LOOKING FOR A HIGH IN THE BOTTOM OF THE BARREL

'When I use solvents, I feel like I'm dead'

People who treat addictions say long-term solvent users like Jeanette Reid
are among the most difficult patients they treat.

"They completely detach from reality," says Dr. Michael Morrison, who works
with addicts at the Alberta Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission recovery
centre in downtown Edmonton. "They start to lose the tools we all have to
communicate and learn."

Reid was given a six-month jail sentence earlier this week for violating
the Public Health Act by inhaling an intoxicating vapour. The 33-year-old
was arrested July 17 for sniffing from a solvent-soaked rag. She was
pregnant at the time and gave birth to her seventh child the next day.

Morrison, who has worked with AADAC for nine years, said Thursday the
recovery centre treats few solvent abusers each year. One reason for the
low numbers may be that solvent addicts do not seek treatment, he says.

Nick Desilva, nursing supervisor at the recovery centre, said solvent
addicts who do seek help often fail to stick with a program long enough to
kick the habit.

"It's very difficult to keep them in one setting because their memories are
so short."

Solvents like paint thinner, glue, nail polish remover, gasoline and
lighter fluid all contain toxins which act on the body and brain similar to
the way alcohol does, though "with much more dire consequences," said
Morrison.

Those who sniff them report sensations of "floating and detachment," he
said. "One woman told me 'When I use solvents, I feel like I'm dead.' "

Solvent abusers are a tight-knit group and tend to gather in abandoned
homes in the inner city.

"They're almost like crack houses," Morrison said.

One inner-city worker, who asked not to be named, said solvent-soaked rags
are available on the streets for as little as 50 cents each.

He said Reid was part of a group of four young women and half-a-dozen young
men who sniff solvents together regularly.

"Everybody around here knows her, she's been doing it for years," said the
man, who thinks police did the right thing by arresting her.

"At least they got her off the street. When you're using, you don't care
about yourself. They should have done it a long time ago."

AADAC estimates there are about 40 chronic solvent abusers in Edmonton's
core. A larger group sniff solvents when they can't afford alcohol or other
drugs, says Evelyn Kohlman, manager of the AADAC Recovery Centre.

Kohlman says solvent abusers are often intoxicated all the time. They sniff
20 to 30 times a day in hopes of never coming down.

The high only lasts about 45 minutes, and the withdrawal symptoms can be
horrific.

"It's very difficult to get them clean long enough so they can think,"
Kohlman said. "They don't want to stay in treatment. They just want to go
back out and use."

A coalition of inner-city social agencies was formed three months ago to
look for ways of helping them deal with their habit.

But there are no easy answers, Kohlman said. The committee wants to assist
addicts with such basics as nutrition and cleanliness.

"Many of them are very skilled individuals -- a number are referred to as
being artists," she said. "We want to minimize the time they use during the
day."

Lena Reid, Jeanette's mother, said her daughter is feeling all right in
jail, but she wants to get out and get on with her life. "Maybe, with six
months of no sniffing, she'll dry out."

Checked-by: (Joel W. Johnson)