Common Household Signs That Your Child May Be on Drugs
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Canada
Posts: 23
Common Household Signs That Your Child May Be on Drugs
Do you ever find your ballpoint pens missing? What happened to those large plastic pop bottles that you thought you threw into the recycling bin? Why are so many spoons missing from your cutlery drawer in the kitchen?
Have any of your kitchen or bathroom faucets lost their filters? What about your window screens? Do they have any missing chunks? Do you ever walk into the bathroom and become overwhelmed by the scent of heavily-sprayed perfume?
Kids are amazingly resourceful when it comes to creating methods of ingesting drugs. They don’t need to go to a “head shop” to find these tools. Everything they need can be found in the home. As parents, you really need to be aware of these signs.
Have you ever gone to the fridge to find an entire cake gutted from the inside? Have you ever found incredible amounts of junk food missing from your pantry?
Has money ever gone missing from your wallet or purse? Do your other children ever complain that stuff is missing from their rooms? Do you ever walk around your home and notice certain things that just make you go, “Huh?”
Chances are that you are NOT losing your mind. If you have any concern that your child may be abusing drugs, please pay attention to these very common household signs.
Everyday household stuff can easily be used for making drug paraphernalia. More expensive items can be sold or hawked to pay their dealers.
1) What is my son or daughter using the pens, pop bottles and mesh filters for?
Kids frequently use these tools to make bongs. Bongs are used as a method to inhale marijuana and/or hashish through a water filter. Some kids think this is a purer way to filter out the harmful carcinogens that marijuana and hashish contain. Some of them consider this to be a healthier “high.”
There are more than 368,000 places via a Google search on the internet where they can learn how to build these homemade pipes.
As a substitute for pop bottles, they will use the glass from hurricane lamps, large jars and just about anything else that can provide a “chamber.”
2) What happened to all of my spoons and candles?
Spoons and candles can be used in a variety of different ways to ingest drugs. Sometimes, hashish oil is heated in an everyday teaspoon over a lit candle and inhaled (through the hollow tube of a pen.)
3) I could have sworn I had a pair of diamond earrings in my jewellery box.
Nothing in your house is sacred when you have a child heavily influenced by drugs. Yes, they will steal from their own mother. Check your valuables every once in a while. If stuff starts to disappear, start asking questions.
4) What happened to that cake I had in the fridge? It looks like a pack of animals got at it.
No, that wasn’t a pack of animals. It was likely your son or daughter coming down from a high, desperately needing a fix of sugar. They didn’t use a fork. They used their hands. They also prepared and consumed three packages of Kraft Dinner all at once.
5) I left my purse on the kitchen counter and now $50 is missing.
You’re not imagining this. Even in your own household, you are vulnerable to theft from the child who is addicted to drugs. Your other children are also extremely vulnerable. They may not want to tell you, but they may suspect their brother or sister is stealing from them.
Often, there are no obvious red flags to alert us that our children have already started down the path to drug hell. As parents, we have to look at the subtleties.
Look around you. Look around your house. If something doesn’t seem right, it probably isn’t. Keep track of your stuff. Don’t listen to the “dog ate my homework” story.
For the sake of your beloved child and yourself, don’t ignore these everyday common household signs of possible drug abuse. Your child may already be feeling out of control.
Use these early opportunities to take a stand. If you really don’t feel right about something that’s going on right under your roof, bring it up now. Address it now. Take steps to fix it now if you can.
Your son’s or daughter’s life may depend on it.
Marjatta
Have any of your kitchen or bathroom faucets lost their filters? What about your window screens? Do they have any missing chunks? Do you ever walk into the bathroom and become overwhelmed by the scent of heavily-sprayed perfume?
Kids are amazingly resourceful when it comes to creating methods of ingesting drugs. They don’t need to go to a “head shop” to find these tools. Everything they need can be found in the home. As parents, you really need to be aware of these signs.
Have you ever gone to the fridge to find an entire cake gutted from the inside? Have you ever found incredible amounts of junk food missing from your pantry?
Has money ever gone missing from your wallet or purse? Do your other children ever complain that stuff is missing from their rooms? Do you ever walk around your home and notice certain things that just make you go, “Huh?”
Chances are that you are NOT losing your mind. If you have any concern that your child may be abusing drugs, please pay attention to these very common household signs.
