What do I do..... DC vaped THC at school and got sick

[Noangelbuthavingfun]

Out of the blue. Two weeks ago at a friend's sleepover I got a call from the parent saying DC poorly and they confessed to a THC vape. Disappointed doesn't even cut it. Queue lots of research on dangers etc and an honest conversation.
Two weeks later and I needed to pick them up from school as got ill at school. They confessed to school they tried it again... very ill.
What 3puld you do ? What consequences would you put in place ? If you've dealt with similar before can you tell your story ?
He's a good kid - mostly. Friends from nice backgrounds. I'm shocked and so angry. They've git their birthday in 2 weeks and I'm inclined to cancel it all. No presents. Turning 15. I'm frustrated but trying not to act like a lunatic and rather understand . But twice ? Help me navigate this please

What punishment did he receive the first time OP?

How sick were they? It is possible that they have already experienced natural consequences to their actions, enough to put them off for life.

I’m so sorry - you must be so frustrated.

There’s a risk that vapes advertised as having thc actually contain spice : https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c897qw8ddp9o.amp

in which case, it’s very easy to get addicted. If my ds had done this, I would want to hit roof and confiscate screens etc. however, it’s probably better to have a conversation and try to make sure he understands the risk he’s taking.

the fact that kids bump out of lessons to vape in toilets at school - I think we need to start treating them as addicts. But I will defer to others that know more than me.

think if there was an easy solution we wouldn’t be in this position.

First consequence was grounded for the weekend and a project yuey had to complete of the dangers of THC vapes... about 6 questions.. love chatgpt!
Sick as in pins and needles, skin crawling, feeling weak, incoherent and anxiety. Both times. Obviously the first time wasn't enough and they said they wanted to try it again to see if they get the same feeling the mates get - they just took too much ! Idiot

I personally don't think cancelling a birthday and all presents is fair. It's good he told you / school (you need the honesty in case you needed to get him medical attention) but it was stupid of him to try again especially as the first time made him ill. Hopefully he's learnt his lesson. I don't know what punishment I'd suggest but I think cancelling a birthday is too much.

It's not unreasonable to come up with a punishment but not cancel the birthday imo. He should have learned the first time and deserves zero sympathy for being ill.

I wouldn't cancel birthday as it's a birthday.... I'm with you op here...I view smoking and vaping as the same ...could you show him popcorn lungs and have a discussion but I know 15 year olds and they know they right and you wrong. Do you know anyone with breathing problems...I know people on oxygen and with their agreement I know I'd use this..dreading teenager years .. hoping someone with teenage knowledge come along soon

I agree... I won't cancel.the birthday I know its not proportional. What would you do though and still encourage open communication and honesty ? I don't want to drive this underground...

I would shock him a bit with real time stories and videos of people addicted. No one never starts with the intention of reaching certain levels of addiction and the mental/physical and social consequences…but every addict starts somewhere.

The first one you gave him a supportive free pass for.

The second happened on schools watch so I'd be asking them how they are going to keep him safe.

I'd be telling him if there's a third time then I'd consider his mates a bad influence and he'd be grounded so he cant see them, with the threat of going further and seeking to move him away from his friends in class and then into different classes if he continues.

The second happened on schools watch so I'd be asking them how they are going to keep him safe.

He is 15. Would you suggest he is searched every day? Is accompanied by a member of staff all day long ?

Was it THC or those HHC vapes that are everywhere now with teens?

Dd is 15 and tried a HHC vape, she freaked out completely and rang me and confessed all. I'm not sure that you can do anything to stop them completely, they think they know best at that age. She felt incredibly ill and thought she was going to die. We talked it through, I praised her for ringing me and telling me, spoke about the stupidity of it, the things that can go wrong etc and as far as I know she hasn't tried it again, she certainly didn't enjoy it the first time but my parents didn't think I was drinking every weekend at that age either.

I agree that it is a difficult situation trying to balance keeping them open with you but putting the foot down at the same time.

There is very little you can do to stop young people taking drugs.
I would tell him you are pleased he was honest and because if that you wont punish him. Remind him that some people can handle some drugs perfectly fine and some can't. If you know any alcoholics that is a good example.
Point out he almost certainly has a bad reaction to thc/dope and that next time it could be worse and more embarrassing.
Let him know that he is very young to be experimenting and his brain is still forming. That you would prefer he didn't take my drugs but if he ever does to do it very very slowly as he is sensitive.
I always finish my drug chat with "don't take drugs they make you feel fun for a bit but never worth the come down, if you do take them, take them slowly, and if you fuck up we will always help you".

I would be worried by the "took too much" line which suggests he thinks taking less would be fine! Just because friends have done it without harm doesn't mean he can. Did you know he was vaping or is this the only times he's tried it? Can you restrict time spent with these friends and do some work on his self-esteem and not following the crowd?

This site has some useful resources. The key is education not punishment https://www.talktofrank.com/get-help/concerned-about-a-child

My high school had sniffer dogs and yes they searched us. This was in the 1980s

In my area there would be a referral to the U25’s substance misuse team, they will go and see the young person to ensure they know the dangers and if necessary offer ongoing support.

i don’t think punishment is effective sometimes, he did it once, you punished him, he still did it again, maybe that conversation about why he took it, is he trying to fit in, is he feeling social anxiety, feeling depressed, just thought it would be a laugh, then you’ve got something to work from.

Oh god what is an HHC vape ? I'll have to look that up... glad your daughter learnt from it ! You are right they think they know it all!

I used to work in psychiatry in a research setting. We ran a study on first episode psychosis in young people. It was always THC, and sometimes after only a couple of goes. Maybe the GP who should be able to refer to a local substance use service. If someone's engaged with drugs, particularly in inappropriate settings, it's a problem.

This -

But also, what sanction has the school given? (I’m sorry if I’ve missed that being mentioned).

How do they manage to do this at school?!

Don’t keep punishing him as he will just hide things from you! Do some research and tell him the dangers! Also it seems he doesn’t enjoy it so isn’t likely to do it again anyway. Try and encourage him to be open with you as this is much better than shouting at him.

Is what they experienced psychosis?

Please don’t try to fix this through punishment. You’ll just drive it underground. It doesn’t work.

HHC is a synthetic canabanoid I think. Teens around these parts are buying them online or vape shops sell them so they are really easy for teens to get their hands on. Dd was telling me about girls doing them in the bathrooms before their exams to 'calm their nerves', dd said she didn't because last time she got so sick but really how would I know if she is telling the truth.

One thing I forgot to mention in my last post was a close relative works at an inpatient mental health facility, I invited them over for a chat in my dds presence and they worked into the conversation stories that would scare the life out of you of drug use leading to life ruining mental health episodes.

All we can do really is educate them as best we can and pray that some of it goes in. It's a really difficult time when they just want to fit in, be part of the group and they themselves want to experiment.