News (Media Awareness Project) - US PA: Huffing Out Lives |
| Title: | US PA: Huffing Out Lives |
| Published On: | 2002-03-25 |
| Source: | Bucks County Courier Times (PA) |
| Fetched On: | 2008-01-24 14:58:40 |
HUFFING OUT LIVES
Parents, listen up: One out of five kids today huffs, sniffs or bags
inhalants before graduation from high school.
Parents, listen up: One out of five kids today huffs, sniffs or bags
inhalants before graduation from high school.
Called Hippie Crack and Poor Man's Pot, inhalants are vapors from common
household products intentionally inhaled to produce mind- altering effects.
The vapors go directly to the brain and the blood stream.
"I feel lucky to be alive," said Dave, a recovering teen inhalant user, who
spent his summer days inhaling full tanks of nitrous oxide. He mixed it
with the drugs Xanax and Ecstasy and stole air duster and computer cleaner
to get high.
"I didn't know I could die," he said.
Many like Dave start inhaling before they know its dangers.
The 17-year-old started sniffing gases from whipped cream canisters when he
was 12 years old to fit in with the crowd of friends three and four years
older than himself.
"It's not just fun. It controlled my life," Dave said of the time prior to
his arrest and recovery at Today, Inc.
His advice to parents is that if you suspect something, don't let it go.
Follow up on it.
"My parents believed me when I told them I wasn't using anything," he said.
Experts warn of the danger.
"It's like Russian roulette. They might make it the first but not the 10th
or 20th [time]. Or maybe the first time their heart bursts," said Leonard
Ward of the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office on Drug Demand Reduction.
Ward joined a panel of experts at the Bensalem Municipal Building last week
for the first Bensalem SADD/FAD Hearing on Inhalants.
According to community mobilizer Jessica Flowers who works for Today, Inc.,
a federal Drug Free Community Support Grant called for informing the
community about drug and alcohol issues. The program on huffing is the
first of four awareness efforts coordinated by Flowers with the help of
Bensalem High School's SADD/FAD team, and sponsored by Building a Better
Bensalem ... Today.
"It's amazing, you'd have students in class and you wouldn't have a clue
that they were inhaling butane [soaked into] a scrunchie on their wrist.
It's mind boggling," said Bensalem physical education teacher and SADD/FAD
co-advisor Ruth O'Malley.
Inhalants include both household and commercial chemicals such as:
Solvents including glue, gasoline, correction fluids and felt-tip- marker fluid
Gases used in butane lighters, propane tanks, whip cream aerosols and
refrigerant gases
Household aerosol propellants in spray paints, hair or deodorant sprays
Medical anesthetic gases such as ether, chloroform and nitrous oxide
"The high comes from brain cells dying. That's the bottom line," said
Bensalem Police Officer Fred Schumann O'Malley, who also is an emergency
room nurse at Temple Lower Bucks Hospital.
Parents often are the last to know a kid is using.
"It's the 'not my kid' mentality," said Marilyn Beiser, mother of a
recovering teen and a facilitator for the Bucks County Council on
Alcoholism and Drug Dependence.
Beiser thought that if she did all the right things as a parent, her son,
who was an altar boy, a Boy Scout, and active in sports, would be fine.
"I took him for all of his medical checkups, was on top of his school
homework and his friends, attended all his games," she said.
Yet he became addicted to cocaine. Beiser discovered that like many other
teens, his drug use started with inhalants, alcohol and marijuana.
"Every story is different and every story is the same. Addiction starts
with a bad decision," she said.
Through her son's recovery she found out that he'd hide his drugs in her
winter coat during the summertime, and used a dehumidifier in his bedroom
to muffle the sound of his late night drug sessions.
"He didn't even start to get it for five to six weeks into his [court
mandated] inpatient [recovery program]. It takes time to break down walls,"
Beiser said.
Due to lack of insurance for many, the only way to treatment is through the
court system.
