Heroine addiction.

[Jules]

Hi. I have been researching heroine addiction. What I can't find is this; If a person takes heroine, how long is the window for them to suffer an overdose? one minute? Ten minutes? An hour or two? Any advice would be great.

[Jake Schuster]

Re: Heroine addiction.

For injected smack it is, in fact, minutes. And the purer (i.e. least cut) the heroin (no "e" at the end), the more likely the chance for an overdose. Like most drugs of that nature (and like most heavy-duty psychedelics), it's the cutting that makes them "safer". Take it from someone who once took uncut acid. And a lot of it.

[Jules]

Re: Heroine addiction.

For injected smack it is, in fact, minutes. And the purer (i.e. least cut) the heroin (no "e" at the end), the more likely the chance for an overdose. Like most drugs of that nature (and like most heavy-duty psychedelics), it's the cutting that makes them "safer". Take it from someone who once took uncut acid. And a lot of it.

This revelation makes it tricky for me. Can one expect to come back from an overdose without any medical intervention?

[Nick3232]

Re: Heroine addiction.

Can one expect to come back from an overdose without any medical intervention?

I very much doubt it as it effectively closes down the part of the brain responsible for breathing etc and your heart stops. Unless you have something which counteracts the effects and kickstarts the heart and breathing you'd just die.

This might help:

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/e...cle/002861.htm

[Jake Schuster]

Re: Heroine addiction.

What we all used to do back in the day was keep a stock of Thorazine, vitamin c and niacin--because back then, rushing an overdosed person into an emergency ward would lead to a bust, not only of the victim but of the poor schnook who brought him in. These combined would almost always bring someone back from an overdose nod.

Coming back to it without intervention? Very unlikely.

[nathanq]

Re: Heroine addiction.

What we all used to do back in the day was keep a stock of Thorazine, vitamin c and niacin--because back then, rushing an overdosed person into an emergency ward would lead to a bust, not only of the victim but of the poor schnook who brought him in. These combined would almost always bring someone back from an overdose nod.

Coming back to it without intervention? Very unlikely.

If you're looking for something like this ^ dramatically, you're probably forgetting the famous scene in Pulp Fiction where Vincent uses the magic marker to find Mia's heart, then dives that needle of Thorazine into her chest when she's O.D. ing on heroin.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWQ_p...eature=related

[Jake Schuster]

Re: Heroine addiction.

If you're looking for something like this ^ dramatically, you're probably forgetting the famous scene in Pulp Fiction where Vincent uses the magic marker to find Mia's heart, then dives that needle of Thorazine into her chest when she's O.D. ing on heroin.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWQ_p...eature=related

Exactly. But back then we used pills. Lots and lots of them that had to be taken very quickly.

[grant]

Re: Heroine addiction.

According to a friend of a friend... They use Narcan these days. Injected. A hospital will do it, but wikipedia also says that needle exchanges in some cities will hook you up with an emergency kit.

[SuperScribe]

Re: Heroine addiction.

I'm much more addicted to villainesses.

[Laura Reyna]

Re: Heroine addiction.

Not every overdose of drugs is fatal... but when you use the term "overdose" it implies that the person is going to die without medical intervention of some kind.

I watch a lot of medical docus and from what I gather a lot ODs are from cocktails-- mixtures of drugs.

And a lot people go into comas for several hours before their hearts finally stop.

But the most dramatic death would be to have them die right after shooting up.

[Jake Schuster]

Re: Heroine addiction.

Not every overdose of drugs is fatal... but when you use the term "overdose" it implies that the person is going to die without medical intervention of some kind.

I watch a lot of medical docus and from what I gather a lot ODs are from cocktails-- mixtures of drugs.

And a lot people go into comas for several hours before their hearts finally stop.

But the most dramatic death would be to have them die right after shooting up.

Cocktails, yes, but also, as I mentioned, too pure a drug can lead to overdose and death. I've seen it happen far too many times.

[Jules]

Re: Heroine addiction.

My characters are in the middle of nowhere. I wonder if a shot to the heart would be the way to go for it. The problem is Pulp Fiction did it so iconically that it would just appear a copy. And pills would not be so dramatic. Maybe I can get away with a shot to the heart.

[wcmartell]

Re: Heroine addiction.

I'm much more addicted to villainesses.

Beat me to it...

But I could become addicted to a kick ass woman.

- Bill

[bioprofessor]

Re: Heroine addiction.

My characters are in the middle of nowhere. I wonder if a shot to the heart would be the way to go for it. The problem is Pulp Fiction did it so iconically that it would just appear a copy. And pills would not be so dramatic. Maybe I can get away with a shot to the heart.

I dunno, what if your OD'er fell into a half-filled bathtub, pulling a lamp or some other electrical device in with him on the way down. ZAP! Heart restarted... an accidental AED. Of course, there's the electrocution thing... maybe a friend snatches the plug out of the wall just in time????

Yeah, I know, if the respriatory centers of the hypothalmus shut down due to the drug, defribrillation would be stop gap at best. But it might just buy someone enough time to get the poor guy medical treatment.

[Jules]

Re: Heroine addiction.

I figured it out anyway. I'm going to have her inject into his heart. But there's some edge to it, because she realizes that the medicine is for snake bites, but there's nothing else she can do so she does it, and what do you know, it works...

Thanks for the help.