In the midst of an ongoing drug crisis, Chicago outreach workers are handing out fentanyl detection kits to prevent accidental opioid overdoses. The move comes in the wake of an alarming trend: the lacing of street drugs such as heroin and cocaine with the most potent and frequently fatal opioid, fentanyl.

Fentanyl Test Strips and Narcan in Chicago Harm Reduction Efforts

The initiative to distribute fentanyl detection kits throughout Chicago evolved from current efforts to surge the opioid overdose reversal drug, Narcan, into the hard hit West Side of Chicago. 

These harm reduction programs are being led by the local nonprofit West Side Heroin/Opioid Task Force and are designed to keep community members, first responders and active drug users safe in the face of widely circulating fentanyl, which can be fatal with even minimal exposure 

Since fentanyl is 100 times more potent than morphine, it’s frequently combined with other drugs or passed off as counterfeit pills. The dangerous combination of substances puts those who are exposed whether by intention or by accident at a high risk for potentially life-threatening overdose. 

In fact, fentanyl is a leading cause of death for Americans between 18 and 45 years old. 

This is why the need to flood the streets with free fentanyl detection kits is so urgent. They’re easy to use and highly accurate. Experts caution, though, that they’re not foolproof.

Harm Reduction, Overdose Prevention and Opioid Safety

Because fentanyl detection kits test only a small sample they may not detect fentanyl present elsewhere in the drug supply.

This is why advocates urge that these devices only be used in conjunction with a host of other safety measures. This includes ensuring Narcan kits are on hand and that someone is close by to administer aid if needed.

But above all, for groups like the West Side Heroin/Opioid Task Force, it’s about keeping people as safe as possible in the midst of their addiction and recovery and accepting them wherever they may be on their journey. And ultimately, trust and care can motivate those who need help to finally seek it.

At the West Side Heroin/Opioid Task Force, no judgment or pretense, only an effort to assist. Community members are trained to use the fentanyl detection kits and Narcan sprays. They’re reminded to stay safe and equipped with the resources and the compassion to do so. 

Community Outreach to Reduce Opioid Overdose Risk

Approximately one dozen Task Force members are being dispatched across the West Side for outreach strictly to distribute these fentanyl detection devices. The goal is to halt these tragic deaths and help the community heal from the opioid crisis. 

They believe that people want and need to know what’s in their drugs, and, if given the resources, they’ll test them. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention supports this distribution and encourages communities to seek out these devices and testing strips as a part of a comprehensive harm reduction and community recovery strategy. 

It’s also becoming easier to test with newer products, like Defent One, which resembles a pregnancy test and requires minimal steps in the process. The hope is that with the simplicity and availability of these products, more people will be empowered to protect themselves and those around them from an accidental opioid overdose. 

Finding Support for Opioid Addiction and Recovery

Harm reduction tools like fentanyl test kits and Narcan can help reduce overdose risk but they are only one part of addressing opioid addiction.

If you’re struggling with opioid use, you have options. Narcotics.com can help you find Narcotics Anonymous (NA) meetings near you, including in person and virtual options.

Help is available at every stage of recovery.

A new state law that came into effect on January 1st, 2026 requires all public libraries in Illinois to stock Narcan or similar medications that can reverse opioid overdoses caused by drugs like heroin or fentanyl.

This law also allows library staff who are trained to administer these drugs to assist victims in the event of a suspected overdose, according to the state’s Department of Public Health.

Narcan in Illinois Public Libraries and Beyond

Opioid overdoses at public libraries have been a growing concern in recent years. According to Rob Simmons, Oak Parks Public Library’s director of social services and public safety, around two or three people have been overdosing at the library each year. 

Many of these overdoses involve opioids, which depress breathing and can quickly become fatal without rapid intervention.

This has become, in his words, an unfortunate reality that makes having this life saving medication on hand crucial for public libraries. 

The prevalence of these crisis events in free public spaces speaks to a difficult reality. A substantial proportion of community members experiencing opioid addiction may also be unable to access safe and stable shelter. 

