THIS IS OUR FIRST BLOG

Welcome to Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health's blog. Below is our first blog post. We will be making a blog post on an every other week basis. We hope you enjoy and share our content.

THE HISTORY OF VAPING

In the 1950s and 1960s, viewing a celebrity or average citizens on the street with a cigar or cigarette was common place, accepted by society. That view point changed as medical personnel discovered the harmful effects of smoking.

Cigarettes having been slowly fading from society as many cities and states have been smoking inside public buildings. Today, teenagers are experimenting with vaping – a far more dangerous habit that smoking yet viewed as “in” and “cool” by adolescents.

HOW DOES A VAPING DEVICE WORK?

Vaping is the use of electronic cigarettes to inhale vapors nicotine, marijuana (THC oil, leaves) or general flavorings. To vape is to inhale vapor created from a liquid heated up inside a device.

With a cigarette, one uses a lighter to light the cigarette and puffs on the other end of the cigarette. An e-cigarette has been touted as a safer way to quit or cut down on smoking but doctors say the battery-powered devices sometimes explode causing injuries. A vaping device has an LED light that glows on some devices when the user inhales. There is a battery in the device. A switch activates the heating element on some devices. There is a microprocessor slightly above the switch that is attached to a heating element. This heating element changes the “juice” into a vapor that is inhaled. A cartridge holds the solution of dissolved nicotine and propylene glycol called “juice.” The user then inhales through the mouthpiece.

HISTORY OF VAPING

Evidence of vaping has been recorded as early as 425 BC. Greek Historian Herodotus wrote about the Scythians vaporizing hemp seeds – “immediately it smokes, and gives out such a vapor as no Grecian vapour-bath can exceed; the Scyths, delighted, shout for joy, and this vapour serves them instead of water-bath.”

1927 - Joseph Robinson invented a device that resembled an e-cigarette. The idea was to create an easy to use device to vaporize medicinal compounds instead of burning them.
1963 – Herbert Gilbert built a prototype of the smokeless non-tobacco cigarette. Inhaling combusted material can’t be good for anyone’s health. In the December 1965 edition of the magazine Popular Mechanics it said the battered-powered “cigarette” uses no tobacco and produces no smoke. A replacement tip moistened with harmless, warmed chemicals could stimulate the flavor of anything from root beer to rum. Gilbert never commercialized his e-cigarette and the patent expired.
1979-1980 – Phil Ray commercialized a version of the e-cigarette that relied on evaporation of nicotine. This failed too. The verb “vape” is introduced to language
1990 – “Eagle” Bill Amato, a Cherokee medicine man, born in Cleveland invented the cannabis vaporizer, in Amsterdam. He is known for popularizing of the vaporizer, which he termed a “safe and effective alternative to smoking.”
1998 – Phillip Morris begins selling Accord, a battery-powered “heat not burn” device as a cigarette substitute
2003 – Hon Lik, a Chinese pharmacist and small-time medical researcher made the first modern e-cigarette. His invention was motivated by his own smoking addiction and the death of his father to lung cancer.
2004 – The first commercial e-cigarette is introduced in China
2006 – E-cigarettes are introduced to Europe first, then the United States
2008 – In a study funded by Ruyan, a detailed quantitative analysis concludes that, overall the product tested was deemed a “safe alternative to smoking.”

Beginning in 2009, regulatory battles begin on e-cigarettes. In 2009, Amazon prohibits the sale of electronic tobacco products on its website. In 2011, the Department of Transportation seeks unsuccessfully to lift the ban of e-cigarettes on aircrafts. In 2013, Italy lifts the public ban on vaping while Punjab, India, declares e-cigarettes illegal. In 2010, actress Katherine Heigel appears on David Letterman and discusses the smokebot electronic cigarette.

At this point, sales take off for e-cigarettes. In 2009, the industry made $39 million. Four years later, in August of 2013, the industry was selling $1.5 billion worth of product. In 2014, 13.1 million middle and high school students were aware of e-cigarettes. That same year, “vape” is made the word of the year by Oxford English Dictionary.

Pop culture perpetuated by Hollywood continued to influence the country. At the 2016 Academy Awards, a top of the line e-cigarette is included in the nominees’ goody bag. In 2017, a National Institute of Drug Addiction (NIDA) study found 6.3 percent of 14-year-olds and 9.3 percent of 16-year-olds are vaping.

THE VAPING DEVICE

There are more than 460 different types of e-cigarette brands on the market. There are e-pipes, e-cigars, large size, medium size, rechargeable and disposable. These devices go by many different names – vape pen, pod mods, tanks, electronic nicotine delivery devices, e-hookahs, e-cigarettes and vaporizers.

Pod systems are equipped with cartridges that contain the coil, wick and e-juice. These are fairly cheap at $30.

