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When most people go into a store and buy something, particularly something we ingest, we assume that it’s been checked, tested and certified as being acceptable for human consumption. However, a local couple who have been married for more than 40 years want to issue a warning that that’s not always the case.
First, some background. In 1985, the husband was diagnosed with Lyme’s disease, caused by a tick bite he received 10 years earlier. While he was treated, it was too late to avoid the development of rheumatoid arthritis. His doctor prescribed a traditional medication to counter the pain, but he almost died one night due to severe fluid around his heart. After that, he could not take any of the usual meds to treat rheumatoid arthritis.
Because the couple lived in an area where medical marijuana was legal, his doctor prescribed it for him. For years, he used it moderately to relieve his pain and help him walk better, work more and live longer; in other words, he could actually pursue life, liberty and happiness.
Fast forward, and in the summer of 2013 they moved to Cherokee County, North Carolina, where such help is not legally available, despite the fact that medical marijuana is working wonders with some patients in other states. As a result, over the last decade the husband suffered more pain and joint deterioration than necessary,
A couple of weeks ago, the husband bought $10 worth of “marijuana” from a local vape shop since he had been told it continued low levels of THC. The next morning, he smoked a small amount of it before he gradually became incoherent, drooled saliva, then passed out and eventually stopped breathing.
With every spouse’s worst fear in front of her, his wife called 911 and followed their instructions to hold his head up, beat on his chest and talk to him until paramedics arrived. Thankfully, he was given Narcan, an effective opiate antidote, and quickly regained consciousness. Two hours later, he walked out of the hospital emergency room – alive.
“The paramedics tested him positive for fentanyl, which is a very powerful opioid,” the wife said. “They assured me that, if not for our quick response, my husband would be dead.
“My heartfelt thanks to the EMTs.”
From his firsthand experience, the husband offers three suggestions to prevent other people from becoming victims:
1. Store owners, county, state and federal authorities should immediately work together to guarantee the safety of all products sold to the public.
2. Nasal Narcan and testing strips should be made much more available to the public.
3. Everyone should become more aware of how quickly, and easily, breathing stops and death arrives with an opioid overdose; never consume alone.
It’s easy to understand why the husband believed this might be beneficial, as he thought the product contained the same ingredients as the medical marijuana he purchased elsewhere, only with less THC, which is what causes a “high.” However, anytime human beings create unnatural substances that mimic what grows naturally, there is always someone who will take shortcuts that put profits over people.
A $10 bag of fake weed almost cost a man his life. And it somehow contained fentanyl, the most deadly drug in the United States today. The companies who make this “product” should be investigated and held accountable, and we hope the stores that sell it will be more diligent before placing it on a shelf where someone else may think it’s safe.
David Brown is publisher of the Cherokee Scout. You can reach him by phone, 828-837-5122; email, dbrown@cherokeescout.com; or on X @daviddBstroh.