Teen Drug Help
Teen Smoking
A lot of people will look at this entry and say that cigarettes aren’t a drug, and shouldn’t be included in a blog about teen substance abuse. However, I beg to differ. Cigarettes are addictive and harmful to your health. While they may not have the same health and mental consequences of drugs like meth or cocaine, cigarette smoking can still do serious damage to teens and their health.
It’s always amazing to me how many teens start smoking, even with all of the information that we have about the harmful effects of smoking and the damage that smoking can cause. Teens know that smoking is bad for them, yet they continue to do it anyway. The question that I always seem to come back to is, Why?
It seems that teens start smoking for some of the same reasons that teens start using drugs. Things like peer pressure and the desire to be cool definitely fuel the decision for teens to start smoking. Some teens see their favorite actors or adults that they admire smoking and then they start smoking in order to be like the person that they idolize. These motivations don’t seem to be any different than the motives for teens to start using drugs.
Some teens also think that by smoking marijuana instead of cigarettes that they are avoiding the negative health effects that come with cigarette smoking. However, smoking marijuana has its own set of negative effects on your health, including lung damage, increased potential for depression, and dependence. Just because you are smoking marijuana, doesn’t mean that you are safe from the negative effects that are a result of teen substance abuse.
Most teens know the facts about cigarette smoking, but it can’t hurt to mention them again. The effects of cigarette smoking include:
• Lung damage, cancer, etc.
• Emphysema, asthma
• Addiction
• Mouth cancer, tooth loss
• Stunts growth in teens
• Chronic bronchitis
• Heart disease
While teens might not classify cigarettes as a drug, the health effects caused by cigarette smoking can be devastating. Teenage cigarette smoking can also lead to other problems, like teenage alcoholism.
Cigarette smoking does not make you cool, and does not make you sexy. When you smoke cigarettes, your teeth and fingers turn yellow, you will run out of breath quickly (which could be a problem if you’re involved in sports), you will have bad breath, and you will smell like cigarette smoke. None of these things sound terribly appealing, and on top of it all, smoking is simply dangerous.
Like I said, a lot of people don’t want to lump cigarette smoking or even marijuana smoking in with teen substance abuse. However, smoking can have serious negative health effects for teens, and can lead to a lifelong addiction that can be threatening to your health and your life.
If you feel like your smoking or marijuana use has gotten out of control, there are treatment options that can help you overcome your addiction and substance abuse. Talk to a parent or other adult who can help you to stop smoking before you do serious and permanent damage to your health.
Drugs Target Teens
As teen drug abuse becomes more widespread and drug dealing becomes a pretty profitable business, drug dealers have started using methods to lure younger and younger kids into drug abuse and addiction. One of the ways that drug dealers have been targeting younger users is by creating a cheap drug that appeals to kids and teens. A good example of this strategy is a drug called Cheese.
Cheese is made by combining heroin with crushed cold medicine tablets, and because it contains heroin, can result in addiction. Some dealers even add strawberry of grape flavoring to the cheese so that kids will be more likely to use it. Cheese is also very inexpensive, and it seems pretty harmless, so it appeals to kids and teens who don’t have a lot of money, but want to experiment with drugs.
It might seem like Cheese is harmless because there’s not a lot of heroin in it, it’s cheap, and it tastes good, but it can result in teen drug addiction and even death. In Dallas, 21 kids and teens have died from an overdose after using cheese. Cheese is dangerous because a lot of the time kids think that they are getting a low dose of heroin, but most dealers don’t closely monitor the amount of heroin in each dose of cheese and some doses have a much higher amount of heroin. When this happens, the potential for overdose and death are much higher. It’s practically impossible to know how much heroin is in a single dose of Cheese and that is why it is so dangerous.
The thing that I find most troubling about Cheese is that it specifically targets young teens. By selling to young kids, drug dealers are creating long-term clients. If a kid becomes addicted to drugs when they’re 12, they’re more likely to use drugs through their teen years and into adulthood, and drug dealers are ensuring that they will have a client for a long time.
Cheese is a growing problem that more teens and parents need to be aware of. Teens need to realize that drug dealers aren’t trying to help you, but are only interested in making more money for themselves. It is important to realize that there are negative consequences to any kind of substance abuse. As a teen it is easy to give in to peer pressure and try drugs just because your friends are doing it, but you could be putting your life at risk.
If you think you have a problem with substance abuse, it is important to get help. Don’t let yourself be fooled by drug dealers and other people doing drugs. By doing drugs, you are setting yourself up for addiction and all of the consequences of addiction. Talk to a friend or a parent in order to get help for your addiction or substance abuse problem.
Labels: at-risk-teens, teen-addiction, teen-drug-abuse, teen-drug-help, teen-drug-rehab, teen-rehab, teen-substance-abuse
What Parents Can Do To Stop Teen Drug Abuse
I decided to change things up a bit today, so today’s post is going to be for parents. Teen substance abuse often has a lot to do with parental supervision and guidance, or lack thereof, so it seems appropriate to write an entry about some of the issues that face parents relating to their teen and the potential for teen substance abuse.
It seems that the biggest issue for parents in trying to prevent or treat adolescent substance abuse is the mentality that it won’t happen to their child, or that their child knows better. Parents often think that they’re child is the exception to the rule and that they know better than to use or abuse drugs and alcohol. Unfortunately, this belief is false. Drug addiction can affect any teen and can affect any family.
One of the things that parents can do to combat teen substance abuse is to be involved in your teen’s life. Make sure you know where they’re going and who their friends are. Ask your teen to check in with you throughout the night, and if they refuse, tell them that they can’t go out. The most important thing you can do with your teen to prevent teen substance abuse is to tell your teen that you don’t approve of underage drinking or drug use. When teens feel like they are disappointing their parents or that they are doing something wrong, they will be more likely to stay away from drugs and alcohol.