Juul: the iPhone of e-cigs. The name Juul was chosen because it evoked both a precious stone and the amount of energy required to produce one watt of power for one second. Kids can purchase Juuls in bulk on eBay and Amazon with prepaid debit cards. These pods look like USB drives and can be charged via USB port. In a previous post on their website, a Juul pod contains 40 mg of nicotine, which is similar to “the nicotine yield of a pack of cigarettes.”

Cannabis vaporizers and pens are quickly becoming one of the most popular consumption methods. A dab pen is a vaporized pen specifically designed to vape cannabis concentrates such as dry plants, oils or wax. The Pax 3 comes with a mobile app, cost $249 and has a 10-year limited warranty.

Vap Mods is short for modification. Mod can refer to any number of adjustments that make the device more powerful or functional in some way.

Today, adults and kids can build a custom mod. A custom mod is a one-of-kind mod that reflects personality and often times uses of graphic designer to create a custom design. Vape skins are designs that are customizable. It is the same term used for the visual personae that video-game players can select to represent their gaming characters. Some people use a stealth vape, which could look like a pen, sharpie or pencil. Vapers have been very creative as they design sneaky ways to vape undetected.

Another popular device, Sourin, is discrete and easy to operate. The device is quiet and does not generate a cloud. Most do not include a bright LED.

E-LIQUIDS

E-juice is the liquid (e-liquid, vape juice, cartridges, pods or oil) that is converted into vapor by an electronic cigarette device. The Center for Disease Control estimates there are 7,700 unique flavors.

The basic ingredients are vegetable glycerin, propylene glycol and concentrated flavors. Most e-liquids contain nicotine. To save money, many people make their own juices allowing them to control the amount of nicotine.

To get the biggest nicotine hit from each puff, some vapers take the outside cover off of their e-cigarette and use an eyedropper to “drip” the liquid directly into the coil’s device. It is “recommended” that one has a minimum of six months vaping experience, and one month of training from experienced dripper before partaking.

Dripping liquids reach higher temperatures when dripped directly on a coil, the superhot liquid transforms the harmless chemicals in the e-liquid into toxic ones, creating bigger clouds and bigger throat hit.

Most devices include a puff counter to let consumers know when to stop.

One in every four teens vapors said he/she has tried dripping. Most teens who dripped said they had hoped it would let them make thicker clouds or give the vapor a stronger taste.

If you know someone vaping who needs help to break their addiction, please contact C&A at 330-454-7917.

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STARK COUNTY SCHOOLS MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS

16 Apr, 2024

The sixth annual Stark County Schools Mental Health Awareness Week is May 6-10 Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health (C&A), CommQuest Services and Pathway Caring for Children will partner to bring positive mental health awareness to more than 53,000 students and 7,000 support and administrative staff in all 18 Stark County School districts.

UNDERSTANDING RACE IN SOCIETY AND THERAPY: CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS’ EXPERIENCES

By Chris Alpert • 16 Nov, 2023

In the film, I’m Not Racist… Am I? as introduced and explored in first of this three-part blog post series, the participants engaged in multiple workshops that address race and racism. Interpersonally, the group of students grapple with their own differences and similarities, which impact the content and emotions they share with each other. There are several moments in the film that demonstrate the clear differences in the participants’ understanding of race. In the first workshop, the students were exposed to the idea that all white people are inherently racist seeing as American society was founded on principles meant to support white people (see more on structural racism here, here, and here for further understanding). Several white students in the film became emotional during that workshop. Most students remained quiet. Following this workshop, a black student and a white student were filmed independently of each other in their own homes and discussed the workshop and what they learned with their families. The white student discussed the differences between structural racism and bigotry with her mother and struggled to identify with the principles taught in the training. The black student stated to his mother how almost everything spoken in that workshop applied to him. The student further discussed his feelings by stating how overt racism is and yet how “subliminal” it is at the same time. How can something be so in your face and yet under your feet simultaneously? I immediately reflected on the dialectic of something being so clear and yet so vague. The film continued to grapple with student differences. At the beginning of the film, one white male student discussed with his mother how he feels that all individuals, if they apply themselves wholeheartedly, have the same chance of success regardless of their skin, gender, sexuality or other demographic factors. As a white man myself, I must confess that when I was in high school, I had the same mindset. How could it be different? Especially when I was reading mythic bootstrap literature in high school classes. Sure, the harder you work the more you deserve, but that statement does not work for all Americans. I had not accounted for racial factors that inhibit the growth of others, not to mention socio-economic factors, nationalities, citizenship status, gender and age. I continued to reflect on these statements and connected them to my experience in high school in New York City. In the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement responding to the murder of George Floyd, multiple private progressive schools in New York, including the one I went to, suffered scrutiny from students and alumni who identify as black, indigenous people of color (BIPOC). Multiple Instagram accounts surfaced with the handle “BLACK AT [school name].” I read the posts in 2020, and again before writing this post, and remembered feeling horrified knowing these acts of racism, bigotry and microaggressions happened all around me. This was subliminal to me, yet overt to others.

