Lifestyle

Teenage Twin Cities gain new perspective after drug overdose


MINNEAPOLIS – There are many reasons that make this particular day of the year so special. But there’s also a little-known reason why it’s such a dangerous holiday for teenagers.

He’s only 16, but Dominic has a lot to think about, “I’m just looking back at my story and what I used to do and what I can do to change it.”

He grew up with his mother and sisters in the Twin Cities, “I never had a father figure. I went out, trying to find that brotherhood, because I’ve always wanted a brother too.”

He said he found it, with a group of friends who introduced him to the drug. It started when he was about 13 years old with weed, “It was weed, and then with the crowd of people I was hanging around, it went straight to fentanyl.”

He says it’s the easiest time of year to use it, “Summer, like no school, so it doesn’t look like a place where you can get in trouble. Summer is full of people outside. , activities, more things going on, parties.”

At the age of 15, drugs almost killed Dom. He took two perks – pills with fentanyl, “I was sitting on the floor in the dark and I was taking pills. I can’t remember anything else after that. From what my friends told me. .. they turned on the light and I was lying face down on the wet ground and my face was purple, hands, feet, face pale and someone said my hair turned yellow They woke me up by giving me 4 milligrams of Narcan Then I woke up and there were ten flashlights around me saying you’re lucky to be alive…”

As his story is surprising, it is not unique. Especially this time of year.

Sadie Brown is the Minnesota Assistant Director of the Prevention and Recovery Coalition.

“Statistically, on July 4th, twice as many teenage boys go to the emergency room for drug or alcohol use than on any other summer weekend,” Brown said. It’s because of the liberal summer, she says, less schools, less structure, and a lot of the parties centered around alcohol.

She says a good way to keep the long days of summer drug-free is to talk to teenagers and ask them to come up with punishment before anything goes wrong, “We’ve found that It’s very helpful to have students participate in that conversation, simply because then if you break a rule, this is not the consequence I am enforcing against you, it is a family conversation. about what the risk is and is this dangerous.”

She says that red flag teens are struggling just like Dom – isolated, spending is on the rise and everything just feels OFF.

As for Dom, he said he feels like he has a second chance at life, “Everybody I know says Dom, you look so different, you’ve gone from a Zombified to a supermodel, You look crazy.”

He is working hard to maintain that new look and feel during his treatment at MN Adult and Teen Challenge – where he learned welding – a new profession – and a new perspective. He said his future looked bright, “I really can’t explain it but a big change has happened.”

Teen Challenge has a virtual Zoom drop-in this summer where people can learn more about substance abuse and find resources.

Groups are held almost every Tuesday at 12pm and Thursday at 2pm More information can be found here.

Common resources for parents and teens can be found here.



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