[markphip]

Why do these pills even exist? Are there people that are able to tolerate fentanyl? It does not make sense for drug dealers to kill their customers so I have just never understood why these pills circulate if they are to lethal.

[wand3r]

> Why do these pills even exist

Yes people with high tolerance can handle fentanyl. People press fentanyl into perks because percocet is “safer” and more familiar.

We wouldnt have these problems if there was a safe and legal route to get drugs. People in withdrawal don’t care about the laws. Pressed fentanyl and fentanyl is everywhere.

Edit: This exists because people like to get high and also because people are already addicted. Chinese supply of fentanyl has dwarfed the supply of heroin as it is way cheaper and easier to produce and import. So if you are puking and dopesick as hell you need this to literally function normally. The supply of heroin has gone way down. People don’t care if it is dangerous when they are in withdrawal, or basically just generally. Also, “everyone” other than the user ODs is the mentality. Either it won’t happen to me or I am so depressed/fucked I don’t care if I die.

Thats the main attitude in my experience.

[gwbas1c]

> Why do these pills even exist?

Short answer: Fentanyl is easier to smuggle because more doses can be packed into a smaller space. The black market has no regulations.

Long answer: Because recreational opiates are illegal and unregulated. This creates a market incentive for people willing to take the legal risk to cater to the market that wants recreational opiates. Fentanyl is essentially a cost-cutting and risk management technique within the supply chain, because more doses can be smuggled in the same shipment.

I suspect that, before the pills were pressed, the fentanyl just wasn't mixed in well enough. These kinds of mistakes are very rare in a legal and regulated market.

Want to fix the problem? Support drug reform.

[colechristensen]

Fentanyl, properly dosed, is actually quite a bit safer than other opiates.

However the amount of fentanyl that makes up an appropriate dose is very much smaller than other opiates. Other opiates in their pure form are more human scale amounts instead of “milligrams is a fatal dose”.

Why fentanyl is dangerous is because drug dealers are poorly preparing counterfeit drugs as a result of its high potency. Poorly mixed with fillers, one pill does nothing, the next one kills you.

[e0a74c]

> one pill does nothing, the next one kills you.

Users really should crush all the pills and mix the powder thoroughly so one unit of powder always contains the same amount of active compound.

[colechristensen]

You have to do this very well to make a difference as a lethal dose can be as little as a few grains of sand. Like you need scientific style mortar and pestle and the patience and dexterity and knowledge to properly pulverize and mix and then a very fine scale for measuring doses not to mention the temptation that powdered product has for significantly more dangerous non-oral drug usage.

It is not in theory a bad idea but in practice perhaps not the most reasonable advice.

[e0a74c]

Yeah, you're probably right. I was assuming a careful, meticulous user. To everyone else my advice would be to stay away from strong painkillers altogether unless prescribed by a healthcare professional.

[simplestats]

yes it is prescribed for people in severe chronic pain.

With opiods people build up a tolerance and then progress to stronger stuff. They end up regularly taking dosages that can potentially kill them, even not as a mistake. It's a very dangerous thing to do and hard to imagine being legalized to the extend addicts would want.