Cocaine and Fentanyl Overdose Death Concerns

Cocaine, unlike heroin, is considered a party drug by most people despite the fact that it’s highly addictive and can cause an overdose. Heroin is used mostly in relative secrecy, whereas cocaine is something far more socially acceptable. People are far less likely to feel the need to be discreet; it’s a drug that is regularly passed around at parties.

Two drugs, heroin and cocaine, both addictive and hazardous to one’s health yet one of the drugs is cast in a far darker light. One might argue that the discrepancy is for a good reason; after all, a far more significant number of overdose deaths stem from opioids than stimulants like cocaine. People consider cocaine as being safer than heroin resulting in increased social acceptance. More than a hundred people aren’t dying from cocaine overdoses every day.

While heroin and opioids, in general, are deadlier than cocaine, the latter is used more often—especially for recreation. The potential for cocaine misuse and abuse is significantly higher, and the drug is commonly used in conjunction with other substances as well, mainly alcohol. You may not associate cocaine with overdose, but it was involved in thousands of deaths in past several years across the country.

 

Cocaine with a Side of Fentanyl

Mixing stimulants and opioids occurs on a regular basis among people with opioid use disorder. However, your average social cocaine user flirts with opioids only on rare occasions. If offered a “downer,” most people who use cocaine recreationally will say, “no thanks.” Which is why a new trend has people concerned, the heightened prevalence of cocaine laced with fentanyl. Having an opioid "tolerance" and being exposed to fentanyl is dangerous enough, for those without a tolerance—overdose is almost a guarantee.

In New York, 37 percent of overdose deaths in 2015 involved cocaine and fentanyl; heroin was not part of the equation. Officials see cocaine and fentanyl admixtures outside the Empire State; cocaine samples tested positive for the synthetic opioid in both Nashville and Knoxville, Tennessee, USA Today reports. Anyone who uses or abuses cocaine should understand that the stakes just got higher.

“To be blunt, what you might buy and use [cocaine], thinking it’s a good time, could cost you your life,” warns T.J. Jordan, Assistant Director of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation: Drug Investigation Division. 

Overdose death can easily happen without the introduction of synthetic opioids. Fentanyl and carfentanil, an even stronger analog, are being mixed with other drugs frequently these days. Naloxone, to make matters worse, is not enough to reverse an overdose in many cases. The only 100 percent effective way to avoid the risk of overdose is addiction treatment and working a program of recovery. Perhaps the most concerning feature of this new trend:

“Those that are using cocaine recreationally, their usage is going to increase because of the physical addictive aspects of opiates are being injected into the cocaine,” said Patrick O’Shea, a former recreational drug user. “It’s shaping up to be a disaster.”

 

Recovery is the Solution

Those caught in the vicious cycle of substance use disorder face great risks today. Fentanyl isn’t going anywhere and is likely to become more prevalent. Seeking addiction treatment and recovery is the only sure way to avoid exposure to fentanyl. Please contact Celebrate Hope at Hope by The Sea to begin the life-saving mission of addiction recovery.

Cocaine, Heroin and Overdose

For an addict, there is such a thing as “more high.” Even if tolerance says otherwise. With some drugs, such as marijuana, a continued effort to increase one’s euphoria may not be that dangerous. But for drugs like prescription opioids or heroin, riding the line between intoxication and overdose is never in one's best interest—but highly sought after. What is considered to be a good high, can quickly turn into a deadly overdose.

The death toll related to drug abuse is almost always focused on opioid narcotics these days. While such drugs do not need any help with regard to being dangerous, addicts will commonly mix opioids with other narcotics, sometimes “uppers” and sometimes with more “downers.” It is quite common for people who mix opioids with benzodiazepines to experience a fatal overdose. However, there is another trend that has the power to take one’s life, commonly referred to as “speedballing.” That is mixing opioids and cocaine together, to be injected simultaneously. You may be aware that a number of celebrities have lost their life to the admixture, including:

• John Belushi
• Chris Farley
• Philip Seymour Hoffman

The general public almost never hears about cocaine anymore, being overshadowed by drugs like heroin and fentanyl. If you did hear about cocaine, it is likely that it was because somebody famous died using the drug recently. But make no mistake, cocaine abuse is still a very real problem affecting many Americans. And for those with an opioid use disorder, who are finding that their tolerance is making it difficult to experience euphoria, cocaine might be the solution they consider. Anyone who has ever done a speedball will tell you that there is no other high quite like it, or as dangerous.

While cocaine use rates have been down in recent years, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency's (DEA) 2016 National Drug Threat Assessment has shown a significant increase in cocaine-related overdose deaths in recent years, according to the U.S. News & World Report. Cocaine can be deadly on its own; but when mixed with opioids the drug becomes exponentially more fatal.

“When there are no opioids involved in cocaine-overdose deaths you see an overall decline in recent years,” says Christopher M. Jones, an acting associate deputy assistant secretary with the Department of Health and Human Services. “But when you look at cocaine and opioids together, we see a more than doubling in the number of overdoses since 2010, with heroin and synthetic opioids increasingly involved in these deaths."

Treating Cocaine Addiction

Despite the fact that the main focus regarding addiction these days is centered upon opioid use disorder, a form of addiction involving prescription painkillers and heroin, many Americans continue to regularly abuse cocaine. It is often the case that both opioids and cocaine are used in conjunction, as addicts attempt to maintain a delicate balance between the downing effects of opioids and the upper effects of cocaine. A practice commonly referred to as “speedballing.” You may be aware of the fact that a number of notable celebrities have lost their lives due to speedballs, such as John Belushi.

When cocaine is used on its own, the chances of an overdose are significantly less than that of opioids. Drugs in the opioid family cause severe respiratory depression which can easily lead to death. Part the reason that opioid addiction has garnered the attention of mainstream media to the degree that it has is the result of how deadly that form of drug can be. But rest assured, cocaine addiction can severely impact the course of one’s life, and without treatment it can be extremely difficult to find recovery.

Unlike opioid addiction, there are currently no accepted drugs to help people get off, and stay off, of cocaine. There isn’t a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) drug to treat cocaine addiction. However, new research suggests that blocking certain brain-cell receptors, specifically a receptor referred to as the TrkB, could reverse signs of cocaine dependency, ScienceDaily reports. The findings were published in the Journal of Neuroscience.

"I think this study could help revive the idea of targeting TrkB signaling to treat addiction," said The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) biologist Candice Contet, senior author of the study. 

While blocking the TrkB has not been tested on humans, the technique showed great promise in rat models, according to the article. The researchers found that rats that learned to self-administer cocaine infusions, reduced their use of cocaine markedly when the TrkB blocker was given to them—exhibiting decreased signs of dependence. The findings are extremely important, especially when you consider that over 2 million Americans abuse cocaine.

People struggling with addiction may not be able to admit their need for help. If your cocaine problem is affecting your marriage, parenting, employment, friendships, finances, and spirituality, it’s time to call Celebrate Hope’s Christian addiction treatment center.