription of an opioid will still not take it because of the stigma associated with it.
@@nicklasvevahuh???
Based on conversations with a relative of mine whose medical focus is pain management, the opioid crisis has made a lot of doctors reluctant to prescribe needed pain medication for fear of the consequences. People in chronic pain suffer more because they're not receiving treatment, and the options just seem to be suffer more and get dismissed or try to do something about it and get demonized as a drug user. The whole situation sucks. People in pain need affordable help, period. (and drug users, yes, even recreational drug users, are people and I don't want them to die)
Have you heard about Pain Education? It can be life changing for a lot of people.
Happened to me with chronic back pain.
@@slconley remember there is NO magic bullet for pain. What helps one person does nothing for another. I am glad it helps some, unfortunately I am not one of them.. Those of us who have long term chronic pain have pretty much tried everything seeking the answer that might just work for us.
Thank you for your humanity. It matters a lot - no one's pain is meaningless, no one's death is meaningless; they all matter, and it's good to see someone acknowledge that.
have you heard about cannabis? it can be life changing for a lot of people.
I started doing drugs since my teenage, got addicted to fentanyl. I suffered severe depression and mental disorder. Fentanyl addiction actually destroyed my life. Also got diagnosed with OCD. Not until my mom recommended me to psilocybin mushrooms treatment. Psilocybin treatment saved my life honestly. 4 years totally clean. Never thought I would be saying this about mushrooms.
Hey mates! Can you help with the source? I suffer severe anxiety, panic and depression and I usually take prescription medicine, but they don't always help. Where can I find those psilocybin mushrooms? I'm really interested in treating my mental health without Rxs. I live in Australia don't know much about these. I'm so glad they helped you. I can't wait to get them too. Really need a reliable source 🙏
YES very sure of Dr.alishrooms. I have the same experience with anxiety, depression, PTSD and addiction and Mushrooms definitely made a huge huge difference to why am clean today.
How do I reach out to him? Is he on insta
Yes he's Dr.alishrooms.Shrooms to me is a natrual healer. I know a guy who has used mushrooms in the same way and they have really helped him. mah dudes have safe trips all.
wish they were readily available in my place. Microdosing was my next plan of care for my husband. He is 59 & has so many mental health issues plus probable CTE & a TBI that left him in a coma 8 days. It's too late now I had to get a TPO as he's 6'6 300+ pound homicidal maniac. He's constantly talking about killing someone. He's violent. Anyone reading this Familiar w/ BPD know if it is common for an obsession with violence.
Fentanyl was the only drug that got my wifes pain under control enough with her spinal injury to get to the next stage of treatment and management. It also relieves enormous suffering in terminal patients.
It also killed my best friend. If we had better harm reduction policies, including decriminalisation he would probably still be around today.
sorry to hear that dude
Key takeaway: Pennie’s weigh 20mg 😂
All joking aside, I agree with your views.
Excellent comment to show both sides and I’m sorry for your loss. Best option at this point would be decriminalizing, but tbh I wish it was never even synthesized
In the USA?
Remember the USA completely bypasses diamorphine(heroin) we use it in Australia because it's more effective and far safer than morphine
I have had moderate to severe chronic pain since 1975 and this very good episode left out one huge problem facing Chronic Pain patients. That is actually getting the LEGAL Prescribed medications. Due to outside pressure many Dr.s simply will not prescribe them. The result is that people who desperately need these meds cannot get them even when they have responsibly and successfully used them for years. As a result when facing unrelieved severe pain they turn to the street in desperation.
I had bad back pain and went to the doctor. never once asked for any pain meds. The treated my like a crackhead... ordered an MRI for an area that wasn't even where the pain was originating. They said nothing we can do for you and sent me on my way.
That's an unfortunate backlash to the medical community being convinced that new opioid formulations were safe and it was their responsibility to use them to eliminate pain as much a possible, which is what led to the crisis.
The panic has even reached outside of the US, like here in the UK for example. They cut my prescription down from 100 pills per month to 60, and it's not enough for me to make it through the month without episodes. I'm tired of chronic pain patients being an afterthought to the medical community (not directing this at SciShow, I know they're trying their best and are genuinely trying to help people but there are so many in the scientific and medical communities who aren't).
I'm another chronic pain patient but...what? They specifically mention the harm caused by people not being able to access pain medication in the video. Did you not watch it?
@@michaelmicekWhy is our pain and suffering treated as an afterthought though, a "side effect" of attempting to reduce other kinds of pain and suffering? It's like as if because some people get addicted, helping us to live comfortably should not be considered. I genuinely am not trying to hate on you here but I believe just calling our suffering an "unfortunate backlash" is a bit insensitive tbh. Just because something is happening, doesn't mean it should or was always guaranteed to happen. There was always a way to prevent this, it's just that almost no medical organisation wants to put in the work to do so. And I don't even necessarily blame the doctors, I blame the institutions that are making them prescribe less - or even, at times, prescribe nothing at all. But our pain should not be brushed off, the same way the pain of people who become addicted to opioids should also not be brushed off. We should all work together with medical institutions and experts for a viable solution but right now, us chronic pain sufferers are just getting ignored and I'm tired of it. My pain genuinely makes me not want to be here. Our lives are more than just an "unfortunate backlash." Again, I'm not trying to hate on you, I'm not even trying to say that you're trying to be dismissive, I just am in general saying I want the conversation around mine and others' lives and conditions to change. I want my prescription back to the amount it used to be so that there isn't a portion of the month where I can do nothing but suffer miserably in bed. I want my life back
I remember several years ago heroin addiction destroyed my life, I suffered from severe depression and a mental disorder until I was recommended to psilocybin mushroom treatment. Psilocybin treatment saved my life honestly I'm 8 years clean now. Never thought I would be saying this about mushrooms.
they saved you from death bud, let's be honest here mushrooms are one of the most amazing things on this planet I wish people could all realize. they can solve a lot of problems, more than mental treatments.
yes, that's right, I researched and found out that shrooms are helpful in many ways but nobody talks about where to get them. Very hard to get a reliable source I can reach out to
Yeah, but I'm pretty sure of Sporeville he's an intelligent mycologist.
they've helped me a lot as well I'm a war vet diagnosed with PTSD. A lot of issues spun out of control when I came home. This is something i looked up and tried after trying the roller coaster of antidepressants. Day and night difference
How do I reach out to him? Is he on Instagram
This was really really well done!! The difference made between illicit and legal fentanyl, is great to be aware of. And the process to which it binds to the u-opiod receptors and the slick efficiency of its binding because of its shape.
Learn a tons from this one!! Well done balancing act on a somehow societal taboo subject. Wish people were more open minded through science to deal with a substance like this one and others.
Letting hobos shoot up on the street with little to no consequences is not the “scientific” way. Because hobos and addicts being “safe” matters more than the crime spikes this “treatment” brings, not to mention the fact it increases the amount of drug users in the area because they will move there for this “treatment” which is in reality free drugs. Those “safe needles” end up being left on the street. Your not a humanitarian if you support this, you are a moron.
Fentanyl is so scary. I went though some medical stuff and I was wondering why I liked getting all these procedures done and when I looked into it, they were giving me fentanyl. A VERY small amount in a medical setting was enough for me to want it more. I’ve since asked them to stop giving it to me and to use alternate medicine
A guy I know from my chronic pain support group was on Fentanyl for a while before he noticed he was starting to enjoy it a bit too much, so he asked to be switched to a different medication (excluding one other opioid he'd tried before that didn't work). THAT was seen as drug-seeking behavior which is baffling to him and to me.
I'm very thankful that my chronic pain can be managed without opioids.
Ashley... Not many people can even identify the addiction feel.... im one of them as well. Feel special.
I've never had it to my knowledge but after repeated dental procedures I'd be given this or that drug for pain management. I don't remember which oxy variation they gave me that made me feel loopy and disconnected but on the following procedure I asked them for a different drug for pain because I didn't like the feeling. I was scared to death that I'd develop a habit and get hooked on the heavier stuff.
