Category: Sober living

Another common effect of opioids like fentanyl is “nodding off.” This state is a semi-conscious condition where the user drifts in and out of consciousness. When a person nods off, they might lean forward, bend over, or slump as they lose the ability to maintain a proper posture. It’s important to identify warning signs that could indicate a fentanyl overdose. Physical indicators like extended periods of nodding off or folding over, especially when the person is unresponsive or difficult to rouse, are red flags that demand urgent medical intervention. Prompt action in these situations can be the difference between life and death, as these signs often signal the onset of critical respiratory failure or other life-threatening complications like stroke or heart attack.

• Social media has also played a role in how communities respond to the fentanyl fold.
• As long as it is safe to do so contact emergency services or if you have “Narcan” or other opiate overdose preventatives be ready to administer if the person loses consciousness or stops breathing.
• If someone frequently uses offensive language or dismissive phrases like “get bent,” communicate your discomfort clearly.

The Alarming “Fentanyl Fold”: Unpacking the Reality of Fentanyl’s Physical Toll

Fentanyl abuse isn’t the only opioid that can cause the awkward body reaction, Ciccarone said. If you see someone exhibiting these signs—especially in the folded over position—call 911 immediately and administer naloxone if available. In San Francisco, for example, over 800 people died from overdoses in 2023 alone. marijuana addiction Many of these cases involved fentanyl, and many of the victims were seen folding or slumping before collapsing completely. With fentanyl being found in unexpected places, many people worry, what if you touch something that has fentanyl on it?

Bent spines, lesions, risk of amputations — the toll of drug harms is rising

Inpatient treatment can provide you with a safe environment where you can detox and learn the tools necessary for a healthy recovery. Contact a treatment provider today to learn more and begin your healing journey. At Rubicon Recovery, we’ve seen firsthand how quickly fentanyl addiction can take hold—and how deadly it can become.

What’s The “Fenty Fold” And Why Does It Happen To Fentanyl Users?

Their brain, breathing, and motor control are slowing down, often to dangerous levels. After detox, residential treatment provides a structured environment for recovery. Align Recovery Centers offer comprehensive residential programs designed to support individuals through the early stages of recovery. These programs include medical care, counseling, and support groups to help individuals build a foundation for long-term sobriety. While the “fent lean” is a harrowing visible symptom, it represents just one facet of the widespread devastation wrought by fentanyl. Its extreme potency and unpredictable composition make every instance of use a perilous gamble.

• During this state, people lose control of their body posture and lean forward, bend over, or slump down.
• This combination of muscle weakness, rigidity, and impaired cognitive command results in individuals remaining stuck in an unnatural and perilous “fent leaning” position for extended periods.

How The Fent Fold Has Affected Communities

Knowing how long fentanyl stays in the system can help in managing withdrawal symptoms and planning for detoxification. The research community has yet to determine if fentanyl impacts the person’s spine at all. “Fentanyl can be a short-action drug and a long-acting drug. So some people they’re back upright in 45 minutes to an hour. Some people could be longer than that,” Ciccarone said. Recovery Guide LLC does not endorse any treatment provider, and we do not guarantee the quality of care, outcomes, or results from any treatment program listed or advertised on our site. All information is provided for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. AddictionResource.net, and its parent company Recovery Guide LLC, is not a treatment provider and does not offer medical advice or clinical services.

Physical therapy is often recommended to restore function and strengthen the body after such incidents. Therapy and counseling are critical components of fentanyl addiction treatment. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and other evidence-based therapies help individuals understand the root causes of their addiction, develop coping strategies, https://ecosoberhouse.com/ and address any co-occurring mental health issues.

• Below are some of the most common treatment options for people with fentanyl addiction.
• It’s important to identify warning signs that could indicate a fentanyl overdose.
• Motor Function refers to our ability to control our bodies movement, like walking, reaching and grabbing an item, and simply standing upright.
• First responders and emergency workers carry naloxone, a medicine that can reverse an opioid overdose by blocking the effects of opioids on the brain.

