I am a woman who uses substances in central Mexico. I am a member of the Latin American Network for a Sensible Drug Policy and representative of the Latin American and Caribbean Network of People who Use Drugs.

The objective was to explore the presence of fentanyl in illegalized stimulants from various regions of the country to complement the epidemiological panorama at the national level due to the existing research gap on this opioid and regarding the analysis of substances in Mexico. As well as, implement harm reduction strategies in regions that have not had similar community interventions, such as the city of Aguascalientes. There, personal use kits for stimulants were provided and 151 samples of crystal, cocaine, and MDMA were tested out of a total of 485 collected in Mexico City, Tijuana, and Mexicali. No fentanyl was detected in any of the samples collected in the four cities. Similar findings were reflected in Canada, based on empirical evidence that fentanyl is not a common adulterant in the supply of stimulants in these cities. This suggests that contamination of this market, at least in these regions, is an isolated case, but there is a possibility that it could occur on a common basis. What requires the implementation of a permanent monitoring system by community organizations and research on barriers and facilitators of access for its development, such as stigma, the main barrier found in Aguascalientes where the detection of crystal in others is also pertinent. Stimulants made illegal due to their predominance in the local market for these substances.