LSD in Schools – Connecting with Kids

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LSD In Schools

At three to five dollars a hit, LSD is making a comeback among young dealers in school hallways.

“I know somebody that brought some one day and was selling it. He brought it in a little tin foil packet,” says eighteen-year-old Tracy.

The difficulty LSD presents to parents and school officials is that it’s easy to hide and difficult to discern even if spotted.

“It doesn’t look bizarre. It doesn’t look troubling. It doesn’t throw up any red flags that I need to check and see what this looks like. That’s why it’s so insidious because it seems so innocent,” explains Garry McGiboney, a school security expert.

Parents should keep an eye out for anything in a notebook or book bag that looks out of place, particularly if it’s a small sheet or a tiny square.

“Things like that are what parents need to be vigilant about and not be naïve and not be reticent to ask the family physician or school counselor or school administrator or even mention it to a teacher. Just say this is something I found and I don’t want to overreact, but is it something I should be concerned about?” suggests McGiboney.

“It doesn’t look bizarre. It doesn’t look troubling. It doesn’t throw up any red flags that I need to check and see what this looks like. That’s why it’s so insidious because it seems so innocent”

– Garry McGiboney
 

WHAT PARENTS SHOULD KNOW

Page hits (or “sheets”) are drug laced squares that fit inside notebooks. Their popularity is on the rise and surfacing in schools all across the country. This style of drug is actually LSD (Lysergic Acid Diethylamide) in microthin gelatin squares. It is convenient and not easily detected by parents and teachers. LSD is increasing in popularity among suburban middle class teens and young adults.

Ecstasy is another popular drug recently turning up among our youth. Like page hits, Ecstasy is an amphetamine which can cause hallucinations and can be fatal. Ecstasy is routinely sold in gelatin capsules but is also pressed into tablets.

These types of hallucinogenic drugs distort perception of objective reality and can produce unpredictable, erratic, and violent behavior. Users can lose sense of direction. Distance and time become disoriented. The effects of hallucinogens can last up to 12 hours

LSD is extremely dangerous. It produces tolerance, so users who take it repeatedly must take higher and higher doses in order to achieve the same state of intoxication. Given the drugs unpredictability, it can result in increased risk of convulsions, coma, heart and lung failure, as well as death.

Talk about it!

  1. Listen Carefully: Surveys involving students indicate that when parents listen attentively to their children’s concerns and feelings, they will feel more comfortable talking to them and are more likely to stay drug free.
  2. Build Self-Esteem: Kids are much less likely to turn to illegal substances to get high if they feel good about who they are. Enhance your child’s self-image by offering lots of praise, criticize actions— not the person and spend one on one time listening and learning about what they are doing in their day. Let them know you care.
  3. Let Kids Know its Okay to Act Independently: Peer pressure is one reason kids try drugs. Talk to your child about what makes a good friend. Research shows that kids who have close relationships with their peers are less likely to get involved in drugs and alcohol.
  4. Provide Age-Appropriate Information: Make sure that the information you offer fits your child’s age and cognitive level. Role-playing can be very beneficial for young kids.

Look at the Statistics

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) 1997 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse:

  • 35.6% (77 million) of Americans aged 12 and older reported some use of an illicit drug at least once during their lifetime.
  • 11.2% reported use during the past year.
  • 6.4% reported use in the month before the survey was conducted.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) 1998 Monitoring the Future Study:

  • 54.1% of high school seniors reported use of an illicit drug at least once in their lives.
  • 41.4% reported use of an illicit drug within the past year.
  • 25.6% reported use in the past month.

ONDCP Drug Policy Information Clearinghouse, April 2000.

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