Why do people overdose from pharmaceuticals?

[Survival0200]

Now that the newspapers are writing about people dying from overdoses due to the opioid epidemic: I've been wondering that when you get standardized pills from the pharmacy, that contain the exact milligram amount of an opioid that the bottle says, how can you die of an overdose? I understand if you get a random opiate powder from the streets, that can contain anything and which potency changes from patch to patch. But when you know exactly how much active ingredient you're getting, how is it possible to take too much? Maybe when you are high it reduces your judgment and you just take a handful of pills more to get higher? What's the reason behind pharmaceutical overdoses? Just something I've been wondering!

 

[Robi]

welcome to bl!! hope u get good feedback

 

[Skorpio]

Often it's the mix of opioids and other downers like benzos. Look at any celebrity pharm overdose from the early 2000s (heath ledger for example): his tox screen found hydrocodone, oxycodone, diazepam, temazepam, alprazolam, and doxylamine in his system. This is the norm with pharmaceutical overdoses.

Another thing with oral drugs is people taking a dose that could theoretically be survived, but then going to sleep and dying from drug induced apnea. This is a lot harder to detect and prevent than a classic overdose where somebody "falls out" after a big dose, and can be caused by people trying to sleep after dosing an opioid (also taking a sleeping pill to counteract opioid stimulation).

Both of these things happen because eating handfuls of drugs gets normalized during heavy habits (and tolerance usually develops to euphoric effects first, leading folks to push their doses to get the same reward as earlier on in their habits).

 

[snortyjones]

Often it's the mix of opioids and other downers like benzos. Look at any celebrity pharm overdose from the early 2000s (heath ledger for example): his tox screen found hydrocodone, oxycodone, diazepam, temazepam, alprazolam, and doxylamine in his system. This is the norm with pharmaceutical overdoses.

Another thing with oral drugs is people taking a dose that could theoretically be survived, but then going to sleep and dying from drug induced apnea. This is a lot harder to detect and prevent than a classic overdose where somebody "falls out" after a big dose, and can be caused by people trying to sleep after dosing an opioid (also taking a sleeping pill to counteract opioid stimulation).

Both of these things happen because eating handfuls of drugs gets normalized during heavy habits (and tolerance usually develops to euphoric effects first, leading folks to push their doses to get the same reward as earlier on in their habits).

i never understood why people take so many benzos and opiates at once

 

[Parabolan]

I believe it's usually due to mixing pharmaceuticals with each other, resulting in lethal combinations.

 

[JoshLobbs]

Now that the newspapers are writing about people dying from overdoses due to the opioid epidemic: I've been wondering that when you get standardized pills from the pharmacy, that contain the exact milligram amount of an opioid that the bottle says, how can you die of an overdose? I understand if you get a random opiate powder from the streets, that can contain anything and which potency changes from patch to patch. But when you know exactly how much active ingredient you're getting, how is it possible to take too much? Maybe when you are high it reduces your judgment and you just take a handful of pills more to get higher? What's the reason behind pharmaceutical overdoses? Just something I've been wondering!

i cant speak for other people but I'm an idiot and i mixed a trifecta of old diazepam, old codeine and old fruit juice (cider) which ended up with me throwing up in my sleep almost killing myself.

why? cause I was an idiot left alone with an unlocked meds cabinet and a fridge full of cider.

(ok so like seriously though i over dosed because i was lazy and in experienced with drugs and my judgement was impaired by depression, isolation, sleep deprivation and alcohol)

 

[LucidSDreamr]

Generally they mix benzos opioids and alcohol.

But now since there essentially outlawed pharmaceuticals everyone can overdose much easier on straight fent. Well done america.

 

[AlphaMethylPhenyl]

Also GABAergics that function at multiple subunits. For example, midazolam and propofol and alcohol each work at a different GABA receptor site, setting the stage for dangerous "synergy". And of course, opioids arer usually in the mix. But these days it's particularly brutal. A friend recently died from a single dirty thirty.

 

[deficiT]

Generally they mix benzos opioids and alcohol.

But now since there essentially outlawed pharmaceuticals everyone can overdose much easier on straight fent. Well done america.

Don't worry America, your government is here to save you. Just stop resisting!

 

[Joey]

They overdose because they don't follow medical or even recreational direction. Or they don't know better.. maybe mix with something they can't mix in safely out of ignorance. Or they don't give a fuck, or its intentional. That just about covers it.

 

[Axolotln]

Because one is too many and a thousand never enough.

 

[Xorkoth]

Several reasons are possible:

• Someone is uninformed about the drug they're taking. They haven't done any research and find some pills and decide to just start eating a bunch, and then they overdose. Us Bluelighters are an unusual bunch, most people don't do kuch research or just listen to their friends. I've heard stories for example of people addicted to suboxone giving someone a pill who is opiate naive and they take 4 a day so they tell them to just take 1, but 1 is wayyyy too much for an opiate naive person. Fortunately suboxone is kinda hard to fatally overdose on but I bet this sort of thing happens a lot. Especially among young people who maybe find a bottle of oxycodones in their grandma's medicine cabinet or something
• They have been addicted before and got clean, and they relapse, and forget to take a lower dose than they used to take, and overdose. This is pretty common
• They simple want to chase a high and get as high as possible, and take too much, and overdose. This happens with opiate users especially if what you're seeking is the nod
• They took something that takes hours to reach full effect, extended release or just something long lasting, and didn't account for that when they redosed
• They mixed them with other drugs. Like opiates and benzos; This is probably the most common reason.