Teen narrowly escapes death after smoking synthetic marijuana

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But the next morning, she was still alive.



Emily was back.




Fake pot sends teen to ICU
Fake pot sends teen to ICU


    Fake pot sends teen to ICU


Fake pot sends teen to ICU 01:56
Father working to get drugs off streets
Father working to get drugs off streets


    Father working to get drugs off streets


Father working to get drugs off streets 06:26









Synthetic marijuana just as dangerous

Migraines came first




Emily, a straight-A and B sophomore, developed persistent migraines about two weeks before she wound up in the ICU early on December 8, said Bryant. One bad migraine even sent her to the ER, and doctors scheduled an MRI.

But anxiety and claustrophobia prevented Emily from getting the test.




Common side effects to smoking synthetic marijuana include bloodshot eyes, disturbed perceptions and a change in mood, said Dr. Melinda Campopiano, a medical officer with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

"People can become very agitated or can be come unresponsive -- conscious but not reacting normal to situations," she said. They may also appear paranoid or describe hallucinations. Some of the more potentially serious effects include an elevated heart rate and elevated blood pressure.

Campopiano said she had never heard of a patient having a stroke in these circumstances, but she described how high blood pressure could lead to one.

"Generally, strokes are caused by restricted circulation, or a blood clot that blocks circulation. What we would be looking at with Spice, or K2, is the restrictive circulation model," she said.

Bryant told CNN that doctors diagnosed his daughter with vasculitis, which is an inflammation of the blood vessels. The vessels going into Emily's brain were constricting, limiting blood and oxygen flow. Campopiano confirmed that vasculitis is one of the causes of strokes of this type.

"One of the difficulties is that there's no existing toxicology screen that can reliably detect these substances," said the physician. "There could very well be harms out there that we don't know about yet."

Online tools aimed at educating parents about synthetic drugs

'She was literally just a shell'

Emily complained of a migraine and took a nap at her house after allegedly smoking Spice with friends on December 7, said Bryant. She woke up a different person.

Stumbling and slurring her words, she morphed into a psychotic state of hallucinations and violent outbursts, her family said.

They called 911 after they realized she had "done something," some drug, said her stepfather. The Harris County Sheriff's Office confirmed they visited the house but declined to provide details.

When paramedics arrived, they restrained her and rushed her to a Houston-area hospital, where she was admitted to the ICU.

She bit guardrails and attempted to bite those trying to help her. Hospital staff strapped Emily down in the bed, said her sister.

"We thought once she comes down off the drug, we'd take her home and show her the dangers of this drug," said the 22-year-old. "We didn't think it was as big of a deal until 24 hours later she was still violent and hurting herself. We realized you're not supposed to stay high this long."

To keep Emily safe, doctors put her in an induced coma.

After days in the sedated state, an MRI revealed she had suffered several severe strokes, said Bryant.

"In four days' time, we went from thinking everything is going to be OK and we'll put her in drug rehabilitation to now you don't know if she's going to make it," he said.

The doctors at North Cypress Medical Center told the family there was nothing more they could do. She was sent to Children's Memorial Hermann Hospital. Citing patient privacy, doctors at Children's Memorial declined to be interviewed.

No consistency, no way of knowing

Knowing how different people will react to fake weed is impossible. There are a few reasons that explain why.

"You're hearing some pretty bad things with the synthetic cannabinoids -- part of that has to do with the potency. It can be 100 times more potent than marijuana," said U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration spokeswoman Barbara Carreno.

"Anything that was truly a fake pot wouldn't be making your heart race. I've heard of palpitations with marijuana, but not tachycardia."

Carreno explained there's no consistency or quality control from one time to the next. The people making these products can be anyone from a college kid wanting to make extra cash to an operation blending large quantities in a cement mixer, she said. Two batches made by the same person could have different doses.

CNN showed Carreno a picture of the packets of potpourri Emily reportedly used -- the teen's friends gave her family the pouches after the incident. One black wrapper adorned with marijuana leaves reads "KLIMAX potpourri" and both labels read "KUSH TM."

"It's definitely a synthetic cannabinoid," Carreno said after seeing the photo.

The potpourri displays at stores also include a label that reads "not for human consumption."

Carreno called these labels a "cynical attempt" for the distributor to dodge the Controlled Substances Analogue Act, which covers any chemical similar to controlled substances such as cocaine or marijuana. It states that substances mimicking an existing illegal substance, such as marijuana, are also illegal.

"Everything about this is a lie," she said. "They're not potpourri. They're called that as a smoke screen for people naive to drugs and not to admit that it's drugs. But you can see it that they are."

Opinion: Regulate fake pot, it's not going away

From joy to nightmare

Up until December 13, Emily had been in an induced coma the whole time, said her stepdad. Her only movements were involuntary reflexes.

"Seeing her in the hospital, she was literally just a shell. There was nothing in her eyes. She was just lying there alive minimally," said Harrison.

ICU doctors said some of Emily's blood vessels were starting to open up. Harrison said it was a glimmer of good news that was quickly snatched away: "We all grew overjoyed, little did we know this would become our next nightmare," she wrote on CNN iReport.

The pressure on Emily's brain skyrocketed, she said. Doctors asked to drill a hole in Emily's skull and insert a tube to relieve pressure and drain excess fluid. The family signed off on an emergency surgery.

"The family waited and cried, we had no idea if we would ever see Emily again, but we knew that even if we did, we will never have our old Emily back," Harrison wrote on December 14.

It was a tense hour, but Emily pulled through.

What would Emily want?

A day after the emergency surgery, the Bauer family saw the extent of the damage to Emily's brain.

"We met with Neurology team who showed us Emily's brain images," wrote her mother, Tonya Bauer, in a daily journal on Facebook. "They told us that all white areas on images were dead. It looked to us at least 70% of the images were white."

Without the breathing tube, Emily's throat would not be able to stay open, as that part of the brain was dead, her family said.

Doctors painted a bleak picture of Emily's future. She would likely not recognize her family. She would be completely unaware of her surroundings. She would never be able to eat on her own and never regain function of her arms and legs, her family said.

"We were asked to think of what Emily would want. What quality of life would Emily want?" Tonya wrote.

The family decided they would take Emily off life support, just four days before her 17th birthday.

Hurdles to enforcement

One in every nine high school seniors admits to having used fake weed in 2011, according to a national survey by the University of Michigan. Synthetic marijuana is the second-most popular illicit drug they use, behind marijuana.

In July 2012, President Barack Obama signed legislation banning five common chemicals used to make synthetic marijuana and bath salts. And that same month, the DEA seized almost 5 million packets of fake weed in its first national sweep of the drug.

States handle the penalties for drug offenses in lots of different ways and possession has varying definitions, according to NCSL's Lawrence.

Some states, such as Texas, classify synthetic marijuana as Schedule I drugs, which are unsafe, have no medical use and a high potential for abuse.

"They're in line with other states. It's hard to say if there's a middle, but they're similar to other states," Lawrence said.

Each day is a fight

Three days after pulling life support, the Bauer family marked a day they didn't think they would: Emily's 17th birthday.

"Even though she couldn't move, is blind, and could hardly be aware of what was going on around her, she laughed with us as we made jokes and listened to her soft whisper replies," wrote Harrison.








More than one month after the life-changing night, Emily was transferred to TIRR Memorial Hermann rehab hospital on January 14. The family says they haven't heard Emily's prognosis yet, but they remain hopeful as the teenager tackles physical, occupational and speech therapy, as well as living a new life.


Saving other kids from this