Public libraries and other free community spaces are filling that lack. And in the process they are more likely to experience an onsite overdose event. 

A ready supply of Narcan in public libraries and other public spaces can save the lives of high risk and vulnerable populations within the community.

Narcan on the National Stage

In April 2025, the CDC reported that the number of overdose deaths within the previous 12 month period was the lowest reported since March 2020. Many experts are attributing the decline in drug deaths to the prevalence of Narcan in homes and communities.

Since Narcan, also known by its generic name, Naloxone, reverses the effects of an opioid overdose, it’s been on the frontlines of reducing the number of fatal overdoses in the US.

Most fatal overdoses in Illinois are caused by the synthetic opioid fentanyl. At Oak Park Public Library, located west of Chicago, staff have successfully used the drug to reverse overdoses around 20 times to date.

Promoting Public Health at Public Libraries

State Representative Anne Moeller, one of the law’s sponsors, acknowledged how effective Narcan can be at stopping an overdose from becoming fatal. 

She went on to state that because libraries are public spaces with many patrons, there’s a high chance that someone would have such an emergency at some point.

According to Representative Moeller, libraries will also be able to obtain medication kits and training for their staff for free from the state. Several public libraries, such as those in Oak Park and Evanston, have already had supplies and training ready to serve the community.

Find Opioid Addiction Support Near You

Opioid addiction doesn’t have to control your life and jeopardize your future. Recovery is possible.

Find a local NA support group, including in person or online meetings or call 800-934-1582(Sponsored) today.

Tennessee’s fentanyl crisis continues to claim lives and experts say that, increasingly, the synthetic opioid’s newest victims are children.

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid up to 50 times stronger than heroin and is often unknowingly ingested, increasing overdose risks for both adults and children.

Fentanyl’s Impact on Tennessee’s Most Vulnerable

Fentanyl continues to drive the war on drugs in Tennessee. While a variety of agencies have poured resources into reducing overdoses, too many Tennesseans are still affected. And lately the newest victims have been the Volunteer State’s youngest.

In 2025, fentanyl was responsible for most overdose fatalities. 

Lieutenant Shannon Heflin with the Cheatham County Sheriff’s Office Drug Task Force said of fentanyl, “It’s poison. You know that there’s a potential that whoever you sell that drug to has the potential to die.”

Cheatham County borders the Nashville metro area and is among Tennessee’s more populous regions.

Gains and Losses

According to Heflin, 2022 was the worst year for deadly overdoses in Cheatham County. Since that time, they’ve seen a decrease as they’ve worked to tackle the fentanyl crisis. 

Heflin said he attributes the decrease in fentanyl overdose deaths to the amount of resources and educational materials disseminated to the public. 

Despite these efforts, however, the drug is still affecting many people in Tennessee, often its most vulnerable citizens and particularly the state’s young people.

Because of the ubiquity of drugs, the Statewide Coordinator at the Tennessee Alliance for Drug-Endangered Children, Tabitha Curtis, said, “We consider every child as a drug-endangered child. Drugs are available everywhere.” 

At least 74 children either experienced or witnessed a drug overdose in 2025, according to the TBI. Exposure can include accidental ingestion, witnessing overdoses at home or contact with fentanyl contaminated substances.

Of the 74 overdose events, 16 involved the drug overdose of a child or teen.

In the remaining cases, the children were present when an adult, such as a parent or other family member, overdosed. 

Curtis said, “We want every child to have the opportunity to grow up in a safe and healthy community and home environments.”

Through education, the Tennessee Alliance for Drug Endangered Children strives to create and implement systemic changes that prevent exposure to the drug epidemic. It’s especially important because some drugs are brightly colored and look like candy, which appeals to kids. 

Experts are encouraging parents to talk to their kids about the dangers of drugs. Curtis admonishes, “Talk to them about it, and talk to them about the risk and educate them on not taking anything or eating anything unless you give it to them.”

