Xannies, Bars, Z-Bars, Zanbars, Xanbars, Handlebars, Planks, Bricks, Benzos.
These are all slang terms for anti-anxiety drug Xanax that doubles as a recreational drug of choice for many young high school students B次元官网网址� one that authorities are encouraging parents talk to their kids about after fentanyl was found in counterfeit Xanax in a high school in B.C. last week.
Cheap to get and easy to take, the tranquilizer comes in legitimate versions B次元官网网址� by prescription B次元官网网址� and illicit versions from unregulated sources potentially cut with other substances. Both versions look identical to the untrained eye.
B次元官网网址淲e are in a terrible place right now where fentanyl has so saturated the drug market there really is no safe place to experiment. Trying drugs now is an enormous life-threatening gamble,B次元官网网址� said fentanyl expert Staff Sgt. Conor King, VicPD.
The pills brought to the Delta school by a student last week were purchased illicitly as Xanax. The pills were confiscated, and found to contain fentanyl.
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B次元官网网址淚t should be assumed that all illicit drugs contain fentanyl, and therefore have the potential to be fatal,B次元官网网址� Jen Hill, communications manager for the Delta School District, said in an email to Black Press Media.
After a Grade 10 Belmont student died of a suspected overdose in June, Black Press talked with four West Shore high school students about their drug use and what types of drugs they are seeing other students use.
One said teens can buy Xanax, or a knock-off of the drug, on the streets for $3, which he alluded to being cut with other unknown substances due to the price.
All four teens noted drugs are easily accessible and they would be able to get their hands on them if they wanted to.
Victoria police have seen a rise in consumption and overdoses related to Xanax in high school age youth in the last two a half years.
B次元官网网址淎 major concern is when it is mixed with alcohol. ThatB次元官网网址檚 when things can get bad rapidly,B次元官网网址� said King. B次元官网网址淭hink of teenagers in the realm of a house party. Drug experimentation commonly goes hand-in-hand with alcohol use, but this can cause a magnification of affects and run risk of an overdose, shutting down their heart and lungs.B次元官网网址�
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In Oak Bay, the high school PAC struck a Health and Wellness Committee in December 2017, in response to reports from parents and administration concerning Grade 9 and 10 students overdosing on Xanax.
B次元官网网址淭he parents would be called to pick their child up from the hospital and they would hear from the emergency doctors things like B次元官网网址榯his is the tenth kid this weekB次元官网网址�,B次元官网网址� Gabriela Hirt, co-chair of the Health and Wellness Committee, told Black Press in an interview earlier this year. B次元官网网址淏ut it was really anecdotal. There were no statistics.B次元官网网址�
So the committee was formed and research on best-policies was undertaken. The parents called on the school district and the B.C Government to make changes to drug-related policies and support in schools.
King recommends parents have frank conversations with their teenagers.
B次元官网网址淏e willing to talk to your kids about what they see when they are out at parties, what they are interested in trying. Fentanyl is so toxic at such low doses that experimenting can be fatal,B次元官网网址� King said. B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檝e had opportunity to talk to a lot of parents and teens and that message is really resonating with youth in high schools who are seeing that as a reality.
B次元官网网址淭here is a good number who refuse to experiment with something because it might cost them their lives.B次元官网网址�
School District 62 published an in June, including signs and symptoms of overdose.
Overdose signs include extreme drowsiness, fainting or loss of consciousness, difficulty breathing, loss of coordination, and confusion.
If someone has signs and symptoms of acute toxicity they need urgent medical assistance.
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Resources
Sign up for Naloxone training at Toward the Heart: www.towardtheheart.com
Foundry Victoria provides a range of prevention and early-intervention health and social services to support young peopleB次元官网网址檚 well-being. Services are free and confidential for youth 12-24. 818 Douglas Street or foundrybc.ca/victoria/
Supportive Resources for Youth & Families on Vancouver Island: call 250B次元官网网址�519B次元官网网址�5313 or email discovery.southisland@viha.ca.
- with files from Grace Kennedy
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