@@CaTastrophy427 I found luck with an inflammation reducing enzyme called serrapeptase. Not a drug or typical pain killer but helps your body reduce the inflammation that causes a lot of common chronic pain. Taking that allowed me to stop taking OTC pain killers completely.
Any opioid will do the same thing, Fentanyl isn't magically addictive. In fact, its generally considered less addictive / euphoric than Morphine or Heroin.
My cousin passed away July 29th from a fentanyl overdose in Portland, Oregon. I don’t believe he thought he was doing fentanyl, I believe he thought it was cocaine. Here in portland the drug epidemic seems to be a public health crisis in our city. Thank you for helping better understand exactly what happened with my cousin.
Cocaine you do?
I believe that you believe he wasn't a drug addict, but that his drug of choice was tainted.
He died from his behaviour of drug addiction.
I'm sorry your family member died, but behavior and deliberate choice dominates chance.
I'm pretty sure repenting would have saved him if repenting mattered.
Should have gone to where I used to package coke at. It was stark street before hitting Ruby Junction....wonder if that place is still there. This was back in early 2000's and I was from age 8 to 12.
@@sigmasquadleaderit’s a choice but it’s under the duress of addiction. Let’s not pretend like it’s choosing a to go to Denny’s for breakfast. It’s more like choosing not to cut off your arm to escape death.
I'm glad you guys had the courage to talk harm reduction. A lot of people refuse to even discuss such things, and they are so effective.
Yeah sure it's effective, but many folks like myself don't think our taxes should pay to reduce the harm that comes from being a drug addict.
@@bixmcgoo5355 It already does by paying for the arrests and imprisonment of drug users in the current system. Do you think that subsidizing for-profit prisons and paying for living costs of prisoners and police/prison guard salaries is cheaper than paying for rehab?
@@bixmcgoo5355yeah I would rather spend more of our tax dollars on abusing people who have a mental health problem. > sarcasm
@@bixmcgoo5355 I don't want my taxes going to corrupt cops that kill people either but we cant always get what we want, sometimes we get what the community thinks is best. turns out governments are there to do things that individuals may not want to do for the betterment of the community.
@@bixmcgoo5355better spent on what? It's literally way better for taxpayers money to help people get off drugs. Even if you're entirely selfish and think drug addicts chose that life (completely irrational idea btw) then the reduction in revenue for the illegal drug trade is a massive benefit to society. The drug trade creates violence, it funds terrorist organisations, theft from medical facilities, child labour, slavery, cartels. Etc etc etc. Get your logic fixed.
I was a fentanyl addict, as in I was buying it from China by the half ounce. Thank god I'm many many years clean but it made life unlivable. I'd have to wake up 2x in the middle of the night to do more in order to not be in full blown withdrawals. Heroin was way less destructive.
I'm glad that by the gods I've never had need or want to be inane and skeletal with fentanyl in portland, as I was just trying to tell my dad about my new $75 shaded desert locust bullet proof goggles, and always bringing ear plugs as a new habit I'm working on, ready for the storm, but the closest lightening bolts have ever come to hitting me is at least 20-30 ft. away in the fargo field next to the apartment bee hive dumpster, and get your ears ringing even without the laser protective lenses, and driving at dusk with regular sunglasses and more blinding sun at times, or through the canyons?
@@michaelborror4399 amen
SO happy that you're here to say this. Stay strong
I am grateful you recovered, stay strong
@@michaelborror4399wtf did I just read I don’t think you made any sense
I lost my brother to this garbage in September of 2020.
People were barely waking up to how deadly it was and how quickly it was taking over.
I miss him so damn much.
Sorry to hear this man. My brother would have died if he didn’t end up with a lengthy prison sentence. He’s not the same as he was in school but it’s better than being dead I suppose. I also had an ex gf but I still try to help her with her addiction. It’s so painful to sit back and watch, knowing there’s not much you can do. Hope you’re doing better man, keep on going 👍
Sorry for your lost . I know a wonderful christian church, God manifest himself with miracles, prodigies.
He talks with the people. The Lord can give you peace and happiness. Glad to send you more information.
HARE KRISHNA
HARE KRISHNA
🛌🏼🙏🏼🙏🏻🛌🏼
As a patient with chronic pain who does need to take opioids (not fentanyl but still opioid), when i saw the title at first i was lowkey a bit worried that this would be another "strong painkillers evil must ban!" video, but I'd just like to say thank you so much for clarifying the illicit fentanyl vs, pain patients actually getting it from their doctor and taking it as prescribed, difference. Its hard enough hearing people tell me I'm "too young to be dependant on such strong drugs" but it makes it way worse when people double down the OTHER way and straight up demonize it to the nth degree. I don't like that i have to take opioids at my age either tbh, but i also like being able to do things like walk and eat, so i kinda HAVE to so i can do those things 😅
I like that at the end it's even talking about why the problems exist and suggestions of how to actually HELP people.
I have two kidney diseases that cause so much pain and it took me 10 years to find someone who was willing to treat me.
@theelvenjedi I was wondering what your issue is I mean what gives you this pain is it a long term thing ? If it is my heart goes out to you and i prey you have as many pain free days as possible sending lots of love and support your way 100%💚💛💜🙏
Very few reasonable people want to ban opioids. They are useful and need to be regulated.
I clicked on this video for the same reason. I use other opioids for chronic and acute pain management, and I have for well over a decade. There are so many videos that say all opioids are bad, and we know, as chronic pain patients, there is nothing farther from the truth. A responsible patient, under care of a pain management specialist, is very different than a street drug user. Opioids do have a time and place, when used responsibly.
I was a firefighter IV technician for 38 years and spent about half of my career on an ambulance until the end of 2019. We started carrying fentanyl instead of morphine about 20 years ago. One of my friends and coworkers got fired and did prison time for diverting our supply of fentanyl for personal use. He got clean in prison and stayed clean for a dozen years and then fatally overdosed on heroin on the 5th anniversary of his wife's death.
💔
I can understand
That’s tragic, I hope he has peace now.
Yeah morphine is not nearly as strong as most people think. It’s crazy y’all went from morphine to fentanyl. Completely skipped oxy/hydro/codone/morphone
That was a rollercoaster.
As a chronic pain patient I'm so tired of being judged by medical professionals and others for needing opioids to function.
I use the lowest forms of opioid and still get accused of being a drug seeker by Emergency Department staff if i go there for help.
I havent been to am emergency hospital for myself in over a decade for that exact reason.
I have so much medical trauma because of judgement and treatment by medical staff because they assumed i was faking my pain for drugs.
Its humiliating, and makes you feel like your have no worth in any way to anyone else.
I will forever be grateful to doctors who have taken me seriously and actually helped me, they've genuinely saved my life.
It’s a terrible thing. Sometimes you have to go from doctor to doctor sharing your story until you find one that will work with you.
Yep. I had to go to a methadone clinic just to get some help because I was self medicating with street fentanyl. I have almost all of my bowels removed and was using the bathroom over 40 times a day. It saved my life and now I have it back.
I was road kill and still had Drs deni me freedom from my torched life. They seem to be getting off on the suffering of others. I call it sadistic
What is the lowest form of opioid? Codeine? Tramadol? Hydrocodone? Do you mean the lowest dosage?
@@jamespope2840 The DEA put up so much red tape that doctors are threatened with the loss of their medical license if they prescribe too much. Its not that they like denying pain meds to those who need them, its that writing them out can and has cost many doctors their ability to legally practice.
Thank you for the video, I found out that investing is not for everybody, you just need a strong stomach too see your portfolio go down. It might be wiser for a novice to start with copy trading investing, but it is not easy. To invest in growth stocks it is another level, definitely you need to know what are you doing.
From my own point of view, you need to invest smartly if you need the good things of life. so far i've made over $255k in raw profits from just 6 months into the market from my diversified portfolio strategy and i believe anyone can do it you have the right strategy, mutual funds takes long time but investing smartly is the key for short term. Most of us tend to pay more attention to the shiniest position in the market to the cost of proper diversification.
I've been solely investing in real estate. But with the recent hyper home pricing i've liquidated a few things and have $45k in cash laying around idle. Would love to get your recommendations, I'm in search of something lucrative in the current crazy markets, i will be glad.
