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Thanks, OP.

Everyone who maintains a first aid kit should add this to the supply list.

Fortunately I don't use drugs so this doesn't apply to me.

Shut up nerd

You may not but I can promise you someone you love absolutely does and this could save their life.

Nope, after my experience dating an alcoholic I no longer love addicts.

I am also not a drug user but I carry narcan so if I see someone unconscious I can potentially save their life. It's really a miracle drug. A good friend of mine would still be alive today if someone had been there to administer it to him. I don't leave the house without it.

an important thing to know about narcan is that there's one dose per package! there's no test spritz. don't try it out to see if it's working if you need to administer it to someone--if you spray it to see if it works, you just lost your dose. just stick it up their nose and spray, one and done. there is no danger in giving naloxone to someone who doesn't need it, and it works immediately so people should feel confident in their ability to use this and potentially save someone's life. naloxone is about as close to a miracle drug as it gets.

Replace "immediately" with a warning about a 4-5 minute delay while it absorbs into the body and this is super good information. It really is a miracle drug, not much else can get people from literally dying to 100% better like this.

free to get from pharmacies and fire stations.

Bonus..you get to be a hero for saving someone's life.

Baltimore Harm Reduction Coalition does a great narcan training when you sign up to volunteer

Stop being obtuse

Get it from pharmacies and fire stations. Spray in nostrils. That complicated.

a side track question but asking in good faith. if medications are controlled so much by big pharma companies in terms of how much they cost how is this particular medication offered free? or is it just a situation where entities such has pharmacies/fire/police/hospital will buy in bulk and give away for free?

> or is it just a situation where entities such has pharmacies/fire/police/hospital will buy in bulk and give away for free?

This is correct. Notably, there is a federal grant program that includes funding for such programs.

Expect they might revive pissed off. They lost their high.

Banner editor here — just a heads up that we removed the paywall on this story as a public service.

Also, this link is important: It's a county-by-county list of overdose response programs that give out naloxone for free (in case you don't have insurance or it's not covered).
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1AL4WsGJNsBElDHCi-fZZFyEPnOxg59_izGuctQw7goQ/edit

Thanks for this! I'm already trained and carry some with me everywhere, but the more people, the better.

Ok so these articles and resources always tell you how to acquire and use naloxone, and people say they never leave the house without it. Great. I want to carry some, too. But the thing these articles always leave out is how to identify somebody who might be experiencing opioid overdose. Tap on their shoulder to see if they're responsive, sure, but if everybody can't do that to every person napping on the ground.

What can I look for, in passing, to tell the difference between somebody experiencing an overdose and a houseless person just trying to get some damn sleep?

I hope a person you love never overdoes then

Your attitude is why people die instead of seeking help.

Any pharmacy? Like I can walk into CVS or Walmart and head to the pharmacy and ask for Narcan and they will just give me a dose for free? I own a business in Glen Burnie and there are quite a few people in the area that I've seen nodding off and I've been wanting to get a few doses just in case.

Y'all really rock for this! TY!

Yes indeed. I think CVS tried to charge my insurance once, but I straightened them out. Walgreens and Giant pharmacy as well.

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It's not that they "lost their high". It sends the body into immediate withdrawal that essentially makes you wish you were dead and is extremely painful. Narcan is wonderful but brutal at the same time.

I took the Baltimore County safety course and just want to share from the class (and personal experience with those i’m close with) narcan often needs to be used more than once per overdose situation. DO NOT Narcan someone and leave- wait for EMS because they very well may need additional doses.

That withdraw worsens over a few days. Regardless, be careful!