DRUG EYE-OPENER

I first met 17-year-old- Mabel in the fall of 1997.

Mabel (the name has been changed to protect the generation) sat across from
me, shoulders slumped forward, head slung low and looking as though she
hadn't slept in a week of Wednesdays.

Mabel was escorted by a counselor who was requesting that I fill out a form
so that Mabel could enter a drug rehab program.

Turning to Mabel I inquired "So what drugs are we talking about?"

I expected the usual sad response of heroin or cocaine, both usually
accompanied by a marijuana and alcohol problem.

"No dude" she responded, glancing up "E, jib and GHB." I had no clue what
she was talking about.

It is at such times that the experienced doctor relies on his MD degree
(Master of Deception) and impersonates an expert on a subject he knows
nothing of (you should see me do vasectomies).

"So good old jib is it?"

"Right on dude! You see," she turned to the counselor "he knows the rave
scene."

Nodding knowingly I thought, "OK, a hint, something about a rave. What the
heck is a rave?"

I have since become all too familiar with the new drugs of abuse associated
with the technoid generation's rave scene.

Raves are the all-night frantic love dancing of the totally tubular
telephone-totin' techno teen.

Though the pattern for drug addiction seems to remain basically the same,
ie. smoking, alcohol and pot lead to further "experimentation" and
eventually addiction, now the choice of substances of abuse has expanded.

*Ecstasy (E, X, lovedrug)

A powerful stimulant and mood changer, E is the drug most associated with
raves.

It tends to induce an overwhelming urge to dance to anything resembling
music. A teen on E may be seen rocking with reckless abandon to everything
from Abba to Zamphir.

They breakdance in elevators and boogie in the dentist's chair. Car alarms
can trigger hours of line dancing.

A typical Ecstasy user can be identified by the ludicrous loving grin on
their face as they dance and hug one partner after another.

But there is an agony to this Ecstasy.

Users sweat profusely as they dance like demons. They do not get thirsty
and can become precariously dehydrated without sensing it.

Subsequently, Ecstasy users are told by their dealers to drink loads of
water to avoid dehydration.

One girl I know of, unsure of how much water she was supposed to drink,
actually drank much too much water to offset the Ecstasy and actually died
of water intoxication.

*GHB: Yet another drug that creates an uninhibited sense of exhilaration is
"B".

This is soon followed by a sense of inhibited unexhilaration when the drug
wears off and the user has woken to discover the consequences of bad decisions.

Mixed with alcohol, this drug can render the user as confused as a baby in
a topless bar.

GHB not only causes a dangerous drop in blood pressure but also can lead to
seizures, which at a rave may simply be applauded as a wild new dance move.

*Crystal Meth (gib, glass, ice, crank):

Every so often a quiet home in the suburbs seems to erupt in mysterious
spontaneous combustion.

Such is the volatility of producing crystal meth, described as being a mix
of lighter fluid and laundry detergent.

The poor man's cocaine, this dangerous drug can be snorted, injected and
smoked. Its popularity stems from the fact that it leads to a heightening
of sexual desire and mad abandoned sex.

Once big in the gay community, it is now a regular at raves.

The sex drive becomes so powerful that this drug has been indicted as a
factor in the spread of AIDS.

As libido is enhanced, safe sex is cast aside.

Extremely addictive, the "life or meth" drug has now actually spawned its
own CMA (Crystal Meth Anonymous), complete with 12 steps.

One final note, as Mabel left the office en route to detox, she turned and
said "Please don't tell my mom, she thinks I'm off with a friend for a few
days."

Dr. Dave Hepburn has been awarded the prestigious George Cadogan Memorial
Award for his editorials from the Canadian Community Newspaper Association.
Congratulations Dr. Hepburn.