Signs and Symptoms of Opioid Overdose

 

Opoid overdose is an acute condition due to excessive opioids.  

 

Examples of opioids are:

• morphine
• heroin
• tramadol
• oxycodone
• methadone

Signs that someone is really high:

• pupils will contract and appear small
• muscles are slack and droopy
• they might “nod out”
• scratch a lot due to itchy skin
• speech may be slurred
• they might be out of it but they may respond to outside stimulus like loud noise or light

http://www.hemophiliafed.org

Signs of an overdose:

• awake but unable to talk
• body is very limp
• face is very pale and clammy
• fingernails and lips turn blue or purplish black
• for lighter skinned people, the skin turns bluish purple, for darker skinned people, it turns greyish or ashen
• breathing is very slow and shallow, erratic, or has stopped
• pulse is slow, erratic or not there at all
• choking sounds or snore like gurgling noise – sometimes called the death rattle
• vomiting
• loss of consciousness
• unresponsive to outside stimulus

If you suspect someone is overdosing, call 911 immediately and stay with them until EMS arrives.

 

Sources: http://harmreduction.org/issues/overdose-prevention/overview/overdose-basics/recognizing-opioid-overdose/

Heroin and Naloxone

Heroin – AKA – smack, horse, brown sugar, dope, H, junk, skag, skunk, white horse, China white and Mexican black tar.

Heroin is highly addictive and an overdose is real and can be fatal.