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Emotional Heroin Awareness Event at St Joe's

Parents who lost daughter to overdose speak out

Heroin overdose is one of the leading causes of death for Long Island teenagers, a fact driven home at WALK-FM's Drug Abuse forum at St. Joseph's College in Patchogue. The forum had a panel that consisted of officials who work to fight against drug abuse in schools and the community and two parents who lost their daughter to a heroin overdose.

Doreen and Victor Ciappa would say they fell into "Not my child" syndrome in regards to their daughter Natalie having a drug problem.

"She had a high GPA, was a cheerleader, and was very hopeful looking," said Doreen Ciappa about her daughter. "It was easy to hide behind a 'Not my child" spell, it can hinder helping your kid. Now we want to help open eyes," added Doreen Ciappa.

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Victor Ciappa pointed out that many children that overdose on heroin also tend to be overachievers in school. Doreen Ciappa said that while they did notice changes, it was easy to find an excuse for them.

"We thought it was her boyfriend, senioritis for grades, if there was any possibility of drug abuse and we hear any other possible reason, [as a parent] you embrace it,"  Doreen Ciappa said.

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The panel was broken into several sections to discuss the history of heroin abuse on Long Island, what forms it comes in, how it is marketed to teenagers, and how to prevent drug abuse from starting.

In addition to the Ciappas, the panel was also made up of John Gilbride, special agent in charge from the Drug Enforcement Administration, Assistant District Attorney for Nassau County Teri Corrigan, who is also the DA's chief of the Street Narcotics and Gang Bureau, Eastern Suffolk BOCES social worker Dr. Tom Burger, and Executive Director of the Long Island Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Dr. Jeffrey Reynolds.

Gilbride talked about how heroin has been brought to Long Island since the 1960s from Southwest Asia, and is now brought in from countries in South America such as Columbia. Gilbride also said that heroin brought to Long Island now is many times more pure than it was in 1960s, averaging 60 percent to 70 percent pure, compared to 3 percent five decades ago. In his presentation, he demonstrated how heroin can be hidden in pens, soda cans, and can be smuggled into the country using prosetic legs, tractor trailers, "Build A Bear" teddy bears, and even in a wig.

Gilbride also discussed how heroin is marketed to teenagers by using references to popular movies like Twilight, or pictures and symbols that would be found appealing such as skulls for boys and hearts and flowers for girls.

"The low price of heroin combined with its high purity leads to a tsunami of bad effects," said Gilbride on the drug accessibility and potential consequences. "It is necessary to educate that this is not a good lifestyle," continued Gilbride during the presentation.

Corrigan's part of the presentation focused on statistics that showed the harm heroin use has brought to young people in the last few years.

"Kids do not wake up and decide to be an addict," said Corrigan. Corrigan said there tends to be a progression starting with beer, leading to blunts, then pills, and, finally, heroin.

"The stereotypical addict is not seen today. Formally there was an outward change [that could identify an addict], now not so much," said Corrigan.

Corrigan said there were 31 deaths in 2009 from heroin overdose through October, which is more than the 14 deaths related to drunk driving which occurred in the same period. Corrigan also discussed the cyclic nature of the issue, where every time someone is arrested for dealing heroin, someone else replaces them. Corrigan's message to parents were to notice if a coke can has been on their child's nightstand for over 3 months, and if so to pick it up to see if it really is a beverage.

"Talking is important, talking is how you learn," suggested Corrigan as well.

Burger's focus was on prevention and education on heroin abuse.

"Adolescence is a critical time for preventing drug use and abuse," said Burger.

Burger said it is during this time that children are learning social skills, character education, problem solving, communication and relationship skills, as well as the impact of substance use on the body. Burger suggests parents help their kids learn how to make decisions on their own by asking them what they think about situations so they learn how to process them. Burger also advised parents to develop an "escape plan" with their children by setting up a staged phone call that can be used for a parent to get their son or daughter out of an unsafe situation.

Reynolds was the last speaker at the conference. He ended with a few final pieces of advice and details of the harsh reality that is recovery. "Treatment often doesn't work the first time, recover is a full time job and is not easy," said Reynolds. Reynolds advised that parents start by building their kids' self esteem, that no is a complete sentence,, and that even talking about healthy versus unhealthy food can be a good step in teaching what is good for one's body. Reynolds and many of the other speakers also continually made a point to say that communication is a very important part of prevention in addition to simply being aware of what is going on in the lives of one's children.

The forum was a part of WALK FM's Walk Cares program, in which the radio station raises awareness of important issues and happenings in the community.


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