Fentanyl Named “Deadliest Drug” According to CDC

According to the DEA, “Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid 80-100 times stronger than morphine. Pharmaceutical fentanyl was developed for pain management treatment of cancer patients, applied in a patch on the skin.” This new opioid is wreaking havoc across areas of Canada and the U.S., resulting in thousands of overdoses per year. Fentanyl’s potency is unheard of and the epidemic is reaching critical proportions.

It acts quicker than heroin and is much more potent; the majority of fentanyl production takes place in clandestine labs in Mexico and overseas labs, so quality control is out of the question with non-pharmaceutical grade fentanyl. The problem arises from the lack of knowledge users have with the milligram dosage in unknown powders. It is also sometimes mixed with heroin – without the drug users’ knowledge – to give the illusion of very high-grade heroin.

The Opioid Epidemic

Fentanyl is being mixed into heroin, cocaine, and other drugs – either knowingly or unknowingly to customers – due to how cheap and powerful the synthetic drug is. For example, about 40% of people listed as dying of a cocaine overdose also had fentanyl in their system. In 2011, only 4% of overdoses were contributed to Fentanyl. By 2016, 29% of drug overdoses were caused by fentanyl, either by itself or mixed with other drugs.

A drug dealer isn’t someone you can trust, yet people of all ages and walks of life will put their lives in the hands of a plastic baggy. Even the dealers may not know that their heroin or cocaine has been adulterated with Fentanyl. There were 18,335 overdose deaths involving fentanyl in the USA in 2016, followed closely by heroin with a death count of 15,961. To put it in perspective, fentanyl deaths have risen from 1,300 in 2013 to 18,335 in 2016.

What to do About Fentanyl

There isn’t one easy answer or solution to the opioid epidemic, which has reached almost every corner of North America. The best thing that you can do for yourself – or a loved one suffering from addiction to other drugs – is to get clean immediately. There is another analog of fentanyl called ‘carfentanil’, which is a tranquilizer that is used to sedate or kill large animals, such as elephants. Carfentanil is 100 times stronger than fentanyl and 10,000 times stronger than morphine. 10mg can put an elephant to sleep or kill one, with the average elephant weighing 75 times that of a 200lb human male. The results of even 1mg in a human body can be deadly.

We urge anyone suffering from addiction to substances like cocaine or heroin to get help immediately. Dealers and users are not always aware of the substances they are buying and may unknowingly overdose because of it.

Your Recovery Resource for Fentanyl Addiction

Someone dies every day due to the accidental ingestion of fentanyl, as overdoses are being reported in casual and recreational users, not just people who are severely addicted. If you or a loved one is suffering from drug addiction, immediate intervention is necessary. Contact us at (855) 727-2887 for our services, which include intervention, post-treatment support, coaching, sober companions, and sober transport.

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How To Support an Addict Who Has Relapsed

Relapse- this can be the scariest word to the loved one or family member of an individual with substance use disorder or alcohol use disorder. But unfortunately, relapse is an all too common part of the journey towards sobriety. While the right Philadelphia interventionist or sober escort in Virginia can give your loved one the best shot at long-term recovery, addiction education is no guarantee that they won’t experience a relapse. However, it’s certainly still worth pursuing an interventionist in South Jersey, an interventionist in Richmond, Virginia or sober coaching in Manhattan. Recovery care monitoring and recovery care management are two incredibly helpful tools in helping your loved one, friend or family member start a sober life they can feel proud of. However, in the case that they have relapsed, an Atlanta interventionist will tell you that there is certain protocol to follow- and also certain things to avoid. Without further ado, here are a few tips to remember when an addict in your life has relapsed.

Remember That This Is Not Your Battle to Fight

If you can understand that the battle with addiction and subsequent relapse is an addict’s to fight, this will help you cope with your situation. A major premise of the philosophy behind Al-Anon and Nar-Anon is that you can only control what you can control- and this does not include your addict or their ability to stay sober. Not only will understanding this help you, but it will help to foster a sense of autonomy in your addict that often aids recovery.

Hold Your Ground

Ray Isackila, assistant clinical and administrative director of addiction recovery services at University Hospitals in Cleveland, says it is important to stay firm when a loved one struggling with substance use disorder or alcohol use disorder has relapsed. “Hold addicts accountable for their recovery from the relapse, just as it was important to hold them accountable for their addiction in the first place.”

Be Encouraging

Helpful things you can do when a loved one has relapsed include encouraging them to talk to a counselor or sponsor, to go to an addiction support group meeting, and generally to redirect them to their original addiction treatment plan. Often times, Sober escorts in Virginia, Washington D.C. sober coaching and New York sober companions can be helpful additions to your attempts to encourage your addict back towards recovery and sobriety.

What Not to Do-

Perhaps the most important thing not to do is to dismiss the problem. “You don’t make excuses for the addict. It’s also crucial that you don’t try to take on your loved one’s problems,” says Isackila. Furthermore, don’t try to take away any guilt about the relapse, as this can often actually be a helpful tool to get addicts back into sobriety.

If your loved one has relapsed, it can often be an upsetting, emotional time. This highlights the importance of listening to the above advice, as well as enlisting help. If you’re looking for a Virginia interventionist, a Connecticut sober coach, or a Manhattan sober escort, look no further than Recovery Care Partner. Recovery Care Partner will help you and your addict garner the tools necessary for long-term sobriety.

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Understanding Addiction: Professionals Definition of “Addiction”

It is often difficult for someone that is suffering from addiction, substance abuse, or chemical dependency to understand or admit that they have a problem.

Understanding Addiction

It can be as difficult, if not more difficult, for the family and loved ones of that person to admit the problem. The words “addict” and “alcoholic” can carry negative connotations, so people can often shut down based on shame, guilt, anger, and/or embarrassment at being classified as such.

However, it is vital for someone suffering from a substance use disorder as well as for their family and loved ones to understand that addiction is a disease because the earlier someone gets help or intervened upon, the earlier the disease can be arrested, treated, and put into remission while the person begins their recovery.

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