Everyday household stuff can easily be used for making drug paraphernalia. More expensive items can be sold or hawked to pay their dealers.
1) What is my son or daughter using the pens, pop bottles and mesh filters for?
Kids frequently use these tools to make bongs. Bongs are used as a method to inhale marijuana and/or hashish through a water filter. Some kids think this is a purer way to filter out the harmful carcinogens that marijuana and hashish contain. Some of them consider this to be a healthier “high.”
There are more than 368,000 places via a Google search on the internet where they can learn how to build these homemade pipes.
As a substitute for pop bottles, they will use the glass from hurricane lamps, large jars and just about anything else that can provide a “chamber.”
2) What happened to all of my spoons and candles?
Spoons and candles can be used in a variety of different ways to ingest drugs. Sometimes, hashish oil is heated in an everyday teaspoon over a lit candle and inhaled (through the hollow tube of a pen.)
3) I could have sworn I had a pair of diamond earrings in my jewellery box.
Nothing in your house is sacred when you have a child heavily influenced by drugs. Yes, they will steal from their own mother. Check your valuables every once in a while. If stuff starts to disappear, start asking questions.
4) What happened to that cake I had in the fridge? It looks like a pack of animals got at it.
No, that wasn’t a pack of animals. It was likely your son or daughter coming down from a high, desperately needing a fix of sugar. They didn’t use a fork. They used their hands. They also prepared and consumed three packages of Kraft Dinner all at once.
5) I left my purse on the kitchen counter and now $50 is missing.
You’re not imagining this. Even in your own household, you are vulnerable to theft from the child who is addicted to drugs. Your other children are also extremely vulnerable. They may not want to tell you, but they may suspect their brother or sister is stealing from them.
Often, there are no obvious red flags to alert us that our children have already started down the path to drug hell. As parents, we have to look at the subtleties.
Look around you. Look around your house. If something doesn’t seem right, it probably isn’t. Keep track of your stuff. Don’t listen to the “dog ate my homework” story.
For the sake of your beloved child and yourself, don’t ignore these everyday common household signs of possible drug abuse. Your child may already be feeling out of control.
Use these early opportunities to take a stand. If you really don’t feel right about something that’s going on right under your roof, bring it up now. Address it now. Take steps to fix it now if you can.
Your son’s or daughter’s life may depend on it.
Marjatta
Last edited by Marjatta; 04-21-2007 at 03:20 AM. Reason: typos
Nature Girl
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: By The Lake
Posts: 60,328
Excellent post, Marjatta (and gee, it's great to have you back).
If I may add to the list...squashed pop cans with holes punched in the side, used for smoking crack. And cheques missing from the "middle" of your cheque book. No they didn't fall out.
I remember so many times thinking I must be losing my mind. I wasn't. I was losing my son to addiction.
Hugs
If I may add to the list...squashed pop cans with holes punched in the side, used for smoking crack. And cheques missing from the "middle" of your cheque book. No they didn't fall out.
I remember so many times thinking I must be losing my mind. I wasn't. I was losing my son to addiction.
Hugs
Guest
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Canada
Posts: 23
Ann,
It's great to be back!
I wanted to share some feedback from others when I posted this on another venue:
"I am a father of two. Although I understand where you're coming from, this may be one of the most poorly written bias articles I have ever read. All this taught me is that if I misplaced my gold ring, my child must have stolen it from his own father to open up a meth lab. Come on, that is a terrible thought."
"This article is terrible. Nobody ever died or was harmed for smoking a little reefer. I’m pretty sure you've never smoked weed before because you obviously have no idea what it does. It calms you down and makes you feel relaxed. Big deal. Yes, i know it's illegal. But it is not the worst thing a kid can do. Kids experiment, and unless someone is letting it affect their school work I cannot for the life of me see the problem. And I happen to know from personal experience (which you cannot say) that this doesn't happen 99% of the time. In fact, I find it easier to concentrate while high on marijuana. But you wouldn't know that because you are so damn judgmental. It's hard to respect the law when the law is not respectable."
These were the negatives. The rest were positive.
M
It's great to be back!