What Happens After an Overdose?

Their heads are bowed, their knees are bent, and they fent bent are often unable to respond or move. This posture is not just a sign of being “high”—it’s a warning of possible overdose. The drug’s powerful sedative effect slows down the central nervous system, causing respiratory depression, muscle weakness, and impaired motor control. That’s why people under fentanyl’s influence often appear bent over or even collapse entirely. People get “fentanyl bent over” or “fent lean” due to fentanyl’s powerful effects on the central nervous system, causing profound sedation and muscle weakness.

However, it’s important to remember that alcohol is a potent depressant that can have serious consequences if consumed in excess. Blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is the level of alcohol present in a person’s blood after consuming Alcohol Use Disorder alcohol. A BAC above 0.40% has a risk of serious complications, including coma and death, according to MedlinePlus, a service of the National Library of Medicine. Clinical studies have shown that Benadryl is not effective as a treatment for sleep issues in infants and children. Furthermore, the risk of accidental overdose is high in children.

Can Parents Lose Child Custody for Drug Use?

Approximately 88,000 people die from alcohol-related causes each year, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). About 130 people in the United States die each day from overdosing on opioid drugs, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). Depending on the type of tablet, it can control pain for up to 12 hours as a time-release medication. This means the effects of this medication are released over a longer period of time rather than all at once. Taking oxycodone together with alcohol can have very dangerous consequences. Combining the two can have a synergistic effect, meaning that the effect of both drugs together is greater than when they’re used separately.

Can You Overdose on Alcohol?

• Whether you are seeking intensive outpatient care or simply need guidance on your mental health journey, we are here to help.
• Drinking too much too quickly can affect breathing, heart rate, body temperature and gag reflex.
• An overdose of alcohol can become fatal, especially if they are unconscious.

These outcomes result from suppressed central nervous system activity, oxygen deprivation, and the body’s inability to eliminate ethanol at toxic BAC levels. The signs and symptoms of alcohol poisoning are confusion, vomiting, seizures, slow breathing, gray or pale skin, hypothermia, trouble staying awake, and blackouts. These symptoms indicate that the body is overwhelmed by ethanol toxicity and struggling to maintain basic life functions like breathing and consciousness.

• Medically supervised addiction treatment is the best way to ensure that all patients work through withdrawal safely.
• Surviving an alcohol overdose does not guarantee a full recovery.
• There is no evidence to suggest that taking excessive doses of melatonin can be fatal.

How these deaths were estimated

The lethal dose of carfentanil, an illegal fentanyl analog, is around 2 mg, approximately the amount that would fit on the head of a needle. This extremely dangerous substance is believed to be up to 100 times more potent than fentanyl and 10,000 times more potent than morphine. These drugs are commonly cut with other drugs, fillers, or additives, which can affect the lethal potential. alcohol overdose Alcohol poisoning is treated with professional medical assistance, including managing breathing and airways, stabilizing body temperature, and managing any changes in mental state. Severe alcohol poisoning may require hospitalization and ongoing monitoring and treatment to ensure the individual’s safety and well-being. In severe cases, the stomach may be emptied to remove remaining alcohol and toxins.

Understanding Cannabis Poisoning

Hypothermia, or having a lower body temperature than normal, is a side effect of alcohol poisoning. If the person is unconscious, turn them on their side so that they won’t choke on their vomit. One of the most common ways someone dies of an alcohol overdose is by having their gag reflex, one of these automatic responses, suppressed. Alcohol’s depressant effects include slowing or blocking signals to the brain that control automatic responses, essentially causing your body to shut down if you have drunk enough alcohol. Do not assume that just because someone else can drink a certain amount of alcohol safely that you can drink the same amount without the risk of an alcohol overdose.

