Fentanyl Addiction, Abuse, and Symptoms

How fentanyl affects the brain

The brain contains many nerve cells called opioid receptors. Fentanyl binds to these receptors, relieving pain and making the user feel happy and relaxed. One of the reasons fentanyl is so potent is because it binds tightly to the opioid receptors. As a result, very little fentanyl is needed to produce a state of euphoria. Additionally, fentanyl reaches the opioid receptors much faster than other narcotics, relaxing the user and producing an extreme sense of happiness within just a few minutes.

Behavioral signs of fentanyl usage and abuse

Some fentanyl users display significant behavioral changes due to their misuse of this substance. Working adults may start calling in sick to work, showing up late, or asking to leave early. Difficulty performing work duties is another sign that an adult may be misusing fentanyl or another opioid. Parents may have difficulty performing tasks, such as attending school events and helping their children with homework. Adolescents who misuse fentanyl may start skipping school or hanging out with new friends. They may also quit participating in clubs or after-school activities.

An individual who used to be financially stable might start to show signs of financial hardship. For example, someone who’s misusing fentanyl may overdraw their checking account or accumulate a large amount of debt. Some users take out loans to fund their fentanyl habits. Stealing money or asking to borrow money from friends and family may indicate that an individual needs more money to buy fentanyl. Other behavioral signs of fentanyl abuse include spending more time alone, frequent mood changes, lack of personal hygiene, sudden changes in appetite, and sleeping more or less than usual. Some people who misuse fentanyl engage in other risky behaviors, such as speeding or driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, making them more likely to get in trouble with the police.

How fentanyl affects the body

In the human body, the opioid system regulates pain, body temperature, respiration, and stress response. When fentanyl binds to mu opioid receptors, it can cause respiratory depression, which is characterized by a breathing rate of eight to 10 breaths per minute. Respiratory depression can also cause reduced oxygen saturation, leaving an individual at an increased risk for heart attack and other complications associated with low oxygen levels. Fentanyl can also cause nausea, vomiting, constipation, and other undesirable physical effects.

Early physical effects of fentanyl

Fentanyl starts working within minutes, resulting in drowsiness, slowed heart rate, and a slower breathing rate. Some of these early physical effects of fentanyl may be dangerous, especially in individuals with a history of heart or lung problems.

Severe and long-term physical effects of fentanyl

It only takes a small amount of fentanyl to produce severe side effects, increasing the risk of overdose for users who take more fentanyl than prescribed, or use fentanyl in a manner that’s inconsistent with the prescription instructions. For example, some people misuse fentanyl patches by tearing the patches open and removing the gel inside. Fentanyl patches are supposed to release a steady supply of the substance over several days. Users who inject, smoke, or ingest the gel receive a large dose of fentanyl all at once, increasing the risk of sudden death.

In some cases, overdose occurs because users are unaware that they’re taking fentanyl. This usually occurs in one of two ways. First, fentanyl may be mixed in with heroin, cocaine, and other illicit substances. A heroin or cocaine user may not know that fentanyl has been mixed in, resulting in an unintentional overdose. Second, illegal laboratories are now producing fentanyl pills that look like anti-anxiety medications or other pain relievers. If someone takes one of these pills by mistake, an overdose can occur.

The slowed breathing rate caused by fentanyl can be dangerous for some users. According to the American College of Cardiology, fentanyl is particularly risky for people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and other lung problems.

Fentanyl may also increase the risk of complications in people who have obstructive sleep apnea, which causes multiple interruptions in breathing during sleep. People with OSA who take fentanyl may develop abnormal heart rhythms or have heart attacks due to the worsening of their breathing problems.

Rates of non-medical fentanyl usage have increased worldwide

When fentanyl was first introduced, it was used mostly to anesthetize people for surgery or to supplement other forms of anesthesia. Within the past 30 years, however, pharmaceutical companies have introduced new forms of fentanyl, and have marketed fentanyl for uses other than anesthesia. For example, the introduction of an extended-release patch made fentanyl useful for treating people with chronic pain caused by cancer and other ailments. As a result, the supply of fentanyl increased, giving more people access to this substance.

Although fentanyl use has certainly increased in the United States, the problem of fentanyl misuse is not a uniquely American one. According to the 2018 World Drug Report published by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, fentanyl is one of the most frequently abused pharmaceutical opioids in Europe. In Central and Western Europe, many heroin users start abusing fentanyl because they’re looking for an alternative to heroin. The use of fentanyl and fentanyl derivatives is especially prevalent in Estonia, which recorded 10.6 fentanyl overdose deaths per 100,000 inhabitants in 2017.

In Canada, many of the 2,066 opioid overdose deaths that occurred in the first six months of 2018 were attributed to fentanyl and fentanyl analogs. Opioid overdose deaths are more common in Ontario, British Columbia, and Alberta than in other parts of Canada.

Fentanyl is also infiltrating the drug supplies of Thailand, Indonesia, India, and other Asian countries, increasing the risk of overdose in people who use heroin and cocaine. While some countries have responded by tightening their drug laws, others are attempting to prevent additional overdose deaths by implementing new policies aimed at decriminalizing the use of substances, such as kratom and cannabis.

In the United States, fentanyl usage is increasing due to a significant increase in the fentanyl supply

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reports that in 2016, approximately 0.1% of the U.S. population reported misusing Fentanyl within the prior 12-month period. More people are misusing fentanyl due to an increase in the amount of fentanyl produced by illegal laboratories in China and other Asian countries. Some of this fentanyl is trafficked over the U.S.-Mexico border, making more fentanyl available to non-medical users. In some cases, this illicit fentanyl arrives in the form of a powder and is turned into tablets or added to heroin and cocaine once it’s in the United States.

In 2017, more than 2,000 kg of fentanyl were seized in North and South America; much of it was seized within the United States, particularly in towns along the Mexican border. For example, a number of seizures occurred in San Diego and Tucson, which are approximately 17 miles and 50 miles away from the border, respectively. Two cartels, the Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación and the Sinaloa cartel, are responsible for much of the fentanyl trafficking that takes place between Mexico and the United States.

Another issue of concern in the United States is the use of fentanyl with other drugs. According to the 2018 World Drug Report, approximately 500,000 people used heroin in combination with a prescription opioid, such as fentanyl, in 2017; this is greater than the number of people who used heroin alone.

As explained by Jeremy Barnett, a Credentialed Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Counselor, “Fentanyl is, at this point, almost solely associated with the increasing number of opioid-related overdoses in the United States. When people who abuse prescribed painkillers, such as Oxycodone or Percocet, look to the streets once the cost of supporting such a habit becomes unsustainable, they dramatically increase their chances of overdose, as users – and often their dealers – are oblivious to the purity of the stash.”

Although fentanyl misuse continues to be a serious problem in the United States, data from the Monitoring the Future Study indicate that rates of narcotic use among adolescents decreased between 2018 and 2019. In 2018, 3.4% of 12th graders surveyed reported that they had used a narcotic other than heroin within the past 12 months; in 2019, only 2.7% of 12th graders surveyed reported that they were past-year users of narcotics other than heroin.