I wanted to share some feedback from others when I posted this on another venue:
"I am a father of two. Although I understand where you're coming from, this may be one of the most poorly written bias articles I have ever read. All this taught me is that if I misplaced my gold ring, my child must have stolen it from his own father to open up a meth lab. Come on, that is a terrible thought."
"This article is terrible. Nobody ever died or was harmed for smoking a little reefer. I’m pretty sure you've never smoked weed before because you obviously have no idea what it does. It calms you down and makes you feel relaxed. Big deal. Yes, i know it's illegal. But it is not the worst thing a kid can do. Kids experiment, and unless someone is letting it affect their school work I cannot for the life of me see the problem. And I happen to know from personal experience (which you cannot say) that this doesn't happen 99% of the time. In fact, I find it easier to concentrate while high on marijuana. But you wouldn't know that because you are so damn judgmental. It's hard to respect the law when the law is not respectable."
These were the negatives. The rest were positive.
M
Guest
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Canada
Posts: 23
Originally Posted by Marjatta 
In fact, I find it easier to concentrate while high on marijuana. But you wouldn't know that because you are so damn judgmental. It's hard to respect the law when the law is not respectable."
M
Nature Girl
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: By The Lake
Posts: 60,328
It sounds like denial to me, Marjatta, and my prayers go out for both of them.
And yet, there may be logical explanations for some of these things....it's just that for me, it was always about my son's addiction. How thrilled I would have been to discover that I had misplace 14 Royal Doulton figurines, my grandmother's necklace, most of my spoons and 3 VCR's.
Either I had alzheimers or my son was an addict.
The truth isn't pretty, but it's still the truth no matter how much we try to take out the sting.
Hugs
And yet, there may be logical explanations for some of these things....it's just that for me, it was always about my son's addiction. How thrilled I would have been to discover that I had misplace 14 Royal Doulton figurines, my grandmother's necklace, most of my spoons and 3 VCR's.
Either I had alzheimers or my son was an addict.
The truth isn't pretty, but it's still the truth no matter how much we try to take out the sting.
Hugs
Guest
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Canada
Posts: 23
Originally Posted by Ann
How thrilled I would have been to discover that I had misplace 14 Royal Doulton figurines, my grandmother's necklace, most of my spoons and 3 VCR's.
Let's add in a brand new banjo, my other son's 10-speed bike and CD player, countless jewellery and cash (not to mention damage to the house).
Yeah...I think you hit the nail on the head. "Denial" it is.
Marjatta
Bridge CLOSED
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: No ones business
Posts: 1,497
Thank you for this post.
First of all, if you find the same things missing and it is an adult living with you it means the same thing (they are on drugs and cannot be trusted and you best take a stand!)
My XABF did drugs since age 12. He is 51 almost 52. Over the years he did everything that did not require a needle. He is terrified of needles.. In fact, last year he developed a thrombosis in his calf and needed to give himself shots (while he was an outpatient) of clot busting meds. He was supposed to do these to himself, but I have a lot of experience with shots so I did it (SQ) and he was truly terrified of the needle. Good thing or he would have shot drugs up.
due to his knowing how to grow it and because it is somehow respectable, his DOC is weed and has been for about 8 years. I think his cheater GF was doing weed and occaisionaly lines of coke with him and I think he did occaisional lines too (he had been a big coke addict in the late 80's... sold a business and put the entire $50k profit up his nose!).
The bottom line is this:
The guy never held a steady job and if he did he screwed it up! He owned a business that was successful until he hired other people to run it so he could run around, cheat on his GF and do coke! He is a known druggie in his home town. Friends who have gotten clean want nothing to do with him.
He spent a long time unemployed sucking off his previous GF. He has a good mind and good ideas but NO AMBITION to follow thru... it was like a child who gets a great idea, and does it for awhile, gets bored and has to have a new idea, project, or GF.
He smokes weed as often as any cigarette smoker smokes and told me he "gets a little nuts when the supply gets low" (this was after I figured out what was going on and he was moving out).
But, Pot is innocuous.... it harms no one.. it "expands the mind" and is a lesser drug.. Uh hu. Yup. right. I always wanted to ask, "If that is true why is your life nothing but a string of failures?" I did not want to hear the quacking so I did not ask and he was, after all, moving out.
Oh yeah.. a drug is a drug is a drug is a drug and an addict with addictive behavior is an addict with addictive behavior.
