Author: Gary Jackson

Stimulant Overdose Drug Overdose CDC Injury Center

Different types of therapies are used in the treatment of meth addiction, or MUD.8 If you or someone you know use meth, you should consider seeking help. The first thing that shoud be done is to contact the local emergency number or 911. The call to the National toll-free Poison Help hotline can also save a life. All data and information presented in this paper has been de-identified. Notice of publication of de-identified information was provided to participants as part of the informed consent process, and explained in the signed consent documents.

can you overdose on methamphetamine

Our goal was to elicit PWUDs’ perspectives on this issue, which should be centered when informing funding, policy, and programmatic initiatives. Notably, nearly all of our respondents (17/21) reported use of opioids and methamphetamine—only 4 reported only using methamphetamine. Respondents described a constellation of psychological and physical symptoms that they characterized as “overamping,” experienced on a continuum from less to more severe. Few reported seeking medical attention for undesirable effects (usually related to psychological effects). General self-care strategies such as sleeping and staying hydrated were discussed.

Related MedlinePlus Health Topics

Finally, illegal methamphetamine production could expose people to harmful chemicals, possible burns, and explosions. Depending on case severity, an overdose could lead to irreversible damage. Doctors may use physical restraints in overdoses (or acute intoxication) to prevent harm to themselves or others. Physical restraints may be bandages or cuffs restricting a person’s movement. If the person is overdosing and experiencing a seizure, gently hold the back of their head and turn it to the side, if possible. This can help prevent injury and asphyxiation (choking) by vomit.

  • If someone is experiencing a meth overdose, immediate medical attention is needed.
  • Quotes are provided using a unique respondent identifier (e.g., “R13”), ethnicity, race, sex, age, location of interview, and drugs used most often by the respondent.
  • People who overdose on methamphetamine exhibit a number of signs.
  • Doctors may use physical restraints in overdoses (or acute intoxication) to prevent harm to themselves or others.
  • Finally, illegal methamphetamine production could expose people to harmful chemicals, possible burns, and explosions.
  • The best way to avoid this is to quit the drug and seek further medical treatment for your addiction.
  • We strive to create content that is clear, concise, and easy to understand.

All materials and procedures for this study were reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board of the University of Nevada, Reno. The UNM IRB deferred oversight to UNR IRB under a single IRB agreement. All participants provided written informed consent prior to enrollment in the study. You fucking think someone’s coming or they’re out to get you or just whatever.

Treatment / Management

KP involved in conceptualization, funding acquisition, methodology, supervision, validation, writing—review and editing. KDW took part in conceptualization, funding acquisition, investigation, methodology, supervision, validation, writing—original draft/review and editing. In most cases, respondents did not experience symptoms until they had been awake for two to three days. For some, the onset of such symptoms signaled the need to get some rest and stop using for a while. I don’t really know the actual reason why, but you’ll see people starting to nod out when they’re doing it.” The incentive-based approach has been shown to encourage cocaine and methamphetamine abstinence.

  • The antibiotics used to treat these infections may also result in complications.
  • Interviews were digitally recorded and transcribed verbatim for analysis.
  • It may be that the experience of methamphetamine “overdose” cannot be described using the same framework that is currently used to describe opioid overdose.
  • Doctors may administer a crystalloid intravenously to eliminate the drug through the urine.
  • RWH involved in conceptualization, data curation, formal analysis, investigation, project administration, supervision, writing—original draft/review and editing.

Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using qualitative thematic analysis. If you believe someone has taken methamphetamine and they are having bad symptoms, get them medical help right away. Take extreme caution around them, especially if they appear to be extremely excited or paranoid.

Similar articles in PubMed

The primary effects of opioid agonists such as heroin include analgesia, euphoria, and respiratory depression [46]. On the other hand, methamphetamine has both acute and chronic effects on the cardiovascular and cerebrovascular systems [20], and has been implicated in various underlying cardiac and cerebrovascular diseases that result in death [47]. Of note, many of the symptoms described by our sample could be attributable to other causes, such as extreme sleep deprivation and/or polysubstance use, rather than the acute effects of methamphetamine use alone. Auditory and visual delusions and hallucinations have been experienced by individuals suffering extreme sleep deprivation [49], and lack of sleep is a risk factor for anxiety, and major depression [50, 51]. Therefore, it is difficult to determine if methamphetamine use itself, or the sleep deprivation brought on by its use, is the more proximal cause of symptoms experienced in our sample.

It is also not rare for people who inject methamphetamine to have a history of opioid injection and heavy polydrug use. Polydrug use is when you mix drugs or take one drug while under the influence of another drug. At that time, they said that overdosing had caused almost 4.500 deaths in the US. This is according to a report by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). In 2017 there had been a 543 percent increase in deaths due to psychostimulants since 2005, according to figures from the DEA National Drug Threat Assessment report. That was about 10,333 deaths due to psychostimulants in 2017, according to the report.

Recruitment and data collection

Quotes are provided using a unique respondent identifier (e.g., “R13”), ethnicity, race, sex, age, location of interview, and drugs used most often by the respondent. Our writers and reviewers are experienced professionals in medicine, addiction treatment, and healthcare. AddictionResource fact-checks all the information before publishing and uses only credible and trusted sources when citing any medical data. The Verified badge on our articles is a trusted sign of the most comprehensive scientifically-based medical content.

  • KP involved in conceptualization, funding acquisition, methodology, supervision, validation, writing—review and editing.
  • If you or anyone you know is undergoing a severe health crisis, call a doctor or 911 immediately.
  • First-time meth users are at a particularly high risk for experiencing an overdose because their bodies are not used to the drug.
  • If the person is overdosing and experiencing a seizure, gently hold the back of their head and turn it to the side, if possible.
  • You can also turn the person’s head to the side to reduce the risk of choking on vomit.
  • We may be paid a fee for marketing or advertising by organizations that can assist with treating people with substance use disorders.
  • Our sample was also drawn from two Western US states with high rates of methamphetamine and opioid overdose-related deaths, and represent a combination of rural, urban, and urban-serving communities.

The faster a person gets medical help, the better the chance for recovery. If they are having a seizure, gently hold the back of their head to prevent injury. If possible, turn their head or body to the side in case they vomit. DO NOT try to stop their arms and legs from shaking, or put anything in their mouth.