My portfolio is very much diversified so it's not like i have a particular fund i invest in, plus i dont do that by myself. i follow the trades of Mrs Karen Gaye Gray.
She is a popular broker you might have heard of. I can correctly say she's worth her salt as a financial advisor as her diversification skills are top notch, because i see that in her results as my portfolio grows by averages of 10 to 15% on a monthly basis, unlike i can say for my IRA which has just been trudging along, my portfolio just mirrors what she trades and not just on some particular industries of my choosing.
By following her trades do you mean copying her trades? I have heard about copying trades
Thank you so much for this informative content. I am fourth-year medical student, hoping to go into addiction medicine/psychiatry, and I am so deeply impressed by the balance this video strikes between being accessible to a general public audience while also being technically accurate.
Through when u go. Learn that opioids r handcuffs. Thanks and a hood good luck and best wishes in your life and job. Ps I’m only 20 been stuck since 16
You can't OD on Fentanyl by just touching it or being within 3 miles of it UNLESS you are a cop. Those dudes are super sensitive to it apparently.
I lost 3 people this year alone to fentanyl, and test strips are considered drug paraphernalia in my state. Now IS NOT the time to be experimenting with drugs, this is contaminating way into way too much of what's going around.
Stay safe out there yall
i'm sorry for your loss.. you have my sympathy.
Hold that fentanyL
The states that make fentanyl test strips illegal hope people die from it. They want them to die. They believe that will solve the problem.
I hope you don't think we care about the loss of drug addicts.
Perhaps leave pain relief to those who know how to administer it, instead of blaming an inanimate object. Sad to hear that you 'lost' people who apparently didn't either know how to manage their pain relief, or didn't have a competent medical practitioner to help them.
Thank you guys for treating this topic properly, not demonizing opioids or their users and talking about HARM REDUCTION and its very real beneifits
yet people here in the US think opening up clean needle centers is a "bad look" even after they've saved lives...
I mean you could just go to the source and cut it off. "Reducing" isn't really that helpful. Fix the problem. Remove cartel influence somehow, or thousands more will die. If you wanna save a handful of thousand instead of hundreds of thousands, go ahead, but give credit to those trying to actually solve the problem.
@@FrypodTheButt my god, why has no one thought of this yet?!?! Ohh riiiight because they did and its a complex AF problem with no magic bullet solution
@@mikel.4809Well guess what, neither is stripping the danger from the pleasure. I can understand that under normal medical circumstances but doing it exclusively so people can take it for pleasure is wrong.
@@FrypodTheButtUA-cam commenter instantly solves opioid crisis, solution is to Thanos snap the cartels
I've had fentanyl administered for bone marrow biopsies several times since my cancer diagnosis. The stuff really worked and I felt nothing. I always had to go to a step down room where the nurses kept an eye on me just in case something went wrong. Nothing did but the drug is no joke and not to be messed with. When used properly, it is a very effective medication. Excellent video, and I'm glad you explained how it worked, what it is used for, and the dangers of its misuse.
Good for you. It certainly was a big help when I was going through my stage 3 colerectal cancer. It got me over the line. I don't feel like I must have it but I can totally vouch for how powerful and effective the drug is. I'm back on deck and don't crave for it. Respect the Dr's script and get a second opinion if you are not sure.
I know a wonderful christian church, God manifest himself with miracles, prodigies.
He talks with the people. The Lord can give you peace and happiness and heal your medical condition. Glad to send you more information.
@@Gokuhssj2, I'll trust my medical team to heal me.
3:48 not sure how this error got through - but you need some sort of correction. A penny weighs over 2g, google says 2.5. If we call it 2g that means that 2mg is 1/1000 of the weight of a penny, not 1/10 as stated in the video.
Gaaaghghg!!! Had to seek this comment out!
I also went looking for this. I'm leaving my comment, though. Hopefully one of these get traction.
I worked as an RN on a surgery ward using epidural. Some of them had Fentanyl them and it was at a concentration of microgramme per mL, perfused at micro rate. Did wonder for surgical pain control, but it was coming with a strict monitoring. It among the most potent and dangerous drogue, I had to administer.
I'm glad you mention supervise injection site, they are supercontrovertial even here in Canada. But they are so helpful to reach out people with addiction outside of the coercitive boundries of the criminal system.
I had two stents installed via my wrist artery a few years ago. Fentanyl was one of the drugs used, a very tiny amount. Did the job as I didn't feel (or remember) a thing.
Does it normally smell really bad? Or is that just when people smoke it?
I'm a lihi janitor so I smell it in the building I work in sometimes. Really bad
@@hemlocktea6643 What you're smelling is probably meth, not fentanyl. Meth smells like plastic and ass. As far as I know, fentanyl is injected, not smoked.
im so glad to see more awareness around fentanyl, my sister overdosed about 2 years ago and i'm so lucky that she's still here today. she had been in addiction since she was in high school, me and my family really thought she wouldn't make it after so many failed attempts at rehab and just trying to find treatment. im proud to say my big sis will be a mother in april, she and her fiance got their own house. she's been 100% clean for a little over a year now!
im so happy for your sister! shes a inspiration for people like me
Thank you for doing a video on this. Addiction is complex and systemic. A lot of stigma around it and it results in a public general ready to blame and not willing to contribute to help. All of which worsens the problem.
i blame... i blame the failed drug war
@@zhou_sei Yeah for real. We've had over 5 decades of drug prohibition and yet drug usage and drug deaths have only gone *up*. Its a complete and utter failure on every level.
I'm just glad that they're showing people ways to test for fentanyl. Even if you do heroin, you more than likely do not want to be taking fentanyl. Test your drugs people. And all the better, don't use hard drugs
@@zhou_seithe war on drugs will never be won. Criminalisation of drug use also doesn’t work. Improving people’s lives and mental health and providing safe drugs and rehab does.
Most addicts are mentally not physically addicted. And these are illegal drug users not legimate pain patients. In WI pain clinics closed their doors and Doctors left the State due to the unmedically trained Atty Gen threatening them several times a year and threatening to withhold ssi funds which he does not have the authority to do.
Whenever I see someone get sick from "absorbing" powder Fentanyl, i just get annoyed
Because that's impossible. It has to go into your bloodstream.
@@fightingtosurvive6527Or a transdermal patch. But that's a whole different formulation.
You can get high absorbing it through skin and someone who doesn't do drugs can't tell the difference between getting high and getting poisoned.
@fightingtosurvive6527 it does soak through the skin, just not that much.
Ikr ☠️
Like that’s not how it works
I love that you addressed the ridiculous myth cops push that you can overdose from just being around it
Well having cuts and wounds makes the situation alot different so its best not to touch or make contact cuz you never know so dont try trust me its not worth it at all
@@KaramAlayanvery true, but sadly that isn't the myth they are trying to perpetuate.
I think there is a little misunderstanding there. I have never heard anyone claim that it can impact you without it entering the bloodstream. I think that is common sense and is implicit in what “cops say”.
@@jaredwolfe4042 well you clearly haven't seen or read about dumb cops who get scared shitless when near fentanyl due to this myth and have a panic attack and claim it's an "overdose"
There was a viral video 2 years ago where a cop allegedly “overdosed” and collapsed just by handling fentanyl😂
The day the governments stop treating overdoses and adiction like a crime and treat it like a social, economical and health issue (including mental heath), we'll see a change. Until then. It it hell on earth in Latam :(
Just dont do drugs
@@Villex93 Sure Jan
But then what will cops help smuggle and use to violate people's rights?!!! Think of the thin blue gang, I mean line
@@Villex93alcohol is a drug, and a strong one, from which people die unlike marijuana, so it’s a complicated issue
Amen!
I work in low income housing in Seattle and we have seen a lot of tenants dying from fentanyl OD's. Thanks for making this video and helping to educate people. It should be noted that some of the illicitly made fentanyl is insanely resistant to naloxone. I had a tenant that passed away after 4 doses of nasal spray and two shots from the EMTs didn't bring her out of it. It can still be useful, but folks should be aware that it may take more than 1 dose of naloxone to help.
