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Fentanyl Side Effects You Should Know
Fentanyl’s side effects are similar to those caused by other powerful opioids. When an opioid such as fentanyl is ingested, it primarily affects the Mu opioid receptors.
Like other opioids, when fentanyl is used without medical supervision, the user risks many side effects, including the potential of death due to respiratory depression. A bizarre finding is that these side effects are not a deterrent to a person seeking the drug’s potent euphoric effects. The average person would find it hard to believe that people would want to ingest a drug that could potentially end their life.
When a substance user can obtain a drug known for its incredible euphoric effects, they will stop at nothing to achieve those effects, even if death is an option.
It is not uncommon to hear of drugs being sold in an area that has caused many overdoses only for the substance users to flock to that location.
How can this be?
Fentanyl users and other opioid users believe that if the drug is good enough to cause an overdose, it must be an incredible high that’s worth the risk. They also believe that the people who overdosed were less intelligent than they are and were willing to risk their life with the mindset that they just won’t use as much as the others who almost died. “Those other people didn’t know what they were doing” is a common thought. For the addict, the reward is worth the risk of death.
The side effects the fentanyl user is willing to risk death for include constipation, nausea, confusion, extreme drowsiness, respiratory depression, and dependency on the drug.
All of the risks seem foolish for a short-acting state of euphoria. The other risk/reward for many substance users is making sure you have your fentanyl to avoid the overwhelming, uncomfortable side effects of withdrawal once dependency has set in.
Other side effects include loss of jobs, friends, and family. Some have reported felony convictions and incarceration, along with complete devastation to their family systems.
It is important to remember the drug fentanyl has medical uses that are very effective when administered under the care of a doctor or authorized medical professional.
Almost all of the dangers associated with fentanyl are when the drug is used outside of its intended medical purpose and while outside the care of a doctor or authorized medical professional.
In this blog, we will look at the following:
- What type of drug is fentanyl?
- Is fentanyl an opioid?
- What is fentanyl used for?
- How is fentanyl taken?
- What are the side effects of fentanyl?
- What are the withdrawal symptoms of fentanyl?
- What are the dangers of fentanyl?
- Fentanyl and other drug and alcohol interactions
What Type of Drug is Fentanyl?
Fentanyl is a powerful opioid medication often used for severe pain and sedation, with its effects very similar to other strong opioids such as Morphine and Heroin. It mainly affects the Mu opioid receptor, although it also affects the Delta and Kappa receptors.
The most significant difference is fentanyl is approximately 100 times stronger than morphine and 40 times stronger than heroin.
Fentanyl is so potent that it often requires far more of the life-saving, opioid-effect-reversing drug Narcan to save someone’s life from an overdose.
The blend of fentanyl mixed with heroin circulating in our communities has taken a toll on first responders and other medical professionals when called to the scene of an overdose.
Addiction Recovery is possible. Read our complete guide here.
Is Fentanyl an Opioid?
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid. The easiest way to explain a synthetic opioid is, synthetic opioids are manufactured in a lab, whereas natural opioids such as morphine and codeine are not.
Other synthetic opioids include buprenorphine (Suboxone & Subutex), Methadone, and Demerol. There are semi-synthetic opioids, too; part natural, part man-made. Heroin is semisynthetic, as is Hydrocodone (Norco & Vicodin) and Oxycodone (Percocet & Oxycontin).
What is Fentanyl Used For?
When used appropriately, fentanyl is administered for severe pain control and sedation for surgical procedures. Fentanyl is extremely powerful and has the potential to cause respiratory depression resulting in death.
Fentanyl should only be used when administered under the care of an authorized medical professional. Many other pain relievers are strong enough to relieve severe pain. Fentanyl is often used when a chronic pain patient has built up a tolerance to other opioids.
Fentanyl is often the pain reliever of choice by physicians whose patients suffer from kidney disease or kidney failure. The metabolization of fentanyl in the body has less of an effect on the kidneys than other opioids.
How is Fentanyl Taken?
When prescribed or administered by a medical professional, fentanyl is taken through an IV, muscle injection, a skin patch (like a nicotine patch), through the nose via nasal spray, and in some cases, through the patient’s spine.
The fastest way for a drug to reach the bloodstream is through inhalation. Although intravenous fentanyl use would provide the largest individual dose, smoking the drug would allow fentanyl to affect you the quickest.
Fentanyl is not manufactured in powder or a smokable form. Unfortunately, there are illegal producers of fentanyl that make this possible and often mix the powder form with heroin. So now you have one of the most potent synthetic drugs and arguably the most potent semi-synthetic drug combined. This combination is sadly making its way into our city streets and the bloodstreams of our society.
What are the Side Effects of Fentanyl?
The side effects of fentanyl are similar to other opioids. If you were to research the side effects of Heroin, Morphine, Dilaudid, etc., you would see relatively the same thing. When we speak of side effects, we prefer to break the side effects down into three categories.
The first is the side effects of the drug as a result of its use.
The second is the side effects as a result of the withdrawal of the drug.
The third side effect is the environmental side, such as destruction to people, places, and things due to its use by a substance user.
Other than death, we believe the environmental side effects pose some of the greatest dangers of fentanyl use.
The side effects that come with the use of the drug can happen to both those who use it as medically prescribed and, on a larger scale, to those that use it outside of its intended medical purpose.
The withdrawal side effects can affect those who use the drug as medically prescribed when prescribed the drug for a long time. For substance users, the side effects of withdrawal can be far more severe and uncomfortable.
The third side effect, and dangers of fentanyl, will only occur to those using fentanyl in an abusive way and outside the direction of medical professionals.
These side effects are what happens to substance users when they use fentanyl for recreational purposes with no regard for how it affects everyone and everything else.
