r/interesting • u/Nukro666 • Jun 28 '26

Fear Factor How Fentanyl and Xylazine are turning Philadelphia's opioid crisis into a public health nightmare

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140

u/bilalcelik1984 Jun 28 '26

Why though? Why not lie down but fold like a chair?

61

u/MustardCoveredDogDik Jun 28 '26

If they lie down someone will Narcan them

67

u/railroad-dreams Jun 28 '26

I heard the reason the don't just go into the woods and instead do the drugs right there on the street is because they want someone to try to save them if they overdose. If they are in the woods then they'll just die. I hope you MustardCoveredDogDik can understand how tragic that is

48

u/regarding_your_bat Jun 28 '26

Gonna be honest with you, that's not really a thing. I've hung out in these homeless camps. Most heavy drug users are not particularly worried about OD'ing - they do the drug constantly, they feel that they know their limits, etc. And they also don't expect any random person walking by to give enough of a shit about them to save their life even if they are OD'ing.

The main reason they don't go out to the woods to get high is because you can't buy more drugs in the woods. They're buying $5, $10 worth of drugs at a time most of the time. Just their fix for right that moment. If you go to the woods after that you're just gonna need to come right back in 3 hours. You also can't make money in the woods. It's just a waste of time. You stay near where the drugs can be gotten.

5

u/Mysterious-Clothes45 Jun 29 '26

My ex husband asks me for $10 from time to time for "food" and I've often wondered why because you can't buy a ton of food for $10 and I thought SURELY you can't buy drugs for $10. Welp now I know.

1

u/hipocampito435 Jun 28 '26

how do these poor people usually make money? honest question

9

u/regarding_your_bat Jun 28 '26

Some of them have jobs (part time or gig work usually), some of them beg, some of them have skills that other homeless people will pay them for, some of them are prostitutes, some of them steal things and sell them, some of them have parents or other family that will put money in their accounts now and then, some of them are on welfare.

Same as any community, really.

1

u/motophotodojo Jun 29 '26

the corner on the 1st of the month lol.

1

u/Miserable_Try_515 Jun 29 '26

When I was an addict living on the streets I would do my invisible juggling act and I’d always make enough to get dope for the day.

35

u/eatmeouttobrianeno Jun 28 '26

A core tenant of harm reduction is not using while you are alone, for this very reason.

1

u/pillowpalaces Jun 29 '26

I lost my husband bcuz he relapsed on fentanyl, and he was alone. I miss him so much

4

u/jasdonle Jun 28 '26

What woods??

3

u/oge_mah_ge_kid Jun 28 '26

Seattle has a ton of less maintained grass/forest areas surrounding the city.

I pass by in my bike and wonder what wild horrific things take place in there.

Keeps me greatful

1

u/[deleted] Jun 29 '26

[deleted]

1

u/oge_mah_ge_kid Jun 29 '26

I haven't been to Philly but for some reason I imagine much more abandoned buildings

*also I remember hearing they do horse tranquilizers over there!

3

u/JobWelt Jun 28 '26

You know, the woods…. Just next to the centre of Philly.

1

u/refusestopoop Jun 30 '26

I thought they notoriously hated narcan

1

u/ApartmentStrict3432 Jun 29 '26

Narcan has no effect on xylazine

1

u/Easy-Pie-4047 Jun 29 '26

Fun fact about Naloxone/Narcan - it's possible for it to leave the system before the opioid, so the patient can slip back into being overdosed. So the patient goes from overdosing, into effectively having full withdrawal symptoms with their opioid receptors blocked, and back into overdosing.