09-15-2024 GAR - Flipbook - Page 19
A Special Advertising Section of Baltimore Sun Media Group | Sunday, September 15, 2024
Narcan / Naloxone
continued from page 8
scribed medications on the street instead of a pharmacy, those test strips
will be the best way to determine if
a particular drug contains fentanyl.
Some of the ORPs will mail the Naloxone to you.
Shah recommends caution when
buying medications on the street.
“Rather than take the chance that
your medication contains fentanyl,
most drug manufacturers have programs for those who can’t afford their
medications. Given these dangers now
present in so many standard medications, it’s worth asking for help.”
A Google Doc list of ORPs can be
found at this link. The listing will tell
you what they have available: docs.
google.com/document/d/1AL4WsGJNsBElDHCi-fZZFyEPnOxg59_izGuctQw7goQ/edit?usp=sharing
Dr. Shah talked about the skyrocketing use of opioids and illicit drugs.
“One segment of the population is
in particular danger. From 2016 to
2023, we’ve seen an increase in drug
use of 182% among those over 55
years of age. That’s why you should
keep naloxone in your home.”
Using Naloxone
Starting at the end, if you use Naloxone, there is a form – www.cognitoforms.com/MDH3/NaloxoneUseReport – you should complete and
submit. Why?
This form supports funding for naloxone in Maryland. For help filling it
out, email mdh.naloxone@maryland.
gov.
And no, you don’t have to give your
name.
Back to the beginning. If you are going to give Naloxone, call 911 immediately. That way, if the person you are
giving the Naloxone to has fentanyl
in his or her system, the odds are you
will need a second dose. Paramedics
will have a supply, will be able to provide CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation), and will transport the person
to a hospital for further treatment.
19
Wildest dreams
continued from page 11
Using Naloxone (Narcan)
When I started reading up on Naloxone, my first thought was to get
some to have on hand. If, after reading what Shah had to say and the
prevalence of fentanyl in so many
drugs and medications, you felt the
same impulse, please do it. We don’t
know whether or not those around us
are using drugs or in danger of overdoses, but I think it’s a smart move to
have it on hand. Even the MDH recommends it.
If you decide to get Naloxone, start
with a visit to the site Stop the Overdose:
stopoverdose.maryland.gov/
naloxone/.
It encourages individuals like you
and me to carry Naloxone and has
additional information that goes beyond this article to help you become
more savvy as to what is going on.
Maryland is working hard to reduce
opioid deaths. Prior to the pandemic, it was succeeding in its goal. Then
COVID-19 struck and too many drug
users were alone when they experienced an overdose. The program is
back on track.
Read thoroughly the Naloxone brochure and its instructions.
• Call 911
• If you use your Naloxone, call and
report it. (It’s anonymous!)
• Best of all, there is a training video
showing you exactly how to administer the Naloxone.
There is also additional information
on opioid overdoses, like how to recognize someone in distress.
The end of the story from the beginning of this article is that Logan is in
rehab and seems to be doing well. But
it is up to him to stay sober, to stop
using the drugs that landed him in the
hospital.
We joke all the time that Baltimore
is a small town. It is. Carrying Naloxone is being a good neighbor, being a good friend. Most of all, it’s
about caring.
“When I first talked to Brandon,
he said, ‘Give us a year.’ Well, I
am approaching one year sober,
and I never thought I would
get my life back. Now that I am
sober, I have my lady and my
kids back. It’s unbelievable.”
– Anthony Agresta
the disease of addiction find a safe,
sober place to call home in the early
stages of recovery and also help them
work toward sober independent living. Recently, Novak’s House opened
its seventh house and the first women’s house.
“When I first moved into Novak’s
House, I was confronted with brutal
honesty from everyone there, including my sponsor, Kenny, and my mentor, Brandon. Everyone was an open
book, and they were all free from
what had burdened them for so long.
I desperately wanted that for myself,
so I was forced to be brutally honest
with myself and the pain I had caused
others and myself. Now, I share that
honesty with others,” he says.
Agresta works full-time at a pharmaceutical manufacturing company,
a job he learned about from another
resident at Novak’s House. “It’s been
helpful in my sobriety, as I have to
show up every day and be a reliable
employee.” He says he hopes to work
one day at Novak’s House helping
others with their sobriety journey.
“I lead one of the groups now one day
a week, and I can relate to and understand what those new to recovery are
going through. I think it’s important
for them to see their stories reflected
back to them as I share my journey.”
Getting his life back
On the day that Agresta and I
spoke, he was celebrating his 340th
day of sobriety. “When I first talked
to Brandon, he said, ‘Give us a year.’
Well, I am approaching one year sober, and I never thought I would get
my life back. The mother of my kids
broke up with me five years ago because I would not get sober, and now
that I am sober, I have my lady and
my kids back. It’s unbelievable. I am
happy beyond my wildest dreams. I’ve
heard that expression so many times
in my life, and now I am actually living it.”
If you or a loved one are suffering
with addiction, you can call or text
Brandon Novak directly at
610-314-6747.
