According to the National Center for Drug Abuse Statistics, over 96,700 people die from drug overdoses in a year. In seven out of every ten overdose deaths, opioids are components. Because fentanyl is so powerful– 100 times more potent than heroin, please tell your kids not to order drugs from snapchat or buy them off the street or even receive from a trusted friend. The only people you should get your prescriptions directly from are pharmacies and doctors.
To be on the safe side, it would be wise to have an easy-to-use 4 mg. nasal spray that can reverse the effects of an opioid in your home. This antidote is called naloxone or NARCAN or ZIMHI. It’s available in every U.S. state, Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico as of last year. You can buy it at your local pharmacy without a prescription. The cost of a single naloxone rescue kit ranges from approximately $22-60 for intranasal kits. It only works for opioids.
Schools, vending machines, EMTs and some police officers have the medicine at the ready. Public health centers, community centers and harm-reduction programs may store it as well. Narcan should be kept away from sunlight in a cool place and not in a car’s glove box. It is found to be chemically stable for ten months after its labelled expiration date.
Would You Know The Signs of An Overdose?
Your child may not respond to you and be breathing slowly or irregularly. He can’t be aroused. Stay with the child and call 911 and get the paramedics to bring your child to the Emergency Room while still breathing. The E.R. will have NARCAN as well.
How do YOU Administer The Antidote?
Lay the person on their right side. Insert the device into the nose. Push the button. If it doesn’t respond, use the second device. You can give additional attempts, every two to three minutes if the first dose doesn’t work on the patient. NARCAN can only last about 30-90 minutes in the blood so you have to work quickly. The medicine is only to be used in the nose. If it gets on other body parts, wash them immediately.
Unbeknownst to your child, he may be unintentionally ingesting fentanyl, thinking he is taking a pill that looks familiar to him and therefore must be safe.
Sources: Mayo Clinic, US FDA, Newswise
Wesley Cullen Davidson
Wesley Cullen Davidson is an award-winning freelance writer and journalist specializing in parenting. Currently, she is targeting her writing about recovery to parents whose children have substance abuse disorders.