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ODing when smoking heroin

birdie

Bluelighter
Joined
May 31, 2007
Messages
282
I used the search engine and couldn't find the answer, so hopefully I didn't look over anything. Anyway, to the question...

Obviously peopled have OD'd on heroin when IVing or snorting it, but how about when smoking it? I remember reading on Heroin Helper how generally people would pass out before smoking enough heroin to OD. The site gave an example of someone ODing and dying after smoking heroin, but the person was drunk. While Heroin Helper states it is possible though rare, I was wondering if anyone knew of any cases when such a thing happened (when no other drugs are involved)? I've never heard of such a case, so I'm curious.
 
honestly, theres no way. ive even smoked china white before(i know, i know, its a waste), but i usually smoke tar a couple times a week when im not IVing and even when i IV i still smoke in between shots. youll just nod out long before you die. i just dont see how that could happen at all. am i alone?
 
^ You're not alone. I've never once seen proof of it happening. Combined with other heavy CNS depressants, possibly, but on its own or even with a small amount of other CNS depressant of choice, it really is just nod/fall asleep.
 
Your going to start chucking your guts out before you O'D smoking heroin, beleive me it was my preffered ROA for several years and i never had a bad experience until i started shooing :)
 
What all the rest of the peeps said, not gonna happen. I however saw someone almost (keep in mind I say almost, but it had be convinced for a few minutes there) fall out from taking a few hits off a fat puddle of fentanyl once.
 
I was once given pure H in one of the producing countries. I put a few speckles (size of a grain of salt) on my crack pipe and smoked it. I was bed-ridden and vomiting for 10 hours. I can imagine dying on that one. First meeting with H for me that was.
 
^No you cant. Maybe in conjunction with other drugs, but you cant OD on smoking heroin alone
 
I agree with Ham-milton. It would be very hard to do, but its entirely possible especially if the person is sensitive to opiates.
Under normal circumstances smoking wouldn't cause an OD, but I believe it is very possible. What if someone with very low to no tolerance to opiates(or even better, someone with no tolerance who happens to be sensitive to opiates) took a gram of heroin and smoked it as quickly as possible, packing bowls of it and taking large hits one after the other? In those very unusual circumstances the user could OD, and all they have to do is nod out in a bad position and end up suffocating by obstruction of the airway or puking while unconcious.
I know that these circumstances are a little extreme and very unprobable, but it is definately not impossible. Telling people that it is impossible to OD on smoked heroin is not a good harm reduction practice. However informing them that smoking heroin is probably the safest form of consumption is a better way of stating it.
 
Yeah whatever, you can pass out and hit your head on the coffee table but its not the heroin that killed you. Oh yeah sure in extreame cicumstances blah blah blah. Nobody is going to smoke enough to OD, they will puke after afew hits and thats it, and even if they smoke more so what. How much heroin have you smoked? hugh?
 
low tolerance + strong/large quantities of heroin = entirely possible to inhale enough in one go to die

i think people are forgetting that not everybody has a fair tolerance to opiates. I know many friends of mine who feel amazing after about 60mg of codeine; give them a loaded foil with decent smack and have them get all enthusiastic and take in as much as they can at once, and im fairly certain it would be all over red rover.

hamilton is correct imo.
 
^ Tolerance doesn't matter. Lower tolerance, you nod/pass out earlier. Unless you have 100% pure heroin, and can somehow smoke 2 bags (by that I mean 0.2 grams of pure heroin) then I don't see an OD happening.

Ham-milton, I know you would ask this of others, have any evidence of this? Surely it has happened a handful of isolated times, but proof that this is anything to actually worry about?

I used to smoke a lot of tar, and trust me, there is no way to OD smoking that (I've tried... not literally, but I've smoked as much as I could and all that happens is a nice nod), thats why I mentioned it being 100% pure. Then you have to fall and hit your head like thugpassion said.
 
200mgs of pure heroin is what would be needed to kill someone? are you honest to god fucking high?

i have personally witnessed somebody IV around 50mg of street dope (as in, around 20% purity) and get sick enough to be vomitting for days, as well as being semi conscious for some time.

as somebody stated earlier, they smoked a grain of salt worth and it completely fucking wrecked them. im quite sure that somebody who could smoke well, or who was having an experienced user do the smoke for them, who got enthusiastic and just kept inhaling until they could not no more, would definately die if there was above 80% purity heroin and if there was a fair amount of it.

200mgs of pure heroin needed to kill a girl or guy who physically feels great from a couple of nurofen? are you fucking kidding me?
 
I was saying a random large number to express a high dose in one hit.

I don't want to argue, but have you ever smoked it? You nod before you OD. Well before.
 
Yes, i knew a guy who's death was labelled an OD and he smoked his gear but that was because of he choked on his vomit.

I heard a few cases like this but they were always because people choking on their vomit, not a direct overdose
 
I think many people here are arguing on the basis of their experience of street heroin, which has low percentage purity and may be cut with substances that hinder its vaporization. It could be a different matter when you have the pure product.

Another thing is that passing out actually protects you against an overdose when you're smoking. It doesn't do so when injecting if the lethal dose is already within your vein. I wonder about plugging: that would be another matter if you stuff a lethal dose in your rectum it would keep getting into your bloodstream after you've passed out.

Again, smoking a drug (crack, H, speed) is often the less risky mode of administration.
 
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