Hey everybody, welcome back. It's your host,
Neogentrics here with Food for Thought, Thoughts
that Fit for You, A Dark Cancer Production Season
3. And we're back with another episode. Today
we're going to be talking about these synthetic
opioids. I have four of them listed here. Last
time we talked about one of the most common but
most dangerous organic opioids. But today we're
going to talk about two, three, maybe four of
them. of the synthetic ones, but we're going
to also cover the most dangerous one of them
all, fentanyl. And we're going to go ahead and
get started with that right quick in a few seconds.
Now, just to give a quick update, there's been
a lot of stuff going on in my life that have
been delaying me from doing some of the stuff
that I would love to do. But like I said, I plan
to be making more episodes more often for each
and every one of you. So again, thank you for
your time and thank you for listening in. And
I hope you enjoy. So let's get started. All right,
all right, all right, everybody. Let's get started.
First up on the docket is the synthetic opioid.
Now, if you remember, real quick before we go
any further, that we have been talking about
opioids for the last couple of days. And we talked
about the difference between organic and synthetic.
And the fact that the synthetic ones are man
-made. And they're just as dangerous, if not
more dangerous, depending on which one it is.
Regardless of that fact, though. for human consumption
in large quantities. So we're going to pick up
where we left off with the synthetic opioids,
starting with hydrocodone. It's similar to oxycodone,
except this one is a synthetic opioid drug, okay?
It's used to relieve moderate to severe pain,
and it's often combined with other medications
such as acetaminophen and ibuprofen. It's also
available in various formulations, including
tablets, capsules, and syrups. So it just depends
on how you receive it. Typically, you would get
this from a doctor, but you can buy it over the
counter in small quantities. It works by binding
specific receptors in your brain and the spinal
cord, which then reduces the sensations of pain
that you feel. And like oxycodone, hydrocodone
is also a schedule two controlled substance,
which means it also has a high potential for
abuse and dependency depending on how it's used
or if it's misused. And if misused, and continuously
so, it can lead to addiction, overdose, death.
Same similar stuff as the other one. Okay. It's
crucial for patients to understand that the risks
associated with taking hydrocodone, and that,
like I mentioned before, with the other one,
they must follow the doctor's instructions very
carefully, to a T if they can, and it should
only be taken as prescribed. Never shared recreationally,
never shared regardless to anybody, especially
someone who you don't even know if the person
will have side effects to it that you don't have
just because it didn't affect you the same way.
And on the topic of side effects, it's important
to be aware of potential side effects of hydrocodone.
Much similar to oxycodone, it includes nausea,
vomiting, constipation, dry mouth, and dizziness.
Like I mentioned before, if you experience any
serious side effects, be sure to contact your
doctor right away. The reason I bring this up
is because hydrocodone is a very, very, very,
very powerful opioid pain medication. And it's
commonly prescribed for those type of pain, like
moderate to severe pain. Like if you've been
in a wreck, an accident, been hit by a truck.
Yes, that's a scenario apparently nowadays. anything
of the sort. But like anything else, there have
been a high number of unfortunate incidents reported
in the recent years that involve hydrocodone.
And like I said, one of the major issues with
it is the addiction and overdosing of it. So
with that understanding, okay. It's a highly
addictive substance, right? And long -term use
can lead to dependency and withdrawal symptoms.
And when I say dependency, I mean it can lead
to an addictive type, characteristic type behavior
with a need or drug -seeking behavior that the
person is unable to control. Meaning they are
going to try to get this drug. no matter what
it takes, regardless of what they have to do.
Now, with that being said, the prevalence...
Actually, let me go ahead and say it like this.
There's another issue. Unrelated to everything
that I've just been spouting for the last four
minutes, is the prevalence of counterfeit or
illegally obtained hydrocodone. The reason I
say this, much like everything else on this list,
It can be mixed with other drugs, including fentanyl,
which increases the risks of overdosing and people
becoming addicted to it. And the people who purchase
these drugs, especially on the street, will never
know whether or not this drug is pure or not,
okay? Which has led to one of the highest concentrations
of the opioid crisis here in America. But it's
spreading. to high numbers of people with a large
number of people ODing on it to the point where
they die every single year. So if you know someone
who's taking it and they don't have a reason
to be taking it, you need to find them help.