State Rep. Gene DiGirolamo will hold a state house appropriation public
hearing on the need for more funding for statewide drug and alcohol
treatment on April 19 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
"Nothing is more frustrating than having a parent come into my office with
a child with a drug or alcohol problem, their insurance won't cover the
cost and they don't have the money for treatment. Counties always seem to
run out of money toward the end of the year and there are waiting lists for
people to get into treatment. Addiction is a disease. We wouldn't tolerate
waiting lists for cancer and heart disease patients. We shouldn't tolerate
it for addiction either," DiGirolamo said.
WHEN YOU NEED HELP
Pennsylvania Recovery Organization-Achieving Community Together with
PRO-ACT, in association with the Bucks County Council on Alcoholism and
Drug Dependence, Inc. offers a free program for parents who are worried
about a child. It consists of three evenings of information presented by
professionals and support from family members who've had the same
experience. For more information, call 1-800-221-6333.
The Council also offers a 24-hour hotline, 1-800-221-6333.
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF INHALENT USE
Chemical odors on breath and clothes
Paint or other stains on face, hands, or clothes
Red runny nose, sneezing, or nosebleeds
Sores or rash around mouth or nose
Chronic cough
Hand tremors
Headaches
Drunk or disoriented appearance
Slurred speech
Nausea or loss of appetite
Inattentiveness, lack of coordination, irritability, and depression
Drowsiness
Poor muscle control
Presence of paraphernalia such as bags or rags, discarded whip cream or
similar charges (signs of nitrous oxide use) or small bottles, signs of
butyl nitrite use)
Source: Commonwealth of PA Office of Attorney General, National Institute
on Drug Abuse, Bucks County Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc.
PROFILE OF AN INHALENT ABUSER
The average age of inhalant abusers is 14 years old.
Inhalant abuse is the highest among eighth-graders, and many of these
students started before they were 10 years old.
Inhalant abusers generally have close friends who use alcohol or other drugs.
One in four inhalant abusers have quit or been permanently suspended from
school.
Two out of three inhalant abusers had at least one failing grade on their
last report card.
Inhalant abusers almost always move on to other drugs as they become older.
Nearly one out of three inhalant abusers has been arrested for a substance
abuse-related offense.
Some inhalant abusers never used drugs before, are active in sports, earn
good grades and have no criminal involvement.
Most inhalant abusers are very young, often beginning inhalant abuse
without knowing about the consequences.
Most inhalant abusers use inhalants with others as a group activity.
Source: Commonwealth of PA Office of Attorney General
Parents, listen up: One out of five kids today huffs, sniffs or bags
inhalants before graduation from high school.
Parents, listen up: One out of five kids today huffs, sniffs or bags
inhalants before graduation from high school.
Called Hippie Crack and Poor Man's Pot, inhalants are vapors from common
household products intentionally inhaled to produce mind- altering effects.
The vapors go directly to the brain and the blood stream.
"I feel lucky to be alive," said Dave, a recovering teen inhalant user, who
spent his summer days inhaling full tanks of nitrous oxide. He mixed it
with the drugs Xanax and Ecstasy and stole air duster and computer cleaner
to get high.
"I didn't know I could die," he said.
Many like Dave start inhaling before they know its dangers.
The 17-year-old started sniffing gases from whipped cream canisters when he
was 12 years old to fit in with the crowd of friends three and four years
older than himself.
"It's not just fun. It controlled my life," Dave said of the time prior to
his arrest and recovery at Today, Inc.
His advice to parents is that if you suspect something, don't let it go.
Follow up on it.
"My parents believed me when I told them I wasn't using anything," he said.
Experts warn of the danger.
"It's like Russian roulette. They might make it the first but not the 10th
or 20th [time]. Or maybe the first time their heart bursts," said Leonard
Ward of the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office on Drug Demand Reduction.
Ward joined a panel of experts at the Bensalem Municipal Building last week
for the first Bensalem SADD/FAD Hearing on Inhalants.
According to community mobilizer Jessica Flowers who works for Today, Inc.,
a federal Drug Free Community Support Grant called for informing the
community about drug and alcohol issues. The program on huffing is the
first of four awareness efforts coordinated by Flowers with the help of
Bensalem High School's SADD/FAD team, and sponsored by Building a Better
Bensalem ... Today.
"It's amazing, you'd have students in class and you wouldn't have a clue
that they were inhaling butane [soaked into] a scrunchie on their wrist.