Support with drinking

No, alcohol overdose cannot be safely treated at home due to the risk of respiratory failure, coma, and death. Alcohol poisoning requires immediate medical intervention, including airway support, oxygen therapy, and intravenous treatment, none of which are safely administered outside a clinical setting. The primary causes of alcohol poisoning are binge drinking, drinking on an empty stomach, and combining alcohol with other depressants like sedatives or opioids.

• When tolerance develops, the individual may be tempted to increase the dose to achieve the same effects.
• Long-term effects can persist, especially if the poisoning is severe.
• Powder cocaine is generally snorted, although crack cocaine is injected or smoked.
• Dr. Boris received his degree in medicine from New York College of Osteopathic Medicine and completed his Emergency Medicine residency at Lincoln Medical and Mental Health center in Bronx, NY.

While waiting for help to arrive, try to keep the person awake and breathing by talking to them loudly or gently shaking their shoulders. If they’re unconscious, turn them on their side to prevent choking if they vomit. Check if they’re breathing regularly and look for signs such as blue lips, fingernails, or skin, which means they’re not getting enough oxygen. If you have naloxone (Narcan) and suspect an opioid overdose, use it right away by spraying it into their nose or injecting it into their muscle. The drugs listed above are unlikely to cause fatal overdose when taken alone. Combined with other drugs, such as alcohol or opioids, these drugs may become lethally toxic in high doses.

Her enthusiasm for 12-step-based recovery and Alina Lodge’s long history of quality treatment help make it easy for her to help those coming through Alina’s admissions process. When she’s not working at the Lodge, she is busy chasing chickens, her big fluffy great Pyrenees, mucking about in the large organic gardens, and running a professional recording studio. An overdose happens when you take more of a substance than the maximum that your body can withstand.

The clinical management of all of these conditions may be more challenging in individuals who misuse alcohol because of coexisting immune impairment. Working with a concierge addiction doctor or medical care provider can provide personalized care and support in improving immune function. Private addiction treatment programs and at-home detox programs offer comprehensive approaches to recovery.

immune health

At-home detox is a safe and effective way to boost immune function for individuals struggling with alcohol or drug dependence. It allows individuals to detoxify from substances in the comfort of their own homes while receiving medical supervision and support. Private addiction treatment offers a comprehensive approach to boosting immune function. These programs provide individualized care in a private and confidential setting. They typically include a combination of therapy, counseling, and medical support to address the physical, psychological, and emotional aspects of addiction. Adequate sleep is another essential factor in maintaining a strong immune system.

The Impact of Alcohol on Specific Body Systems

Limiting alcohol intake, staying hydrated, focusing on a nutritious diet, incorporating supplements, and engaging in regular exercise can help support your immune health. In this blog post, we will delve into the nuances of how drinking affects our immune system, explore the science behind these effects, and discuss practical steps we can take to safeguard our health. By the end of this exploration, you’ll gain a clearer understanding of the impact of alcohol on your immune health and how to make informed choices that align with your wellness goals. While it can suppress the rapid, non-specific responses of innate immunity, it also interferes with the adaptive immunity’s specialized responses. For adaptive immunity, alcohol can cause miscommunication among cells and reduce the immune system’s ability to remember and counteract specific threats. First, let’s talk about our innate immunity — the frontline of our immune system.

Five tips to manage your mental health during the holidays

• The decrease in T cells is accompanied by increased homeostatic proliferation, which in turn leads to increased T-cell differentiation, activation, and conversion to the memory phenotype.
• Immune cells identify threats by recognizing the structures common to bacteria, viruses, and other microbes.
• Every article is rigorously reviewed by medical experts to ensure accuracy.
• Additional analyses demonstrated that ethanol exposure promoted apoptosis by inducing breaks in the DNA of the T cells.
• That said, evidence also shows that even smaller amounts of alcohol can affect the immune system.

Not only what is alcoholism will drinking alcohol reduce your immune system’s strength, but alcohol also has a dehydrating effect. Moreover, some people shouldn’t drink at all, according to the Dietary Guidelines. This includes people who are pregnant, have alcohol abuse disorder, or are taking medications that interact with alcohol.

