York teen smokes Spice and nearly dies

YORK COUNTY, Va. (WAVY) - A York County teenager who nearly died after smoking Spice is sharing his story to warn other teens.

Spice is a legal synthetic marijuana.

"I hurt everybody that I know, I got me plus my friends suspended maybe expelled. Now, my entire family is worried about me. It's not worth it," said the teen who didn't want his name released.

What was supposed to be an easy high turned into a brush with death for the 16-year-old.

"I remember feeling like I couldn't get up Iike I would try to get up, and I was so dizzy - and that's when I started hallucinating really bad and feeling terrible," said the teen.

At school, teachers noticed and called 911.

"Once I got to the hospital, my heart rate was through the roof and so was my blood pressure," he continued.

The combination of spice and a single dose of cold medicine nearly killed him.

"Mostly I was just afraid for his life," said his mom Susan.

Susan said she heard another teen talking about Spice this summer who warned her son about the dangers of smoking it.

"In his 16-year-old mind, you buy it at a gas station, how bad can it be?" said Susan.

WAVY.com went to the Raceway Gas Station, where a clerk admitted he'd sell spice to a 12 or 13-year-old.

"They kept saying to me it's incense, incense, incense. Okay, it's incense," said clerk Richie Dee.

"Until it can be proven that it is safe, I don't think it should be able to be put in the hands of a child," said Susan, which is why this family wants your family to know what they've been through.

"It's not worth it, I won't ever touch it again," said Susan's son.