Taking too many opioids causes so many receptors to fill and activate that breathing may become dangerously slow and even stop. When these receptors are activated, people experience the effects produced by opioids such as pain relief, euphoria, calmness, relaxation, and slowed breathing.
This means they bind to and activate specific receptors in the body including the brain, brainstem, and spinal cord. To understand how naloxone can stop and reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, it's helpful to see how opioids work in the body. Naloxone is a safe and effective rescue medication that reverses the effects of opioids and saves lives. People are dying every day from opioid overdose - parents and children, friends and neighbors - but naloxone can help. * Examples of opioids are: Heroin, Fentanyl, Morphine, Oxycodone, Hydrocodone, Codeine, Tramadol (Ultram), Methadone, Dextropropyxyphene (Darvocet), Meperidine (Demerol), Oxymorphone (Opana), and Hydromorphone (Dilaudid). In Rhode Island, you do not need a certification, medical license, or any other special permission to give naloxone to an overdose victim. It is extremely unlikely that you will cause any harm, and you may very well save that person’s life. If you have naloxone available and suspect that someone has overdosed on opioids, call 911 immediately and then administer the naloxone. Naloxone is a very safe medication to give. However, if someone has ingested an illicit substance laced with fentanyl, or if a person has taken other drugs in addition to opioids, naloxone will still act to reverse the effects of the opioids, allowing an overdose victim to resume breathing. It does not work on other types of drugs, such as alcohol, cocaine, or benzodiazepines (Klonopin, Valium, Xanax, etc.). Naloxone works against any type of opioid*, prescription or illicit. Naloxone reverses an overdose by kicking opioids off their receptors and deactivating them, allowing the brain to initiate breathing again. Naloxone, or Narcan, is an antidote for opioid overdoses.
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