The fentanyl isn't resistant to Naloxone, but the other substances it's mixed or cut with, such as benzos, alcohol, and (recently) animal tranquilizers like xylazine, because they aren't opioids, so they're not affected by opioid antagonists, such as Naloxone. From experience, benzos almost 10x the sedative effects of blues (30mg oxy clones w/fentanyl), and just a small amount will cause an addict's normal dose to become deadly, hence the warnings not to mix them with alcohol or benzos, which is *extremely* dangerous.
Carfentanyl is 100 times more the potency of Fentanyl.
If Fentanyl is combined with Tranquizers, it's even more difficult to counteract.
I was just wondering if it’s possible to make a stronger naloxone- virtually everyone who OD’s on fentanyl requires multiple doses to bring them back
Acrylfentanyl has been reported to be resistant to Narcan.
It's also possible the deceased wasn't actually on fentanyl or not as heavily as thought unless their drugs were tested in a lab. Philadelphia has seen xylazine replacing the fentanyl in the heroin on the street. Xylazine isn't an opioid and was not intended for human use so it's not been studied very well in humans. It has no counter agent so what Philadelphia is finding out is that naloxone may reduce the influence of the heroin or fentanyl that may be mixed with xylazine but this 'tranq' or 'zombie drug' keeps them unresponsive. You also can give someone too much naloxone and cause the OD'd person worse problems if you eliminate all the opioid from their system. The EMTs are aware of the risks but they have no tools to help them with xylazine other than supportive care like you'd do with a coma patient. I feel for the addicts. They didn't ask for this tainted crap but since they're hooked on the stuff it's so difficult for them to kick it.
6:15
Don't be shy.
Tell everyone that the opioids crisis is directly related to the lack of public health care policies in the USA, which pushes the increasingly poor population with little access to medical care into alternative means to cope with painful long term conditions, which sometimes leads to opioid abuse.
Oh, you almost said it.
I was doing my Master of Public Health during the time this was a really big topic and a lot of things can be done with policy chanes, but the biggest problem we face (and this is true for all public health strategies but glaringly so with drug abuse) is the societal view of drug users. There is such a stigma, and honestly hatred of people who use illicit drugs. The things I have heard people say about why the programs shouldnt exist just break my heart and I do not know how people can say those words. In short form the arguments revolve around "they did this to themselves" and "they deserve what happens to them." That is the thought process that shuts down efforts to help people in need. And changing their mind is nearly impossible because they dont really look at drug users as people anymore, they really just look at them like trash. And when Narcan was made free the whole "Why is narcan free, but my insulin isnt" is another thing too, and honestly that question should really be asked, but not how they are framing it, I usually respond to it with "Yeah, why isnt it free? There is likely a reason as to why it isnt free when all over the world its extremely cheap, cuz they can profit of it"
Yeah, I grew up in a popular evangelical church and the sentiment "ban narcan, they deserve to die" is really, _really_ popular. Same as the sentiment behind banning funding for AIDS research. "They deserve to die." Never let them tell you they help those in need.
That was the whole point of the War on Drugs. Nixon hated the hippies a lot, and he wanted to punish them. He and others sought to dehumanize drug users and criminalize them so that people wouldn't care when they were persecuted. It worked.
Thank you for sharing your beautiful perspective. I believe this is the first step in lessening the stigma of drug addiction and dependence, and it could even increase the recovery rate for addicts overall by contributing to a more positive self-image. I am always happy to see a video from one of my science channels that help to shed light on this problem that I've fought since I was 13, and I can tell that the stigma is improving albeit slightly from comments just like yours. For anyone curious, The Institute for Human Anatomy also has a video on Fentanyl!
Seriously! Whenever someone asks "wHy iS nArCaN fReE bUt InSuLiN iSn'T?" their brain breaks when I say that yes, both should be free (and charging for narcan isn't going to make insulin any cheaper either). They're like NPCs that ran out of dialog options
Addicts can't afford anything except free. That's why certain things for them like the methadone are free
Harm reduction is the best thing in the world and no one can change my mind. Immensely happy the Scishow brought it up becaus not enough people understand it
It's good because it saves life but there are a thread of undesired effects from this. I have been sober for over 8 years. I had a "mini stroke". I decided then enough was enough. That was when I started recovery. These safe places (harm reduction) also lessen the fear of the drug. They make it seem "more accepted" to do the drug. Also turning areas of cities into drug camps. We can not count the exact numbers of how many it's helped or hurt. We need something better in place.
@@leannaskiba1 Saving a live outweighs everything else unless you believe in eugenics. Safe injection site do not "lessen the fear of the drug", theres not even any data to suggest that.
Cities will have run down areas, "drug camps" as you put it, whether or not there are harm reduction programs. Thats been true for the last 100 years at minimum.
And given that the whole point of harm reduction is to help people and get them into recovery programs I don't see how its even possible for them to harm someone. People will always, always do drugs. The least we can do is make it so disease doesn't get spread and people don't OD unnecessarily.
Anyone who LOVES it or HATES it that much is brainwashed. It's a complicated issue. If you're THAT sure of your opinion, then you don't actually understand it.
@@UserNameAnonymous
I am quite confident that harm reduction, by definition is a desirable pathway and sceptical about anyone who would suggest otherwise
@fionafiona1146 - you are presupposing that the policies actually reduce harm
I have been prescribed fentanyl for 12 years now for my pain management therapy. It has worked really well. My doctor assured me that as long as the meds were having positive results and i don't break the rules then i never have to stop. Which put my peace of mind at ease because withdrawal is very painful by itself. It looks like i will continue to take fentanyl patches for the foreseeable future. The insurance says they won't pay for them so I must pay out of pocket for my fentanyl prescription. It's $190 a month.
Given how many people in the comments have mentioned being, being close to, or worrying about people who are at risk of overdosing on fentanyl, I wanted to mention that - for those in the US - the FDA approved an over the counter, non-prescription version of a common overdose reverser (Narcan) not too long ago which you can now absolutely acquire & carry the way people carry epipens just in case.
There are also groups working to get emergency boxes (akin to those containing defibrillators for heart attacks) with naloxone in them installed in public places
IIRC a few states have tried (IDR if successfully but I think a few did) to ban Narcan as drug paraphernalia. I hate my country sometimes.
My mother and I both have chronic pain conditions (different problems). Around 2007, both of us were suddenly cut off from muscle relaxer and pain medication we needed in fear of it being addictive. What were we offered as a replacement? She was given Fentanyl. I was offered no replacement at all because my insurance decided I was young enough to "tough it out." And THIS is how many 20-somethings got addicted. I was lucky, my mother sent me her muscle relaxers (I wasn't even offered that much) and it was enough to at least help me to be functional 90% of the time. I still can't get a doctor to give me medication to help with my pain. I'm currently in a massive fibromyalgia flareup, and now THIS video pops up. Rather aptly timed, YT algorithm!
The doctor who thought that fentanyl was less addictive than a muscle relaxer, shouldn't be practicing medicine.
I'm sorry you're going through all that.
@@ds5436 To be fair, that was in 2007, before the studies on Fentanyl were published, and the muscle relaxer we were on was known to be highly addictive. Neither I nor my mother had any problem going off it (it mostly just sucked that they didn't offer a replacement relaxer for me) but then again, my mother also quit smoking cold turkey the day she learned she was pregnant with her first kid and had no bad effects, and I've gone off addictive medications without withdrawals, so perhaps we're genetically immune. (Addiction does run on my dad's side of the family though, so I'm always worried about that.)
@@ds5436 that doctor's licensed must be revoked.
Assume you are aware of this, but just in case, f.m. pain increases exponentially when your vitamin D level plummets, which is common in f.m. patients. Blood test to check Vit. D & if low, Bolus D3 can relieve some of your suffering. Good luck.
Rub some dirt on it and get back out there!
The stigma around this drug for me has always been bad, like as bad as meth or heroin. Then I started going to the hospital for my 2 year olds cancer treatments at like 3 months into his life. We did chemo rounds and check ups (EUAs) and found out they use it every time. I was honestly shocked and started asking questions and yeah.... Its definitely the illicit use that brings out the bad look on it. Its definitely still a scary drug cos after this one chemo treatment my sons oxygen went super low while he was asleep and it was a scary time.
