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Quiz: Substance Recovery and Resilience

Test your understanding of substance effects, overdose recognition and response, and recovery support with these review questions.

1. What does naloxone do during an opioid overdose?

  1. It permanently cures opioid use disorder with a single dose
  2. It can temporarily reverse the effects of an opioid overdose by restoring normal breathing within minutes
  3. It reverses overdoses from any substance, including alcohol and stimulants
  4. It prevents the need to ever call 911 during an overdose
Show Answer

The correct answer is B. Naloxone is a medication, often given as a nasal spray, that can temporarily reverse the effects of an opioid overdose by restoring normal breathing within minutes. It has no effect on non-opioid overdoses, and its effects are temporary, which is why calling 911 remains essential even after it is used.

Concept Tested: Overdose Emergency Response

2. Why can alcohol impairment continue to rise even after a person has stopped drinking?

  1. Impairment always decreases the moment a person stops drinking
  2. Alcohol has no measurable effect on the body once drinking stops
  3. The liver instantly clears all alcohol from the bloodstream the moment drinking stops
  4. Alcohol keeps absorbing into the bloodstream for up to an hour after the last drink, so blood alcohol concentration and impairment can keep increasing during that time
Show Answer

The correct answer is D. The chapter explains that alcohol keeps absorbing into the bloodstream for up to an hour after the last drink, meaning impairment can keep rising even after a person has stopped drinking. This is one reason alcohol poisoning can develop after someone has already appeared to stop.

Concept Tested: Alcohol Short- And Long-Term Effects

3. Why do Good Samaritan laws matter for overdose response, according to the chapter?

  1. They protect a person who calls 911 to report an overdose from prosecution for drug possession, addressing a documented reason people hesitate to call for help
  2. They only protect medical professionals, not bystanders
  3. They eliminate the need to call 911 in an overdose situation
  4. They require every caller to identify the substance involved before help arrives
Show Answer

The correct answer is A. The chapter explains that Good Samaritan laws, in place in most states, protect a caller, including the person experiencing the overdose, from being prosecuted for drug possession based on evidence from that call. These laws exist because fear of legal consequences is a documented reason people hesitate to call for help during an overdose.

Concept Tested: Overdose Emergency Response

4. You find a friend at a party who is unresponsive, has slow gurgling breathing, and has blue-tinged lips. What is the correct first action?

  1. Wait a few minutes to see if their breathing improves on its own
  2. Search for what substance they may have taken before doing anything else
  3. Call 911 immediately, since this is the single most important action regardless of what substance may be involved
  4. Leave to find another person to help before doing anything yourself
Show Answer

The correct answer is C. The chapter states that calling 911 immediately is the single most important action in every overdose scenario, regardless of what substance may be involved or how the person came to be in this situation. The described signs, unresponsiveness, slow gurgling breathing, and blue-tinged lips, match the documented cluster of opioid overdose signs requiring an immediate response.

Concept Tested: Recognizing Overdose Signs

5. A person is unconscious but still breathing after drinking heavily. What should be done with their body position while waiting for help to arrive?

  1. Leave them lying flat on their back to keep them still
  2. Sit them upright in a chair to prevent choking
  3. Place them in the recovery position, on their side with the head tilted slightly back and down, to keep the airway clear and allow fluid to drain
  4. Have them stand and walk around to stay conscious
Show Answer

The correct answer is C. The chapter describes placing an unconscious but breathing person in the recovery position, on their side with the head tilted slightly back and down, to keep the airway clear and let vomit or fluid drain out rather than causing choking, a leading cause of preventable death in alcohol poisoning and opioid overdose.

Concept Tested: Overdose Emergency Response

6. A student notices a friend seems increasingly withdrawn and suspects heavy substance use. According to the chapter's guidance on supporting others, what is the most effective opening approach?