Don't try to stop them yourself because that
puts you and them at risk, but you should try
to seek help for them and try to convince them
to go to counseling of some sort or go to therapy
to help them, you know, get over it, okay? So
just to recap, it's a very powerful drug. It's
highly addictive. It's usually used for managing
moderate to severe pains. There are high OD risks
with it, and there are high rates of addiction,
overdose, and death, along with counterfeit or
illegally obtained hydrocodone that can have
severe or serious side effects or high -level
dependencies on it because it's mixed with something
else. Okay, so we got hydrocodone out of the
way. Like I said, most of the information about
it is pretty similar to oxycodone. I don't need
a full episode on that. Just about five minutes
and that was fine. Now let's move on to something
that's a little more potent, if not more dangerous
than oxycodone or hydrocodone. And that would
be the synthetic opioid fentanyl. Okay, fentanyl.
like, uh, hydrocodone is also a synthetic opioid
that is, and I might, I'm not exaggerating this
when I say this, it is 50 to a hundred times
more potent than morphine. Okay. For those of
you who know what morphine is, if you don't,
uh, check out the episode, I'm probably do later
on what morphine and other drugs similar to that
is, but for now, uh, it is. basically prescribed
for extreme to severe pain such that it's caused
by cancer or surgery so it's not likely to be
something that doctors are going to give out
like candy i promise you there has to be a severe
need or urgency for them to want to give this
out to anybody now like i said it's it's prescribed
for severe or extreme pain and such as that it's
caused by cancer surgery and is often used in
the form of a patch or a lozenge for obvious
reasons. However, it can also be illegally produced
and sold, often mixed with other drugs such as
heroin or cocaine, which we'll talk about on
another episode. This illegal use has led to
significant increases in overdose deaths over
the last couple of years, and like most of the
other opioids, fentanyl works by binding to the
body's opioid receptors. which are found in the
brain and spinal cord. And this binding reduces
the perception of pain and can also cause feelings
of euphoria, almost like LSD. However, because
of its potency, even small amounts of fentanyl
can cause respiratory depression, which can lead
to an instant overdose and death, which is why
when it's prescribed, it's prescribed in the
smallest of doses. And I'm talking about smaller
than milligrams, because depending on how much
you need and depending on how severe the pain
is will determine how much the doctor gives you,
because depending on your body will determine
how your body process it and whether or not it
can get to the point where your body either needs
it to survive or you start becoming dependent
on it, which they don't want. So, again, this
is something that they rarely will ever give
you. Okay. Fentanyl overdose symptoms typically
include slow or shallow breathing, confusion,
drowsiness, small pupils. If someone is suspected
of having fentanyl overdoses, they should be
given naloxone. It's a medication that can reverse
the effects of opioids and seek medical attention
immediately. With that being said, by the way,
because... Even though this does reverse some
of the effects, it will not make them non -codependent.
This takes time. The use and abuse of fentanyl
has become a public health crisis in many countries.
And the Center for Disease Control, or the CDC,
estimates that more than 31 ,000... overdose
deaths in the united states in 2008 alone uh
involved synthetic opioids which included fentanyl
which has for whatever reason resurfaced at the
end of 2022 the beginning of this year and i
have no idea what that's about but that just
means that you need to be very very careful when
going outside and going places especially when
picking up random stuff on the sides of the road
that looks like they should be harmless but they
probably aren't The government and public health
organizations are working to raise awareness
about the dangers of fentanyl and to provide
resources for those who are struggling with that
addiction. So there are resources out there for
people who need it. You just have to go and look
for it. Long story short, or rather in conclusion
on what I'm trying to say about fentanyl. Long
story short, it's a synthetic opioid that is
highly potent, can be very dangerous when misused.