That's true of plenty of drugs to be fair. Amphetamines are used in ADHD treatments, opiates have always been very effective pain killers, cocaine is a powerful topical anaesthetic. There's even promising research on mental health treatments for things like psilocybin and MDMA.
Drugs are tools, it's how we use them that counts.
@@mrjoe5292over 100 years ago, from the late 1880s until the 1920s cocaine was often found in toothache drops, anti-nausea pills and similar early medicines. Until 1929 Coca-Cola contained trace amounts of cocaine, that year they changed to a 100% cocaine free formula we know and enjoy today. Up until around this time I believe Bayer aspirin contained some morphine
@@mrjoe5292amphetamines in ADHD meds are a large reason why kids who use ADHD meds become drug addicts later. It’s a horrible thing to try to treat ADHD with.
I am a friend of someone who died from a fentanyl-laced heroin needle after he relapsed to an addiction. It was about 8 years ago and I still think about him a lot, even though we drifted apart in his last 3 or so years of life.
I feel you man, same thing took my best friend in 2017 =/
Sending hugs to you both. 💖
@@MrAdryan1603 Really? Was your first sentence really all that different from OP's?
We're all grown-ups here. We understand that the words "heroin" and "drugs" are the same in this context.
Ps. I’m so sorry. Iv had 18 great friends and even family members die. Took a break lost there tolorance. Then it goes down to a non user then OD! That’s why the detox is so hard
I’ll Pray for your friend it’s a diesase .
⏲TIMESTAMPS by [K]
00:00 - Introduction to opioid overdose epidemic and fentanyl discussion.
00:31 - Explanation of dangers of illicit fentanyl.
01:06 - Overview of opioids and mu opioid receptors.
02:05 - History and use of fentanyl as a painkiller.
02:34 - Dangers of fentanyl on CNS and respiration.
03:05 - Clarification on fentanyl's danger and dispelling myths.
03:34 - Potency and lethal dose of fentanyl.
04:06 - Fentanyl's potency and speed of action.
04:37 - Unique binding and interaction of fentanyl with receptors.
05:08 - Fentanyl's effects on other receptors and cellular response.
06:09 - Introduction to harm reduction strategies for fentanyl overdoses.
06:39 - Importance of medical care and pain management options.
07:07 - Addressing racial disparities in pain management and prescription opioids.
07:38 - Drug contamination screening resources like fentanyl test strips.
08:06 - Safe injection sites to reduce overdoses and improve access.
09:08 - Naloxone for overdose reversal and wearable injected device concept.
10:09 - Summary of fentanyl as a powerful opioid with addictive properties.
10:36 - Gratitude for viewers and acknowledgment of supporting patrons.
GIVE A LIKE AND FOLLOW ✅
George Floyd enters the chat, Fentanyl!... WHERE? cannot breathe, gimme some , gimme more.
Thank you for handling this with nuance and care.
So im super allergic to everything from vicodin, percoset, morphine and just aout everything else in that camp. Year before last i had to have part of my hand amputated and if it wasnt for the freak chance that im somehow not allergic to fentanyl it was the only thing the could adminester before and after the surgery, i was terrified when they asked if it was ok by me to try it at the hospital but because i knew that they would know what to do if i was allergic or if i ended up getting too much i felt reassured and agreed. Im so happy to know that now i dont have to keep avoiding major surgeries and procedures because fentanyl exists but it was also extreamly evident why people get addicted to it. I completely forgot my hand and chest had been pulverized until i was home from the hospital
Make oxycodone available at the store. Then you’ll have way less overdoses.
My own son died of it in 2021, he was a type I diabetic who needed more help with it medically and mentally, and instead of health “insurance” we should have medical and mental help for all americans…we suck….up to big pharm..
Pharma has nothing to do with the lack of adequate health coverage. The big problem is that health care in the US is, on every level (with very few exceptions) is that it's run on a for profit basis. This incentivates insurance providers to save money, enhancing profits, by withholding services. Pharmaceutical companies make money by developing and selling drugs, not necessarily curing disease. What is needed is to take the profit incentive out of health care on all levels. That's highly unlikely to happen in a pure capitalist system. There's a reason why European socialist countries are overall happier than strict capitalist countries such as the US.
No way! That sounds so heart breaking 😔. Yeah, we need to prevent pain, but T1 diabetes is a killer, having that is for sure nasty.
I’m sorry for your loss that’s really tragic 😔 mental health care SHOULD be a right instead of a luxury for those who can afford it. We have free healthcare but not free mental healthcare here. Which doesn’t make sense because both are equally important
I deal With pain daily and once fentanyl saved my life. I was given 50mg and it was completely safe. I was in the ER for a severe migraine. When I say severe I mean "want to end your life" type pain. I was on the ground and completely paralysed. They gave me fentanyl and it was instant relief. I thought I was going to die.
Do you mean 50mcg? 50mg would kill you. And the shot they give in the ER's for migraines is basically just a combination of an NSAIDS and benadryl, no opiates or opioids in it at all.
@@who4743 The "Migraine buster" that they gave me didn't work so they thought maybe its something physical. I still have an appointment with the mayo clinic to figure out what happened. Its happened over 20 times and they only were able to help me a couple of times. The other times they sent me home and said there was nothing they could do.
@@mickiddymichael7878 ok, your original post sounded like you were just making up stuff. What medications did they try first or did they just jump to fentanyl and that dosage , what tests did they run and specialists did they send you to or did they just jump to sending you to the mayo clinic? Sorry for all the questions, I'm sure you understand how it all seems a bit suspicious. Medical mysteries are such good teaching moments.
@@who4743 nah its all good. I am currently seeing a pain specialist, I have a regular MD, and a therapist. We have other referals to universities just in case they can help somehow. I havent heard back from any yet though. They tried alot of different types of migrain meds and headach meds. Then they were worried about addiction soo they took me off some and am currently trying out some others. The pain killers seem to be the only reliel. They didnt just jump to the mayo right away. it took a couple years before I could get a referal.
@@mickiddymichael7878 you might just be one of the unfortunate people like my kids and me. No prescription migraine medication has worked for us, they just seem to make the migraines worse. We've had to have scans to rule out tumors and lesions. The only thing that brings us any relief is zofran for the nausea be in a dark quite room, eye masks are helpful too sometimes if you can stand that little bit of pressure, sometimes it just hurts too much. And then get two ice packs. One for your forehead and the other for the base of your skull. Cover up with a light blanket if you get too chilly and have someone bring you new ice packs as needed and just try to sleep it off if possible. It's horrendous when they last for several days. But they've found that migraines are caused by small areas of inflammation in the thin membrane between your skull and the brain and that it's far more common in females than it is in males. I'm sorry you suffer with this, they absolutely suck! If you try my tip I hope it at least helps you get through one migraine attack easier. Bodies are just so mean sometimes.
I’m a manager at a pretty big convenient Store chain. So we have to deal with the homeless and other ppl on the fringes of society. And I see the effects of this drug. Seems like every other week I’m hearing someone has died. A co worker of mine’s nephew just died from fentanyl. Smells horrible when they smoke it as well. But here in OKC, it’s a damn pandemic
My wife had cancer and fentanyl was widely prescribed as a patch. At the time the way to dispose of a patch was to flush it. As there was fear that it would be touched during regular disposal. This was 5 years ago but at the time it seemed very disturbing to introduce the drug into the water system. Maybe things have changed. Also I find it strange we don’t exactly know all its binding methods. You’d think that such a powerful and widely prescribed drug wouldn’t have any unknowns still. Maybe I’m being naive.
I would guess it's because the brain is complicated-from what I remember, there's a lot of drugs regulating brain stuff for which we lack a conclusive understanding of how they work, but we have observed that they are effective at regulating various problems. Not exactly a drug, but a related example would be lithium used to treat bipolar disorder. We're not fully sure what's going on but we do know that it works for many people.
Also, definitely with you on the flushing thing! I would think even the regular garbage would be better than that, but then again I'm not anywhere close to a public sanitation professional.