  1. Saying "You have a problem" directly and repeatedly until they agree
  2. Giving an ultimatum that cuts off contact until they stop entirely
  3. Avoiding the topic completely to prevent an uncomfortable conversation
  4. Leading with concern rather than accusation, such as "I've noticed you seem more withdrawn, and I'm worried about you"
Show Answer

The correct answer is D. The chapter states that leading with concern rather than accusation is received very differently than an accusatory statement, and that research on motivational communication consistently favors this approach. Ultimatums that isolate rather than support are linked to worse outcomes than approaches that maintain connection.

Concept Tested: Supporting Others In Reducing Substance Use

7. A person shows rapid, irregular heartbeat, extremely high body temperature, and agitation. Based on the chapter's overdose sign categories, how does this presentation differ from an opioid overdose?

  1. It is identical to an opioid overdose in every respect
  2. It reflects a stimulant overdose, which speeds the body up, unlike an opioid overdose, which slows breathing and produces pinpoint pupils and a bluish skin tone
  3. Opioid overdose also always includes extremely high body temperature
  4. Pinpoint pupils are a defining feature of stimulant overdose, not opioid overdose
Show Answer

The correct answer is B. The chapter distinguishes stimulant overdose, which presents with rapid or irregular heartbeat, extremely high body temperature, and agitation because stimulants speed the body up, from opioid overdose, which presents with slow or stopped breathing, pinpoint pupils, and a bluish skin tone because opioids suppress the drive to breathe.

Concept Tested: Recognizing Overdose Signs

8. Why does the chapter state that a relapse during recovery does not mean treatment has failed?

  1. Because relapse means a person was never actually trying to recover
  2. Because treatment for substance use disorder never needs any adjustment once started
  3. Because, like any chronic health condition, substance use disorder can involve setbacks that call for adjusting the treatment plan rather than abandoning it
  4. Because relapse only occurs in people who never received any treatment at all
Show Answer

The correct answer is C. The chapter frames substance use disorder using the same medical logic as other chronic health conditions: relapse is common and represents a setback that calls for adjusting the treatment plan, not evidence that treatment has failed or that recovery is impossible.

Concept Tested: Substance Use Disorder Treatment And Recovery

9. A tribal health system offers counseling, medically supervised care, and traditional healing practices within one coordinated program, rather than requiring a person to choose between cultural and clinical care. Evaluating this model against the chapter's evidence, what is the strongest conclusion?

  1. Combining cultural and clinical resources within one coordinated system reflects an evidence-based model associated with stronger, more durable recovery outcomes than either approach used in isolation
  2. Cultural practices should never be combined with clinical treatment under any circumstances
  3. This model has no documented advantage over a purely clinical approach
  4. Clinical treatment alone is always more effective than any combined approach
Show Answer

The correct answer is A. The chapter explains that community-integrated recovery, which co-locates cultural and clinical care, reflects an evidence-based conclusion that recovery is most durable when it addresses a whole person within their whole community. Research is described as associating this whole-person, whole-community integration with better long-term outcomes than either approach used alone.

Concept Tested: Community Integration Of Cultural Recovery Practices

10. A classmate argues that since naloxone can reverse an opioid overdose, calling 911 afterward isn't really necessary. Evaluating this claim using the chapter's evidence, what is the strongest response?

  1. The classmate is correct, since naloxone permanently resolves the overdose once administered
  2. Naloxone should be used instead of calling 911 whenever it is available
  3. Calling 911 is only useful if naloxone is not available at all
  4. Naloxone's effects are temporary and the opioid can outlast them, so the person can slip back into overdose, and 911 also ensures monitoring and follow-up care that naloxone alone cannot provide
Show Answer

The correct answer is D. The chapter directly addresses this claim: naloxone's effects are temporary, while the opioid causing the overdose can remain in the body longer, meaning a person can slip back into overdose after appearing to recover. Calling 911 ensures trained responders can monitor breathing and provide follow-up care that naloxone alone cannot, which is why the response sequence always places calling 911 first.

Concept Tested: Overdose Emergency Response