Heroin How long after IV heroin can you overdose?

[Pineappleexpress42]

First off I know not to post on here if its an emergency! I'm just curious and have looked at other threads but most have shown inconclusive as to how long after you iv could to od. Smoking I know you prolly pass out first, snorting effects at peak are after an hour or so but iv is instant so I'm guessing most overdoses take place right away and if not you would have to pass out right? Correct me if I'm wrong but you couldn't od just standing/sitting up randomly, you would have to be to the point of passing out correct? Give me some opinions thanks!

 

[Tommyboy]

Well some people will OD right away, and I've seen people pass out and hit the floor 20-30 minutes after a shot (they were fighting the nod leading up to that, and were worried since they knew they were too high), so it can go either way. Then there are the cases of people going to sleep and never waking up, so although the majority OD right away, it's certainly not unheard of for it to happen later on.

 

[Jabberwocky]

hmmm, i'm not really sure what you mean - but an overdose can occur at any time during the drug being in the body, usually for the duration of the first half life of the drug.

IV can be instant, but it can also be in say an hour - because at first your body is essentially able to process it to start with when its put into the blood, but it can't for such a long duration of time and your respiratory system collapses for instance.

 

[CaveBear]

I went immediately. Saw a couple people though go 15-30 minutes later.

 

[incomplete]

people are able to push through the respiratory depression for some time before succumbing to an overdose. simply nodding out and not waking up again as a result. i dont think theres any real cement window of time to pinpoint when its going to occur.

 

[Pineappleexpress42]

So when people as you guys have described "push through" to "fight" a half hour or so- they are forcing themselfs to stay awake right? If you were high just with a low breathing rate you would have to be to the point of forcing yourself to stay awake before you would overdose correct. My point being, you couldn't stop breathing, gasping for air as you were conscious and awake basically unless the immediate iv

 

[incomplete]

youre not necessarily fighting to get through the respiratory depression, its manageable at that point as youre not struggling, nodding out and fighting for breath. people develop tolerances, especially after longer periods of use and the respiratory depression can be a non-issue, until, knock on wood.

people have known to be fine one minute, then struggling for their life the next. so what you said can happen.

 

[konanwarrior]

I would also like to add, I have read in a harm reduction booklet at the clinic later stage overdoses in the opiate high tend to happen when other CNS depressants are involved, such as benzos or alcohol.

 

[m3trigun]

I've seen people of right when they hit a shot, and I've seen ppl choke on their vomit 4 hours into it. So pretty much anytime.

 

[Mr.Scagnattie]

I've had OD's where it happens immediately after injecting.. others where it took 5-10 minutes, and others even that it took almost an hour.

If you keep redosing, it can basically happen anytime.

 

[InHerOwnWrite]

Really? Almost an hour?

 

[Mr.Scagnattie]

Really? Almost an hour?

Yeah definitely. If you've been taking multiple big shots over the course of a few hours, then take one more big one, it can take that long before all the dope hits you hard enough for you to drop out.

It's a lot more common to OD within 20 minutes or so, but just because somebody makes it a half hour without falling out, doesn't mean they are safe.

 

[Shefatasfukc]

^ this is absolutely correct. There is no specific timeframe in which a person is safe from heroin overdose. For some people an overdose can occur within a minute of a shot, and they will immediately be unable to keep oxygen levels in their body high enough, and other people will slowly decline into respiratory depression as the nod hits harder and harder. This could be up to an hour in my opinion. Possibly even longer.

 

[AutonomousOwl]

Yeah, I have read literature which suggests that a fatal OD can take up to three hours to actually kill somebody - obviously that is not a necessity - it could be a lot sooner.

Estimates of figures as much as 52% of fatal ODs took 3 hours or longer after time of final injection; in fact, it suggests that immediate collapse is actually not the norm (as cited in Darke & Zador 1996).

This is why if you OD and are given the opiate antagonist Naloxone - by an EMT or friend or whatever - they will insist on admission to hospital because after the Naloxone has worn off you can slip back into respiratory depression.

Anecdotally though I think most ODs to start off a really heavy 'nod' and a gradual slow intake of oxygen just screws you. That's what happened to me - I went over (IV) and ~30 minutes later I was going blue but still hadn't died, obviously. I had to have 3 shots of IM Naloxone to bring me around and backinto consciousness.

 

[cwake18]

From the "Should I try Heroin" Sticky thread in this (other drugs) forum:

- How fast does an overdose happen?

There is a common misconception that OD’s, especially from IV heroin, happen instantly. While this is true in a lot of instances, overdoses can happen at any point even up to an hour after using (and if one is redosing throughout a short period of time, can happen even after an hour or more).