As said in the video, fentanyl is poorly soluble in water. However, it's a bit worrying throwing things that are not toilet paper in the toilet. Won't it cause blockages in the pipes?
Heh. In my opinion, that last bit, just seems like how the game works. "We don't know what it does or how it will affect you, but try it and let us know."
My dad used to always say, "That's why they call it a practice."
My niece’s baby dad and her cousin both died of fentanyl overdose within a week of each other. They all had drug addictions
But I’m glad this drug is around for people in really bad pain.
I understand completely I was born with a fentanyl spinal tap that kills pain below the injection without getting you high but I’ve lost several best friends to fentanyl. my best friend actually wasn’t even an addict he just wanted to try a Percocet once recreationally
Being in pain isn't worse than being dead, and there are other pain relievers.
It should be entirely removed from society.
I'm glad this drug is around to dispose of junkies.
@@andan2293 you'll never know if a "junky" would redeem itself and contribute massively to society in a positive way, like through art
@@chrismanuel9768 No, it's very useful in surgery and other painful medical procedures.
8:00 this whole “safe drug use” point is really misleading and overused. Lived in Portland for 3 years and saw exactly what it looks like to let people do their drugs “safely”. If you don’t know that’s basically dying zombies on the side of the street and a crumbling city infrastructure. I wish people outside of cities understood what certain policies really did over the last 5 years. Drug addicts don’t care if they should do things safely, that’s why they are addicts. They will take the stuff till they are almost dead, and most people who want drugs decriminalized and safely added into society just want to do drugs or sell them. That’s the sad truth but for drug dealers this is a wonderful thing. They don’t get arrested and their customers are growing rapidly cause they can now find drugs anywhere they want. Great ecosystem for a dying community but it’s horrible if you want to live in a thriving environment with healthy people. A hot take I guess but people who do drugs are very happy about how cities are treating this issue. They can just dope up and die eventually without ever having anyone tell them it’s bad or illegal. If I liked doing drugs I would honestly rather get them in a well grounded city or state, where at least I could do drugs myself but not have to see naked people shooting up on the sidewalks.
@3:29 despite what you've heard or seen from fainting cops
this hits so close to home due to my cousin dying from fentanyl cut coke. it's so heartbreaking watching all these medications with good intentions become a source of addiction to the point drs are afraid to prescribe them to patients in need
Drs aren't afraid to prescribe anymore because of addiction, its because of government.
I Lost my Stepdad to it, the doctors proscribed him Oxycodone, and fentanyl patches. He was a kidney patient.
Sorry to hear that dam
I've had chronic pain for years and it took awhile before it was helped. And it was fentenal that actually helped get my pain under control. The doctor prescribed me patches. After awhile I was able to get a handle on the pain and take a lower dose medication . I don't think that without having it I would have been able to do that. I definitely would not want to take anything from the streets. But it was a Godsend for me.
I’ll refer you to where i got mine online
drgavin_trips
On instagram
They gave this to me 10 years ago during delivery as an alternative to an epidural and said, "It'll just take away the bite during contractions and will become less effective which each dose." It was so weird to hear there's a wave of the street version happening right now. It's really bad in my area. Thank you guys for making this video!
I was given it too! Coming off it thought I couldn’t stop shaking and my jaw was locked. I couldn’t even hold my newborn daughter because of the shaking and I ended up vomiting. I can’t even IMAGINE the stuff on the street. It’s horrifying!
Ive been on fentanyl in the hospital a few times. They always make me wear a monitor for my respiratory rate and pulse ox and I've definitely been in the spot where you just sort of forget to take your next breath if you're not paying attention. Then the alarm goes crazy until you start breathing again.
This is a really well handled video. They disspelled all the common misinfo surrounding fentanyl, pointed out that the opioid crisis is a multifaceted social problem that needs social and meical issues addressed first, and that its *unregulated* fent thats the issue. The mention and endorsement of harm reduction is huge because nowhere near enough people know about its benefits.
I mean, its Scishow so I expected them to handle this well but still
Helped my grandpa when he was suffering through cancer treatment. I'm a massive advocate for harm reduction, decriminalisation and safe use sites
This was such a good synopsis of fentanyl. Very proud as a fellow Harm Reductionist! ❤
The problem is that most people dont realize it's not just fentanyl anymore...there are these new research chemicals that arent "as illegal" and very potent and with very little long term studies. Some of them bind to your receptors permanently, causing tolerance to skyrocket quickly. And this also causes a huge amount of the overdoses, because of how long they bind, you can bring someone back with narcan, but once the narcan wears off those rc opioids are still binded and will cause the user to OD even without taking any more of the drug.
And i should say, it's impossible to find real heroin on the streets anymore, it's all fent and rc opioids, with even fent becoming more and more rare. Switzerland had what is, in my opinion, the only solution to this problem. Look it up if you are interested.
Super strong pain meds play an important role for those with chronic pain, such as cancer patients or surgery patients. I have a grandparent who took it for cancer pain before she passed from the disease. She only took it when absolutely necessary, and in the end a family member had to return her pain meds to the pharmacy for disposal. I'm proud to say no one tried to take her meds when she was ill...the door was always unlocked except overnight. Sad to say, a friend of mine who had breast cancer had a family member steal her pain meds, so it does happen.
Yikes... I often have narcotics, but if I'm going to be around anyone I don't live with normally, I tend to keep them on my person for this fear. If someone OD'd I'd just be unable to live with the guilt.
Fentanyl is mostly used for brief intense pain.
@@Memento_Mori_Morals yes, my friend who had breast cancer had her pills hidden up in a cupboard behind other things. The family member knew where they were because their family and was probably around to see her take them out. A stranger would probably not know that they were in the kitchen cupboard behind something like dishware, but close family would.
My grandmother was well known in the community and had an extended family, so there was people visiting at all times during the day. When we had the funeral at the church up the road, the house door was left unlocked because there's no bathroom in the church with running water...its a very rural town...so anyone can pop into the house to pee. I remember seeing my aunt take the bag of leftover pills to the pharmacy. I'm grateful there's no addiction issues in our family and the community cared enough not to try and steal anything.
I commend you on protecting others from misusing your meds. The fewer people who know that you have them, the better. I wish you health and happiness.
@@samsonsoturian6013 well, I remember my mom saying she took fentanyl and morphine for pain. She and my aunt took care if her in her home. I didn't pry or look at the bottles because it wasn't something I would want for myself, so why would I. In the moment, all I cared about wss that she was comfortable. I know she was prescribed them for the liver and stomach cancer pain, and she died a shadow of her healthy self. She was strong and loving, and I'm glad she had those meds to help with her last chapter in life.
Ok...now I'm tearing up...
Hundreds of billions of fentanyl pills come into the US from China.
That's right. Not Mexico, China.
My brother died of a Fentanyl overdose in February. He survived years and years of Herion, but the Fentanyl is what finally did him in.
This has been one of the more difficult aspects of dealing with my chronic pain from Lyme disease and subsequent autoimmune illness. In recent years I have had to go to multiple pharmacies to find one willing to fill a prescription for oxycodone (extremely low-dose, in part because I didn't want more). It was my only script but they began requiring other "maintenance" meds to fill in order to justify filling the oxy for me. Some days it's the only thing that allows me to work in order to pay my bills instead of lying in bed groaning. And I have never abused it, gotten off of it multiple times to try other remedies, yet I still get looks from pharmacy staff and others that reveal contempt as if I am a junkie.
Why don't you just go to another pharmacy or a chain pharmacy like CVS or Walgreens?
@@DoomFinger511 the chain pharmacies are not immune from this. The individual pharmacists at major pharmacies still have a lot of discretionary power when filling prescriptions and they can be very judgemental. I've heard about many people who take suboxone (a medication used by people in recovery to reduce the likelihood of relapse) getting treated poorly by pharmacists at major chain pharmacies. It's really alarming.
@@joetreadonmeYeah, to me, doesn't matter how they treat me. As long as they give me MY DRUGS, then I just don't care anymore. They can think what they want, but just so, I get to go home and dose-up. Because I count the minutes from Walmart to my front door.
