He Started Huffing in Iraq

Via the Idaho Statesman:

A 28 year-old Army veteran first tried huffing computer dusters while stationed in Iraq. This past July 19 he was found in a field, surrounded by 42 cans of computer duster spray that he had stolen from Wal-Mart. The only thing he remembers is waking up in the hospital.

The article points out that a 2008 story “that ran in “Knowledge,” which calls itself the official safety magazine of the U.S. Army, reported that 47 members of the U.S. armed forces had died of inhalant use since 1998, more than half of them soldiers.” It also notes that the Department of Defense issued a release in October 2010 warning soldiers about huffing.

The army veteran says he suffered a traumatic brain injury in 2005 and his prescriptions weren’t helping to ease his headaches so he turned to computer dusters. He points out “It was very prevalent in the military. It’s readily available, and there is no drug test for it. It’s so fast-acting, it doesn’t leave a trace in your blood and urine.”

After reading about the dangers of huffing he stopped but two years later once he returned home he turned to dusters to help relieve PTSD induced nightmares. He quit after his wife threatened to kick him out and got outpatient treatment through the VA but started again after he got divorced.

His parents set him up with inpatient treatment at the VA hospital in Idaho but he soon started huffing once released. Police records show he was charged with “misdemeanor intoxication by inhalation of a toxic substance eight times between April and May” but he didn’t recall much of the incidents so never followed up. It led to jail time on a failure to appear in court which cost him his job and a chance to get back into a VA rehab program. Soon after he was found in the field with the 42 cans of computer dusting spray.

He was released from the hospital and went back to Washington state to get treatment for PTSD. He turned himself in on the burglary charge for the stolen dusters and plead guilty to the lesser charge of misdemeanor petit theft. His message to teens is “Don’t try inhalants. Ever. “I want to be done with it,” he said. “(Huffing) ruined my marriage, it ruined a lot of my friendships. It’s almost ruined my relationship with my parents.”

Huffing + Driving = Pain for the Whole Family

A mother shares her story of being thrust into taking care of her daughter because of someone else's irresponsible decision.

"My daughter, Jamie, came by the house a week or so before the accident all excited..."

"She came home January 9th, 2008 but not the way we all had thought. She came home to a hospital bed with a pick line for intravenous feeding of antibiotics, a stomach feeding tube, numerous medications and needing care 24/7.

On September 30, 2007 we received a call that Jamie had been in a serious accident and we needed to come as soon as possible. I will never forget that day.

We walked in and people were whispering—we were the parents of the girl that died. On the way down to the hospital I prayed “God please put a bubble of protection around Jamie and keep her safe, Under Grace in the most perfect way. Thank you. Amen.”

I knew they were wrong. Jamie did not die; she had a traumatic brain injury (TBI) and was in surgery to save her life.

We made it through the first critical 72 hours, the next 3 ½ months of hospital and rehabilitation stays.

Then we were sent home with very minimal training to care for her and instructions to “come back and see me in 3 months” by her doctor.

We are making progress with Neuro-feedback, but she is still considered to be in a semi-coma state. Her eyes are open, she blinks them as response to what we are saying, but as yet cannot talk or walk. The progress has been slow, but with a lot of prayers, hope, and TLC one day she will talk and walk again.

You see, Jamie was a passenger in the back seat of a car with a driver who chose to huff computer cleaner while driving. She hit the back end of a utility trailer hauling large equipment going 80 mph, with a small Toyota Camry-- the car flipped and hit a tree. The driver, a so called friend, did not value her own life let alone the lives of the 5 passengers in the car. This was a senseless accident, the driver should never have chosen to huff while driving..."

"...Please do not huff anything to get high, instead get help to find out why you need to get high. Talk to someone. If you don’t care about yourself care about your family, your mother, your father, your brother or sister because it will change the whole family. The financial, emotional, and shear physical strain at times seem unbearable. I cannot go watch her brother play football, or watch his wrestling matches; I work and take care of Jamie. I no longer have a life I am her caregiver 24/7. I do this because I love her and am determined to help her get better.

Attached are pictures of her before the accident, after surgery and in her wheelchair. Ask yourself “Is this what I want for me?” “Do I want to put my family through this? Do I want my parents to have to care for me 24/7? Think about it!! Think about the friends you have. Would they do this to you? If so run-fast to get away they are not friends! STAY AWAY FROM HUFFING AND THOSE WHO HUFF!!!"

To read the full story, please visit: http://messageboard.inhalant.org/tool/post/inhalant/vpost?id=3000090