By: Roberta G

When we discuss fentanyl we understand that most people don’t even know what fentanyl is or what it does. We would like to take this opportunity to discuss exactly that. Fentanyl is one of the leading causes of death within the scope of drugs, and we want to make sure that we are doing our best in educating others about the dangers of fentanyl. According to the DEA, “fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50-100 times stronger than morphine”. Morphine is a drug that medically should be used in very small doses, otherwise can cause severe consequences as well as death. To put into perspective just how bad fentanyl is, just 2mg of fentanyl is considered a lethal dose, which compared to a penny is about 1/20th of its size.

Pharmaceutical Fentanyl was created for the purpose of being a sort of pain management treatment for patients suffering from cancer, and it was to be applied as a patch onto the skin of the patient. As stated earlier, fentanyl is incredibly strong, so because of this, it had begun being abused. Heroin and fentanyl have some of the same effects when abused so as a result of this, fentanyl was often added to heroin to increase potency or to make the heroin believed to be more potent. Users were often purchasing heroin without knowing that there was fentanyl within the drug, and this has become an incredibly widespread issue with many other drugs now.

Currently, we see fentanyl being snuck into many other drugs even including marijuana and this leads to more people overdosing, unbeknownst to them that they have just consumed lethal amounts of fentanyl. Fentanyl, because of its severity, can also cause symptoms stated by the DEA such as: “relaxation, euphoria, pain relief, sedation, confusion, drowsiness, dizziness, nausea and vomiting, urinary retention, pupillary constriction, and respiratory depression”. Because of fentanyl’s high potency, and as stated before the cases in which it is mixed with heroin as a way to make a more high-potency drug, this is happening with other drugs like cocaine and methamphetamine.

With all of this being said, it is important to remember that fentanyl is not to be taken lightly and that it can be snuck into any illegal drug. Opioids are the primary driver in deaths related to overdosing and the number keeps raising throughout the years we want to make sure we are doing our best in educating about the dangers and realities of drugs, like fentanyl. We want to leave you with the reminder to always be careful and mindful of your decisions and that we are always here for you! Remember, if you or someone you know is seeking help please feel free to check our blog for further resources about different treatment options or call the SAMHSA helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357)