FENTANYL CAN BE FATAL
We asked these clean and sober individuals what their thoughts and feelings are on the rise in fentanyl overdoses in Los Angeles County
OUR BODIES
“I’ve been sober for two years and two months, and I haven’t experienced a death close to me that was an overdose, but I have heard of a lot of people who have died of overdose and I think it’s a very sad thing because not everyone is blessed with a community and not everyone’s blessed with family that are there for them. It’s very hard to stay sober nowadays. I see people relapsing and that’s sad to see because you can’t help somebody who is not ready to get the help. When it comes to overdosing and dying of an overdose, I feel really sad for their families and friends. I like to stay sober for my family and for myself and I know that if I were to go out, overdosing is a very possible thing because meth is not just meth nowadays. Meth comes laced with a lot of things like fentanyl. We don’t know what we’re putting in our bodies. This is why I make sure I call my sponsor and surround myself with my community that keeps me sober and keeps me accountable.”
—Julio Ledesma, sober since July 17, 2021.
GROWING LIST
“A fentanyl overdose is really scary because it’s in almost everything. When I was using meth towards the end, my dealer was testing all her drugs and it was coming up in all of it. It all had fentanyl. It was a good time to stop using because it’s scary. A lot of people are dropping like flies. They’re putting that stuff into every kind of drug. It was so different ten years ago. I’m not trying to glamorizing it, but the dope was good. It was better. Today, it’s gotten to a point where I know a lot of people who have died of an overdose. Actually, when I was in rehab recently, a guy actually died during group. They hit him with five cans of Narcan and he didn’t wake up. He was 27-years-old. I hear that’s happening to a lot of people. That list keeps growing and growing. All that definitely motivates me to stay sober. It’s not the only reason. There’s also my health. I’m really trying to fix my health problems.”
—Chris Depooter. sober since August 1, 2023.
RUSSIAN ROULETTE
“When I was out actually using, it was not on the street. It was not an issue. Most of the things that I was doing was not cut with fentanyl. Now it’s really scary, because you don’t know what you’re going get. That’s why I cannot go out. If I relapse, I know that’s where it will take me. A relapse is not part of my story, but it’s the story of a lot of my friends and a lot of my friends did not come back. I have had friends who relapsed and they died. They overdosed. Fentanyl was a part of their story, so it really hits home. It’s scarier now than ever because it’s like playing Russian Roulette. Just recently, they had three people in North Hollywood OD and it was fentanyl laced. All that is a motivator for me. Absolutely. I know my first drink will lead me to getting a bag of cocaine, and it’s so bad out there. It’s literally an epidemic that’s killing our youth across the nation, but sadly no one can tell you what your bottom is. You’re going to find out on your own. Like they say, every bottom has a basement, and I don’t want to find that out, so I choose to stay sober one day at a time.”
—Brian Green, sober since February 28, 2012.
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