Regardless of whether it is bad or has medicinal uses (which I am in favor of BTW), it is still illegal and, in many states there is a zero tolerance law for users, possessors, dealers and growers.
First of all, if you find the same things missing and it is an adult living with you it means the same thing (they are on drugs and cannot be trusted and you best take a stand!)
Originally Posted by Marjatta
"This article is terrible. Nobody ever died or was harmed for smoking a little reefer. I’m pretty sure you've never smoked weed before because you obviously have no idea what it does. It calms you down and makes you feel relaxed. Big deal. Yes, i know it's illegal. But it is not the worst thing a kid can do. Kids experiment, and unless someone is letting it affect their school work I cannot for the life of me see the problem. And I happen to know from personal experience (which you cannot say) that this doesn't happen 99% of the time. In fact, I find it easier to concentrate while high on marijuana. But you wouldn't know that because you are so damn judgmental. It's hard to respect the law when the law is not respectable."
M
M
due to his knowing how to grow it and because it is somehow respectable, his DOC is weed and has been for about 8 years. I think his cheater GF was doing weed and occaisionaly lines of coke with him and I think he did occaisional lines too (he had been a big coke addict in the late 80's... sold a business and put the entire $50k profit up his nose!).
The bottom line is this:
The guy never held a steady job and if he did he screwed it up! He owned a business that was successful until he hired other people to run it so he could run around, cheat on his GF and do coke! He is a known druggie in his home town. Friends who have gotten clean want nothing to do with him.
He spent a long time unemployed sucking off his previous GF. He has a good mind and good ideas but NO AMBITION to follow thru... it was like a child who gets a great idea, and does it for awhile, gets bored and has to have a new idea, project, or GF.
He smokes weed as often as any cigarette smoker smokes and told me he "gets a little nuts when the supply gets low" (this was after I figured out what was going on and he was moving out).
But, Pot is innocuous.... it harms no one.. it "expands the mind" and is a lesser drug.. Uh hu. Yup. right. I always wanted to ask, "If that is true why is your life nothing but a string of failures?" I did not want to hear the quacking so I did not ask and he was, after all, moving out.
Oh yeah.. a drug is a drug is a drug is a drug and an addict with addictive behavior is an addict with addictive behavior.
Regardless of whether it is bad or has medicinal uses (which I am in favor of BTW), it is still illegal and, in many states there is a zero tolerance law for users, possessors, dealers and growers.
Nature Girl
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: By The Lake
Posts: 60,328
That was my "short list", lol, there isn't enough space here for my complete list, but I really should have added one more...my hormone pills.
No menopausal woman on earth has EVER misplaced her hormones. It is simply not possible. Why would HE want my hormones? Because he thought they were Tylanol 3's. Oldtimers here know what came next...but it still sends a snicker through my heart....I told him he would grow breasts
....and he checked for a month. 
No menopausal woman on earth has EVER misplaced her hormones. It is simply not possible. Why would HE want my hormones? Because he thought they were Tylanol 3's. Oldtimers here know what came next...but it still sends a snicker through my heart....I told him he would grow breasts
....and he checked for a month. Member
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Posts: 285
I always had money taken from my wallet and at first thought i was losing my mind. My as also had hollowed out ballpoint pens in his drawer, but I never knew about the screen in his window. He abused opiates. So why does his screen have a few holes? I thought before maybe it was his cigarettes. Silly me.
A work in progress....
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: FREE!!!! Somewhere in the Tennessee Mountains
Posts: 1,018
Originally Posted by Marjatta
1) What is my son or daughter using the pens, pop bottles and mesh filters for?
Thanks for these, Marjetta.
Member
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: East Tawas, MI
Posts: 3,683
Luckily for me, my AD did not develop her addiction until she was out of my house. And since I am not letting her back in, I don't have to worry about things going missing. When she does come over, I watch her like a hawk. You know follow her from room to room. Another reason not to invite her over
Marle
Marle
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Canada
Posts: 23
Thanks everyone. Only you guys would "get" this.
Here's a positive comment written by a young lady of 20. I was quite impressed. It also gave me some hope for the future...especially coming from someone so young:
"First off, I believe that this article is very well-written. Although I can understand what the comments in response to the article are saying, I still find it highly unfair to call this article bias.