It's important to only use as prescribed and
to be aware of the risks of overdosing by taking
even a little bit too much. If you know someone
who is struggling with addiction to fentanyl
or other opioids, help is available. And you
can contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration or SAMHSA national helplines
for those who need help or for yourself if you
think you need help. Hold on here. Actually,
I do believe I have it. Yeah. So the phone number
is 1 -800 -662 -HELP or 4357. For more information,
this number may or may not vary depending on
the state you're in. But for the general phone
line, I do believe this is the number. Just something
to keep in mind. Alright everybody, I'm not quite
done yet. There's still a few more that I, still
another one I need to talk about. I did mention
fentanyl, and yes, it is extremely dangerous,
but there's something similar to fentanyl that's
just as dangerous, probably more dangerous than
fentanyl. Just not as common, but it is there.
and that would be the synthetic opioid carfentanil.
Just add the word car in front of the word fentanyl.
I promise you, you probably have seen this before,
but didn't know how to pronounce it, or you may
have never heard of it, but you didn't realize
it. Anyway, carfentanil is a synthetic opioid,
much like the other two. that is estimated to
be about 100 times more potent than fentanyl
and 10 ,000 times more potent than morphine,
meaning it's extremely effective. And this specific
drug, and dare I even say this for most people
who shouldn't even know this, but it is primarily
used in tranquilizers for large animals such
as elephants, but it has been found in illegal
drug markets in recent years. And you're like,
well, Nia, why are you bringing up car fencing
if it's mainly used in tranquilizers for animals?
You'd be surprised. In other countries, drugs
aren't regulated like they are here. So a tranquilizer
dart that they use on humans may be the same
tranquilizer dart they use on animals, which
means that there's a high risk that you can still
end up with this in your system without realizing
it. There's also a chance that you could come
across it mixed with something else entirely,
like carfentanil could be mixed with fentanyl,
morphine, and a bunch of other drugs together
and you wouldn't even know. That being said,
carfentanil, like the others, is a scheduled
-to -control substance, and in the United States,
which it means that it has a high potency for
abuse and dependence, as like everything else.
It can be prescribed by a healthcare professional
for the management of severe pain, but it should
only be used under, again, close medical supervision.
Okay, well, that's fine and all, but again, carfentanil
is mainly used for tranquilizers, and we don't
really use tranquilizers on humans, or at least
we would like to believe that, because, you know,
it's inhumane. Well, you may believe that, but
a lot of people out there don't, and there are
people out there who still do this. The high
potency of carfentanil makes it particularly
dangerous for misuse and accidental ingestion
as well. Even a very small amount of this drug
can cause an overdose, which can lead to respiratory
failure, a coma, or in some people's cases, death.
That being said, and this is something I didn't
mention before with fentanyl, but carfentanil
and fentanyl can also be absorbed through the
skin as a powder, so keep that in mind. Another
issue is its prevalence of counterfeit or illegally
obtained carfentanil. These drugs can often be
mixed with other substances, as I've mentioned
before, such as heroin or cocaine, and that also
increases its risk of overdosing. And since you
can't check the purity of these drugs when you
get them on the black market or such, it's very,
very dangerous to even accept it from anyone,
especially when you don't know what it is. You
know, like I mentioned earlier, the opioid crisis
here in the United States has been mainly driven
in part by the proliferation of synthetic opioids,
including carfentanil, fentanyl, hydrocodone,
and tramadol, just to name a few, okay? This
isn't all of them. This is just a few that I'm
talking about now just to bring some attention
to it, okay? The opioid epidemic has resulted
in high number of overdose deaths each year,
carfentanil being one of the most potent and
dangerous synthetic opioids that's available
on the market. And much like everything else,
like I said, should not be taken recreationally
and must be taken under medical supervision.
So to recap just how bad this is, the misuse
of carfentanil. can lead to addiction, overdose,
and death. It is estimated to be, as a synthetic
opioid, to be 100 times more potent than fentanyl
and 10 ,000 times more potent than morphine.
And while it's mainly used in tranquilizers for
animals, it can still be bought illegally, which
makes it just as dangerous and just as high a
chance of misuse or accidental ingestion without
paying attention or by picking up something random
on the side of the road. We both... all know
that homeless people exist on the side of the
road. Not every homeless person is innocent.
