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Among the teens we meet in Smashed:
Toxic Tales of Teens & Alcohol: Timmy, Age 15 - After
drinking a case of beer, Timmy drove his all-terrain vehicle into
a tree after swerving to avoid a rabbit. He was not wearing a
helmet. We see Timmy rushed into the shock trauma unit with severe
brain swelling as his parents, Carolyn and Raymond, wait tearfully
for him to show signs of cognizance. After a week he is released
into a rehab center, where he must learn to speak and walk again.
Five months later, as Timmy celebrates his 16th birthday, he is
irritable and depressed, and he has begun drinking again. Timmy
has recently dropped out of high school, and has spent a week in a
mandatory detox program.
Andy, Age 19 - Andy was
driving home from a friend's house after a "few beers" when his
Jeep, going 70 mph in a 35-mph zone, hit an embankment and rolled
over four times. Lucky to be alive, Andy is brought into the Shock
Trauma Center, where he admits to drinking six to nine beers every
day, but claims that he is not an alcoholic and that he can
control himself. Lying on the emergency room table, his head being
stitched together, he agrees to "cut back" on his drinking.
Traci, Age 18 - After
"partying" one night, Traci got into a car with a drunk driver,
who ended up speeding and slamming into a tree. Traci's head
smashed into the windshield, and her brain banged back and forth
and twisted inside her skull. She was in a coma for 81 days,
sustaining multiple injuries so severe (a ruptured spleen,
punctured lung, broken ribs, and smashed pelvis) that she was
unable to do anything for herself. Her mother describes her as
being "like an infant." Four years later, after painstaking
rehabilitation, Traci still struggles with speaking (due to
partial paralysis), and spends most of her time at home. Of that
fateful day she says, "I just basically ruined my life."
Tom, Age 17 - After
drinking a quart of vodka at a local mall, Tom fell 20 feet off a
landing - and onto a stone floor. Though he denies he's been
drinking as he's brought into the shock trauma center, tests
confirm that he had consumed alcohol. His family arrives to find
him drugged and breathing on a respirator. They wait and pray as
doctors remove a dangerous blood clot in his frontal lobe. When
Tom's friends come to visit, his mom implores them to change their
ways. Since his accident, Tom has been unable to find a job.
Katie, Age 16 - After
meeting some guys she didn't know (not realizing that they had
been drinking), Katie recalls, "I thought the guy driving was
pretty hot, so of course I got in the car with them." She ended up
in an accident that left her in a coma for over seven weeks, with
a broken arm, broken leg, and multiple internal injuries. Her
mother describes the ensuing struggle to re-learn basic functions,
as well as enduring an angry phase (typical of head-trauma
victims) of lashing out, biting and hitting. Katie's short-term
memory is so impaired that she can't learn properly or even enjoy
a movie. She has given up her college plans, and is looking for
clerical work.
Warren, Age 17 - One day,
Warren got a lift home with a friend who had been drinking "a
couple" of beers. When the friend's car crashed, Warren's brain,
like Traci's, slammed back and forth inside his skull. He now has
difficulty sleeping, eating, concentrating and reading. Warren
describes himself as having been "happy-go-lucky" before the
accident, but now has been hospitalized for severe depression. He
has also developed aggression issues, and has recently faced
criminal charges. Warren is currently under house arrest for six
months.
Information
courtesy of HBO Family Parent Handbook Online
http://www.hbofamily.com/programs/parent_handbook/smashed.html
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