If you are using pills, paste, or powder drugs, you are at risk of overdose.

Recognize the signs and symptoms of an overdose, including:

• difficulty

  • walking

  • talking

  • staying awake

• blue or grey lips or nails

• very small pupils

• cold and clammy skin

• dizziness and confusion

• extreme drowsiness

• choking, gurgling or snoring sounds

• slow, weak or no breathing

• inability to wake up, even when shaken or shouted at

Naloxone (sometimes called by brand-name Narcan) is a medication that reverses opioid overdoses and saves lives. It is available over the counter as a nasal spray or as an intramuscular injectable through public health services.

Naloxone is easy to administer. You don’t need special training. For the nasal spray, insert into the nostril, place your thumb on the plunger, and push it all the way.

By rapidly reversing and blocking the effects of an opioid overdose, naloxone can restore breathing within two to three minutes. Naloxone is very safe: adverse side effects are extremely rare, and it has no psycho-pharmacological effects or addictive potential.

No, you will not be liable if naloxone doesn’t work. You should contact 911 if naloxone isn’t working, and tell the operator the person is unconscious and not breathing, so they can send an ambulance to respond.