Fentanyl: What Parents Need to Know

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is similar to morphine but is 50 to 100 times more potent. Although it can be prescribed by a doctor to treat patients with severe pain, it is also made and used illegally.

Illegal Fentanyl is sold as a powder, dropped onto blotter paper, put in eye droppers and nasal sprays, or made into pills that look like other prescription opioids. Occasionally, the powder is used in vaping devices typically used for nicotine or marijuana.

Some drug dealers are mixing fentanyl with other drugs. This is because it takes very little fentanyl to produce a high, making it cheaper to produce and distribute. This is risky because people taking drugs or vaping don’t realize they might contain fentanyl, making overdose more likely.

How to recognize a fentanyl overdose? 

• Cannot be woken up or not moving
• Breathing slow or absent
• Discoloration of lips and nails
• Choking or coughing, gurgling sounds
• Cold or clammy skin
• Dizziness or disorientation
• Pupils extremely small

If you think someone is having an overdose, call 911 immediately and wait with the person until help arrives. If you think your child is using fentanyl or other opioids, please contact your family physician or your school site counselor.

Fast Facts:

• Opioids affect your brain – they affect areas of the brain that control pain and emotion, making it hard to feel pleasure from anything besides the drug.
• Opioids affect your body - they slow down the actions of the body, such as breathing and heartbeat
• Opioids can kill you - Even a single dose of an opioid can cause your breathing to slow or stop; taking opioids with alcohol or sedatives increases this risk.
• Opioids are highly addictive. - People who regularly use opioids often develop tolerance, which means that they need higher and/or more frequent doses of the drug to get the desired effects.
• Opioid addiction is treatable – Please contact your family physician or your school site counselor for help.