TikTok creator calls attention to medication for opioid use disorder
Connecticut arrest reignites claims of fentanyl-laced marijuana.
Connecticut arrest reignites claims of fentanyl-laced marijuana.
This past week, social media posts about opioids showed support for people in recovery from opioid use disorder, with a TikTok video about Suboxone driving the largest spike. Comments on posts about Overdose Awareness Month reflected mixed attitudes about harm reduction, and a news story about a Connecticut smoke shop allegedly selling fentanyl-laced marijuana stoked persistent fentanyl fears.
These online discussions provide an opportunity for public health communicators to explain how medication for OUD and other substance use disorders works, share harm reduction tools that prevent overdose deaths, and debunk misleading claims about fentanyl-laced marijuana.
Insights brought to you by the reporters and science writers of Public Good News (PGN), a nonprofit newsroom dedicated to improving community health.
What’s trending nationally in conversations about opioids
On July 27, an Ohio-based TikTok creator with 2 million followers shared a video about the symptoms she experienced after she stopped taking Suboxone, a combination of buprenorphine and naloxone used to treat OUD. In other videos, the creator explained that she had been using Suboxone to treat OUD and had a goal of eventually stopping the medication. Her symptoms included restless legs, a runny nose, aches, nausea, and the feeling of “crawling out of my skin.” The video received approximately 7.7 million views, 457,300 likes, 2,200 reposts, and 3,600 comments as of August 7. In the comments, TikTok users discussed their own experiences with OUD and Suboxone.
This week, several organizations and public health departments shared social media posts acknowledging that August is Overdose Awareness Month and August 31 is Overdose Awareness Day. In the few comments on these posts, some social media users expressed support for harm reduction to prevent overdose deaths, while others shared doubts about its effectiveness. One comment on an X post from the San Francisco Department of Public Health read, “Seriously? The same SF government that has failed its citizens by ignoring the fentanyl problem? The same SF DPH that supports so-called harm reduction?”
On August 2, a man was arrested in Connecticut for allegedly selling illegal marijuana products, including some that were laced with fentanyl, at a smoke shop. Within a day, posts about fentanyl-laced marijuana spread across Instagram and Facebook, and many users expressed concerns that teens could potentially purchase it and overdose. Others speculated that marijuana is sometimes laced with fentanyl to sell more drugs, when in reality the risk of encountering fentanyl-laced marijuana is low. A comment on a Facebook post about the arrest read, “I was told by my therapist that they sell the drug with some fentanyl in it because ‘Fentanyl is highly addictive and it keeps them coming back for more.’” On an Instagram post warning about a fentanyl-laced marijuana, one comment attempted to debunk the claim that marijuana laced with fentanyl is common, stating, “There has never been a verified instance of marijuana laced with fentanyl. I have no idea why police reference it often but they always retract. Every time. But the retraction doesn’t get headlines.”
Recommendations brought to you by the health communication experts behind Infodemiology.com.
Recommendations for public health professionals
Each week, the Infodemiology.com team will provide messaging recommendations in response to some of the trending narratives outlined above. These helpful tips can be used when creating content, updating web and FAQ pages, and developing strategy for messaging about mental health.
Trending conversations about Suboxone allow public health communicators to explain how medication for substance use disorder works. Messaging may emphasize that a combination of medication and therapy has been shown to help people with substance use disorder reestablish normal brain function, reduce substance cravings, and prevent resumption of substance use. However, medications like Suboxone can cause withdrawal symptoms when people stop taking them. Physical withdrawal symptoms from Suboxone are the worst in the first 72 hours and typically subside within a month. Quitting Suboxone cold turkey or without the guidance of a heath care professional is not recommended. Communicators may also share local recovery groups, drug treatment centers, and SAMHSA’s National Helpline (1-800-662-HELP).
Overdose Awareness Day on August 31 provides an opportunity to outline the signs of an opioid overdose and educate target populations about harm reduction tools that have been shown to prevent overdose deaths. Communicators may recirculate materials outlining how to access and use Narcan and drug test strips. Explaining that many states have Good Samaritan laws—which protect people who have overdosed and those who call 911 on their behalf from certain criminal penalties—and that drug test strips are not legal everywhere is recommended.
Articles and social media posts about fentanyl-laced marijuana allow public health communicators to clarify that many anecdotal reports about fentanyl-laced marijuana have been found to be false and that the risk of encountering fentanyl-laced marijuana is low. Messaging may emphasize that using fentanyl test strips to determine if marijuana contains fentanyl is not recommended because test strips are designed for testing powders and pills. The best way to ensure that marijuana is not contaminated is to purchase it from a licensed dispensary.