Joe Abdalla witnessed a lot of teenage overdoses in his 30 years with the Washington D.C. Metro Police Department, and the story he often heard from parents was the same -- they never saw any signs of trouble before finding their child dead in a bedroom.
Abdalla is executive director of Code 3 Association, and he's helped develop a tool, with the help of the Rx Abuse Leadership Initiative, that helps people recognize clues that a youngster is fooling around with drugs. The turned a 32-foot trailer into a rolling version of a teenager's room.
Since the COVID-19 crisis has kept people from visiting the display, there is now a virtual version that anyone can see. The site also lists several other behavioral signs that parents should look for.
There are a lot of physical signs in a young person's room that may point to a big problem, including empty prescription bottles and small, 2-inch sections of drinking straws.
"It is used for snorting crushed prescription pills and powdered form versions of methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin, fentanyl, you name it," Abdalla said. "It is only used for snorting illicit powders."
Some common signs that a teenager is in danger of drug abuse: hanging around with a new kid or group of friends, sudden drop in grades, loss of interest in hobbies and activities, and a decline in personal hygiene.