True, just because your wedding ring goes missing, it does not mean that your child is a drug addict. However, I do not believe that that is the point of the author.
The author is urging parents to be more aware of what occurs under their own roof. Pay attention to what goes missing. Do these kinds of disappearances occur on a regular basis, and if so, to what extent?
The author is merely warning her reading audience to become less naive and more aware to the reasons these occurrences happen. Because more often than not, parents do miss even the most noticeable signs that their kids need help.
In regard to the second comment, saying that the author is bashing the use of marijuana. First of all, as someone who has smoked pot herself, I understand what you are saying. However I urge you to take another look at the article and what the goal of the article is.
The author never once argues that smoking pot is bad and therefore no one should do it. She is simply saying that, from the perspective of a parent, to be aware of the kinds of things kids do as a means of smoking it.
This article is a warning to parents and really anyone who suspects that a loved one is using. It is apparent to me that this author has experience in dealing with a loved one undergoing problems with drug addiction.
For anyone to call this article bias or wrong obviously has not had to bail their son/daughter out of jail or had to stay up endless nights in worry.
I would urge you to become more knowledgeable and less ignorant in the issue of addiction and substance abuse before calling someone else's warning, or helpful piece of advice "crap".
M
Only you guys would "get" this.Here's a positive comment written by a young lady of 20. I was quite impressed. It also gave me some hope for the future...especially coming from someone so young:
"First off, I believe that this article is very well-written. Although I can understand what the comments in response to the article are saying, I still find it highly unfair to call this article bias.
True, just because your wedding ring goes missing, it does not mean that your child is a drug addict. However, I do not believe that that is the point of the author.
The author is urging parents to be more aware of what occurs under their own roof. Pay attention to what goes missing. Do these kinds of disappearances occur on a regular basis, and if so, to what extent?
The author is merely warning her reading audience to become less naive and more aware to the reasons these occurrences happen. Because more often than not, parents do miss even the most noticeable signs that their kids need help.
In regard to the second comment, saying that the author is bashing the use of marijuana. First of all, as someone who has smoked pot herself, I understand what you are saying. However I urge you to take another look at the article and what the goal of the article is.
The author never once argues that smoking pot is bad and therefore no one should do it. She is simply saying that, from the perspective of a parent, to be aware of the kinds of things kids do as a means of smoking it.
This article is a warning to parents and really anyone who suspects that a loved one is using. It is apparent to me that this author has experience in dealing with a loved one undergoing problems with drug addiction.
For anyone to call this article bias or wrong obviously has not had to bail their son/daughter out of jail or had to stay up endless nights in worry.
I would urge you to become more knowledgeable and less ignorant in the issue of addiction and substance abuse before calling someone else's warning, or helpful piece of advice "crap".
M
*~10 YEARS BABY~*
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Hollywood
Posts: 9,369
"Dusting"
(As forwarded to me via email)
Latest Drug in Middle School - 'Dusting'
First, I'm going to tell you that my name is Jeff. I am a Police Officer for a city known nationwide for it's crime rate. We have a lot of gangs and drugs. At one point we were # 2 in the nation in homicides per capita. I also have a police K9 named
Thor. He was certified in drugs and general duty. He retired at 3 years old because he was shot in the line of duty. He lives with us now and I still train with him because he likes it. I always liked the fact that there was no way to bring drugs
into my house. Thor wouldn't allow it. He would tell on you. The reason I say this is so you understand that I know about drugs.
I have taught in schools about drugs. My wife asks all our kids at least once a week if they used any drugs and makes them promise they won't. I like building computers occasionally and started building a new one in February 2005.
I also was working on some of my older computers. They were full of dust so on one of my trips to the computer store I bought a 3-pack of DUST OFF. Dust Off is a can of compressed air to blow dust off a computer. A few weeks later when I went to
use one of them, they were all used. I talked to my kids and my two sons both said they had used them on their computer and messing around with them. I yelled at them for wasting the 10 dollars I paid for them.
On February 28 I went back to the computer store. They didn't have the 3 pack which I had bought on sale so I bought a single jumbo can of Dust Off. I went home and set it down beside my computer.
