Callisburg school officials warn about "choking game"

By DELANIA TRIGG

Register Staff Writer



Administrators at Callisburg Elementary School are warning parents about a dangerous practice known as the “choking game” after stories began surfacing about the game on one of the school’s campuses.

CISD officials including Callisburg Elementary Principal Rusty Clark and Superintendent Dr. Charles Holloway said they are not aware of any verified accounts of students engaging in the game.

“To my knowledge, we have had no incidents of the choking game as it is described on the CDC Web site,” Clark said this morning.

Holloway agrees, but said the school has begun an awareness effort to let parents, students and staff members know about the potentially deadly activity.

“We are monitoring the situation on our campuses and have distributed information on what to look for,” Holloway said.

He added that school officials believe the stories could be linked to an episode of a television show which dealt with the choking game.

Clark said this is not the first time he’s heard of the choking game.

“I have previous experience with it (the choking game) during the 1980s and 90s when I was with a Metroplex school district where kids were intentionally doing this,” Clark said.

Clark said although he doesn’t believe there was an incident of students engaging in the choking game, the school takes any potential safety threat seriously.

“We have had no incidents where the children willingly choke themselves, but any time there are possible incidents of bullying or physical aggression among students, we investigate that and take measures to prevent such behavior,” he said.

Holloway noted that everyone on campus from bus drivers to teachers to maintenance workers have received information on the game.

According to the CDC’s Injury Center, the choking game goes by many names, most of which are not familiar to the average parent.

The activity is sometimes called the pass-out game, space monkey, California choke or airplaning.

The choking game is most common among adolescents and older children who choke themselves to get a brief high.

Kids either choke themselves or choke each other using a noose.

Kids sometimes play the game in cyberspace via web cams.

As Holloway pointed out, the choking game has even found its way into TV shows.

The choking game can be deadly.

The CDC states that 82 children have died since 1995 — most were playing the game alone.

Boys are more likely than girls to engage in the dangerous activity.

For parents and school staff members, there are some signs that children may be playing the game.

These signs include bloodshot eyes, discussions about the game, marks on the neck, wearing high-necked shirts even in warm weather, frequent or severe headaches, disorientation and increased or uncharacteristic hostility.

The CDC also warns parents and others who supervise children to be on the lookout for telltale signs that kids are playing the game such as ropes, scarves and belts tied to bedroom furniture or doorknobs or the presence of dog collars, leashes of bungee cords in a child’s room.

Another sign is petechiae — tiny bleeding spots under the surface of the skin of the face.

Petechiae is often found on the delicate skin around the eyelids or in the lining of the eyelids and eyes.

The choking game can also result in serious injury or death.

Within three minutes of continued strangulation, basic functions such as memory, balance and the central nervous system begin to fail.

Strangulation can also cause the death of brain cells due to oxygen deprivation resulting in seizures and coma in some cases.

Broken bones and concussions from falls associated with loss of consciousness have been reported.

There is no sure-fire way to recognize and prevent the choking game.

Parents, educators and healthcare providers are urged to consider the practice a public health threat and to look for warning signs that kids are involved in the game.

For his part, Holloway said he hates to think young children would even consider ways to alter consciousness.

“It’s sad to think that grade school kids even know what a high is,” he said.

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