To: Schering-Plough HealthCare Products, Inc.
We the signed, petition against your product: "Coricidin HBP Cough and Cold". We want it taken off the market to prevent anymore loss of lives from people abusing it. We understand that it can be useful for people with heart problems, and ask that if it can't be removed, then to have EVERY reseller keep it behind the counter, and to sell to only people over 21.
names being used - Crush, Triple C's, C-C-C, Red Devils,
Skittles, Dex, Vitamin D,
DMX, Robo, Robo trippin' and Robo-dosing
WHAT IS CORICIDIN?
So, what is coricidin? It's a cough and
cold remedy that can be purchased at any
drug or grocery store all across America. It contains a hallucinogenic agent known as dextromethorphan, also known as DXM. Just like I was, most
kids aren't concerned with the potential dangers of abusing such a medication: seizures, blackouts, incredibly fast
heart palpitations, or even loss of life. They, again just like me, want the incredible feeling of getting high and feeling euphoric.
Within the last few years,
cold pill
abuse has exploded across the country. DXM is incredibly alluring to teenagers. It is cheap,
legal and available everywhere. The
Internet is partially to blame because it has allowed fellow DXM users to share their experiences in
online forums such as detroverse.org. On the internet,
kids can discover
new drugs, as well as how to obtain and use them. In fact, DXM can even be purchased in its raw form. I myself use to
buy DXM powder and make my own DXM gel caps.
ARE COLD PILLS THAT DANGEROUS?Unfortunately, young teenagers aren't taking the time to analyze the risks before they begin using DXM. DXM can lead to insomnia, hearing voices/sounds and even liver and/or brain damage. On my latest DXM trip, I could have sworn my upstairs neighbors were sending negative thoughts to my head. I was flipping out and had to stop myself from going upstairs to hurt them. I am dead serious. It was my latest trip that finally motivated me to cut the
cold pill habit completely out of my life. It completely messes with your head and has you thinking absolutely insane thoughts. And, some of the effects stay with you even after you stop using it.
WHAT EXACTLY ARE THE SHORT-TERM EFFECTS?The short term effects of DXM vary depending on how much DXM is consumed. The effects are typically divided into 'plateaus'. As you start using DXM more often, it takes more of it to achieve a certain plateau. At my current state, I can only achieve a level 3 plateau with 32 pills. The highest plateau is level 4. The fact that it takes so many pills to reach level 3 is a clear indicator of my past with
cold pills.
%u2022 The first plateau involves feeling light headed and enjoying
music more than before.
* The second plateau has oftentimes been described as being "stoned and drunk" together all at once. Oftentimes, during this plateau, your speech comes out slurred and your short-term memory is quite impaired. Slight hallucinations also begin in this phase.
* The third plateau is associated with extremely strong hallucinations. In addition, your thinking becomes highly confused and you are likely to daze-off in your own head.
* The fourth plateau is not only extremely dangerous, but can lead you to engage in crazy activities. People have been raped and murdered by
cold pill abusers on their fourth plateau.
Regardless of plateau, very common effects across all plateaus include: extreme confusion, a lot of dizziness, very blurred vision, a slurring of your speech, abdominal cramps, vomiting, nausea, an extremely fast
heart rate, numbness of the
body and a very strong disorientation towards your surroundings.
Mixing
cold pills with other
drugs can make things even worse. Negative reactions have been documented including DXM and: tobacco, alcohol, and SSRI anti-depressants. One particular brand of antidepressants, known as MAOIs, are especially dangerous with
cold pills. They can lead to very quick death.
WHAT ABOUT THE LONG-TERM EFFECTS?
Many
cold remedies contain a variety of other
drugs in them. These
drugs can oftentimes be very bad for the
body when consumed in a large quantity. For instance, coricidin contains chlorpheniramine maleate, or CM. High doses of CM can permanently damage the liver and the kidney. Cold pills can also contain acetaminophen.
In addition, many reports are beginning to circulate claiming that heavy DXM use causes permanent impairment to memory and learning. As a former DXM user, I concur entirely. I can tell that I am not as smart and quick-spoken as I use to be. Whereas I use to be able to snap back a response during a conversation back in the day, now it takes me a couple seconds to think.
IS IT WORTH IT?If you want to have fun, I recommend not choosing
cold pills. Straight up, they aren't something you need to cough at, if you catch my drift.