Side Effects of Fentanyl Use
When fentanyl is abused, the side effects will become greater, and the risk of respiratory depression and death will be far more common. There are some side effects you often will only see when abused. We will list those too.
- Euphoria
- Confusion
- Constipation
- Nausea
- Respiratory Depression
- Dependency
- Death
When dependency leads to substance use, additional side effects may include: anger, irritability, manipulation, dishonesty, arrests, accidents, nodding off, house fires (when you fall asleep with a cigarette, for example), and death. See environmental side effects below for more.
What are the Withdrawal Symptoms of Fentanyl?
The second category of side effects is withdrawal symptoms. As for side effects of use, if you researched other potent opioids, you would see very similar data.
The withdrawal symptoms listed can be experienced by users of fentanyl when taken as medically prescribed for long periods of time. They can and will be experienced by those who abuse fentanyl on a far grander scale.
Substance users that choose fentanyl as their drug of choice will experience some additional withdrawal symptoms, including the following:
- Insomnia
- Restless leg syndrome
- Irritability
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Lack of energy
- Lack of appetite
- Fentanyl cravings
- Diarrhea
- Runny nose
- Watering eyes
- Sneezing
- Excessive yawning
- Muscle aches and cramps
- Dilated pupils
- Clammy skin and sweating
- Hot & Cold Flashes
- Headaches
- Vomiting
When dependency leads to substance use, withdrawal symptoms can include:
- Theft from loved ones to buy more fentanyl
- Stories of distressed situations to others in an attempt to obtain money for more fentanyl
- Dishonesty to doctors about medical conditions to obtain more fentanyl (Doctor Shopping)
- Prescription Fraud (obtaining other opioids illegally through the pharmacy)
- Obtaining Heroin or other opioids on the streets to help address the withdrawal symptoms
Dangers of Fentanyl
This is where we discuss the third category of side effects. When we refer to the environmental side, we are referring to the law of unintended consequences. In other words, the effects of fentanyl on the user, their loved ones, and society due to dependency and abuse of fentanyl.
This stage and list of side effects are reserved for the substance use disorder client who is using fentanyl on an abusive level and outside the supervision of a medical professional.
- Loss of job or career (or inability to start one)
- Loss of a spouse or significant other (or inability to form relationships)
- Divorce or separation
- Legal issues
- Medical issues
- Financial issues
- Overdoses
- Living with parents (can’t afford to live on their own)
- Destruction of the family (family constantly is at odds over the fentanyl use)
- Dishonesty
- Loss of children
- Divorce
- Accidents
- Overdoses
- Death
The dangers of fentanyl are rooted in the selfishness of the substance user. The toll one substance user has on society is astounding.
All of the resources that are pulled into the problems that arise due to fentanyl use far exceed the resources a family would have to endure if they did something about it. The fentanyl user will most likely continue unless the family of the substance user or society steps in to address the problem.
The burden on society resulting from substance use disorders is far more significant than what is spent on treating substance use disorders. Treatment for fentanyl use is far less a financial burden on families than the alternative of doing nothing, which proves to be far more expensive.
Fentanyl and Other Drug and Alcohol Interactions
Any drug abuse can be dangerous when mixed with fentanyl. Alcohol, a central nervous system depressant, can worsen any of the side effects listed above.
The biggest challenge faced with fentanyl is the combination of fentanyl and heroin being sold illegally on the internet and our city streets right now. Any time you mix these two powerful substances, you risk your life to an overdose that can result in respiratory depression and death.
When mixing fentanyl with other drugs, it may be more difficult for first responders and other medical professionals to address a crisis such as an overdose.
Fentanyl should only be used while under the care of an authorized medical professional. A list of all current medications and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and supplements should be disclosed to your medical professional prior to ingesting fentanyl.
Fentanyl is so powerful that law enforcement agents often wear gloves when handling any amount of it because it can be absorbed through the skin. Even the smallest amount of fentanyl ingested can cause death, especially to those new to the drug.
Fentanyl in and of itself is dangerous. Any time it is introduced with alcohol, stimulants, depressants, mental health medications, other prescribed medications, or other opioids, you can increase your chances of overdose and death.
Take Back Control of Your Life
A substance use disorder affects more than just the substance user. The toll on the family and society is significant. Substance use is not a victimless crime, it rips through households and communities like a tornado. Regardless of the drug of choice, the solution to a substance use disorder centers on the behaviors and coping skills of the substance user.
The inability to effectively process and work through resentment, as well as past trauma and horrification, are common culprits. However, the reasons run far deeper and wider than just those examples.
Any substance use disorder can be devastating, and substance use involving opioids, such as the powerful drug fentanyl, can be dangerous. Fentanyl users are risking overdose and death every single time they use the drug.
Overdoses and deaths as a result of opioids, including fentanyl, are on the rise. As professionals, we understand what substance users and their families are going through.
For some of us professionals, it is through our experiences in the field, and for others, it is our experiences that led us to the field in which we are given the privilege to help those in need.
We look forward to helping you and your family and anyone else you know who may need help for their substance use that involves fentanyl or other opioids.
As we stated, the resources utilized to help someone recover from fentanyl use are far less than the resources used during fentanyl use.
The toll addiction takes on the substance user, their family, and others is devastating. Contact us – we would like to help, so please let us know how we can.
An intervention is not about how to control the substance user; it is about how to let go of believing you can.
“The most formidable challenge we professionals face is families not accepting our suggested solutions. Rather, they only hear us challenging theirs. Interventions are as much about families letting go of old ideas as they are about being open to new ones. Before a family can do something about the problem, they must stop allowing the problem to persist. These same thoughts and principles apply to your loved one in need of help.”
Mike Loverde, MHS, CIP