Bigger Stronger Faster Page #10

And of course in

hindsight as we look back,

all of the signs were

staring us in the face-

The behavior problems,

the physical changes,

but we had no idea

what we were looking at.

If we go back

to the medical textbook,

the depression that comes

along with steroid use is bad,

but it's worse in that

four-to-six-week period

following stopping

using this stuff.

And it was

during that period

that his mother

found him

hanging on the door

in his bedroom.

Jeez.

Taylor Hooton's dad,

Don Hooton,

called me shortly after

Taylor had taken

his life.

Together we came up

with the idea

of creating

a private organization...

...to educate

the public

about the dangers

of anabolic steroid abuse.

This is Taylor's room.

You don't have to come

in here long to realize

Taylor was

a baseball player.

'Cause he started maybe

five years old in T-ball.

But Taylor was

a great kid.

We took Taylor

to a psychiatrist

and she put him on

a low dose of Lexapro.

And as far as I know,

this is the only

steroid-related case

that this well-meaning

psychiatrist had ever had.

And when the psychiatrist

recommended that Taylor go cold turkey

and stop using steroids...

it was a formula

for disaster.

I feel terrible, obviously,

about Taylor Hooton,

But Taylor Hooton had

a lot of problems

and he was on other drugs.

According to some

newspaper accounts,

he was on S.S.R.I.S-

antidepressants

which have been shown

to be associated

with suicidal ideation

and suicidal behavior.

So whether his suicide

was due to Lexapro

or due to steroids

or due to depression

or due to stress

of being a great athlete,

there are five other

things- I don't know.

Do you think

that perhaps-

when I look

at your website,

The Taylor Hooton

Foundation-

do you think

it's a responsibility

to include

antidepressants in there

just in case

there are critics

or just to raise

the awareness

of how dangerous perhaps

antidepressants may be?

No, I don't.

And the reason is,

our battle is not with antidepressants.

Our battle's with steroids.

The National Institute

on Drug Abuse said

the dangers

of anabolic steroids

are temporary

and reversible.

My son is dead.

All of the intellectual

arguments

about whether or not

steroids are dangerous

or not

don't matter to me.

I know

they're dangerous.

I saw it with my own eyes

and I watched my son die.

The only evidence I need

is the pictures of my son

that are on the wall

behind you.

Mm-hmm.

JOHN ROMANO:

Look, I have a son too.

And the last thing in the

world I could ever imagine doing

is burying that kid.

And it would probably

ruin me for the rest

of my life.

And I can see

where having a cause

to sort of assuage

the feelings of guilt

and depression that are

following my son's death

would probably be helpful. "Let's

not let this happen to somebody else. "

But they're chasing

the wrong thing.

They're not

doing it right.

We're working

with major league baseball

to make that happen now

where hopefully

in each local stadium

there's gonna be

a steroid awareness night.

Do you find it

ironic at all

to have a steroid

awareness night for baseball

in a stadium

that sells alcohol

which is responsible for

a lot of deaths as a drug?

Alcohol's legal to sell.

And we can argue

all day long

Whether tobacco kills

and whether alcohol kills,

and there's a clear

distinction in my mind

between tobacco

or alcohol

and steroids and

methamphetamines and coke.

- Thanks for sharing that with us.

- All right.

I know how hard

it can be and everything.

This is

important stuff.

MARK:
Anybody who

asks me about it-

I let them know.

I tell them why.

I tell them how much I

take. I'll tell them anything

- they want to ask me about them

'cause I think- - What about the kids?

The kids are different

because-

a couple kids asked me in

front of the whole group

and I had to lie

about it

because this whole steroid

thing is just out of hand.

I know coach Henry

doesn't take any steroids.

He's just 100% strong.

I think somebody asked

him if he was on steroids

and he said no. And I

completely believe him.

He just teaches that

steroids are basically-

they're a cheap way

out of doing hard work.

MARK:
I say they're not for kids.

Steroids are not for kids.

That's plain and simple.

You should achieve

things naturally

and then maybe you

should think about them

when you're

an adult.

The main reason why

I don't take steroids

is 'cause he got it into my

head that I don't need 'em,

that I got the potential right now as

a teenager to get as strong as I want.

MARK:
What good would it do them

to know that I take steroids?

It wouldn't do them any

good. They'd just be like,

"oh, man,

he's a cheater.

Would you ever tell our

parents that you do it?

Um, I mean, you know,

if they asked me.

I only cooked

two pounds.

I hope it's enough.

CHRIS:
You know, we went

to church all the time.

I grew up

in a great family.

I don't think

I could ask

for anybody better

to be parents, you know.

And when I went

to the U.S.C.

I didn't do any drugs.

I didn't do anything.

- 'Cause you're a good boy.

- Well...

And then I got to a point

where I actually tried steroids.

I tried Winstrol,

which is injections.

You injected a needle

in yourself?

MIKE:
It's just

in the muscle.

Yeah, 'cause you get to

a point where you're like,

"I'm getting out of shape.

I don't feel like I used to. "

The reason I stopped

doing it was

because I thought

it was immoral.

I thought it was so wrong

and like,

"what if my parents

found out I did this?"

I think it's really

hard to hear

- that you tried 'em and everything, but-

- For you.

It's not hard

for me.

What I'm saying is

that it's hard to hear.

And what about mark?

I mean,

how come you're staying big

but you're not getting fat?

- You're just-

- I'm getting fatter.

No, but your face

is rounder.

- I put on body fat.

- MIKE:
He's about-

You're about 7% or 8% higher than what

you normally are, wouldn't you say?

I have no idea. I don't

really care either.

CHRIS:
He's already

married. He doesn't care.

ROSEMARY:
Except Smelly's

not saying anything.

Don't let your brothers

overrun your conversation.

SHELDON:
When you get

caught with something

I think the truth is

always the fastest way

out of the situation,

but it's not always

the best way out.

You know, she's concerned.

She's being a mom

and she's just trying

to leave it open

where I could say, "Yeah,

you know what? I do 'em.

And this is why. " I think

that's what she's looking for.

But she's still

never directly asked me.

So until that time comes

I ain't sayin' nothin'.

SHELDON:
People have a

tendency to cheat at everything.

And that happens

with taxes too,

just like it could with

steroids or any other thing.

It's human nature.

It's the sinful nature of men.

CHRIS:
My dad convinced

mad dog and his wife

To settle down

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