Finding Support Through Recovery and NA Meetings

If you or someone you love is experiencing opioid addiction, help is available. Peer recovery support, including Narcotics Anonymous meetings, can play a critical role in long term recovery.

Find an NA meeting near you or call 800-934-1582(Sponsored) for personalized support.

A new statewide initiative is providing Georgia public schools with naloxone (Narcan), the opioid overdose reversal medication. The kits will go out to over 2,300 schools across the state as Georgia continues to respond to the ongoing opioid epidemic and rising overdose risks tied to fentanyl exposure.

Georgia’s Continuing Opioid Crisis

The recent initiative is set to make these Narcan kits available in schools across the Peach State by the end of the academic school year. The Georgia Department of Education and the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities have teamed up in collaboration with funds from the Georgia Opioid Crisis Abatement Trust. 

Bibb County, the county seat of Macon, has experienced a steady but significant increase in opioid overdose deaths from 2019 to 2023. According to information released from the Georgia Department of Public Health data, the county went from 11 overdose deaths in 2019 to 41 overdose deaths in 2023. 

Narcan in Georgia Schools

Naloxone can be a life-saving medication that reverses the effects of opioids and restores breathing during an overdose.

With Bibb County noting approximately 215 emergency room visits per 100,000 people due to drug overdose events, the district has made naloxone available in all schools. As synthetic opioids like fentanyl continue to drive overdose deaths, having Narcan available in public schools is a critical harm reduction measure.

Kevin Tanner, commissioner of the state Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, agreed that opioid overdose deaths are an alarming issue, with a 302% increase in these types of deaths between 2010 and 2022. 

He underscores that stark reality that the county school system has experienced both school employee and student deaths related to drug overdose. Some of these cases may involve students taking medication they believe to be over-the-counter headache remedies which are in fact laced with fentanyl. 

To help ensure the efficacy of these kits, school nurses and other staff members are trained in administering the medication. They also include prevention and recovery resources for youth who may be at risk of opioid exposure. 

The state of Georgia is being proactive to protect students, educators, families and communities in the face of the ongoing opioid epidemic. If you or a young person you love is experiencing opioid dependency, there is hope.

If you or a young person you love is struggling with opioid use, help is available. You can find a peer recovery support group, including Narcotics Anonymous meetings near you.

For help finding a treatment program that fits your needs, call 800-934-1582(Sponsored) today.

The opioid epidemic isn’t just claiming lives and shattering relationships among adults and families. The scourge of parental opioid abuse is also creating generational trauma among children growing up in a household impacted by substance abuse.

You’ve heard the statistics: Opioid addiction is killing thousands of Americans each year. In 2023, more than 79,000 adults overdosed on opioids and an estimated 8.5 million adults abused opioids. 

But that’s the stats for adults. What is often overlooked is the impact on their kids. The fact is, by 2017, more than 1.4 million children were living with a parent addicted to opioids. This experience has both immediate and long-term effects on the children.

The Enduring Impacts of Parental Opioid Abuse

Parental opioid abuse and addiction impact a family in two main areas: behaviors and relationships. Substance abuse and its consequences affect the child’s relationship with the parent, and they affect the child’s behavior—both now and later.

Regarding the relationship with the parent, researchers have found that opioid abuse can cause the following negative behaviors in the parent: 

• Is less involved in the child’s life
• Acts more threatening or critical toward the child
• Takes out hardships on the child
• Demonstrates lack of care for the child
• Doesn’t understand cues from the child
• Frequently asks friends or family members to care for the child

Regarding the impact on the child’s behavior and long-term well-being, parental opioid abuse has been found to cause:

• Traumatic childhood events
• Lack of functional resilience in life 

Functional resilience refers to the ability to work, handle stress, remain sober, stay out of trouble with the law, and generally have a healthy life. Researchers interviewed individuals whose parents were on a methadone maintenance plan during their childhood, and they found that 76% of the children did not meet the requirements for functional resilience as adults. Additionally, 70% had at least two adverse childhood experiences. 