Kratom might be too weak until after your tolerance goes down but I had success using it in the past. But if it doesn't work try a different strain or brand there's so many different manufacturers and sources for kratom and they all vary in effects, red vein worked best for my pain and to give me a "drive" to be productive or euphoria.
Pretty simple, Fentanyl isn't the issue. Its the illicit use of illegally manufactured fentanyl that's the issue
It’s the fact that street drugs are being cut and laced with fentanyl to boost their potency by people aren’t drug manufacturers or apothecaries, leading to people dying of fentanyl overdoses when they don’t even realize they’ve taken fentanyl.
Darwinism
Mostly from China and going to Mexico to be mixed by the cartels to be packed on illegal immigrants to sell in the U.S. to pay to get their kidnapped relatives back. If they don't pay, the kid gets whacked in the desert on the border. And with the heat index in TX right now at about 119 F they decay pretty quick.
wow man, it's almost like that's the case with every single drug out there on the streets. What a clever response.
@@hazey5736 no there's minimal to non existent use of medical cocaine, a very specific indication of amphetamines like Vyvanse, vs opioids like fentanyl which I use in the Emergency department daily with patients.
Demonizing fentanyl doesn't solve the issue of its illicit use.
Thank you Reid, it’s good to have as much information as possible available to the general public.
They gave it to my bf in the hospital with iv, he said it sucked because it only lasted about 30 mins while morphine lasted longer. Very glad that he said he didn't like the way it made him feel lol. A friend of mine had the lollipops given to him but idk how he felt about the length of working time.
Glad you clarified that its the illegally made fentyl that is dangerous.
I, unfortunately, was born with a kidney diease that pretty much feels like my organs are trying to stab their way out of my back. I don't take fentyl, but I know what chronic pain was right. My aunt, who recently passed, had a truly horrific diabetes infection that ended up causing necrosis. It was painful just to watch. She was given fetnyl patches at the end of her life, and while it did nothing to slow the progress, it did help her be conscious enough that she could meet her nnewest granddaughter and had a month to spend with her family.
I do take an opiod - something that a lot of people would likely to consider super strong, but honestly it only barely takes the top of my pain. However, even just having that small relief, it helps me keep a job. I cant do much other than work, unfortunately, but on my week vacation I actually got to write and hang out with people, like live a semi-normal life. Its amazing what not being at a 9 on the pain scale all day every day can do for you.
However, most meds for chronic pain I know of aren't fast acting. They're meant to last a while, to give you more release. That's why its given through a patch, I believe.
Patches are simply longer acting, and less likely to cause overdoses. The only complaints that we have had, is from the families of the patient, who complain that their loved one isn't awake and paying attention to THEM, enough. Sadly, we see far too many families who withhold pain medication, because they wish that their poor ill family member is sleeping, having pain relief, instead of just 'putting up with the pain' so that they can pay attention to those insecure relatives.
@@d.e.b.b5788as someone with chronic pain, when it hurts really bad, I'd kill to just be able to sleep. What jerk family... 😅
@@d.e.b.b5788s that a thing? Ive never heard of anything so cruel. Im terrified of pain and would much rather spend my last days in an opium induced fugue than listen to ingrate relations
I mean, it's not the illegally made nature that makes it dangerous, it's the unregulated concentration of what gets sold, and the adulteration of other drugs with fentanyl on the illicit market
The drug is the same, whether legal or not. It’s the controlled dosing that makes medical fentanyl safe and street fentanyl dangerous. Illegal drug makers cut their drugs and add cheap fentanyl to make up for lost potency. They don’t care who dies as long as they make more money.
This video feels like it was made so carefully not to offend pharmaceutical companies that it was almost rendered ineffective.
Calling it an “opioid overdose epidemic” rather than just a “opioid epidemic” it’s just an example. I get not wanting to stigmatize legitimate pain medicine, but that medicine should be used with caution and the realization that you’re taking an addictive and deadly substance…
Thank you for educating people & not throwing pain patients under the bus. The solution to ending deaths due to addiction is more public resources like supervised injection clinics as you mentioned, and giving people the resources they need for mental health treatment.
(tw: sui) The only thing the goverment has done is to go after doctors to make them afraid to prescribe opioids to patients who are in pain. This has led to many suicides of folks with chronic conditions/disabilities who are choosing to end their life instead because their pain isn't controlled anymore.
Public resources is communism. The only free market solution is to let the same people that sold corporate grade heroin sell the cure for it.
I'm one of them, the thought of living like this for even five more years is a big no. So I have refused the surgeries needed to save my life, signed a DNR and am now on hospice. The irony is now that I'm on hospice, my pain is actually addressed and controlled.
@@who4743 I'm so sorry this is happening to you.
I mean overprescription was a massive issue in america, you shouldn't just prescribe it for anything (which happened a lot), as many people got addicted to them. It's a fine balance, and educating people about the risks associated with what they're prescribed is really important
@@EvilTaco Lol fuc that. We need to drive sales. cause ever expanding growth(even for literal corporate manufactured heroin) and the profits it makes are all that matters!!
-Sackler family
Safe injection sites are great!
This way, we know who's using, what they're using, how much they're using, and when they're using, so it's easier to get such people help.
If they're surrounded by an atmosphere of harm reduction, like somebody actually gives a damn, it's going to make them feel less leery about starting into a program.
This ethos is what landed us in such a shithole worldwide. This motherly smothering attitude - whatever my child does, at least he's safe - is the sole reason the current addiction situation is that bad. I have a lot of friends and acquaintances who stared into this particular abyss. Only those who were shocked back to cleanliness by hitting the rock bottom are still alive.
What happened to the ethos of: don’t do drugs. These people do need help, but enabling drug seeking behavior is not help.
@@ajc-ff5cmSafe injection sites don’t “enable drug-seeking behaviour”. They provide clean needles (to prevent the transmission of blood borne diseases such as hiv and hepatitis), trained staff to intervene in case of an overdose, and resources to help people quit. They don’t supply any drugs, nor do they encourage drug use. They merely provide a safer space to those who are struggling with addiction.
@@sergeymyasnikov736Did you happen to watch the video all the way through? Where they pointed out that harm reduction strategies such as safe/supervised injection sites have drastically reduced overdose deaths, which is supported by nearly two decades of research in numerous countries? Have you considered that everyone you knew who “stared into this particular abyss” would still be alive, perhaps recovering/recovered had they had access to better supports such as supervised injection? Not everyone is going to be lucky enough to survive an overdose caused by a tainted supply.
I have been sober 8 years. Near death kept me alive. I'll tell you these safe injection sites may seem to save lives but they are also causing more harm. There needs to be stigma on drug users. Drugs use shouldn't be accepted by society.
Thank you so much for doing this video. I appreciate you going over this topic regardless of the stigma because it is much-needed and not addressed enough. You guys are awesome! ❤❤
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The scariest thing about being given prescription fentanyl was the size of syringe it came in. Seeing how little can be a fatal dose, it seems weird to me how incredibly dilute the injection must have been.
Diluted so much that it makes you wonder why they don't just... prescribe something weaker.
Because something weaker is ... Weaker lol. If you need fast acting pain relief, it is the thing for it, and diluting it makes there be less of a chance of dying. They want people to be medicated, not dead.
@@chrismanuel9768 working in the hospital, we often dilute medications for a 1:1 ration, meaning we have 1mg or 1mcg of medication for every ml to avoid risks of error, especially in urgent situations. It is definitely more user friendly. Might be the case here.
@@Djoee05 my medication is like that. 1 shot of tequila to 1 shot of tequila. 1:1
@@KB-ke3fi good ratio, no mistakes.
Thank you for making an informative (and not fearmongering clickbait) video. I have a family member who's suffered from addiction in several phases of his life and I sure wish the stigma would disappear. It was long ago that addicts were seen as people here in Sweden, sadly.
@@stevexracer4309 It seems like sadly you might've been mesmerised by the myth of neoliberalism or just plainly the capitalistic myth. Peoples worth are not determined by an arbitrary metric such as what a spreadsheet claims are their economic contributions.
