Beautiful teenager Brooke Ryan turned to sniffing aerosols, also known as “Chroming, huffing or inhalant abuse” whilst suffering from severe anxiety. Like many teens, her anxiety increased during the pandemic.
On February 3rd she was found dead on her bedroom floor with a can of deodorant after suffering a suspected heart attack. Then news has only just been released by the Daily Mail.
Brooke, from Broken Hill NSW, was only 16-years-old when she lost her life.
Ms Ryan has bravely spoken out to warn parents of the dangers and what to watch out for, calling for improved drug education for parents and children, and highly visible warning labels on all aerosol cans showing the risks which include, seizures, brain damage, and death.
Symptoms of abuse include headaches or high use of headache medication, excessive use of aerosols, strong smell of aerosols in the bedroom or other private areas, and white patches on towels, tea towels, or other materials.
There are alarming reports of increased abuse among children and young people, figures suggest usage has almost doubled from 2017 to 2020.
A spokesperson for the NSW Education Standards Authority said age-appropriate drug education including information on inhalants was part of the syllabus and schools could cover it in more depth if they had identified a particular problem in their community.
For support on this issue call Family Drug Support Australia (FDS): 1300 368 186