On March 1st, I left for work at 10 PM. Just before midnight my wife went down and kissed Kyle goodnight. At 5:30 am the next morning Kathy went downstairs to wake Kyle up for school before she left for work. He was propped up in bed with his legs
crossed and his head leaning over. She called to him a few times to get up. He didn't move. He would sometimes tease her like this and pretend he fell back asleep. He was never easy to get up. She went in and shook his arm. He fell over. He was pale
white and had the straw from the Dust Off can coming out of his mouth. He had the new can of Dust Off in his hands. Kyle was dead.
I am a police officer and I had never heard of this. My wife is a nurse and she had never heard of this. We later found out from the coroner, after the autopsy, that only the propellant from the can of Dust off was in his system. No other drugs.
Kyle had died between midnight and 1 AM.
I found out that using Dust Off is being done mostly by kids between the ages of 9 through 15. They even have a name for it. It's called "dusting". A take off from the Dust Off name. It gives them a slight high for about 10 seconds. It makes them
dizzy.
A boy who lives down the street from us showed Kyle how to do this about a month before. Kyle showed his best friend. Told him it was cool and it couldn't hurt you. It's just compressed air. It can't hurt you. His best friend said "no".
Kyle was wrong. It's not just compressed air. It also contains a propellant called R2. R2 is a refrigerant like what is used in your refrigerator. It is a heavy gas, heavier than air. When you inhale it, it fills your lungs with chemicals and keeps
the good air, with oxygen, out. That's why you feel dizzy, buzzed. It decreases the oxygen to your brain and to your heart. Kyle was right. It can't hurt you. IT KILLS YOU. Kids should know that inhaling anything from an aerosol can can be
dangerous because of the chemical product used as the propellant.
The horrible part about this is there is no warning. There is no level that kills you. It's not cumulative or an overdose; it can just go randomly, terribly wrong. Roll the dice and if your number comes up you die. IT'S NOT AN OVERDOSE. It's
Russian Roulette. Instant death. You don't die later. Or you don't have the chance to feel different and say "I've had too much". You usually die as you're breathing it in. If not, you die within 2 seconds of finishing "the hit."
That's why the straw was still in Kyle's mouth when he died. Why his eyes were still open. The experts want to call this huffing. The kids don't believe its huffing. As adults we tend to lump many things together. But "dusting" doesn't fit here.
That's why it's more accepted. There is no chemical reaction, no strong odor. It doesn't follow the huffing signals. Kyle complained a few days before he died of his tongue hurting. It probably did. The propellant causes frostbite. If I had only
known.
It's easy to say hey, it's my life and I'll do what I want. But it isn't. Others are always affected. This has forever changed our family's life. I have a hole in my heart and soul that can never be fixed. The pain is so immense I can't describe it.
There's nowhere to run from it. I cry all the time and I don't ever cry. I do what I'm supposed to do but I don't really care. My other two kids are messed up. One won't talk about it. The other will only sleep in our room at night. And my wife, I
can't even describe how bad she is taking this. I thought we were safe because of Thor. I thought we were safe because we knew about drugs and talked to our kids about them.
After Kyle died another story came out. A probation Officer went to the school system next to ours to speak with a student. While there he found a student using Dust Off in the bathroom. This student told him about another student who also had some
in his locker. This is a rather affluent school system. They will tell you they don't have a drug problem there. They don't even have a D.A.R.E or plus program there.
So rather than tell everyone about this "new" way of getting high that they found, they hid it. The probation officer told the media after Kyle's death and then the school admitted to it. I know that if they would have told the media and I had
heard, it wouldn't have been in my house.
We need to get this product out of our homes and school computer labs. Using Dust Off isn't new and some "professionals" know about. It just isn't talked about much, except by the kids. They all seem to know about it. April 2nd was 1 month since
Kyle died. April 5th would have been his15th birthday. And every weekday I catch myself sitting on the living room couch at 2:30 pm in the afternoon and waiting to see him get off the bus. I know Kyle is in heaven but I can't help but wonder If I
died and went to hell.
This Police Officer is asking for everyone who receives this email to forward it to everyone you know.
