“How do I know if someone is overdosing? ”
My friends and I were at a party and we brought a couple of people back to our hotel. While we were at the party one of the guys had the pills that were very tiny and they were white and circular. He gave all of us a couple of them but he had probably over 10 of them but I'm not entirely sure. He told us that it was Adderall but looking back I’m not sure if that is what it was. I think I only took two but I was so out of it I’m not entirely sure. I was having a hard time walking and just felt kinda tired. When we got back to the hotel the one guy that took probably 10 or more started throwing up this like yellow color. He kept throwing up a lot and we couldn’t even keep his eyes open and was very lethargic We put him on the pullout bed where he continued to throw up. His mouth almost looked like it was kind of bubbling as he was throwing up. Me and my friends asked if we should call an ambulance but his friend said he was fine. They took an Uber home and he threw up for a while his friend said. Was he overdosing? And what can we do if that happens and if they don’t want anyone to call an ambulance?
Female | 18 years old
2 Answers
Also, if someone is vomiting, put them on their side so they don’t aspirate while waiting for EMS to arrive.
Andreea Seicean, MD PhD MPH
Andreea Seicean, MD PhD MPH
What happened to all of you was a near-death experience. Taking unknown pills from a stranger or acquaintance can easily end in your death or that of a friend. From you description, the most likely case is that you ingested/snorted pain pills, probably oxycontin, mixed with fentanyl - an extremely powerful narcotic (100 times stronger than morphine) that can cause you to stop breathing and die, and that often causes nausea and/or vomiting. If anyone in your group gets out of it enough to be unresponsive even to a painful stimuli, you should immediately call 911 and get them to the ER. It is possible that sometimes this will turn out to have been unnecessary. It is guaranteed to save a life some of the time. Mixing heroin or oxycontin with fentanyl is becoming increasingly common, and I have personally seen people come in dead on arrival from using one or the other, and others I couldn't bring back no matter how much Narcan I gave them.
Be careful!
Thank you very much,
Stephen B. Cox, MD BCEM FACEP
Be careful!
Thank you very much,
Stephen B. Cox, MD BCEM FACEP
