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Fentanyl Addiction

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Fentanyl is a prescription opioid painkiller that is chemically related to other addictive prescription painkillers, like hydrocodone and methadone. In a hospital setting, this narcotic is used to rapidly treat severe pain in people who are tolerant to other opioids. Fentanyl is so potent that doctors often reserve it for patients who have terminal cancer.

Though this drug has medical uses, a euphoric fentanyl high can occur if a person takes too much of it. Thus, it is no surprise that fentanyl has been sold illicitly for decades. Today, fentanyl is often substituted for heroin — and it is just as dangerous as the notorious street drug.

The fast-acting opioid painkiller fentanyl is a synthetic opioid prescribed to relieve chronic pain related to terminal cancer and severe non-cancer pains. Available as a transdermal patch and in oral and injectable formulations, fentanyl is easy to use. But this ultra-strong drug is as addictive as it is analgesic. In 2015, 9,580 Americans died from drug overdoses involving fentanyl. Though most of those people resided in the Northeast United States, fentanyl deaths have been reported all across the country, many of which were preceded by fentanyl addiction.

Table of Contents

1. What Is Fentanyl?
2. History of Fentanyl Addiction
3. Common Forms of Fentanyl
4. Fentanyl Brand Names
5. Common Fentanyl Street Names
6. Is Fentanyl Addictive?

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What Is Fentanyl?

To fully understand the depths of fentanyl addiction, it’s important to first address the “What is fentanyl?” question. Fentanyl is a narcotic painkiller that is up to 50 times more potent than heroin and up to 100 times stronger than morphine. Due to the drug’s potency and addictive qualities, doctors reserve fentanyl prescriptions for the most severe situations. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) classifies fentanyl as a Schedule II controlled substance, which means that it “has a high potential for abuse, with use potentially leading to severe psychological or physical dependence.” It is considered a dangerous drug, alongside other Schedule II substances such as cocaine, methamphetamine, Vicodin, Adderall, OxyContin, and others. A fentanyl high mimics that of most other painkillers, rendering the user euphoric and numb — both mentally and physically.

History of Fentanyl Addiction

Fentanyl was first introduced to the U.S. in the 1960s as an injectable anesthetic branded as Sublimaze. By the early ‘90s, the patch was available for transdermal use. However, the drug did not become widely known in mainstream culture for over two more decades.

When music superstar Prince died of a fentanyl overdose in 2016, the drug was still relatively unknown among Americans. Meanwhile, fentanyl addiction and abuse had quietly been growing more common in the years prior to Prince’s death, spiking between 2014 and 2015. During this time, the death rate of non-methadone synthetic opioids like fentanyl increased by over 70%.

Common Forms of Fentanyl

Most often, doctor administer this drug as a fentanyl patch (which adheres to the skin), a lozenge known as a “fentanyl lollipop,” or an injection. However, illicit forms of the drug are not as distinctive.

On the streets, fentanyl and its illicit variations may appear as a powder, which can be melted into a liquid and administered like a heroin injection. In recent years, Hollywood stars have taken to using the lollipops — perhaps because the candies appear so normal and benign.

Fentanyl Brand Names

Legally manufactured fentanyl is sold by pharmaceutical companies under the following brand names and formulations:

Actiq – lollipops
Fentora – effervescent buccal tablets
Duragesic – transdermal patches
Subsys – sublingual spray
Abstral – sublingual tablets
Lazanda – nasal spray

Common Fentanyl Street Names

Non-pharmaceutical versions of fentanyl exist on the market, complete with slang terms. Common adulterations involve the addition of heroin or cocaine to fentanyl. Illicit fentanyl is often found as a powder or attached to blotter paper. Here are some common street names for fentanyl or fentanyl-laced heroin:

Apache
China Girl
China White
Dance Fever
Friend
Goodfella
Jackpot
Murder 8
TNT
Tango
Cash

Is Fentanyl Addictive?

“Is fentanyl addictive?” is a commonly asked question regarding this substance, in addiction to the “What is fentanyl?” question. Like other opioids, fentanyl is highly addictive. Therefore, fentanyl addiction can develop fairly easily if this drug is not used as it is prescribed. Since fentanyl — like heroin — impacts the brain’s reward centers, it’s hard to stop using this drug once you have started. (Fortunately, this also means that substance abuse treatment methods used to treat heroin addiction — such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy — can also be used to treat fentanyl addiction.)

Fentanyl is most addictive when it is crushed then snorted or injected, and when it is combined with other drugs — including alcohol. However, even with medical supervision, fentanyl addiction and dependency can develop.

It does not take long for fentanyl addiction to develop. For some people, mental fentanyl addiction can begin upon their first use of the drug. Due to its potency, physical dependency and fentanyl addiction can occur after a person has used the drug just a couple of times. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) classifies fentanyl as a Schedule II controlled substance. Drugs within this classification have a high potential for abuse and can cause severe addiction. Alongside fentanyl, Schedule II narcotics include some of the most commonly abused prescription drugs — Vicodin, OxyContin, Percocet, morphine, codeine, and others.

