“Choking Game Is Playing With Death”
Researchers at the Crime Victims’ Institute at Sam Houston State University have reported on a dangerous so-called game (also called the “fainting game,” “pass out” or “space monkey”), which has led to several suffocation deaths in Texas and around the country. This “choking game” has been played by nearly one in seven students who were surveyed at a Texas university. It is played individually or in groups and involves deliberately and temporarily cutting off blood flow (oxygen) to the brain in order to achieve a high. This is done by choking oneself or others, by applying a ligature around the neck, placing a plastic bag over the head, placing heavy objects on the chest, squeezing the chest or hyperventilating and then shutting off oxygen to the brain.
