Ally Langdon from Australia couldn’t conceal her sorrow as she spoke with a couple faced with the heart-wrenching choice of ending the life of their daughter, whom they had cherished for just 13 years.
Their daughter tragically lost her life after becoming a victim of a viral trend known as chroming, and Langdon, who is also a mother, found it difficult to hold back her tears.
On A Current Affair, alongside host Ally Langdon, Andrea and Paul Haynes recounted the heartbreaking story of their 13-year-old daughter, Esra Haynes, who died after engaging in a social media trend called chroming, which involves inhaling harmful chemicals to achieve a high.
Esra was described as “determined, fun, cheeky, and talented” by the Montrose Football Netball Club, where she served as co-captain. She was an enthusiastic young athlete who enjoyed racing BMX bikes with her brothers and led her team to a national aerobics championship in Queensland.
On March 31, Esra went to a friend’s house for a sleepover, and during what would turn out to be a fatal attempt to get high, she inhaled aerosol deodorant, leading to cardiac arrest and irreversible brain damage.
It was simply a typical evening spent with her friends, her mother Andrea shared with Langdon during the interview.
Her father Paul chimed in, saying, “We always knew where she was and who she was with. It was nothing unusual… Receiving that phone call late at night was something no parent ever wants to experience, and sadly, we received that call: ‘Come and get your daughter.’”
Langdon recounts that Esra’s friends believed she was having a panic attack, “but after inhaling deodorant, her body was actually beginning to shut down; she was in cardiac arrest, and no one at the sleepover recognized the signs of cardiac arrest.”
When Andrea reached Esra, paramedics were working to revive her and informed her that her daughter had been chroming, a term she had never encountered before that moment.
Esra was rushed to the hospital, and her parents clung to the hope that their little girl would pull through. After all, her heart and lungs were strong, so perhaps she would make it.
After spending eight days on life support, Paul and Andrea received the heartbreaking news that Esra’s brain was irreparably damaged, leading them to make the agonizing decision to turn off the machines.
As they struggled to find the right words and relived their most painful day, her parents shared the deep sorrow of having to end their daughter’s life.
They were asked to gather family and friends at the hospital for a final farewell. Esra’s father expressed, “It was incredibly hard to do this for such a young soul. We laid her on a bed so we could be close to her. We held her until the very end.”
Langdon, a mother of two young children, was moved by the parents’ grief and found herself in tears.
Victorian teen’s chroming death
The devastated siblings of a Year 8 student who lost her life to chroming are now determined to prevent others from experiencing the same tragedy. Don Valley teenager Esra Haynes suffered cardiac arrest after inhaling deodorant. #9News | WATCH LIVE 6pm
Posted by 9 News on Wednesday, April 12, 2023
Following Esra’s passing in early April, Paul described the family as utterly “broken,” with her siblings, Imogen, Seth, and Charlie feeling “shattered.”
“It’s been incredibly devastating for everyone involved, including all her friends,” Paul shared. “This has been the most challenging and traumatic experience any parent could face. We haven’t been sleeping, eating, or smiling—we’re just not ourselves… And it’s not just us; it’s affected the entire community.”
Having never heard of chroming until it took their daughter, Paul and his wife are now on a mission to raise awareness about this dangerous trend, which can be easily accessed through common household products like deodorant, paint, hairspray, or even permanent markers, and is becoming increasingly popular among teenagers.
In an interview with a local news outlet, Paul expressed his regret that he didn’t know about chroming while Esra was alive, wishing he could have warned her about its dangers “If we had been informed and the message had been shared, we would have had that conversation around our kitchen table.”
We really need to step up our efforts and help these kids access information directly, rather than relying on friends or social media. This way, they can receive accurate guidance right from the start.
Paul aims to empower parents, giving them the tools to educate their children and potentially save lives.
“Parents should take the time to talk to their kids and gently start that conversation. We definitely weren’t aware of what was happening.”
Since 2009, the concerning rise of chroming has led to the tragic deaths of numerous children in Australia and beyond.
Chroming can result in severe consequences such as seizures, heart attacks, suffocation, sudden sniffing death, coma, and organ failure. Despite these risks, it remains appealing to young people seeking a quick high.
“We have vivid images in our minds that will never fade, you know, of what we faced,” Paul shared with Langdon. “It felt like our insides were torn apart.”
It’s unimaginable for a family to face the heart-wrenching decision of removing their young child from life support. Our thoughts are with the Haynes family and all those who loved Esra.
Please share this story widely to help educate parents about the dangers of this deadly trend and potentially save lives.