Support and Recovery Can Break the Cycle

While some recovery facilities focus solely on the individual experiencing an opioid use disorder, many programs offer support for their kids, too.

Family recovery services, counseling for children, and family counseling are available. These services can help break the cycles of addiction and trauma and provide hope for the next generation. 

Find Help and Support Today

If you or someone you love is struggling with opioid addiction, help is available. Recovery support, treatment programs, and NA meetings near you can provide guidance and hope for a healthier future.

Explore Narcotics Anonymous meetings in your area or call 800-934-1582(Sponsored) for immediate support.

Breaking the cycle of generational trauma starts with reaching out.

A recent study from Pennsylvania State University reveals the significant risk college students face from opioids. Undergraduate researchers at the Lehigh Valley campus found that nearly a third of the campus’s students know of someone who’d suffered an opioid overdose. 

This study serves as yet another reminder of the stark reality that the average student experience either causes or amplifies numerous stressors that can lead to drug use.

The Dangerous Combination of College Students and Opioids

College life comes with a variety of unique academic and social challenges that often catch new students off guard. On the academic side, they have to adapt to their new learning environment’s standards, build new routines, and adopt new working and studying habits to be able to perform in class. 

Many students who develop substance addictions, and especially opioid addictions, already struggle with a mental health problem of some kind before starting their studies.

All this against the backdrop of worrying about future careers and financial stress. According to the National Association of Financial Aid Administrators, money concerns have caused 59% of students to consider dropping out. 

When all these stresses pile up, the related anxiety and depression make substance use a tempting means to self-medicate. But what begins as a way to find some temporary form of escape and relief soon becomes a more terrifying and dangerous prison of its own.

More Students Slipping Through the Cracks

Unfortunately, the high stress experienced in a university environment can also be a significant hurdle to breaking free from any addictions that take hold.

While 82.8% of students struggling with opioid use reported the need for mental health care, less than half actually received it, according to a study published in The Journal of Affective Disorders. 

For 26.2% of students, the reason they didn’t get help was simply that they didn’t know where to find it. Most tragically, for just under 12% of them, the reported reason was that they had no one to turn to during periods of increased emotional distress.

Using Education to Combat This Crisis

Thankfully, there are programs colleges can adopt to significantly reduce these trends. As an example, California State University, East Bay, has an office for Student Health and Counseling Services, which creates environments where students can open up and safely address their mental health concerns. 

Additionally, they have a Community Counseling Clinic, which offers counseling services to students, faculty, and community members. Beyond these kinds of measures, colleges should also leverage their core competencies to provide preventative addiction education.

Find Help Today

If you’re a college student and you need help, you have options. Recovery programs and support groups designed to address the unique needs of teens, young adults, and college students can be found across the United States. 

Explore NA Meetings in your area or call 800-934-1582(Sponsored) for immediate support. Don’t let today’s troubles rob you of tomorrow’s promise.

A recent report from Kansas City, Missouri details the advent of a new addictive compound derived from Kratom that may signal the next wave of the opioid crisis.

The story focuses on Madison Mcmanness, a 25 year old Kansas City resident, who relayed details of her experience with 7-hydroxymitragynine (or 7-OH for short) against the backdrop of her history of substance use and recovery.

A Dependency That Rapidly Takes Hold

Madison had been through rehab in the past for an addiction to heroin and had been sober for six and a half years when her friend suggested 7-OH to help with anxiety. 

She describes the feeling of the first dose of this compound as akin to that of her first time using heroin. After this first dose wore off, she states that powerful physical cravings took hold, prompting daily use for six months.

Knowing how a compound that’s unregulated in many states has this type of effect is the key to understanding why it should be regulated. 7-OH is a potent, psychoactive compound that can be drawn out of the naturally occurring kratom leaf. On its own, 7-OH can have a very similar effect on the brain as opioids. 

For this reason, the FDA has been working to amend current regulations to reclassify kratom and kratom derivatives as Schedule 1 drugs. Even while kratom is regulated in the District of Columbia and 24 other states, it remains unregulated in Kansas and Missouri while their legislatures work on updating the current regulatory framework.

