Drug Presentation has Muskego Parents Organizing to Prevent Abuse

The talk has been given on other occasions, but on Thursday night, a drug awareness presentation given by Muskego Police Department representatives was also a moment of unity for parents.

The meeting, which presented the types of drugs that have been used by teens and young adults most frequently in Muskego, progressed as an informational forum. The idea was to flag signs of abuse — believe it or not, things like missing spoons and increased apple consumption — so parents might recognize them and take action.

Detective Shawn Diedrich explained to parents that heroin users have paraphernalia to "cook" the drug with water, and can include tea light tins and spoons.

"If you have only three spoons left in your drawer and you can't figure out where, they've gone, it's time to have a talk with your kid," Diedrich said.

Likewise he told parents that a sudden increase in apple consumption can be an indication of marijuana use.

"Kids use 'apple bongs' to smoke the drug, but it also helps mask the smell, and if they need to get rid of it in a hurry, they can just throw the apple in their garbage, or of course eat it," he added.

Other items that might flag signs of abuse:

• Vicks: Increased usage of the menthol ointment can be a sign of ecstasy use
• Metal scouring pads: At the kitchen sink, fine; pieces of the material in your child's bedroom not so much; often used in smoking crack cocaine
• Dryer sheets: Marijuana users often carry them along to mask the scent of the drug
• Discolored fingertips or hands: Some oxy-based drugs have been developed with a coating to make them less able to be crushed and injected. Addicts may still use them and try to remove the coating first with the dye coming off on their hands

"Frankly, this is the stuff that frightens the heck out of me," Diedrich said. "I have small children, and what kids are using now is nothing compared to when I was younger."

Even drugs that many find less alarming, such as marijuana, he said have become far more potent, and therefore more dangerous. The level of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in marijuana has gone from three or four percent about 15 years ago to 20 to 25 percent.

Parents, Diedrich said, were perhaps the largest piece of the puzzle to help solve any drug problem.

"One person isn't going to solve this, and it can be unfair to expect the school, which has students for about six to seven hours a day, to take care of everything. Drug use also doesn't stop once they run into us," he said. "We're just the cost of doing business. If they get a citation, they don't care. While it's hard for anyone individually to make a difference, parents need to know that they have the most influence over their kids."

It was a message that did not go unheeded. During a question and answer period, parent Dana Koelpin stood and invited other parents to join her in forming a parent support group to provide information and resources on preventing all of the various threats out there.

"This doesn't just have to be about drug abuse, we are also hoping to help our kids with issues of bullying, internet predators and other such threats," Koelpin said.

Resources/interest:

• If you would like to help in forming a parent's network, Koelpin can be contacted at dana@LookIntoDesign.com — please put "parent group" in the subject line. 

• Muskego parent Jenny Reidy is also working on forming "Holly's Hope" for parents struggling with addiction in their family.

• In addition, neighboring Waterford has "take back our community" events planned for the second half of April.

• Muskego will have also have a prescription drug collection drive on April 27 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Muskego Police Department. As many people begin an addiction by finding prescription drugs in a medicine cabinet, MPD is partnering with Drug Free Communities to take your unused and outdated prescriptions and other medications so they don't fall into the wrong hands.