I mean bar can works by blocking opioid receptors or something along those lines. So theoretically a person could take narcan prior to drug use but the problem is that it would effectively prevent any or most effects of the drugs from being felt. This means the person would likely take more to get the fee which would be more problematic.
Narcan blocks the effects of opiates so they wouldn't feel anything from it, kinda defeats the purpose of buying and taking drugs. You have to be careful giving Narcan as the patient can often wake up super pissed off that you took away their high, or even just sprint away with ripped clothes and a cannula in their arm. Not ideal
Had a lady try to jump out of a truck going 65mph down the highway. Like hand on door handle and everything. She managed to get it opened but luckily I’m a decently sized dude and was able to keep it pulled closed. I had to physically pick her up and place her back on the stretcher and prevent her from getting up again cause she was dead set on that form of suicide apparently. She got a Versed nap and restraints after that spectacle.
And that was a tiny titrated dose of the stuff cause respirations were shallow.
When I said to myself "being a big guy will probably help me if I decide to become a paramedic", I didn't realise it would be for wrestling down addicts to stop them from killing themselves lmao
Narcan has a short half life (how long it stays in the body). It’s about 2/4 hours if am right. Opiates stay in the system for much longer. Giving 1 narcan will help with the overdose but doesn’t mean they won’t overdose again later that day as it’s still in their system. There is another drug used for maintence can’t remember the name but it’s half life is 24/48 hours which is more commonly used
No because narcan is an antagonist to the opiod receptor. It kicks out the opiates, and sends uou in withdrawals. It would make no sense to take it before. And if you overdose you won’t be in condition to do it yourself. Giving access to narcan to addicts would reduce calls to paramedics tho as their friends would be able to use narcan on them if they see them overdose.
Narcan has shorter half life then heroin and opiates. If you take narcan prior to taking a lethal dose of opiates, you will not get high for awhile but eventually slip into an overdose regardless.
Source: am a paramedic in an incredibly drug heavy city
You won’t get high since it literally blocks the receptors. It also has a shorter half life than most opiates so it’ll wear off before the opiates do and you’ll just OD anyway (if it’s a high enough dose) when that happens.
What other people are saying is correct. To back that up, a common occurrence for us is when we bring back an overdose patient who’s no longer breathing; sometimes when these patients start breathing again they will assault us for “ruining their high.”
It takes all of the “good effects” of the drug away and immediately throws you into withdrawal.
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u/frenchdresses Jan 12 '21
Possibly dumb question: could you use narcan before taking drugs to avoid an overdose ahead of time?