Legally available cannabis being widely used by Mayo teens

“HHC has ripped and torn my life apart and caused me nothing but heartache.” That is what a Mayo teenager said who has shared his story of addiction with The Mayo News, to raise awareness about the dangers of a substance that can currently be bought right across the county.
Speaking anonymously to The Mayo News, the student described how easy it is to buy HHC (Hexahydrocannabinol) but how difficult it is to give it up.

HHC is a semisynthetic cannabinoid and can be consumed in both vapes and in edibles, such as gummies and cakes. It is currently legal in this state and can be sold openly.
The fact that it is legal was reassuring to the teenager as he and his friends stopped smoking cannabis and replaced it with HHC.
“When we made that swap, things started to seem weird. It didn’t feel the same. It felt different. You know, you’d wake up in the morning, it was like a hangover after drinking, and then you’d go a day without , and you wouldn’t be able to sleep, and you’d have headaches. There’s irritability, stress, anxiety and cravings. Those are the first key signs of withdrawal for me, and that’s when I kind of started to look into it.”
Despite, by his reckoning, having attended about 20 talks on drugs over the last four years, the student says: “I haven’t heard HHC mentioned once. Something like that exists in this country, and there’s not even, you know, harm reduction information out there. I just find it a big let down from the HSE and the Government not warning people at the very least.”

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Strong evidence
BANNING HHC should be a matter of urgency for the Government according to Mary Cannon, professor of psychiatric epidemiology and youth mental health at the Royal College of Surgeons Ireland (RCSI), and consultant psychiatrist in Beaumont Hospital in Dublin.
“The Government has been slow to act, it’s been an issue for us for two years and we’re seeing its effects more and more,” she told The Mayo News.
Prof Cannon says there is “strong evidence this substance can lead to psychosis.” Not only that, it can it can be a very severe psychosis.
“It’s a very agitated psychosis and could be a harm to themselves and others as they lose touch with reality. That’s why they are ending up in the emergency department,” she said.
Recent information shows HHC was the second most common substance, after cannabis, for teenagers accessing addiction services in Ireland. According to Professor Cannon, 25 percent of referrals were for addiction to HHC. This shows that “young people are taking a chance here with their mental health.”
The potential long-term consequences make for sober reading. “The more episodes you have, the more risks you wont recover fully.”
Consultant Psychiatrist Prof Cannon said about a third of people with drug induced psychosis go on to have long-term psychosis and that has a huge effect on their lives.

Doorway
THE question of where children can learn healthy coping strategies is one raised by mental health peer specialist and superviser, Elaine Browne. She views HHC as a “doorway to other more dangerous drugs”.
“If you are numbing something with an addictive substance, you will build up a tolerance and unless it is interrupted, you will continue to use something else to numb the emotion.
“I’m hearing of children as young as sixth class or first year vaping. Some kids are going to the toilet to vape between classes. I wonders how a school can possibly manage that. It is very different to smoking a cigarette, where it ‘can be smelt’ off you.”
Mayo-based Browne also warns of the dangers of numbing emotions from a young age.
“This can have a knock on effect in their twenties and thirties when they might try and quit, these emotions will come back and you will have to deal with them.
“This is especially the case as there is an enormous amount of pressure on teenagers now, compared to even 20 years ago. Learning intentional practices for mental health would be a step forward and educating both kids and parents on the dangers is really important as a lot of parents wouldn’t know this is happening.
“Kids are victims of clever marketing by the vaping companies. Vapes are funky and cool looking and designed to get kids addicted, as well being affordable for kids to buy.”

Parliamentary question
IN response to a recent parliamentary question from Labour Senator Marie Sherlock, the HSE confirmed that it has “no plans to develop a specific campaign highlighting their use with parents or in schools, unless requested and resourced to do so.”
The HSE went on to say: “HHC vapes are neither a tobacco nor a nicotine inhaling product, so they do not currently fall under the scope of this legislation. A legislative gap exists as HHC products can still legally be sold to people under 18.
“The HSE Tobacco Free Ireland Programme has been provided with once-off funding in 2025 to develop a general youth vaping prevention media campaign. Drug use prevention is covered more generally within the junior cycle curriculum.”
How soon HHC is taken off Irish shelves remains to be seen. Prof Cannon notes that the UN have added HHC to their list of narcotic drugs: “Things are going to have to change in Ireland. This is just the first in a whole line of substances and these substances can be tweaked in all sorts of ways. We need to respond more quickly when the next HHC substance pops-up and we can’t be waiting two years when a new substance appears and is putting our young people at risk.”