Johnny Stack’s Story
November 16, 2020 drug abuse, marijuana, suicide prevention No CommentsIn 2019, Alex Berenson wrote, Tell Your Children The Truth About Marijuana, Mental Illness and Violence. The book contains a warning about the harmful effects of marijuana especially that it causes psychosis and leads to violence. I blogged on this book several months ago. The warning has largely gone unheeded and many states have pushed to legalize marijuana as a medicine and as a recreational drug even though the Food and Drug Administration has not approved it as such. Marijuana did not undergo rigorous testing by the FDA before being made available to the public as a medicine. This by itself is outrageous. Now, the harmful effects warned about in 2019 by Berenson are coming to fruition. The gut-wrenching story of Johnny Stack is evidence of that fact. This story appeared in The Epoch Times, Oct. 14-20, 2020 and was written by Charlotte Cuthbertson. The title of the article is, High-Potency Marijuana, Psychosis, and Suicide: Johnny Stack’s Story. I am going to give the highlights in this brief blog.
Johnny was 19 and addicted to high-potency marijuana. His mother, Laura Stack, remarked to the Epoch Times, “I just can’t believe that he had to grow up in Colorado–the first state to legalize it–and my son has to be the victim.” Johnny started smoking marijuana in 2014 after the state legalized its commercial use. He was 14. The real problems started in 2016, when Johnny started taking “dabs” (high potency marijuana) which could contain more than 80 percent tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive ingredient in the cannabis plant. Dabbing is a fairly new and popular way to consume concentrated THC. The THC is stripped out of the cannabis plant most commonly using butane (making butane hash oil) or propane. A further process then strips away the butane, leaving a dabble concentrate, which is vaporized–via glass rig or vaping device–into smoke that’s inhaled. It can be odorless. Other forms of butane hash oil include waxes, shatters, and budders–which are similar, but have different textures. In 1995, the average potency (THC level) was around 4 percent. Now, even regular marijuana buds sold at a dispensary can have 25 percent potency. The state (Colorado) that went all-in on marijuana is facing the ugly side of a drug that’s now so potent, it’s triggering cannabis-induced psychosis, especially in teens. After Johnny started dabbing, he went from being a happy teenager with a 4.2 GPA to failing classes and becoming withdrawn. Eventually, he dropped out of all the activities he was involved in. He stopped associating with previous friends and became more defiant. His father, John Stack, attributed the change in behavior to teenage rebellion. Neither parent connected the changes to marijuana. They knew nothing about dabbing. By 18, Johnny moved away from home. He told his parents that he loved marijuana. By August, 2018, Johnny was attending Colorado State University in Fort Collins and was dabbing every day. He was addicted to high-potency marijuana. Two weeks into college, Laura received a text from Johnny saying he was nervous about not making friends. Laura responded that it was perfectly natural to be nervous about not making friends. Johnny replied, “Is it perfectly natural to think about killing yourself every day?” Laura and John immediately went and got Johnny and disenrolled him from school. He was placed in a hospital and was suicidal. The hospital held Johnny for 72 hours and released him. He told his mom while on the phone with her that when they let him go, he was going to try and kill himself. Later, Johnny tried to hang himself in his dorm room. Laura called the police and they were able to reach him and stop him. His parents took him to the hospital. He was suicidal, psychotic. This time Johnny stayed in the hospital for two weeks until all of the marijuana was out of his system. Marijana can be detected in a chronic users urine for more than 30 days after his/her last hit. Over the next three months, Johnny sobered up. He got a job working at a kennel. He attended classes to help with his anxiety. He told his parents that he was ready to go back to college. So, they sent him to the University of Northern Colorado. A few weeks later, Johnny started dabbing again. By April, he was delusional. Laura related, “He called me at 3 o’clock in the morning and said his phone was bugged, his dorm was bugged.” Johnny was 19 and his parents were blocked from his medical information. His parents grew frustrated with the system and they were not able to find out about his medical condition. Johnny was at UNC and he thought the mob was after him and his parents were helpless. Johnny ended up in another mental hospital for several weeks. He was put on antipsychotic medications and his parents were told that it might take six to 12 months to recover. Johnny left the hospital and went to a program center in Denver called Urban Peak. They really helped him. He became sober, got a place to rent and started working at Panera. By June, Johnny seemed to be doing well. He was working at PetSmart and his parents bought him a dog for support. However, he stopped taking his medications and started dabbing again. Then, all of sudden he told his parents he was not going to do weed anymore. In November, he went to his parents house and opened up about his addiction. He admitted that his parents were right about marijuana and said that the drug had ruined his mind and his life. He told them he was sorry. He told his mother that he loved her. Then, three days later on Nov. 20, 2019, he jumped off a six-story building and ended his life.
The vast majority of youth in Christian Thurstone’s substance treatment program are obtaining marijuana through the medical route. In Colorado, youth can obtain a medical marijuana card at 18. The legal age for recreational use is 21. 50 percent of 18-year-olds are still in high school and any of these can easily become a dealer for the whole high school. Thurstone states that “historically, only 6 percent of adolescents who need substance treatment get it.” The link between marijuana and suicide is evident. In Colorado, suicide was the leading cause of death among youth aged 10 to 18 between 2013 and 2017 according to the state’s health department. In 2004, 26 percent of young people had alcohol in their bodies at the time, while 15 percent had marijuana. In 2017, 9 percent had alcohol and 32 percent had marijuana.
Johnny Stack’s story is being repeated across America. His parents are attempting to spread the word about the dangers of marijuana. They want others to know what Johnny said himself, “that marijuana ruined my mind and my life.” I have dedicated this blog to helping them reach others with this message. Hopefully, we can help other families avoid a grief that is “unimaginable, deep, raw, and ever present.”