Summary: If you have a friend or loved one with a drug or alcohol problem, it’s important to know the signs of drug or alcohol overdose.
Key Points:
- Drug and alcohol overdose can be fatal.
- Signs of drug and alcohol overdose are similar, but there are important differences.
- Signs of drug overdose vary by the drug ingested.
- If you know the signs of drug or alcohol overdose, recognize them in time, and respond appropriately, it’s possible to mitigate, and in some cases, completely reverse an overdose.
Timely, Appropriate Action Can Save Lives.
Drug overdose is a serious problem worldwide.
Most people in the U.S. know about drug overdose because of the ongoing opioid and drug overdose epidemic, which caused a staggering increase in overdose deaths over the past twenty-five years, and is responsible for over a million fatalities in the U.S. alone. For detailed information on opioid addiction and treatment, please read our treatment page:
Opioid Addiction – Honu House Hawaii
This article will share and discuss drug and alcohol overdose statistics and trends, briefly address drug-related deaths, then share the signs and symptoms of overdose for the following drugs:
- Alcohol
- Depressants
- Stimulants
- Opioids
First, let’s look at the most recent worldwide figures on drug and alcohol overdose. These figures appear in the Global Burden of Disease Report published by the Lancet. This report includes data on all causes of death for each country in the world.
Here’s the most recent data, published in 2023.
Annual Drug and Alcohol Use Disorder Deaths Worldwide: 2023
- International total: 342,000
- North America: 137,790
- U.S.: 120,000
- Asia: 84,240
- Europe: 82,300
- Africa: 22,820
- South America: 14,350
- Oceania: 2,250
A quick review of this data shows drug and alcohol overdose is a problem that affects the entire world, not only the United States. However, for a single country, the U.S. accounts for a disproportionate number of overdose deaths. Our total population makes up 4.23 percent of the total world population. In 2023, when the report above was published, our total of over 120,000 drug overdose deaths accounted for over 35 percent of worldwide overdose deaths attributed to drugs and alcohol.
Since then, things in the U.S. improved.
Preliminary data for the U.S. from shows overdose deaths decreased by over 33 percent from 2023 to 2025, from around 120,000 in 2023 to around 80,000 in 2025.
That’s good news – but we still have a lot of work to do.
Overdose: Signs and Symptoms for Alcohol and Most Common Drugs
We can start our work by understanding what overdose looks like, so we can prevent an accidental drug or alcohol overdose from leading to fatality. Preventing death is the most important goal. Reversing the effect of an overdose as soon as possible is the second goal. When an overdose does not cause death, the results may still be severe. Overdose can lead to hypoxia – a lack of oxygen to the brain – which can cause coma, seizures, and brain damage. The long-term consequences of brain damage include mild to severe impairment of:
- Cognitive function: thinking, memory, and concentration
- Communication: speaking and writing
- Motor function: movement, coordination, balance
- Senses: vision and hearing
That’s why it’s important to get medical help immediately if you suspect someone has overdosed on alcohol or drugs: you may save their life and prevent severe, life-changing brain damage. We’ll say this again, but we’ll say it first now.
If you think someone has overdosed, do not wait: call 911 immediately.
Now let’s look at the signs of overdose, staring with alcohol, which many people do not know can cause fatal overdose.
Alcohol Overdose Symptoms
- Confusion
- Loss of coordination
- Vomiting
- Seizures
- Irregular breathing: gaps of more than 10 seconds between breaths
- Slow breathing: less than 8 breaths per minute
- Pale/bluish skin
- Low body temperature
- Loss of consciousness
Learn More: Download Fact Sheet on Alcohol Overdose
Stimulant Overdose Symptoms
Common stimulants include cocaine, amphetamine, methamphetamine, and MDMA
- Psychotic appearing behaviors and symptoms when the person has no diagnosed mental illness or condition (except substance use disorder):
- Paranoia
- Delusions
- Hallucinations
- Severe agitation
- Aggressiveness
- Panic, confusion, disorientation
- Hot, flushed, or sweaty skin
- Headache
- Chest pain
- Unsteady gait
- Rigid muscles
- Muscle spasms
- Tremors
- Seizures
- Breathing problems
Learn More: Download Fact Sheet on Stimulant Overdose
Depressant Overdose Symptoms
Common depressants include barbiturates, benzodiazepines, and alcohol
- Vomiting
- Conscious but unresponsive
- Limp body
- Pale, clammy skin
- Blue lips and/or fingernails
- Shallow, erratic, or slow breathing
- Choking or gurgling noises
- Unconsciousness
Learn More: Download Fact Sheet on Depressant Overdose
Opioid Overdose Symptoms
Common opioids include heroin, opium, methadone, and pain relievers containing hydrocodone or oxycodone
- Unresponsive to any stimuli
- Shallow, inconsistent, or no breathing
- Will not wake up/completely unresponsive
- Unusual snoring and gurgling noises
- Blue or gray lips and/or fingertips
- Floppy arms and legs
Learn More: Download Fact Sheet on Opioid Overdose
That’s a lot of information to digest all at once. You can see that some symptoms are common to most cases of overdose, such as unconsciousness, unresponsiveness, abnormal breathing, abnormal sounds related to breathing, and a bluish tinge to fingers or lips. If you or someone you love experience any of these symptoms, do not wait: get medical help immediately. Most often, the best way to get immediate medical help is by calling 911.
Overdose Awareness
The best way to prevent overdose is by educating yourself and your loved ones about the dangers of overdose. We list them above, but it’s worth repeating that the two most severe consequences of overdose are death and mild to severe brain damage. Both are tragic, and both harm individuals, families, and their loved ones every day.
One reason overdose death triggers a mix of emotions in people is that almost all overdose deaths are preventable. Most overdose deaths occur in people with alcohol or drug use disorder (AUD/SUD) – and we know that AUD and SUD are treatable medical conditions that individuals can and do recover from. We also know that in cases of opioid overdose, timely administration of Narcan (naloxone) can reverse the effects of overdose and prevent death and brain damage. We know these things and share them so more people will know the facts about drug and alcohol use and its consequences.