UNDERSTANDING RACE IN SOCIETY AND THERAPY

By Chris Alpert • 01 Nov, 2023

When I first came to Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health (C&A), I was unsure what to expect regarding race and diversity at both the organization and in Ohio. Having grown up in Harlem in New York City and attended graduate school in San Diego, CA, I had heard stereotypes about Ohio, specifically that Ohio was a very white state. At C&A during orientation, we discussed the role of first impressions for clients and discussed how the front desk staff are considered, “the directors of first impressions.” I loved this term. After orientation, I wondered, why we didn’t discuss demographic factors such as race and gender? We generally pick those up upon first impressions and have implicit biases and judgements in those first impressions. It was odd to me that we did not discuss these demographic factors. As the summer and fall progressed, I noticed that there were few discussions about race as it impacts C&A and the kids and families we serve. I noticed the number of white staff at C&A and reflected on my own privilege as a white man who can easily avoid the discussion of race because I do not suffer discrimination on an individual or systemic level. I reflected on my first experiences discussing race in high school. When I was in high school at the Calhoun School, my father received a grant to create a film and workshops that addressed race and racism seen through the eyes of high schoolers in New York City. My dad had completed a training hosted by the People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond. This training opened my father’s eyes to his own white privilege and motivated him to teach kids, specifically white kids, about their privilege earlier in life. I first saw the film, I’m Not Racist… Am I? (see more here ), toward the end of high school after it had come out in 2014.

THE DANGERS OF MARIJUANA USE

By Dr. Karita Nussbaum • 20 Oct, 2023

Ohio is at a crossroads once again with marijuana on the ballot next month. The following article is from Every Brain Matters, an organization that believes that the THC in marijuana is a dangerous and addictive drug. Every Brain Matters is a trusted source of educational material based on the latest scientific evidence. One of the major criticisms of expanded marijuana legalization is that it makes the drug more accessible to minors. A brand-new study just published in JAMA Pediatrics shows that it has become a valid concern.

LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE – SOUTHERN NIGHTS: ILLUMINATING HOPE AND MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS FOR THE YOUNGER GENERATION

By Savannah Okray • 11 Sep, 2023

For the last few months, C&A has been diligently preparing for the 18th Annual Let Your Light Shine – Southern Nights presented by The Repository by organizing auction items, printing tickets and using their creativity to make sure that eventgoers feel as though they are walking into an evening in the south, with barrels and lanterns to boot. The committee, led by chair Jen Frey and co-chair Molly Sperling and auction chair Stacy Remark are hard at work, it’s crucial to remember that this event raises awareness and dollars to support the agency’s programs and services amid suicide prevention and awareness month.

GROWING WITH YOUR CHILD AS A PARENT

By Dan Mucci • 30 Aug, 2023

I have grown up as a parent for the last four and half years! As luck would have it, a little more than four and a half years ago, I started at Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health (C&A) in the mission advancement department with my responsibilities being the marketing and development coordinator. Some might say, I did a good job of raising my two kids, who were teenagers at the time. But, boy, if I had known of the services C&A offered and even some of the parenting tools for my toolbox, parenting might have been even better.

WHAT DID YOU DID THIS SUMMER?

By Dr. Karita Nussbaum • 09 Aug, 2023

This summer I attended a Marijuana Prevention conference near Denver, Colorado. I was curious to know what the locals were saying after 10 years of legalization. The speakers included a Denver Police Commander, school resource officer, medical doctor, residential treatment program CEO, deputy from the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA), Executive Director of the National Drug and Alcohol Screening Association and others related to educating the community and defending children’s rights. In the audience were parents, professionals and advocates for children from all over the United States. The conference was geared toward the protection of children.

FROM DARKNESS TO DISCOVERY: MY COLLEGE JOURNEY OF SELF-TRANSFORMATION

By Savannah Okray • 24 Jul, 2023

When I arrived on campus, I tried to immerse myself in college culture. I joined a sorority, the speech and debate team, and two other clubs which were extensive time commitments, factoring in no time to relax or focus on bettering my mental health. This lack of attention to my mentality, combined with my low self-esteem that prevented me from making friends led me down a dark hole in which some days I thought it would be better if I wasn’t here. About four weeks into school (at Ohio University), I realized that I had to do something, as I knew it was not safe for me to continue down the road I had been on. From there I moved home and attended an inpatient treatment center where I worked with counselors for five hours a day, learning coping skills and other ways in which I could help mend my suffering mental health. Through the lessons I learned I was able to get the skill set and help I needed and returned to school three weeks later.

THIS IS WHY WE CELEBATE

By Mary Kreitz • 19 Jun, 2023

This time of year there are a lot of celebrations happening in our communities – Memorial Day, Pride Festivals, Juneteenth celebrations, 4th of July and many more. These events aren’t just frivolous excuses to have parties, backyard barbecues or festivals. They are important cultural and civic events we need these celebrations.

THIS IS OUR FIRST BLOG – VAPING