<p>Categories and sub-categories.</p>

In Merauke (South Papua), everyday practices, peer dynamics, and social labeling remain under-described.</p> <p>Objective</p><p>To explore lived experiences of street-connected children and adolescents who use inhalants in Merauke, focusing on initiation, accessibility, peer processes, harms, return to glue use, and perceived stigma.</p> <p>Methods</p><p>We conducted an inductive descriptive qualitative study with children and adolescents aged 12–18 years who reported glue use in the prior three months.

Participants were recruited via gatekeeper-facilitated snowball sampling until information power indicated sufficiency. Data comprised semi-structured in-depth interviews (audio-recorded) and field notes; brief member checking closed each session and after the analysis. Transcripts were analyzed using inductive content analysis in NVivo 15.</p> <p>Results</p><p>Twenty-two participants (19 male, 3 female) shared narratives; among the nine who recalled their age at initiation, first glue use occurred between 5 and 12 years.