'Splain to me about this cold-pill thing kids do..

[Coquina]

...sigh. I gather that there are folks here of all ages - I wonder if there are any of you who have had experience, 1st hand or otherwise, with the "cold-pills" teens take to get high.

Today was supposed to be my day off. I got a call at 8am asking if I could come in because my co-worker's 15 year old daughter had been in a car wreck.  She had stolen mom's car and wrecked it by driving it into someone's home. It was 4am and she had her 12 year old step-sister and another kid in the car.  The kids were high on booze and "cold-pills". The 15 year-old had taken 24 of them that she had stolen from the local pharmacy.

Thank God - no one was hurt. (Last summer, in a similar incident, a 12 year old drove into a woman's living room and killed her as she watched TV, he was tried as an adult for vehicular homicide, and found guilty).

Last night was the third episode, the first occurred at school (after which she was permanently expelled from the county schools, she was to be sent to "alternative school"), the second occurred a couple of weeks ago, and last night was the grand finale. She's now in juvie and will go before a judge Monday morning, third time for that, too.

My co-worker is nearly old enough to be my daughter, and her daughter is a year younger than my grandson. Fortunately, my grandson is a great student and has never been in one lick of trouble, probably because his friends always hang out over here, and there is always someone keeping a very close eye on the lot of them. He just got his driver's license last week and pretty soon I guess he'll be venturing away from the homeplace (gulp). My grandson lives with his dad, who neither drinks nor smokes. He was raised to be very fitness concious and does not eat beef, pork or fowl either.  I don't know what he'll do once he goes away to college, stay with what he's been taught or go hog wild.

As you can well imagine, this child's actions have caused quite a ruckus at work. Later on today, we learned that the daughter had been stealing her mom's car during the wee hours and going to the beach and partying and doing drugs with some older guys. All the keys to the marina are on the same set of keys as the car keys. Not only that, but my co-worker has no wheels, and it's doubtful that her insurance will cover the loss of her car considering the circumstances.

Well anyway - any thoughts you have on this situation would be appreciated, especially with regard to how you think the best way is to keep teens clean to start with.

[ode2shel]

my goodness, I appreciate reading what you have to say.  I have a 3 yr old, and it scares me to death of what she will have access to when she is a teenager.  Im 31, and the drugs I was exposed to in high school was pot, the harder stuff came in college.  The prob is there are so many drugs that teenagers have learned how to concoct right in the family kitchen.  I went to target to get cold medicine, and thought it was sold out, only to learn you now have to purchase it behind a locked counter.  I had no idea.  I know there are drugs called crank I believe, which I think is one that is made with sidafed in the kitchen.  I could be wrong, but I know there cold meds used to make drugs.  It seems like your friend almost has to let her daughter fall a little, otherwise she will keep rebelling and continue with her self detsructive behavior.  Do you kow is the daughter goes to therapy?  It sounds like she absolutely needs to go into a rehab, esp with her now being in juvie.  The lucky part is she's a minor, so if she shapes up now, her poor choices will be sealed in her record and will not affect her future

[ilikevics]

I wish I knew.  I myself have two 15 yo girls, and I worry constantly.  In Indiana, most of the cold tablets that contain the ingredient that they get high off of and that are used to make meth are behind the counter now and you have to sign them out with picture id.  As far as kids go, my hubby and I are lucky.  The girls, though a handful, a really pretty good girls.  They haven't taking to sneaking out, stealing our cars or anything else of that nature....yet.  And I really hope that they never do.  My step son is 26 and lives near Indy, and although we would like to see him move closer to home and find a different career, he's a bartender in a college town right now, he's a good kid as well.  My son is 11 and still at  the age where he knows more than he should, but is still a little too chicken to try anything.

[FLaddict]

Kids will take large amounts of cough meds containing DXM.. it makes you kinda trip.. also stuff like benedryl to get that sleepy buzz...

There is a thing going around elementary and middle schools in TX where young kids ages 10-17 are using this stuff called ''cheese"  its only 2 dollars and it is a very small amount of heroin mixed with tylenol pm... kids are dying from it... its awful... google it..

I am sorry about this little girl... I have young half sisters that are 9 and 12 so I worry about this... I also have a 3 yr old step daughter...