Talk to Frank: Paranoia, panic attacks and memory loss

Yesterday a new part of the ongoing campaign from the UK drug information service FRANK was launched. Following on from last month’s cannabis reclassification, the campaign focuses on the mental health harms associated with the drug.

The £2.2m TV, radio and online advertising campaign is part of an ongoing awareness programme targeting 11-18 year olds about the harms caused by the drug.  The TV ad features a teenager called Simon who is smoking cannabis and the audience is taken inside his head.  At first we see him experiencing the perceived positive effects of cannabis, such as feeling giggly, talkative, and getting the munchies.  We then see him experience the negative side effects associated with the drug - paranoia, panic attacks and memory loss.

Most important part of the campaign is the micro site talktofrank.com/cannabis with the campaign material and information about cannabis.

Fewer young people are using cannabis than ten years ago, but cannabis use amongst young people is still high compared to some other European countries.

Chris Hudson, FRANK spokesperson and addictions expert, said: “Cannabis is the most commonly used illegal drug in Britain and ‘ binge smoking’ to achieve maximum effect may be putting peoples’ mental health in serious danger.  There is evidence of a link between cannabis and mental health problems such as schizophrenia, and those who first use it at an early age may be more at risk.  You never truly know what you’re getting and stronger cannabis, such as skunk, can increase the chance of suffering a nasty reaction.

TV and radio ads will air for six weeks on ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5 and satelitte channels and on commercial radio. The TV ad will be first aired on Channel 4.  Digital advertising will run concurrently on a range of websites.
There is also a helpline and a mobile text service for all drug related issues.
In 2008, the FRANK campaign celebrated its fifth anniversary and the helpline received its two millionth phone call.

Related post about FRANK:
- Cocaine Basement
- Brain Warehouse

The micro site:

• Share on Tumblr

Comments

Sorry, but this is ridicolous. Just think about what happens to people who drink a lot of alcohol instead of providing kids with a few on certain drugs that is everything but objective…

Chris; you’re stuck in the last century.  Open your eyes and you’ll see that cannabis sativa is a food fiber and medicinal cultivar that up until the 1937 had been an important cultivar around the world for thousands of years.  The 75 year old propaganda campaign of fear and disinformation directed at this astonishingly useful plant is finally coming apart because we now have the Internet--a conduit for sharing and learning that shows organizations like FRANK to be nothing more than mouthpieces for maintaining the status quo on drug policy.  Alcohol, tobacco and pharmas; all of them toxic, all of them heavily marketed, and all of them legal for adults, not children, to choose.  Legalizing cannabis for responsible adults would be the beginning of the end to a world that passes laws that force us to buy our medicine from corporations instead of growing it for ourselves.  Welcome to the new century, Chris.