What are some overdose prevention resources?

As overdose statistics climb, good samaritans do their part in combating senseless deaths via prevention resources.

The 70s and 80s are over and so is the war on drugs. No more are the political leaders that disenfranchise proponents of marijuana and psychedelics. The world, in a general sense, has trended toward harm reduction, progressive policy, and greater empathy. Substance abuse disorder has received medical legitimacy rather than social pariahism, and resources exist for those who need them most. Overdose prevention resources save lives – truly.

SAMHSA’s National Helpline

This hotline is a 24/7, confidential resource for families and individuals suffering under the iron thumb of substance abuse. The hotline can also provide care in the form of referrals to local treatment facilities, support groups, and community-based organizations. To reach the hotline, call 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

The Bunk Police

This group of festival veterans has infiltrated the festival scene to mitigate accidental overdoses. While at festivals, The Bunk Police team passes out drug test kits along with fentanyl test strips, encouraging attendees to consume responsibly (if they do consume). Although The Bunk Police routinely gets asked to leave festival grounds for “loitering,” suspicious activity, and obscure culpability, they invariably return to preserve their mission of harm reduction, to pass out test kits to unsuspecting and bright youths in the era of fentanyl.

The Zendo Project 

This nonprofit primarily operates within Burning Man, providing respite for festival attendees who consumed one too many. Rather than pass the starry-eyed friend to EMTs like a hot potato, pass them to Zendo. With a costume box of colorful tutus, trained mediators, and comfy living room furniture, Zendo deescalates a difficult trip and takes a would-be bad situation into a peaceful one, turning that frown upside-down. 

National Harm Reduction Coalition

This controversial nonprofit provides resources for syringe access, overdose prevention, fentanyl, medication for opioid use disorder, sex work, hepatitis C, supervised consumption services, and Xylazine. Its team of professionals represents the cutting-edge harm reduction ideology, providing support and resources to target audiences and an analogy of podcasts, research studies, niche grants, and much more.