Latest Drug in Middle School - 'Dusting'
First, I'm going to tell you that my name is Jeff. I am a Police Officer for a city known nationwide for it's crime rate. We have a lot of gangs and drugs. At one point we were # 2 in the nation in homicides per capita. I also have a police K9 named
Thor. He was certified in drugs and general duty. He retired at 3 years old because he was shot in the line of duty. He lives with us now and I still train with him because he likes it. I always liked the fact that there was no way to bring drugs
into my house. Thor wouldn't allow it. He would tell on you. The reason I say this is so you understand that I know about drugs.
I have taught in schools about drugs. My wife asks all our kids at least once a week if they used any drugs and makes them promise they won't. I like building computers occasionally and started building a new one in February 2005.
I also was working on some of my older computers. They were full of dust so on one of my trips to the computer store I bought a 3-pack of DUST OFF. Dust Off is a can of compressed air to blow dust off a computer. A few weeks later when I went to
use one of them, they were all used. I talked to my kids and my two sons both said they had used them on their computer and messing around with them. I yelled at them for wasting the 10 dollars I paid for them.
On February 28 I went back to the computer store. They didn't have the 3 pack which I had bought on sale so I bought a single jumbo can of Dust Off. I went home and set it down beside my computer.
On March 1st, I left for work at 10 PM. Just before midnight my wife went down and kissed Kyle goodnight. At 5:30 am the next morning Kathy went downstairs to wake Kyle up for school before she left for work. He was propped up in bed with his legs
crossed and his head leaning over. She called to him a few times to get up. He didn't move. He would sometimes tease her like this and pretend he fell back asleep. He was never easy to get up. She went in and shook his arm. He fell over. He was pale
white and had the straw from the Dust Off can coming out of his mouth. He had the new can of Dust Off in his hands. Kyle was dead.
I am a police officer and I had never heard of this. My wife is a nurse and she had never heard of this. We later found out from the coroner, after the autopsy, that only the propellant from the can of Dust off was in his system. No other drugs.
Kyle had died between midnight and 1 AM.
I found out that using Dust Off is being done mostly by kids between the ages of 9 through 15. They even have a name for it. It's called "dusting". A take off from the Dust Off name. It gives them a slight high for about 10 seconds. It makes them
dizzy.
A boy who lives down the street from us showed Kyle how to do this about a month before. Kyle showed his best friend. Told him it was cool and it couldn't hurt you. It's just compressed air. It can't hurt you. His best friend said "no".
Kyle was wrong. It's not just compressed air. It also contains a propellant called R2. R2 is a refrigerant like what is used in your refrigerator. It is a heavy gas, heavier than air. When you inhale it, it fills your lungs with chemicals and keeps
the good air, with oxygen, out. That's why you feel dizzy, buzzed. It decreases the oxygen to your brain and to your heart. Kyle was right. It can't hurt you. IT KILLS YOU. Kids should know that inhaling anything from an aerosol can can be
dangerous because of the chemical product used as the propellant.
The horrible part about this is there is no warning. There is no level that kills you. It's not cumulative or an overdose; it can just go randomly, terribly wrong. Roll the dice and if your number comes up you die. IT'S NOT AN OVERDOSE. It's
Russian Roulette. Instant death. You don't die later. Or you don't have the chance to feel different and say "I've had too much". You usually die as you're breathing it in. If not, you die within 2 seconds of finishing "the hit."
That's why the straw was still in Kyle's mouth when he died. Why his eyes were still open. The experts want to call this huffing. The kids don't believe its huffing. As adults we tend to lump many things together. But "dusting" doesn't fit here.
That's why it's more accepted. There is no chemical reaction, no strong odor. It doesn't follow the huffing signals. Kyle complained a few days before he died of his tongue hurting. It probably did. The propellant causes frostbite. If I had only
known.
It's easy to say hey, it's my life and I'll do what I want. But it isn't. Others are always affected. This has forever changed our family's life. I have a hole in my heart and soul that can never be fixed. The pain is so immense I can't describe it.
There's nowhere to run from it. I cry all the time and I don't ever cry. I do what I'm supposed to do but I don't really care. My other two kids are messed up. One won't talk about it. The other will only sleep in our room at night. And my wife, I
can't even describe how bad she is taking this. I thought we were safe because of Thor. I thought we were safe because we knew about drugs and talked to our kids about them.
