Xanax, Methadone and Vicodin Combination Kill Teen

Teen, mother give personal warnings about drug abuse


Corey McNeill, a De Pere High School senior and standout wrestler, left a mourning family behind. The 18-year-old died of an overdose during an October 2006 party after taking a combination of Xanax, methadone and Vicodin.


Matt Danen, 19, is also suffering the consequences. He provided the methadone and is now serving a jail term in Brown County. Upon release, he will still have the ramifications of having two felony drug convictions on his record.


He said he never considered just how severe the consequences could become.


"Everything I did backfired on me in the long run," Danen said.


McNeill's mother, Karen Falck, and Danen spoke Monday night to a crowd of several hundred people at Kimberly High School, providing their personal warnings to parents and students on the danger of prescription drug abuse.


Falck reminded students that they aren't invincible. She told
parents to follow through on their suspicions. Falck suspected drugs and confronted her son, but said she didn't push hard enough.


He could just wrap up that whole conversation with a smile and a hug, and I'd believe him," she said.

I Was a Teenage Drug Addict

I grew up and spent my teen years in Los Angeles, where drugs were easy to find, and alcohol was around all the time. My parents were big drinkers, so they never noticed any booze missing. In middle school, I got into drugs and alcohol a lot. My friends and I stole alcohol, and bought drugs with stolen money. We were rebellious teenagers with a thirst for terrorizing the city. I know what its like to be a teenage drug addict and alcoholic. I relate to a lot of the kids here at the teen-drug-rehab, and I can understand where they're coming from. I was there once myself. I think its important for the kids here to know that the staff has been through similar circumstances. In my experience, the kids learn to trust and respect the staff and others when they know that they are being understood and heard. Years later, I reconnected with a bunch of my old friends from middle school, and even elementary school. We are all in AA now. Its amazing to see so many faces that I grew up with in the rooms of Alcoholics Anonymous. None of us are alone, and we can all lean on each other.