--- title: "Cops Keep Having Impossible Fentanyl “Seizures” on Camera For Some Reason" description: "All those videos of cops having so-called \"seizures\" after touching small amounts of fentanyl-laced drugs may be more psychological than anything else." date: "2022-07-17" modified: "2022-07-17" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/neoscope/cops-fentanyl-vids" categories: - "Developments" - "Health & Medicine" tags: - "fentanyl" - "fentanyl exposure" - "havana syndrome" - "police" --- # Cops Keep Having Impossible Fentanyl “Seizures” on Camera For Some Reason ![All those videos of cops having so-called "seizures" after touching small amounts of fentanyl-laced drugs may be more psychological than anything else.]() *\Image: KCTV/Kansas Police Department\* It's [become a meme]() at this point: videos of cops having what appear to be seizures or other serious physical reactions when they just so happen to touch a small amount of fentanyl, a purported transdermal overdose that seems to always happen in front of another cop's smartphone camera. The only problem is that as [many](), [many]() [publications]() have noted, [including the *New York Times Magazine* in a recent piece](), it's nearly impossible to overdose from merely touching fentanyl, or any other drug from that matter, because it couldn't enter the bloodstream or cross the "blood-brain barrier" as quickly as these videos depict. Nevertheless, these cops are veritably freaking out when they touch drugs said to be contaminated with fentanyl. What gives? One could be forgiven for presuming most of these cops are faking their symptoms for YouTube views, which is [a predominant belief]() [among the police-critical](), [comparing it to the mysterious and widely-disbelieved Havana Syndrome]() phenomenon said to be suffered by CIA and other intelligence agents. But as it turns out, they may not necessarily be faking it at all. Instead, experts told the *Times*, they may be experiencing a "mass psychogenic illness," otherwise known as mass hysteria. As the article notes, this explanation makes a lot of sense when considering the training cops are put through. They're told that they're soldiers in the War on Drugs, and that fentanyl poses a serious risk to their health. It's not a stretch to assume that when law enforcement officers do come into contact with [this misunderstood substance](), they might lose touch with reality. As the *Times* notes, at least one one of the officers whose infamous quote-unquote "fentanyl exposure" raised eyebrows back in 2017 was [fired from his Ohio police department last year]() over allegations of, among other things, "dishonesty" and "retaliation against other officers." It's unclear whether that cop or any other were caught lying about their fentanyl exposure, but whether they're lying, experiencing mass hysteria, or, as [academic journal articles have suggested](), [having run-of-the-mill panic attacks](), this strange phenomenon seems like it simply won't die. **READ MORE:** [What’s Really Going on in Those Police Fentanyl Exposure Videos?]() \[*The New York Times Magazine*\] **More government panic:** *[NYC Issues PSA on How to Survive Nuclear Attack ]()* ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()