Fentanyl entered the U.S. medical market in the 1960s. The Controlled Substances Act of 1970 labeled fentanyl a Schedule II drug, due to its addictive qualities. As the ‘70s progressed, illicit versions of fentanyl began showing up on the market, increasing the chances of fentanyl addiction.

Fentanyl Addiction Statistics & Stories

Fentanyl and other opioids account for the greatest proportion of 21st-century prescription drug addictions in the U.S. Prescription opioid deaths skyrocketed at the turn of the century, and within two years, opioid overdose caused more deaths than cocaine and heroin addiction. Fentanyl deaths skyrocketed between 2014–2015. From January 24 to February 4, 2014, in the Pittsburgh, PA, region alone, 17 deaths were linked to fentanyl-laced heroin. Matters only worsened from there. In early 2016, statistics showed that 9,580 Americans had died the previous year due to fentanyl abuse.

Fentanyl Addiction Stories:

For several years, Hollywood insiders have reported that fentanyl lollipops are sometimes freely available at posh parties in Los Angeles. In 2016, pop superstar Prince died at age 57 from a fentanyl overdose. Throughout the years leading up to his death, Prince had been spotted sucking on lollipops in public — some speculate that the candies contained fentanyl. Celebrities are not the only ones to use fentanyl to get high. When Ontario, Canada resident Michael Morton was a teenager, he stole some fentanyl patches from the pharmacy where he worked.

From the first time he used them, he was hooked. He told Maclean’s, “I fell back in my seat and I fell in love. It was the best high I ever had.” He quickly developed a fentanyl addiction — within a year, he was abusing fentanyl multiple times per day. But when four of his friends died from overdoses, he sought professional fentanyl addiction treatment. Today, he receives regular methadone treatment to help manage his disease. Treatment saved Michael’s life. If you are suffering from fentanyl addiction, treatment can help you too. Take the first step towards life after addiction by getting in touch with The Recovery Village.

Sources

“DEA / Drug Scheduling.” Drug Enforcement Administration, www.dea.gov/druginfo/ds.shtml. Accessed 17 Jan. 2017.

“Controlled Substance Schedules.” Drug Enforcement Administration, https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/schedules/. Accessed 17 Jan. 2017.

“Drug Fact Sheets.” Drug Enforcement Administration, https://www.dea.gov/druginfo/concern_fentanyl.shtml. Accessed 17 Jan. 2017.

“Fentanyl.” DEA Diversion Control Division, Drug Enforcement Administration, Dec. 2016, www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_chem_info/fentanyl.pdf.

“Fentanyl.” National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), National Institutes of Health, June 2016, www.drugabuse.gov/drugs-abuse/fentanyl. Accessed 17 Jan. 2017.

Lockett, Jon. “Latest Hollywood Craze is for Berry-flavoured Lollipops Laced with Powerful Opiates.” The Sun, 26 June 2016, www.thesun.co.uk/news/1344287/latest-hollywood-craze-is-for-berry-flavoured-lollipops-laced-with-powerful-opiates/.

“Synthetic Opioid Data | Drug Overdose | CDC Injury Center.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 16 Dec. 2016, www.cdc.gov/drugoverdose/data/fentanyl.html. Accessed 17 Jan. 2017.

Gatehouse, Jonathon, and Nancy Macdonald. “Fentanyl: The King of All Opiates, and a Killer Drug Crisis.” Macleans, 22 June 2015, www.macleans.ca/society/health/fentanyl-the-king-of-all-opiates-and-a-killer-drug-crisis/.

Mandal, Ananya. “Fentanyl Illicit Use.” News-Medical.net, AZoNetwork, 3 July 2014, www.news-medical.net/health/Fentanyl-Illicit-Use.aspx.

Volkow, Nora D. “America’s Addiction to Opioids: Heroin and Prescription Drug Abuse.” National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), National Institutes of Health, 14 May 2014, www.drugabuse.gov/about-nida/legislative-activities/testimony-to-congress/2016/americas-addiction-to-opioids-heroin-prescription-drug-abuse. Accessed 17 Jan. 2017.

“Fentanyl: MedlinePlus Drug Information.” MedlinePlus – Health Information from the National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, 15 Sept. 2016, medlineplus.gov/druginfo/meds/a605043.html. Accessed 17 Jan. 2017.

Clark, H. W. “Colleague Letter.” SAMHSA, 6 Feb. 2014, www.samhsa.gov/sites/default/files/programs_campaigns/medication_assisted/dear_colleague_letters/2014-colleague-letter-fentanyl-contaminated-heroin-deaths.pdf.

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