Vive! Teen Blog
November 9, 2006
HUFFING
Did you know that huffing--the inhalation of household products to get high--is the fourth most popular method of substance abuse for kids between the ages of 14 and 17? I thought that huffing died in the mid 90s with a handful of renegade, and probably broke, stoners, but I was wrong. Teenagers in record numbers are using this approach to get a cheap, convenient high, inhaling everything from typewriter correction fluid to spray paint to air fresheners--legal products easily found in any home. After all, it's safe, right? And convenient. And cheap. The perfect drug. There's no drug dealer to meet in a secret alleyway, no risk of getting caught with a controlled substance, and very little, if any, expense involved. Just a plastic baggy and a tube of glue and you're off to paradise.
But huffing? Seriously? If you're willing to roll the dice with brain damage, severe depression, and death, I guess a ten-minute high is a worthwhile gamble. The NDIA's (National Drug Intelligence Agency) website says that "inhalant abuse may result in serious and sometimes irreversible damage to the user's heart, liver, kidneys, lungs, and brain. Brain damage may result in personality changes, diminished cognitive functioning, memory impairment, and slurred speech." Irreversible slurred speech? Sheesh... where do I sign up? These things can happen on a person's first, or fifth, or hundredth huffing experience. People take a whiff and almost instantly their heart stops; it even has a name--Sudden Sniffing Death Syndrome. It's a true gamble with immediate payout; like most gambling, though, the odds are with the house.
October 6, 2006
Introducing Dan Powers
Dan Powers is a twenty-one year old who lives and works in Boulder, Colorado. While in high school, Dan began to use drugs and alcohol to numb emotions that seemed too intense to bear. He lived many of his teen years as a rebel and heavy drug user and went through several therapists and rehab experiences without lasting success. "I did a lot of damage, to myself, my family, my friends, my enemies, and even a few total strangers," he says.
Dan met the founder of Vive!, Dave Herz, in 1999, just as the program was getting started. "In hindsight," Dan says, "(Vive!) could have been the only program I'd have needed if I had found it years earlier." Through his time with Vive!, Dan came to recognize that the drug abuse and rebel persona were really just shields to protect the "sobbing boy that lived inside of me." By acknowledging and addressing this fact head on, Dan has experienced a new kind of personal strength and self-possession that doesn't require masks or shields. He has addressed his substance abuse, has reconciled with his family, and has helped other adolescents and young adults face their own problems and discover their own true strength and value.
Every month, Dan will address a topic of current concern to adolescents and young adults. He will do so from the perspective of a reporter embedded in youth culture, talking frankly about the challenges that face young people today. Dan does not claim to have answers for others, but is in a good position to know what the questions are. He invites you--whether you're a teen or a parent--to join in dialogue with him about what it's really like to be a young person today.
Look for Dan's first blog on the topic of inhalant abuse.
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