It's mind boggling," said Bensalem physical education teacher and SADD/FAD
co-advisor Ruth O'Malley.
Inhalants include both household and commercial chemicals such as:
Solvents including glue, gasoline, correction fluids and felt-tip- marker fluid
Gases used in butane lighters, propane tanks, whip cream aerosols and
refrigerant gases
Household aerosol propellants in spray paints, hair or deodorant sprays
Medical anesthetic gases such as ether, chloroform and nitrous oxide
"The high comes from brain cells dying. That's the bottom line," said
Bensalem Police Officer Fred Schumann O'Malley, who also is an emergency
room nurse at Temple Lower Bucks Hospital.
Parents often are the last to know a kid is using.
"It's the 'not my kid' mentality," said Marilyn Beiser, mother of a
recovering teen and a facilitator for the Bucks County Council on
Alcoholism and Drug Dependence.
Beiser thought that if she did all the right things as a parent, her son,
who was an altar boy, a Boy Scout, and active in sports, would be fine.
"I took him for all of his medical checkups, was on top of his school
homework and his friends, attended all his games," she said.
Yet he became addicted to cocaine. Beiser discovered that like many other
teens, his drug use started with inhalants, alcohol and marijuana.
"Every story is different and every story is the same. Addiction starts
with a bad decision," she said.
Through her son's recovery she found out that he'd hide his drugs in her
winter coat during the summertime, and used a dehumidifier in his bedroom
to muffle the sound of his late night drug sessions.
"He didn't even start to get it for five to six weeks into his [court
mandated] inpatient [recovery program]. It takes time to break down walls,"
Beiser said.
Due to lack of insurance for many, the only way to treatment is through the
court system.
State Rep. Gene DiGirolamo will hold a state house appropriation public
hearing on the need for more funding for statewide drug and alcohol
treatment on April 19 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
"Nothing is more frustrating than having a parent come into my office with
a child with a drug or alcohol problem, their insurance won't cover the
cost and they don't have the money for treatment. Counties always seem to
run out of money toward the end of the year and there are waiting lists for
people to get into treatment. Addiction is a disease. We wouldn't tolerate
waiting lists for cancer and heart disease patients. We shouldn't tolerate
it for addiction either," DiGirolamo said.
WHEN YOU NEED HELP
Pennsylvania Recovery Organization-Achieving Community Together with
PRO-ACT, in association with the Bucks County Council on Alcoholism and
Drug Dependence, Inc. offers a free program for parents who are worried
about a child. It consists of three evenings of information presented by
professionals and support from family members who've had the same
experience. For more information, call 1-800-221-6333.
The Council also offers a 24-hour hotline, 1-800-221-6333.
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF INHALENT USE
Chemical odors on breath and clothes
Paint or other stains on face, hands, or clothes
Red runny nose, sneezing, or nosebleeds
Sores or rash around mouth or nose
Chronic cough
Hand tremors
Headaches
Drunk or disoriented appearance
Slurred speech
Nausea or loss of appetite
Inattentiveness, lack of coordination, irritability, and depression
Drowsiness
Poor muscle control
Presence of paraphernalia such as bags or rags, discarded whip cream or
similar charges (signs of nitrous oxide use) or small bottles, signs of
butyl nitrite use)
Source: Commonwealth of PA Office of Attorney General, National Institute
on Drug Abuse, Bucks County Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc.
PROFILE OF AN INHALENT ABUSER
The average age of inhalant abusers is 14 years old.
Inhalant abuse is the highest among eighth-graders, and many of these
students started before they were 10 years old.
Inhalant abusers generally have close friends who use alcohol or other drugs.
One in four inhalant abusers have quit or been permanently suspended from
school.
Two out of three inhalant abusers had at least one failing grade on their
last report card.
Inhalant abusers almost always move on to other drugs as they become older.
Nearly one out of three inhalant abusers has been arrested for a substance
abuse-related offense.
Some inhalant abusers never used drugs before, are active in sports, earn
good grades and have no criminal involvement.
Most inhalant abusers are very young, often beginning inhalant abuse
without knowing about the consequences.
Most inhalant abusers use inhalants with others as a group activity.
Source: Commonwealth of PA Office of Attorney General
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