ESCAPE ESCAPE

Serious Substance Help

Heavier substances — meth, cocaine, opioids, chem-sex — need heavier support. Here are real tools, no judgment.

You are not a lost cause. Whatever you're using, whatever's happened — help works, people recover, and reaching out is strength, not weakness. Everything below is confidential.

If this is an emergency

If someone may be overdosing, call 911 right away — fentanyl-contaminated drugs are a real risk and minutes matter. Naloxone (Narcan) can reverse an opioid overdose and is free in many communities; our presentations teach how to get and use it.

Free, confidential help lines

SAMHSA National Helpline

24/7 treatment referral and info for substance use — 1-800-662-4357. Free, confidential, for individuals and families.

FindTreatment.gov

Search licensed treatment facilities near you by zip code — findtreatment.gov.

988 Lifeline

If substance use is tangled up with suicidal thoughts or crisis — call or text 988.

Harm reduction — staying safer

If you or someone you know is using heavier substances, these organizations give straight facts without judgment:

  • National Harm Reduction Coalition — safer-use guides, naloxone, drug-checking info, and local harm-reduction programs.
  • DanceSafe — drug information and testing info originally for the nightlife scene; honest, non-judgmental.
  • NIDA — the science on meth, cocaine, opioids, and every other substance, from the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
  • Partnership to End Addiction — a helpline and guidance, especially for parents and families.

Chem-sex & related issues

Chem-sex (substance use tied to sexual situations) sits at the intersection of drugs and sexual health — and it can pull in coercion and assault. You deserve support on all of it:

  • RAINN National Sexual Assault Hotline — 1-800-656-4673, 24/7, confidential. If anyone has pressured or touched you against your will — sober or not — that's assault, not peer pressure.
  • CDC HIV resources — testing, PrEP, and sexual-health info.
  • The Trevor Project — 24/7 crisis line for LGBTQ+ young people, a community hit hard by chem-sex: 1-866-488-7386.

Not ready to call?

Text-based and anonymous options exist — the Crisis Text Line (text HOME to 741741) is trained for substance issues too. And our Resources page has more, including school counselors and local referral pathways.