After Kyle died another story came out. A probation Officer went to the school system next to ours to speak with a student. While there he found a student using Dust Off in the bathroom. This student told him about another student who also had some
in his locker. This is a rather affluent school system. They will tell you they don't have a drug problem there. They don't even have a D.A.R.E or plus program there.
So rather than tell everyone about this "new" way of getting high that they found, they hid it. The probation officer told the media after Kyle's death and then the school admitted to it. I know that if they would have told the media and I had
heard, it wouldn't have been in my house.
We need to get this product out of our homes and school computer labs. Using Dust Off isn't new and some "professionals" know about. It just isn't talked about much, except by the kids. They all seem to know about it. April 2nd was 1 month since
Kyle died. April 5th would have been his15th birthday. And every weekday I catch myself sitting on the living room couch at 2:30 pm in the afternoon and waiting to see him get off the bus. I know Kyle is in heaven but I can't help but wonder If I
died and went to hell.
This Police Officer is asking for everyone who receives this email to forward it to everyone you know.
*~10 YEARS BABY~*
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Hollywood
Posts: 9,369
Teens 'get high on bin smoke'
Setting wheelie bins on fire and inhaling fumes to get high is the new 'drug of choice' for teenagers, police say.
The craze is behind more than 50 bin fires in Barnsley, they add.
Anti-solvent abuse charities warn that inhaling bin fumes could be more dangerous than sniffing glue or petrol.
Wheelie bins are made from high density polyethylene – composed of double-bonded carbon and hydrogen molecules.
Burning an empty one releases carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide.
These deadly gases starve the brain of oxygen, giving a headacheheavy short high.
PC Jonathan Reed, of South Yorkshire Police, said officers were now looking at ways to lock up the bins.
'It is the drug of choice, setting fire to the bins and inhaling the fumes,' he added.
'The health and safety implications are terrible. It is only a matter of time before someone harms themselves.'
Warren Hawksley, of anti-solvent abuse charity Re-Solv, said he had heard of the problem in Scotland but this was the first time he had come across it in England.
In Scotland it was also known for people to burn bus shelters for the same effect, he added.
Mr Hawksley added: 'It is a deadly combination.
'They can be breathing in a whole compound of different chemicals in the plastic and not have a clue about what they actually are, or what they are doing to them.
'At least with petrol the lead has been taken out of most of it. And there are controls to stop abuse of other substances.'
The craze is behind more than 50 bin fires in Barnsley, they add.
Anti-solvent abuse charities warn that inhaling bin fumes could be more dangerous than sniffing glue or petrol.
Wheelie bins are made from high density polyethylene – composed of double-bonded carbon and hydrogen molecules.
Burning an empty one releases carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide.
These deadly gases starve the brain of oxygen, giving a headacheheavy short high.
PC Jonathan Reed, of South Yorkshire Police, said officers were now looking at ways to lock up the bins.
'It is the drug of choice, setting fire to the bins and inhaling the fumes,' he added.
'The health and safety implications are terrible. It is only a matter of time before someone harms themselves.'
Warren Hawksley, of anti-solvent abuse charity Re-Solv, said he had heard of the problem in Scotland but this was the first time he had come across it in England.
In Scotland it was also known for people to burn bus shelters for the same effect, he added.
Mr Hawksley added: 'It is a deadly combination.
'They can be breathing in a whole compound of different chemicals in the plastic and not have a clue about what they actually are, or what they are doing to them.
'At least with petrol the lead has been taken out of most of it. And there are controls to stop abuse of other substances.'
Hug giver-outer!
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: The State of Possibilities
Posts: 533
G*d! I just wish and pray for a day when I don't have to come here or when I do, that I don't have to read about the new and imaginative ways that kids find to get a few, short minutes of "high" that can take their lives in more ways than one!
Drugs truly are a parents' worse nightmare! And everyone else's too.
Drugs truly are a parents' worse nightmare! And everyone else's too.
Member
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Texarkana, Texas
Posts: 585
Gawd, all that is just nasty nasty. I remember when I was a kid some of my classmates telling me they'd go to the grocery store and huff the nitrous out of the whipped cream cans (notice how they are sealed now). I smoked some weed back "in the day", but all that inhaling crap just grossed me out. A lot of the chemicals used in every day things will kill brain cells instantly (toluene, benzene etc.). That R2 refrigerant freezes your lungs.
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