Madison’s Road to Recovery

Mcmanness’s dependency on this new drug progressed so far and so fast that she ended up spending $13,000 on the drug alone in those first six months. What was most surprising to her was that she ended up having to return to rehab for something that was legal in her state.

Detoxing from 7-OH was tough, described by Madison as feeling like everything was burning while she lay in the detox unit. She rounds out her account by saying that she doesn’t want herself or anyone else to go through it, and that this could be the next frontier of the opioid crisis.

Finding Help

As Madison’s story illustrates, a drug doesn’t have to be FDA-regulated to be addictive and unsafe. No matter the substance, if you’re physically dependent, the quality of your life is less than it could and should be. 

But it doesn’t have to be that way. Help is available and recovery is real. Find an NA meeting near you or call 800-934-1582(Sponsored) for immediate support. 

Fentanyl overdose deaths have been bombarding us in the news for the past several years in seemingly every corner of the nation. While we are still reeling from these tragic events, there is another opioid wreaking havoc that is even more deadly: nitazenes.

According to a recent article in Rolling Stone, another class of opioids is taking an alarming toll. These synthetic products are called nitazenes and although they’ve been around for decades, they’ve only recently started to become ubiquitous on the streets..

The New Wave in the Opioid Crisis

Known also as a benzimidazole opioid, nitazenes began gaining steam in 2019 on the illegal drug market. It started in Europe and made its way into the United States. This growing threat has spread to 19 countries that we are aware of and shows no sign of stopping. 

If you’re curious as to how this is so much more dangerous than fentanyl, it’s because the potency is five to nine times stronger. 

To put it into a clearer context, Brian Townsend, a retired supervisory special agent with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), says that less than 2mg, which is the size of a pencil tip of isotonitazene, the most common form of this opioid, can cause death. 

Untold Lives Lost

Currently, the number of deaths related to nitazenes is not completely transparent. The data isn’t available yet, but two studies have been done that likely underscore the impact of nitazenes. 

One study illustrated that it was at least partially responsible for 200 overdose deaths in Europe and North America from 2020 to 2021. The second study illustrated at least 93 deaths in 2022 from eight cases, mostly coming from the United States. 

These synthetic opioids were created around the same time as fentanyl, in the 1950s, as a medical alternative to the pain reliever, morphine. Since nitazenes were so potent and had a strong potential for overdose, they were never cleared for medical use, only for use in pharmacological research.

But now they’re surging onto America’s streets and infiltrating neighborhoods and communities from coast to coast. And their growing presence may well signal the next deadly wave in the opioid crisis.

If you’re struggling with opioid addiction, you don’t have to be another statistic. Recovery is real.

Find an NA meeting in your area or call 800-934-1582(Sponsored)  for help today.

Lorain County, Ohio has been hit hard by the opioid crisis but a new Narcan distribution program is seeking to change that, reports say. Volunteers are quietly dispersing to neighborhoods and communities throughout the county to hand out overdose reversal kits free of charge.

Fighting Stigmas, Saving Lives

Natalie Karn, a community health nursing supervisor from Lorain County Public Health, recently shed light on Lorain County’s naloxone distribution outreaches. 

Groups of volunteers in purple shirts have been going door to door throughout the autumn, enthusiastically asking residents in Ohio’s neighborhoods whether they would like to add Narcan (naloxone’s brand name) to their first aid kits. While some residents are reluctant, many are inquisitive and open, some even asking for extra doses to prepare to help their neighbors.

Narcan is a medication with the ability to help save the life of someone who has suffered an opioid overdose. The naloxone distribution program is part of Ohio’s Project DAWN. Named after Leslie Dawn Cooper, an Ohio woman who lost her life to an accidental overdose in 2009.

Project DAWN (Deaths Avoided With Narcan) is a statewide initiative to make Narcan as accessible as possible to all Ohioans. 

