Parents seek coronial changes on chroming after daughter’s suicide

The parents of a 15-year-old who took her own life want closer scrutiny of chroming, fearing critical evidence of inhalant abuse is being overlooked.

Indiana Sheenan died in 2023 and her mother and stepfather have questioned a coroner’s office ‘multifunctional’ death finding.

The grieving parents of a 15-year-old girl who took her own life are calling for chroming testing to be conducted during coronial suicide inquiries.

Stepfather Khan Sheenan and mother Laura Sheenan have bravely spoken out about their daughter Indiana’s struggle with chroming, a dangerous practice of inhaling aerosol chemicals to achieve a high.

The parents believe that the lack of testing for chroming in the coroner’s office and inadequate recognition of the effects of inhalant abuse are leading to overlooked cases and missed opportunities for awareness and prevention.

The parents said Indi, who had previously battled an eating disorder but appeared to be on the path to recovery, was secretly engaging in chroming.

Indiana Sheenan, above left, was a proud member of the Army cadets. Her mother Laura and stepfather Khan are questioning the coroner’s office and want more public awareness about the dangers of chroming. Pictures: Supplied

Their appeal comes more than a year after Indi’s death, which they believe was exacerbated by chroming-induced psychosis.

Before she died, Indiana, also known as Indi, meticulously kept a diary of her innermost thoughts and wrote numerous letters detailing her struggles, including a heartbreaking entry where she explicitly stated she planned to inhale air freshener and die.

But despite her journal, chroming was not formally acknowledged as a contributing factor in Indiana’s death.

The coroner’s report ruled the cause of death as “multifunctional” acknowledging many contributing factors but failing to pinpoint a single cause.

When the family requested chroming be considered, they were told there was no evidence.

“We have undeniable proof she was chroming, and yet, the coroner dismissed it,” her mother said.

“Why do they claim there is no evidence when she says it in her suicide note, when there was air freshener in her backpack at the scene and there are videos of her chroming in the days before her death?”

Indiana Sheenan, also known to her family and friends as Indi, documented her last days in a diary. Pictures: Supplied

Her stepfather and mother are now seeking a review of her case to ensure that future investigations take inhalant use into account when determining the cause of suicide.

“I knew Indiana was chroming to some degree, but I had no idea how much,” Mr Sheenan said.

“About a year-and-a-half before she passed, she moved in with her grandmother and that’s when we started noticing changes in her behaviour, but we didn’t realise the full extent of her struggle.

“A heartbreaking diary entry describes experiencing herself as two people – the good Indi and the evil Indy.”

Three months before her death, Indiana moved from Logan to Wellington Point, moving to a new school where she started studying Romeo and Juliette and making her own diary entries about suicide.

Her parents now believe her final months were marked by a mix of extreme highs and lows, a common pattern in individuals contemplating suicide.

Indiana’s struggles, they believe, extended beyond chroming and the teen, who joined the Army cadets, wrote of challenges at school and personal relationships.

She harboured dreams of joining the army, a goal she believed was unattainable after she self-diagnosed herself with borderline personality disorder.

“She came home for a visit a few days before she died. She was incredibly happy, fixing relationships, acting like everything was fine. It looked like recovery,” Mr Sheenan said.

“But I had a gut feeling. I called her grandmother and said, ‘I think she’s going to kill herself’.”

Indi had appointments with mental health professionals booked, but it was too late.

On September 23, 2023, Indi meticulously finalised letters and notes, detailing her decision and expressing awareness of both her struggles and the love surrounding her.

Her writings have since been analysed by suicidologists and psychologists, some of whom are considering publishing her work to better understand the mindset of youth struggling with mental health issues.

Indi’s final hours were spent engaging in seemingly ordinary activities — going out shopping, eating McDonald’s, and listening to music.

That evening, she snuck out of the house around 10pm and went to Wellington Point train station and enacted her planned suicide.

Retailers across the country have been forced to lock away spray-on deodorants after teens were buying them to sniff. Picture: Cairns Post

The police arrived at her parents’ home around 3am to deliver the devastating news.

Her parents are now pushing for coronial investigations to test for inhalants when suicide cases involve young people, hoping that greater awareness will prevent future tragedies.

They are also pushing for possible legislative changes to require stronger regulations on inhalants, increased research into the effects of chroming, and mandatory education programs in schools along with advocating for mental health professionals to be trained in recognising chroming-related psychosis.

Chroming, or inhalant abuse, claimed the life of one Queensland child between 2017 and 2022, with 86 per cent of substance misuse or overdose fatalities affecting children aged between 12 and 17.

Butane, the gas found in aerosol sprays, is the same gas found in lighter fluid. When it is inhaled, the fumes enter the bloodstream quickly and slow down brain activity.

A Youth Needs Census Queensland forum in 2019 found Queensland’s young people aged between 12 and 25 years found that inhalant misuse was low compared to cannabis and alcohol.

Chroming, or inhalant abuse, claimed the life of one Queensland child between 2017 and 2022, a year before Indi took her life. Picture: The Courier-Mail

However, it also found that children aged between 12 and 15 years were using inhalants at a much higher rate than any other age group.

Indi’s family has also raised concerns about the challenges of "postvention", the support available for families grieving a suicide.

“There’s a huge gap in how we address substance use like chroming in mental health care,” Mr Sheenan said.

“If we had better screening tools, more accessible education for parents and teachers, and early intervention strategies, maybe we could have caught this sooner.

“Losing a child is isolating enough, but losing a child to suicide comes with layers of guilt, blame, and a lack of tailored support,” he said.

Ms Sheenan is now working on research into "postvention" services to advocate for better resources for bereaved parents of suicide.

Despite their grief, Indi’s parents are determined to turn their loss into meaningful change.

They hope that by sharing her story, they can prevent another family from experiencing the same devastation.

■ If you, or someone you know, need support, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800.

Originally published as Parents seek coronial changes on chroming after daughter’s suicide