Opioids For any opiate user in Ontario Canada

[Jen X]

Over doses in Ontario are going up because of xylazine. 3 people I know over dosed the past couple days and they are long term usually careful users. 2 were smoking and 1 iv.

The safe supply isn't working well because they expect people to go to the clinic a couple times a day to get their drugs. They say because they are worried people will sell them.
Isn't it better someone sell a couple safe pills for food instead of people buying poison?

Be careful out there.

 

[Kaden_Nite]

The safe supply isn't working well because they expect people to go to the clinic a couple times a day to get their drugs.

Is that for hydromorphone? At least it is available as an option.

Why do you attribute the overdoses to xylazine btw? I don't know much about it other than it's in most batches these days. The fluctuating amounts of fentanyl in each bag make it almost impossible to dose properly/safely.

If fentanyl was sold in liquid form, it could be mixed and standardized much more precisely. People know that's what they're getting anyway.. but I guess that would be catering mainly to IV use.

 

[Jen X]

The local news was warning that the spike in overdoses is from fentanyl mixed with it.
When it's just fentanyl the od numbers don't be as high so they're attributing it to the xylazine.
Hydromorph is a good alternative but people are not going to take a bus or taxi daily when they can get fentanyl delivered.
I don't see why they don't give people clean drugs and test them bi weekly. They give methadone for a week and that's easier to overdose on.
Seems they just don't want people getting high.

 

[jasperkent]

Seems they just don't want people getting high.

This is the root of all objections to harm reduction efforts.

 

[LucidSDreamr]

Over doses in Ontario are going up because of xylazine. 3 people I know over dosed the past couple days and they are long term usually careful users. 2 were smoking and 1 iv.

The safe supply isn't working well because they expect people to go to the clinic a couple times a day to get their drugs. They say because they are worried people will sell them.
Isn't it better someone sell a couple safe pills for food instead of people buying poison?

Be careful out there.

When they are dependent on xylazine no medical establishment exists to detox them off it and they die from withdrawal. Methadone subs...pure heroin, pure fent...none of it will touch the withdrawal

This is what happens in the northeast. It's very big in Philadelphia.

If xylazine makes it to to west coast God help us.

 

[Kaden_Nite]

The local news was warning that the spike in overdoses is from fentanyl mixed with it.
When it's just fentanyl the od numbers don't be as high so they're attributing it to the xylazine.

I once read (Australian article) that few opioid overdoses were due to opioids alone. The combination of benzos or alcohol with opioids greatly increases the risk, so yes, there may well be something to the combination of fentanyl (and it's analogues) being mixed with xylazine that increases the risk of overdose.

Hydromorph is a good alternative but people are not going to take a bus or taxi daily when they can get fentanyl delivered.

Understandable. It's definitely a step in the right direction giving people that option. Some countries in Europe have a program where people can pay, I think 20€ per day to use as much pure heroin as they need, in a safe, monitored place. It has changed so many people's lives for the better.

Seems they just don't want people getting high.

Pretty much; that's why I can buy a 20 pack of 500mg paracetamol (acetaminophen) tablets with my groceries, but getting codeine requires so much hoop-jumping these days, it's easier to just divert all the red tape and get.. alternatives (considerably stronger ones) from elsewhere.