Proponents say the program is also making positive social impacts, as more residents report a willingness to have Narcan ready to use, even to save the lives of complete strangers. Part of what’s driving this shift in the public’s attitude toward naloxone is the compounding effect of more testimonies of ordinary folks using the medication to save lives.

Project DAWN’s Impact in Lorain County

In 2012, Lorain County became the first of the 83 Ohio counties to adopt the program, and has since made it possible for residents to get Narcan from police officers, churches, apartment buildings, and now, on delivery. 

This initiative has shown massive success in the county, with the official count of lives saved by ordinary residents being over 600.

The county has seen a remarkable 55% decline in overdose deaths over a three year period, far in excess of Ohio’s average decline of 17%. Officials say that the lower statewide rate of decline may stem from relatively slow progress in making the lifesaving drug more accessible in rural counties.

Potential Hindrances to Project DAWN

Unfortunately, not everyone has disabused themselves of the stigma towards Narcan and addiction more broadly. Restrictions on naloxone access and distribution remain in effect in some parts of the state.

In some areas, this includes prohibiting law enforcement officers from carrying Narcan and banning the medication’s presence at public libraries, a common point of access throughout the US. 

These factors, combined with a potential $3 million cut looming for Ohio’s harm reduction budget, are some of the obstacles Project DAWN currently faces.

Narcan’s Place in the Recovery Process

Despite the challenges, Karn and her team are pressing on with the program. They now have 77 distribution partners in Lorain County, including Family Planning Services, where a free harm reduction vending machine now dispenses Narcan. 

As a part of the campaign, the team is also emphasizing that Narcan is an emergency medication that’s meant to save a person’s life if they overdose. Further recovery requires comprehensive treatment as well as systemic changes in a person’s life to support their physical, emotional, social and financial wellbeing.

Take the First Step

If you’re looking to break free of the grasp of opioid addiction, there is hope. Find a qualified addiction recovery specialist, connect with NA meetings near you or call 800-934-1582(Sponsored) for immediate confidential support.

The crisis of teen fentanyl use is unfortunately nothing new. During the pandemic, adolescent overdose events more than doubled. But the fight to save kids’ lives and their futures is expanding and America’s public schools are leading the way. 

Confronting Teen Fentanyl Use 

Although the number of youth ages 12 to 17 with a past-year substance use disorder decreased in the years between 2021 and 2024, the percentage of those with opioid use disorder remained steady during the same time. Fewer than a third of these young people report getting treatment. 

To combat this, many schools are utilizing protocols to address the looming fentanyl crisis. Additionally, 7 out of 10 adolescents mentioned that they received substance use disorder and prevention education at their school.

Further, over 480,000 students received treatment for substance abuse at their schools in 2023. This data illustrates how the education system can play a pivotal role in providing treatment. 

Reading, Writing, and Recovery

The fight against teen opioid addiction isn’t just taking place in homes, communities, and healthcare clinics. Now more than ever addiction prevention and recovery are being incorporated in the curricula of America’s schools. Public schools are playing a key role in mitigating drug overdose risks, particularly those related to fentanyl. 

Among the public schools providing addiction education during the 2024-2025 school year, almost 3 out of 4 administrators mentioned that some or all their staff were trained in recognizing an overdose situation. 

Of these, 30% declared all teachers at their schools were trained, and 44% reported that some of the staff had training. Still, 16% reported that no staff members were trained, showing there is still work to be done. 

Preventing Opioid Overdose in Schools 

Much of the fentanyl education is in classroom settings, so administrators must understand how crucial it is for staff members to receive overdose training. Several states even allow schools to store naloxone to intercept an opioid overdose; however, not all school districts are on board. 

The growing number of schools taking a stand shows how data can change the overdose landscape. The hope is that more will follow and the overdose rates among young people will continue to decline.

Get Help for Teen Opioid or Fentanyl Addiction

If you or someone you love is struggling with opioid addiction, help is available.

Explore Narcotics Anonymous meetings near you or call 800-934-1582(Sponsored) to connect with a qualified treatment provider. Low cost and accessible support is availbe through NA and local recovery programs.