"It could be pure coincidence, but the fact that the addiction care center in the western German city of Essen, population 600,000, is located on Hoffnungsstrae ("Hope Street" ) could also be a sign. It represents hope for the people struggling with addiction, who can find somewhere they can get a free meal and a place to sleep. Hope Street is also the place where they can snort, smoke or inject heroin in sterile drug consumption rooms, under supervision."
"Since the drug consumption room opened in 2001, there hasn't been a single death there, Stolz reported with satisfaction. But the latest, even more dangerous drugs are already on the doorstep. In large German cities such as Frankfurt or Berlin, synthetic opioids like fentanyl or nitazenes, which are mixed with heroin, have long been on the streets. Even a small amount, the size of a grain of salt, can kill."
"Latest trend: Taking drugs live on TikTok Ruben Planert, an addiction care spokesperson in Essen, has observed a worrying new trend which began during the COVID-19 pandemic: an increasing number of young people consuming anxiety-reducing benzodiazepine and opioids live on social platforms like TikTok, as the dealers wait in the comments. "Recently we had a young man in our youth facility who spent five days in a coma after smoking fentanyl. He suffered an overdose with respiratory paralysis, which with pure heroin is possible but very unlikely," said Planert."
An addiction care center on Hoffnungsstrae in Essen provides free meals, shelter and sterile supervised drug consumption rooms where people can snort, smoke or inject heroin safely. Since the consumption room opened in 2001 there have been no deaths there, but more dangerous synthetic opioids like fentanyl and nitazenes have appeared, often mixed with heroin and lethal in minute amounts. Consumption patterns are shifting toward crack smoking, accelerating deterioration for some users. A new trend involves young people consuming benzodiazepines and opioids live on social platforms, with dealers responding in comments and causing fatal overdoses.
Read at www.dw.com
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