"The Choking Game" Blamed for at Least 82 Deaths
By: Lauren Murphy
Updated: February 20, 2008
"It's supposed to be a rush, I guess. It's something to do," said a sophomore at Monterey High School.
"There were some of my closest friends that tried to get me into it," said another sophomore.
The choking game isn't just a rumor.
All over the country, teens play it in middle schools, high schools, and their own bedrooms, some even winding up on YouTube.
The U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports as many as 20 percent of teens and preteens play the game, and since 1995 it has killed at least 82 young people.
Kim Blanchard of Houston learned about the choking game in the most devastating way.
"She had a scarf around her neck and I was yelling at her to get up, that it wasn't funny," said Blanchard.
Her daughter, Haley Kinney, would have turned sixteen on Tuesday, but she never never woke up from the game.
"There isn't a day that goes by that I don't cry for her," said Blanchard.
Kids who play the so-called game wrap ropes, belts, dog collars, or their friends' hands around their necks, hoping that when they release, they'll experience a dream-like high.
But officials say that high is really brain cells seizing, which can kill the cells, cause brain damage, or much worse.
"A lot of the kids already know about this. It's the parents that aren't aware."
Now, Blanchard is trying to get the word out about this deadly game, hoping she can save someone else's child.
http://www.haleyfarinkinneyfoundation.com/
