Editor,
I’d like to begin by thanking the Mayor, the Saratoga Police Department, and the Saratoga Sun for
organizing the meeting to discuss how we might prevent more fentanyl overdose deaths from
devastating our community.
Like all group conversations, it wandered a bit, but I think there were some nuggets of gold that are truly actionable for the town.
My interest in this subject is not passive or
casual. I lost my only child to fentanyl poisoning just more than three years ago after watching my
daughter battle addiction for almost 10 years. It was an experience that I would not wish on anyone and,
if you have not experienced it yourself, you do not understand the horrific nature of this problem.
My best advice to the town is to focus on the real nature of the problem. Before getting into that, it
may be useful to talk about some issues that came up in the discussion that really do not address the
root cause of fentanyl poisoning and opioid addiction. This conversation should not be about mental
health, suicide, law enforcement, or bad people (i.e. parents, kids, teachers). We can spend an
incredible amount of time and resources focused on these issues but it won’t do a thing to stop the
murder of these kids.
The young people who recently lost their lives were, by all accounts, good kids. They held jobs,
contributed to the town, and they were NOT addicts. They just wanted to get high and believed that
what they were taking was something that would do that for them. They did not want to die and
neither did my daughter. Kids from every walk of life in America are dying in record numbers because
they were unaware that their substance contained fentanyl. That is not suicidal ideation. The young
man who provided the drug did not know that it contained fentanyl. It appears that the people who
took the drug thought it may have been something else.
According to the CDC, fentanyl is 50x stronger than heroin and 100x stronger than morphine. 1 Another
synthetic opioid “carfentanyl” 2 is 100x more potent than fentanyl. Let that sink in. Fentanyl is
manufactured and is very cheap to make. It is also extremely addictive. It is popularly added to illicit
drugs like cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine because it is cheap, strong and addictive. It is also
increasingly made into pill form to mimic legitimate medications like Xanax, Percocet, Adderall, and
other commonly abused prescription medications. Over 150 people a day die from synthetic opioid
overdose. 3
The mechanisms for buying drugs containing this poison are much harder to track, more widely
available, and easier to find than ever before. Many dealers are unaware of the makeup of what they
are selling. If you think you’re selling oxycontin or Xanax, you’re going to brand it and sell it as such. If
you’re buying oxycodone or Adderall (usually because you enjoy the effects) then you expect that is
what you’re getting. Overdoses occur because fentanyl is added to these drugs without their
knowledge, the person takes it, and is therefore poisoned. Too often it is on their first encounter with
making an illegal purchase.
If the user doesn’t die, they will likely then become addicted. In addiction, the desire to get high is
completely overcome by a desire to feel normal and not extremely ill. The routine to use becomes a
daily part of life and the user will allow nothing to come between them and their drug of choice. They
will steal, sell their bodies, sell drugs or anything else that will allow the restless leg syndrome to stop so
they can get some sleep and the waves of nausea, depression, cravings, and anxiety to subside. Their
brains change to prefer the drug over treatment and they become locked into a hell they can’t seem to
leave. The addict is not at the greatest risk for death but it does happen. Again – unidentified fentanyl
is usually the culprit. Addicts in recovery often think they can have “just one last high” when they are no
longer suffering from withdrawal and have been “clean” for a period of time. They use their normal
dose of their drug of choice but if laced with fentanyl – they can die in a matter of a few minutes. That is
what happened to my daughter.
So many misconceptions exist about fentanyl, overdose, and opioid addiction that the condition screams
for a comprehensive education program in schools, public health communities, faith groups, parents
groups, law enforcement/courts, and mental health practitioners. I’m sure there are other venues but
the biggest stumbling block to action appears to be a misplaced belief that this is a problem involving
“other people” because they are mentally ill, bad, or otherwise unfit because EVERYONE ALREADY
KNOWS that drugs are bad. Fentanyl has changed that dynamic and we must respond with a very direct
education effort that shows the unvarnished truth about this poison and the lives it has taken or ruined.
Online resources abound and if I were mayor and council, I would task our local public health people to
establish curricula for schools and posters/brochures to be placed in every classroom, medical
office, and public building. Workshops should be developed to train police, first responders and
community members on fentanyl and overdose treatment through the use of Naloxone – an injectable
drug to reverse the effects of opioid overdoses. It is a lifesaver. Naloxone cannot be abused and is
available in pharmacies in the State of Wyoming. The state provides training to first responders so that
is an available resource. More research should be conducted to make it more widely available and for
free. Is it available in schools? How about bars and restaurants? I know of at least several overdoses
(albeit not in Saratoga) that occurred in bars and restaurants.
Fentanyl test strips can be the third leg of the stool to prevent fentanyl exposure. These test strips are
relatively inexpensive and can help the user determine whether their tablet, powder, or liquid contains
fentanyl. Some may express concern that it encourages the use of drugs; however, if our town is serious
about preventing fentanyl poisoning, we must identify it before it is ingested or injected. No penalty
availability of these test strips is possible and is in use in many programs across the United States. An
example of how the Connecticut Department of Health may be found here: https://portal.ct.gov/-
/media/Departments-and-Agencies/DPH/AIDS--Chronic-Diseases/Prevention/DPH_FentanylTestStrips.pdf
Focused fentanyl education and more availability and training on the use of Naloxone and fentanyl
test strips can save lives. That’s a great place to start but more must be done. All of us have a
responsibility to insist that our politicians demonstrate action on this awful problem. Wouldn’t you like
to know what our Senators/House members, et al are doing to solve our border crisis which directly
contributes to our fentanyl crisis? I’m going to contact them to find out and suggest you do the same.
Signed,
Theresa Ramsey
Saratoga, Wyoming
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