By Graysen Shirley for WFMY News Channel 2

A statewide ban on a substance known as ‘gas station heroin’ will go into effect on Sunday. 

Tianeptine will be banned in North Carolina starting Dec. 1.

Governor Roy Cooper signed the ban into law earlier in July. 

Back in June, the North Carolina General Assembly passed a bill outlawing the sale or possession of tianeptine. 

WFMY News 2’s Chad Silber spoke with a woman from Montgomery County whose son is fighting with addiction to the drug in May. She shared with Silber that she tried to find ways to get her son to stop. 

“It breaks your heart when you’ve carried that child in you and you love them and you want the best for them, I mean every parent does,” the woman said. 

The woman said the following about the drug: “The withdrawals are awful, very bad muscle and bone aches.”

Silber also spoke with Representative Stephen Ross in June after the bill’s voting. Ross was a primary sponsor of the bill banning the drug. 

“I don’t think I slept very much (last night) because I did not want to let these people down who have desperately emailed us and contacted us and given us the stories of what this has done to their families or loved ones, and I just could not let go,” Ross said.

What is tianeptine? 

Tianeptine is considered an antidepressant, according to the National Institutes of Health. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said tianeptine is not approved for any medical use. 

The FDA has issued a warning to not purchase products containing tianeptine.

0The preceding article originally appeared on November , 2024 at WFMY News Channel 2’s website and is made available here for educational purposes only. This constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 106A-117 of the U.S. Copyright Law.