@@stevexracer4309 Sounds like you're thinking with pure emotion. Drug addiction is not a moral issue no matter how badly you want it to be one. The vast majority of people who are addicted to drugs actually live normal lives and don't "ruin society". Believe it or not you could be neighbors with someone who takes heroin everyday and you'd never know.
@@alexrogers777 personally I think trolls that can't form cohesive sentences are "a ruin" to society, but i must be anyone who think differently
@@mikel.4809They truly are. They deliberately cause pain for their own amusement. Addicts are trying to mitigate their own pain, whether it’s physical or emotional. Yeah, some of them do terrible things to get their next high, but they’re the outliers.
@@alexrogers777 And, if those people can handle their addiction without causing harm to people around them, more power to them. But, the people who harm others as a result of or to support their addiction are the bane of society. They don't deserve anymore sympathy than drunk drivers.
Rip George Floyd
It breaks my heart that dealers out there know they are killing people but still let it out into the community. Many of these people are homeless/houseless and do not need a drug to make their lives better. The people who are making these drugs for recreational use are a plague to society.
Sadly addicts think of dealers as their friends sometimes but in reality the dealers often have a me vs them mentality. They're trying to pay their bills and live their own lives and ofentimes they really look down on addicts if they're not addicted the way the addict is. It's pretty gross.
I'm constantly accused of drug-seeking behaviour by the local ER staff whenever I have to turn up, solely due to a psychiatric diagnosis.
I don't even drink tea FFS 😂
Something didn't add up in the video and I googled the weight of a US penny (2.5 grams). Well, there is indeed a mistake in the video - it's not around 1/10 the weight of a penny, it's closer to 1/1000. I think this was a missed opportunity to show how strong it really is
Fentanyl overdose can easily cause suffocation. RIP George Floyd
What? You seem confused lol
Make sure you celebrate May 25th every year; it's been 3 years since Saint George has been drug free. Congratulations, George; keep up the good work!
LOL.... Somebody is confused, misinformed, or BOTH.
@@fiercecamarosscould be you bud, cuz it's a fact. I knew people that didn't survive a lower dose of fentanyl than George did. It's tragic. What's your point?
Sounds like what happened to George Floyd.
As a former coke/meth user i have experienced the fenny cut. I noticed when i felt like a zombie and asked my dude to 1. Hows my eyes "pin pricks" 2. Hows my mental condition "mostly out there"
3. Hit that dude up and have him come here to get more so when we get more to test it.
Ps yes we tested it before but since it was a reliable source we only tested potency of it. After that cut him off and ruined business for him to anyone.
Thank you for telling others a seller is cutting with fentanyl. You probably saved someone's life.
@@LordWaterBottle its not THAT uncommon (alltho it also still isnt common) that users started testing their drugs at this point, there are chats set up within drug communities for us to look out for one another because no one is even trying to keep us safe as we go through the worst points in our lives
Unfortunately, there are people, some in prominent political positions, that are absolutely fine with addicts dying of overdoses, and actively oppose efforts to treat addiction. They would far rather treat addiction as a criminal problem instead of a medical or social problem, and addicts as criminals instead of patients. Compassion is foreign to them.
I remember fentanyl from 2008. Me and my dad were victims of the opioid epidemic. He got his hands on EVERYTHING. He came over and gave me a fentanyl patch twice, and warned me to wear it for only an hour, because it was deadly if abused. Behind his back, I chewed the patches. I would pour sweat and fall asleep shortly after. I sobered up in 2015 and my dad died from lung cancer in 2020. I look back at myself and I wish I could go back in time and kick my own ass, because stupidity on that level is unforgivable. I'm so angry at the person I used to be.
Don’t be mad at yourself. It’s like a kid who doesn’t know any better. Are you going to yell at a child for not knowing? Do the same for yourself. You know now. We all make mistakes. It’s how we learn! ❤
Thanks for bringing this up.
There's still hope. ❤
It's a shame we can't just approach things pragmatically like this due to politicians and media making it about them instead of actual people. Good video. Hopefully policy changes address mental health issues, crime/punishment, and allowing professional to do their job properly without reprisal.
Thank you for talking about fentanyl and mentioning naloxone. This is a really important issue and I wish more people were talking about harm reduction strategies when discussing the opioid crisis.
I have to say, this is the first SciShow video I've seen since Hank got sick and it kind of stings knowing why he's not there.
What happened to him?
@@squarz He is currently going through chemo to treat Hodgkin's lymphoma
@@squarz He has early stage Hodgkins lymphoma
@@squarz He’s currently going through treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He’s had to take a break from everything due to the chemo and all but in all likelihood he’ll be OK. Hodgkin’s is actually very treatable nowadays. So I’m sad he’s sick but I’m glad he’ll likely recover.
GET WELL HANK!!!
❤ya bro!
I grew up in a very conservative house hold and held pretty conservative ideals. growing up I heard about those safe injection sites and thought it was a really stupid idea. Well I got addicted to alcohol during the pandemic and am now in recovery. I have met alot of addicts and these peoples lives are important. They are going to do drugs. And having a safe place to do them is important.
Thank you for this. I'm a harm reduction outreach worker
Thank you for your work.
@@Stephanie_Vincent
Thank you for this video!!! I've been seeing so many ads about needing to test for fentanyl and I have had no idea why or if I should be concerned. I really appreciate this in-depth overview
Such types of drugs is good for those who are terminally ill because you're dying so anything to relieve pain is good but otherwise it shouldn't be prescribed to people.
They give that to me for endoscopy and colonoscopy. It is actually safe in small doses. But it still scares me.
Narcan is an almost instantaneous antidote for the effects of fentanyl. I would demand it be on hand at all times.
I had those same treatments late last year and the only "pain" relief that I got was Gas and air for the colonoscopy.
@@johnmccallum8512 Next time, give me a call. And street fentanyl is pennies on a dollar compared to hospital charge.
@@johnmccallum8512 the fent is mostly out of your system before you are conscious, its standard procedure in colonoscopy, and many people dont realize that when doctors put you under, you can still feel pain and wake up, so they not only give you something to knock you out, but also something for the pain/discomfort, or a number of other compounds to do different things, so this wasnt for the pain relief it was for the anesthetic coefficient with the other compounds you were given. Also going up and down this you are going to read a lot about colonoscopies because the standard procedure is to use fent as the pain assist for putting you under, and another drug to do more of a knockout effect.
Very informative video. Really appreciate that you went hard into the harm reduction stuff.
Fentynal mixed with dmso and painted on the door handles of your enemies,the dmso makes the Fentynal absorb in to the skin fast and fatal, dmso can be purchased from any horse supply shop or online. Dmso makes Fentynal an easy and super fast deal.
It's also 100× more deadly to cops, at least, that's what they seem to think
Cops are 100x deadly to me, so we have a fair tie here.
Morphine can be highly addicting too. I was given Morphine through an IV in an ambulance and felt a euphoric rush like I've never experienced before. It went straight to my head and i experienced complete relaxation and happiness for the first time in my life. No stress, no pain, just a feeling of peace and relaxation. I could have easily became addicted if i sought out the drug illegally because of how good Morphine made me feel and trying to recreate that feeling
Well, of course; all opioids are (despite marketing in the late 90s that some don't need to be).
Fentanyl is just an especially dangerous one that is being put into street drugs (when it doesn't even make sense to... why are they killing their customers?)
I wonder if some people just don't feel it, I was given morphine a few times at the hospital and all it did was take away the pain and make me drowsy
@@ballistic_goat yeah, that probably is true.
There are people for whom alcohol doesn't do much and those who are alcoholics essentially from their first drink.
Have to be physiological differences.
@@michaelmicekIt wouldn’t surprise me if when they say someone has an “addictive personality” that instead it’s something about their body that makes them ultra susceptible.
“How to make using needles illegally safer.” Unreal
I didn't know about fentanyl until recently someone contaminated cocaine with it in my country and several people died. Even after knowing it was contaminated and in lethal doses, their addiction was stronger, got sicker and sicker, and died. It was big on the news, as we have a big cocaine consumption issue in my country and many feared theirs could be contaminated. There was a recomendation to throw the cocaine if any of the symptoms was present.