PWPS

By Sergeant Tom Page

Los Angeles Police Department

A number of you have written or asked me about pre-withdrawal panic syndrome, or PWPS. We used this in the San Diego murder case to help explain why the defendant's pulse was up (temperature up slightly) even though the accused was clearly only under the influence of heroin.

First, I do plan on writing an article about this (probably called Sigmund Freud and the DRE!), but it's really very simple. Pre-withdrawal panic syndrome is not a new concept.

As is taught in DRE school, the effects of heroin last about four to six hours. After that period, without additional drugs from the narcotic analgesic class, the individual will begin to experience withdrawal. As DRE's know, and are already taught, the withdrawal syndromes of narcotics are essentially the opposite of the "high" state. The vital signs go up, pupils may become dilated, the individual becomes agitated, and more. The regular heroin user, of course, knows all of this. The regular user knows that without additional drugs, withdrawal will soon be a fact of his or her life. That awareness only adds to the person's anxiety. "I'm in jail, the drugs are wearing off, I'm going to become very sick very soon." An anxiety/panic producing scenario for sure! The most opportune time to interview these people - for information on suppliers for example - is now. "I'll tell you what you want to know. Just let me out of here so I can get some more drugs." So, this syndrome is already taught and is recognized by the experienced DRE.

You may remember from Psyche 101 that the pursuit of pleasure and the avoidance of pain are basic to our behavior. We pursue those things that make us feel good, and try to avoid those things that make us feel bad. In the context of drug abuse, a drug is positively reinforcing when it makes us feel good, and is negatively reinforcing when the lack of the drug makes us feel bad. A drug that does both will almost certainly be abuse. With it comes pleasure, without it comes pain. In terms of heroin, the addicted user not only seeks the "high," (pleasure) but also tries to avoid pain. In fact, the avoidance of the pain is in many ways more reinforcing than the pursuit of pleasure.

The addicted user knows from experience that if he/she doesn't have the drug, that withdrawal (intense pain) is right around the corner. Stedman's Medical Dictionary defines "Anxiety Reaction" as a "psychological reaction, or experience, involving the apprehension of danger accompanied by a feeling of dread and such physical symptoms as an increase in the rate of breathing, sweating, and tachycardia..."

Notice how the vitals go up with the feelings of "dread?" A heroin addict who knows he is going to be without his heroin understands that he will soon begin to experience withdrawal. And he "dreads" it. That's the essence of PWPS.

As an analogy, think of the smoker who is down to his last cigarette and the stores have all closed! He's not going into withdrawal, but knows it's around the corner. Sometimes this is called a "nicotine fit!" Or think of the Olympic ski jumper who is standing at the top of the hill awaiting the bell to go off. You can be sure his or her pulse is racing, even when standing still!

I hope this helps clear things up. Oh, by the way, the Heroin addicts I've talked to about this agree! And as we know, they are the real experts.

Information Source

The article "PWPS", is a follow up on a story in last months The Nebraska DRE, titled "Guilty as Charged". Both chronicles were gleaned from the DRUG-RECOGNITION-L, an e-mail list for Drug Recognition Experts. (Thank you to Tom Page for allowing us to print the stories.)

Nebraska DECP History

Nebraska was the eighth state to become involved in the IACP Drug Evaluation and Classification Program.

In September of 1991 the original DRE class roster consisted of 19 students. The Nebraska State Patrol supplied 16 individuals, there was 1 Lancaster County Deputy, and 2 instructors from the Nebraska Law Enforcement Training Center.

The State Coordinator was Traffic Safety Specialist Bob Corner of the Nebraska Office of Highway Safety. The Course manager was Sandy Richardson from NHTSA, Washington. D.C. The Lead instructor was Mike Pryor from Tucson, AZ.

One of the students was Nebraska State Patrol Sergeant Darrell Fisher. Lt. Fisher now regularly serves as the course manager for Nebraska DECP schools.

In October of 1994 the second DRE course was launched. Agency's represented included the State Patrol, the Bellevue, Lincoln, Papillion, LaVista and Omaha Police Departments, and the Lancaster County Sheriff's Office. Jerome Powell, Denver PD, acted as course manager.

During the school Nebraska Office of Highway Safety Specialist Becky Stinson took over the responsibilities of the State DECP Coordinator. Ms. Stinson still holds the same position today, and has done an exceptional job as the program director.

In 1996 the state aggressively pursue self-sufficiency for the DRE program. Nine Nebraska law enforcement officers completed the DRE Instructor's Training Course. With the addition of those individuals the state had a total of twelve certified instructors for the next school.

The 1996 class commenced at the end of October. State law enforcement agency representatives included the State Patrol, the Bellevue, Blair, Columbus, Grand Island, Lincoln and Omaha Police Department's, and Sheriffs Deputies from Adam and Johnson County.

Police Officers from Bellevue, Columbus, Grand Island, Lincoln and Omaha combined with Troopers from the State Patrol for our most recent DRE school. The classroom portion of the course was completed in November and the majority of students have obtained their certification.

The State of Nebraska sponsored three additional DRE's as instructors in a regional school held in Independence Missouri. This addition means that we now have fifteen instructor's. The Cornhusker State currently has sixty two DRE's and seven DRE candidates. The next DRE class is being planned for this fall.

A recently released survey by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention indicated that Nebraska's teens are ranked as second-worst in binge drinking and riding with drivers who have been drinking. Teenagers in our state are rated as third-worse in the percentage who use seat belts, and fifth-worse in tobacco use.

The figures were collected in a survey comparing data from 22 states. The sampling was set up to represent a cross section of America. The survey questioned more than 2,000 ninth-through 12th-graders in 1995.

The reckless use of alcohol should be of deep concern to us all. ETOH contributes to a higher percentage of adolescent deaths than all other drugs combined.

By strict definition , since it is a source of calories, alcohol is a food. The caloric value of pure alcohol is 7 calories per gram. It is nearly as high in calories as pure fat, or oil, which has 9 calories per gram. Alcohol contains insignificant amounts of vitamins, minerals, and proteins. Alcoholic beverages have no nutritional value, except that they are a source of empty calories.