This is true. But not every homeless person is
a druggie or a drug head. Okay? That being said...
We don't know what all is being passed around
between them or what else is there, so if one
of them drops something that looks like it's
a pouch or something, your best action would
be to probably just leave it alone and walk away.
Though I know probably out there, there are a
lot of people out there who will not do this.
And for that, all I can say is to each their
own. If you want to take that risk, by all means,
go for it. But just be advised, be safe, and
take precautions. Got one more to go. Let's do
this. Hey, everybody. Welcome back. I was going
to say that carfentanil was the last of the synthetic
opioids that I was going to cover today, but
I feel like I should cover something that's a
little less potent than the three I mentioned.
And I said it earlier in one of the previous
parts of this episode, but I'll just go ahead
and state it again for clarity. And that's the
synthetic opioid Tramadol. Spelled T -R -A -M
-A -D -O -L. It is an opioid medication that's
used to manage moderate to severe pain, just
like all of them are, because that's essentially
what opioids do. but it works by binding to specific
receptors in the brain that reduce the perception
of pain. It's different from the other ones,
as it only affects the levels of certain neurotransmitters
in your brain, which can increase its effects.
However, Tramadol is available in both immediate
release and extended release formulations, and
it can be used or taken orally or by injection.
It's typically prescribed for short -term pain
management, usually after surgeries or an injury.
It's usually the better alternative than the
others. However, it can also be prescribed for
chronic pain, such as in the case of cancer.
While Tramadol, unlike the others, is considered
to be less potent than the other opioids, it
still has the potential for abuse and dependence
and overdosing. The difference is it's not as
bad, but it's still there. Long -term use of
Tramadol can lead to physical dependence, which
means the person adapts to the drug and requires
more of it to achieve the safe effect that it
does. And of course, misuse of Tramadol leads
to addiction, characterized by the compulsive
drug -seeking behavior I mentioned earlier, and
the inability to control the use, let alone their
desire for it. Obviously, mixing Tramadol with
other substances such as alcohol can lead to
risks of overdosing or serious side effects.
So definitely don't do that. And it can also
interact with other medications such as antidepressants.
So it's important to inform your healthcare provider
of all the medications you are taking before
you start taking this. Because unlike the other
ones, this one will mix with what's there and
will either increase its effects or slightly
change its effects based off of it. Also... Since
I've done brought this up, it's also important
to note that trombone may also cause withdrawal
symptoms if it's just suddenly stopped. This
is one of those drugs that you have to slow your
roll off of if you've been taking for a while.
And it's important to follow the dosage schedule
that is directed by healthcare professionals,
especially the one who assigned it to you, and
to talk to your doctor before you just stop taking
it. This is not something you can just stop.
Okay? While it's not as dangerous as the other
ones, as far as potency is concerned, it's still
just as effective, if not as dangerous, in the
sense that it's not something that you can walk
away from and just be like, okay, I'm done taking
this today, and you're done. That's not how this
one works. In summary, Tramadol is a synthetic
opioid medication that is used for monitoring
severe pain. It's less potent than the other
opioids, but still has the potential for abuse,
dependency, and overdose. And it's very important
to be aware of the risks and to take steps to
protect yourself and your loved ones when you
have to take it, if you have to take it at all.
Okay? So with that, that's all I'm going to cover
on synthetic opioids, or at least certain names
or branded ones. for now we're going to take
a break we're going to go back to talking about
learning styles and then we're going to come
back and talk about certain stimulants that are
available as narcotics as well as depressants
hallucinogens inhalants and of course at some
point we have to get to cannabis but like i said
there are many other things that i want to cover
things that i said i was going to cover that
i haven't covered um but That's the thing that
we're going with now. Also, if you know anybody
who has had to deal with this or had to deal
with any of these opioids, feel free to leave
a comment down below. I thank you for your time.
This is your host, Neogentrix, signing out. And
I hope you have a great rest of your day. Try
to stay drug -free and be blessed.