• Bagby and colleagues review substantial evidence that alcohol further disrupts the immune system, significantly increasing the likelihood of HIV transmission and progression.
• To this end, heavy drinkers have been shown to exhibit an increase in both IgA and IgM levels when compared to both moderate and light male drinkers.

Additionally, alcohol can damage the gut lining, which serves as one of the body’s first lines of defense against pathogens in the gastrointestinal tract. A compromised gut barrier allows bacteria and toxins to enter the bloodstream more easily, triggering inflammatory responses and placing extra stress on the immune system. Alcohol significantly alters inflammatory signaling pathways, influencing cytokine production and activity. One major effect is its modulation of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB), a transcription factor regulating pro-inflammatory gene expression. Chronic alcohol exposure enhances NF-κB activation, increasing inflammatory mediators such as tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β).

While moderate drinking appears less harmful regarding leukocyte levels, it’s wise not to overstep limits if maintaining optimal immunity matters most. Abstaining from excessive alcohol allows gradual restoration of healthy white blood cell populations alongside improved overall health markers. Excessive alcohol consumption can reduce white blood cell production, impairing the immune system’s ability to fight infections. Ultimately, the diminished ability to fight off diseases means that individuals with alcohol-compromised immunity face a higher burden of illness.

• When the balance is disrupted, it becomes difficult for the good bacteria in the gut to overcome the bad bacteria.
• There are several negative health problems that could arise due to frequent drinking.
• However, these are observed associations and do not imply a causal relationship or a recommendation for alcohol consumption.
• According to the Cleveland Clinic, once you take a sip of alcohol, your body prioritizes breaking down alcohol over several other bodily functions.

Alcohol can disrupt the delicate balance of the gut microbiome, which is crucial for maintaining a robust immune system. Simply put, the immune system is what protects our bodies from harmful substances, defends against infections and produces antibodies to help fight off any toxins, germs or viruses in the body (antigens). It’s important to maintain a healthy immune system to aid recovery when you’re unwell, lessening the intensity of symptoms and decreasing the risk of infections.

Alcoholic fatty liver disease

This immunosuppression allows viruses and bacteria to more easily invade the lungs, leading to respiratory infections. Alcohol also activates an enzyme acting at the thymocyte membrane called adenylate cyclase, which increases the intracellular concentration of cyclic AMP (Atkinson et al. 1977). CAMP has multiple regulatory functions in the cell, and increased cAMP levels can stimulate DNA fragmentation, leading to thymocyte apoptosis (McConkey et al. 1990). Finally, exposure to ethanol concentrations of 0.4 to 2 percent had a more profound effect on apoptosis of cultured thymocytes than on mature T cells (Slukvin and Jerrells 1995). All of these studies demonstrate that ethanol interferes with normal thymocyte function and maturation into T cells in a variety of ways.

Alcohol also interferes with cytokine signaling, proteins that help immune cells communicate effectively. Macrophages, a type of white blood cell that eliminates pathogens, can experience impaired mobility and effectiveness due to alcohol. Both the red and white blood cells can be impacted by persistent alcohol use. Depending on how much alcohol is ingested and for how long, alcohol can interfere with the production of new red blood cells, potentially leading to anemia and fatigue. It can also exacerbate the destruction of red blood cells in the body, furthering these challenges.

Alcohol & The Immune System: Does Drinking Weaken Your Immune System?

Alcohol misuse can also lead to high blood pressure, an irregular heartbeat (arrhythmia), or increased heart rate. Chronic, heavy drinking raises the risk for ischemic heart disease (heart problems caused by narrowed arteries) and myocardial infarction (heart attack). It impairs the immune system, compromising defense mechanisms against infections. Chronic alcohol intake damages organs, particularly the liver, which plays a vital role in supporting immunity. The function of the epithelial cells, essential for barrier function, is inhibited. Persistent alcohol use elevates the risk of cardiovascular diseases, weakens cell-mediated immunity, and increases the risk of infections.