A British mother is trying to raise awareness about a dangerous game that took the life of her 14-year-old son.

Selina Booth, 37, found her son Jack Pickles dead in his bed in February after he was playing the “choking game,” the Daily Mail reported. She is now trying to stop other kids from suffering a similar fate by raising awareness of the dangers of the game.

“They call it the ‘good boys game’ because it's not taking drugs or alcohol,” Booth told Halifax Courier. “They actually think it's not going to harm them. Don't think it's safe because it causes seizures, hemorrhages, memory loss and there are kids in comas because of it."

The "game" is played by teens who choke themselves in order to experience a brief high.

Booth added that kids should "stop before it's too late."

“Do you want it to be your mum who hugs clothes that you're not in anymore just to smell you?," she said. "Do you want your mum to ask your mates around so she feels that little bit closer to you?”

Jack’s death was ruled an accident, but many victims of the choking game are often recorded as suicide. Booth, who has two other children, said she thought Jack was “messing around” before she realized he was dead.

“Jack loved YouTube,” she said. “He had his own site on there. I think that's where he found that choking game.

“I will get the Chief Coroner's Office knowing about this game, the police knowing about this game, schools knowing about this game and doctors knowing about this game. At the moment they don't even know the warning signs."

Booth added that she also wants to start a charity in her son's name.

“I just need help in fundraising it and getting it there," she said. "I don't want another kid going down as a suicide because of this game.”

Booth is warning other parents too lookout for bloodshot eyes, bleeding moles, marks on the neck, hearing loud bangs in the night and teens locking themselves in their rooms.

“Jack was my best friend," Booth said. "We just did everything together - shopping, wrestling, holidays and days out.

"He was just funny. He was always doing something, whether it was eating silly food or telling jokes. He loved football, especially going to watch Burnley.”

(Jack Pickles, via Halifax Courier)

The parents of a 14-year-old in are also speaking out against the dangerous phenomenon known as the choking game, which took the life of their son.

Will Hadley was found dead two weeks before his 15th birthday — by his parents, with the cause later determined to be accidental choking.

Will’s parents said they believe their son choked himself after seeing video on the Internet about the choking game. 

“It was an absolute total shock. He was one of the happiest kids, he was full of life, no problems at school and we got on great with him,” Hadley’s father said. “You try to prepare your kids for life ... those threats and dangers, but how can you deal with something you have never heard of?"

The Hadleys are now trying to spread awareness of the game, in an attempt to inform parents throughout the country.

“We want something to be done about this. We think the response has been really poor — we have been given lip service from pretty well everyone,” the Hadleys said. “We want every GP and school and coroner and police force in the country to be made aware."

Will Hadley

Thanks to the rise in popularity of the internet, America’s children are being exposed to some very dangerous activities that their parents sometimes know very little about.​

The game has been popularized by multiple videos on YouTube showing kids doing it and living.

Though not widely reported there have recently been hundreds of children dying from the choking game and many more being injured. 

A mother by the name of Sarah Pacatte says looking back she realizes she missed the warning signs. Her son Gabriel Mordecai would later die from the choking game.

"A couple of months before he died, he became very hostile, very angry, and he complained of horrible headaches," Pacatte said. "Then I started seeing bloodshot eyes."

But at the time, the mother of four thought maybe her 13-year-old son, Gabriel Mordecai, was smoking marijuana. She never imagined he was putting a rope around his neck and choking himself for a rush.

Gabriel's twin brother and best friend, Sam, says they learned of it from an older boy, who showed them how to hyperventilate and apply pressure to their necks.

Gabriel began to play alone.

"One day he was doing it to himself," his brother says. "He stopped because I told him I was going to tell Mom."

Despite numerous warnings, Sam says Gabriel kept doing it -- often while their mother was at work.

The day before Gabriel died, she asked him about a mark on his neck.

"He looked at me kind of funny and he said, 'Don't worry mom, it's not a hickey,'" Pacatte says.

The next evening, while Pacatte was preparing dinner, Sam went into his room and found his brother with a rope around his neck. When his brother didn't respond, he yelled, "Gabe!"

"When I got to the bedroom door, Samuel was across the room behind his brother," Pacatte says. "He was holding his brother up under his arms."

Gabriel was airlifted to a hospital in Sacramento. Sarah and Sam made the gut-wrenching, two-hour journey by car.

They prayed at Gabriel's side, but 15 hours later, Pacatte says, "He died on life support. His body shut down."

Gabriel Mordecai

There exists a common misconception that by discussing the dangers of the Choking Game, we are “teaching” children how to play the game itself. This cannot be further from the truth—most children already know about the Choking Game, yet very few understand the inevitable danger. 

Talk to the children in your life, as well as parents and everyone you know who works with children. Make sure they understand why the Choking Game is so dangerous: even if they survive, they’re permanently killing thousands of brain cells, and other children may be indicted and prosecuted for their involvement in a death or injury.

What are the signs?

Any suspicious mark on the side of the neck, sometimes hidden by a turtleneck, scarf or permanently turned-up collar.

Changes in personality, such as overtly aggressive or agitated.

Any kind of strap, rope or belt lying around near the child for no clear reason—and attempts to elude questions about such objects.

Headaches (sometimes excruciatingly bad ones), loss of concentration, flushed face.

Bloodshot eyes or any other noticeable signs of eye stress.

A thud in the bedroom or against a wall—meaning a fall in cases of solitary practice.

Any questions about the effects, sensations or dangers of strangulation.

If you know someone is doing this what can you do?
Be proactive and warn them about this activity—they often don't know it can kill them or leave them brain damaged. Supervise him or her very closely, and check that siblings are not involved. Dispose of items that could be used for this purpose. Alert school officials so they can monitor the situation; often other students may also be participating. Consider alerting the adolescent’s friends’ parents as well. If you feel strongly that your child may be doing this, seek professional counseling and support for your child and your family.

Please share this to spread awareness. Learn more in the video below.

Sources: Daily Mail, Halifax Courier, CBS St. Louis, BBC, Daily Mail, KKTV, Gasp Info

Photo Credit: Halifax Courier, Zoyan Brenn/Flickr, StillLovingMyGabriel.com