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I never thought about having to lock up my allergy medicine,” she said. “As a parent, you worry about drugs and you know the signs for drug use. She said she never imagined her daughter would try such a thing and was completely shocked by the ordeal. “It can also cause hallucinations, seizures and require a catheter to drain urine from the bladder due to not being able to urinate.”įor Katie, the experience was eye opening. “Too much diphenhydramine can cause a high heart rate and trigger arrhythmias,” said Jewison. What these patients didn’t realize is that not only can a Benadryl overdose be harmful to your health, it can also be deadly.
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They all said they saw videos on TikTok and were curious to try it.” “None of these patients were trying to harm themselves. “What struck me was that we had three teens come in for the same thing in one week,” said Amber Jewison, a hospitalist nurse practitioner at Cook Children’s Medical Center. Thankfully, her heart rate returned to normal the next day and she was able to go home. Rebekah was admitted to the hospital and observed overnight.
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While at Cook Children’s, doctors performed an electrocardiogram (EKG) and they didn’t like the results. “We rushed her to the local ER and they decided to transport her to Cook Children’s.” Her resting heart rate was 199,” Katie explained. She had fractured sentences, hallucinations. The eldest sister called their grandmother for help, likely trying to avoid getting in trouble with their parents. Katie was asleep when Rebekah appeared in her older sister’s bedroom, obviously intoxicated from the pills. “I got a call from mom and she was telling me I need to wake up,” said Katie, Rebekah’s mother. She took 14 Benadryl pills in the middle of the night on Memorial Day. One of the teens who ended up at Cook Children’s is a 14-year-old named Rebekah. Each of these patients said they got the idea from videos on TikTok that claimed users could get high and hallucinate if they took a dozen or more of the allergy pills. Three teens were treated at Cook Children’s in May after overdosing on the common allergy medicine diphenhydramine aka Benadryl. However, they may not realize the social media platform has a dark side, and some content may be outright dangerous. In addition, the Poison Control Hotline can be reached at 80.Many parents know TikTok videos are a popular way teens are passing the time these days.
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If you think someone has overdosed, you’re reminded to call 911. In addition, there is also a risk of lethal consequences, according to the sheriff’s office.Īuthorities say communication between parents and children is the most important way to fight the use of drugs by kids. The longer term effects include seizures, cardiac issues and respiratory depression. Among the short-term effects are dehydration, hallucinations, vision impairment, respiratory depression and more. Medical professionals say there are short- and long-term harmful effects associated with misusing Benadryl. The Hubbard County Sheriff’s Office is asking parents and guardians to discuss the dangers of certain social media challenges, including one they say has become a trend.Īccording to the sheriff’s office, the latest challenge encourages people of all ages, but specifically teenagers, to take Benadryl to the point of hallucination and then share the effects on social media accounts.
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