The Suffocation Game

[proud2BlibKansan]

'Suffocation games' among kids turn fatal

By Wendy Koch, USA TODAY
Kids are choking themselves for the fun of it, sometimes fatally. In at least nine states in recent years, kids have been seriously injured or killed by "suffocation games" designed to induce a drug-like "high."
Chelsea Dunn is reportedly a victim of a "suffocation game." She was found hanging from a belt outside her bedroom closet.
Family photo via The Boise Statesman

Last week in Island Park, Idaho, Dalton Eby, 10, was buried after he accidentally hanged himself from a tree. He and a friend regularly played a game using a rope to cut off oxygen to the brain.

The high-risk game is known variously as "blackout," "funky chicken," "space monkey," "flatliner," "tingling," and "suffocation roulette." Middle-school kids as young as 10 try it —— some in groups, some alone —— using belts, hands, ropes or plastic bags. Older teens may do it to increase sexual pleasure, and many young ones and most of the girls are seeking a non-drug high.

EDITED BY ADMIN: COPYRIGHT

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-07-19-suffocation-games-on-rise_x.htm

[nebula]

1. That is too bizarre for words.

[proud2BlibKansan]

2. Hopefully

a few parents here will read this and discuss this 'fad' with their children.

[Catholic Sensation]

3. this is like auto-erotic asphyxiation

sometimes i wonder what's wrong with some americans...

[proud2BlibKansan]

4. I thought of that too

But some of these kids are as young as 10.

[Catholic Sensation]

6. i remember when i was ten and drinking was the worst

thing me and my friends would do. Ahhh 12 years ago, the good old days...

[proud2BlibKansan]

7. You are still just a baby

When I was 10 (41 years ago) I played with dolls and roller skated.

[scarletwoman]

8. Sheesh. When I was 15, my mother flipped out when I said the word,

"fart" -- as in "old fart". That was 41 years ago.

Of course, 3 years later I was smoking pot -- but I sure wasn't into self-strangulation!

sw

[proud2BlibKansan]

13. We got in trouble for saying

"stud". We were playing kickball in the back yard and someone missed an easy catch and my sister yelled "STUD ON YOU". My dad made us come inside and we got grounded. LOL

[scarletwoman]

5. Another symptom of the mass psychosis of the group mind of America.

I'd like to write something elegent and pithy, but the fact is, this country is REALLY FUCKED UP.

SW

[Looking Up]

9. Ain't that the truth -30-

[newyawker99]

20. Hi Looking Up!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[skids]

10. This is not actually news.

This has been a known phenomina for decades if not centuries. It is often cited alongside the fact that birds seek out fermented fruit in order to get a buzz on to demonstrate that the search for a mind-altering experience is a natural instinct.

[proud2BlibKansan]

12. Well I still think it is worthwhile to share

Parents need to stay informed.

[skids]

18. Well, as far as being informed...

...teaching your kids that it is fun to spin around to make themselves dizzy, instead of holding their breath, is a much safer approach. Wost you generally get is a few bruised knees and elbows.

[Oilwellian]

16. You're exactly right

Another variation of this "game" is to take deep breaths for about a minute, then have a friend put their arms around your chest and squeeze. The next thing you know, you're waking up on the ground, feeling very light-headed, and everything is spinning. My brother and I got on this kick 40 years ago when we were kids...that is until our mother caught us and managed to convince us, in a not to delicate way, just how dangerous it was. Being kids, we just didn't know, but fortunately learned before being seriously injured.

[Name removed]

11. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[proud2BlibKansan]

14. Somehow I knew

Someone here would bring that up. :)

[lonestarnot]

15. Well you didn't have to wait toooooo long!

:evilgrin:

[Demonaut]

17. we used to do this in the seventies, hyperventilate and compress your

lungs till you passed out....it lost its fun factor after a few times.

[LizW]

22. Yes, it comes back every few years, it seems

My freshman English professor's 14 year old son died this way in 1975.

Kids think they are immortal and nothing bad can ever happen to them.

[Moderator]

19. proud2Blib

Per DU copyright rules
please post only four
paragraphs from the
copyrighted news source.


Thank you.


DU Moderator

[proud2BlibKansan]

21. Ok - sorry