As parents, it is your responsibility to set limits and rules for your teen. Even though you might want to be friends with your teen, your job is to make sure that they are safe and that they are making the right decisions. You are supposed to set a good example. If you happen to get along with your teen, then that’s great, but it is better to set rules and protect your teen than to be their best friend and let them participate in activities that put them at risk.
Parents should take steps to prevent teen drug abuse and addiction, but sometimes even parental guidance and strict rules can’t keep teens from giving in to peer pressure. In order to help a teen with a substance abuse problem, parents must first know the signs of teen substance abuse. The sooner that parents can recognize the signs of substance abuse, the sooner they can get help for their teen.
There are a variety of treatment programs available for teens with substance abuse problems. These programs include therapeutic boarding schools that specialize in treating adolescent substance abuse, residential rehab programs, intensive outpatient programs, and wilderness programs that can help teens learn personal responsibility. All of these programs are designed to help teens overcome their substance abuse problems by teaching them the skills that will help them to maintain their sobriety and to be successful in life.
As a parent of a teen, it is important to make sure that your teen is getting the care and treatment that they need. If your teen has a substance abuse problem, it is important to find the treatment program that will best suit their specific needs and will help them get back on the right track towards a successful and healthy life.
Labels: at-risk-teens, teen-addiction, teen-alcohol-abuse, teen-drinking, teen-drug-abuse, teen-drug-help, teen-drug-rehab, teen-marijuana-abuse, teen-rehab, teen-substance-abuse
What Happens After Treatment?
I’ve talked a little bit about what treatment for adolescent substance abuse issues usually includes; detox, inpatient or outpatient care, counseling, etc. But what happens when you finish your treatment and go back to your normal life and have to face things on your own?
When most teens return from treatment, they feel like they have learned something or have changed in some way that will help them stay away from drugs and alcohol. Teens returning from treatment have learned skills and have been given tools to help them stay sober. While the teen who has gone through treatment may have changed, the people around them in their daily lives probably haven’t changed at all. Even though you might have changed, your friends who used drugs probably haven’t. They probably still use drugs and might even encourage you to start using drugs again too.
So how do are you supposed to handle this temptation and peer pressure? There are tools and resources available for teens who are transitioning back into their normal lives that are meant to help teens to deal with the stress and temptation of their daily lives in order to help them stay sober.
For teens returning to their normal lives from drug and alcohol treatment, there are resources available that can make that transition easier. These resources include outpatient programs, which are designed to help teens in recovery to deal with the stresses and triggers that they face daily. There are also online teen support groups and meetings that can help to make the transition back to daily life easier.
While many people think that just because they’ve completed their 60 days in rehab they’re cured, this is not the reality. Many teens with substance abuse problems think that rehab is a quick fix. It is important to remember, however, that recovery is a lifelong process. While you will have bad days, it is important to surround yourself with the people and the tools that will help you to maintain your sobriety.
If you or someone you love has a problem with drugs and alcohol or wants more information about programs after treatment, it is important to get help so that they can be successful and live healthy lives.
Labels: at-risk-teens, teen-addiction, teen-alcohol-abuse, teen-depression, teen-drinking, teen-drug-abuse, teen-drug-help, teen-drug-rehab, teen-rehab, teen-substance-abuse
Helping a Friend With a Substance Abuse Problem
I realize that I talk a lot in my blog about the high probability that teens will use or experiment with drugs and alcohol. While this is true, I think it’s also important to talk about the teens who don’t use drugs or drink alcohol, but who may have friends that do drugs and drink. For teens who have friends or loved ones with substance abuse problems, it is important to provide information about getting help for those loved ones in order to help them get back on the right path.
It can be a really sad and scary experience to see your friends get involved in drugs. We have been taught that drugs and alcohol can be really dangerous, and to see someone that you care about do things that you know will hurt them can be hard. That is why it’s really important to be aware of the signs of teen drug and alcohol abuse so that you can get help for someone you care about who has a substance abuse problem.
There are a lot of things you can do to help a friend with a substance abuse problem. One of the easiest things to do is set a good example for that friend. As I’ve mentioned in the past, the most important people in a teen’s life is usually their friends. You’re parents will always be important, but the people who are most influential are your friends. As a teen it can be hard to resist the peer pressure to use drugs and alcohol, but by doing so you are creating a positive image for the rest of your friends to follow.
For a lot of teens, there is no motivation to stop using drugs. Most teens know that drugs can do serious damage, but a lot of teens ignore these consequences and do drugs anyway. There is a variety of reasons that can explain why teens use drugs, ranging from peer pressure to self-medication, and it can be difficult to confront a friend about their problem with substance abuse. It might be hard, but it is important to let your friends know how you really feel about their drug and alcohol abuse. If you need additional support when talking to a friend, talk to your parents or an adult that you trust to offer their support. While it might be scary to help a friend with their substance abuse problem by confronting them about it, you will be doing them a favor in the long run. They might be mad at you at first, but they will thank you later.
While some teen substance abuse remains casual and you can convince your friends to stop using drugs before it gets to serious. Unfortunately, sometimes a friend has gotten so deep into their drug abuse and addiction that it is necessary to take more drastic steps in helping them overcome their addiction. One of these steps is an intervention. Teen drug interventions are when friends and family members come together to offer their support and tell the addict that they need to get help. If you think that one of your friends is in need of an intervention, talk to their parents or an adult that you trust.
As a teenager, the opinion of friends and peers are very important, and it is your responsibility to use that influence in a positive way. While there are people who will try to get you to do things that you know are wrong, you should remember that you can be a positive influence in the lives of your friends rather than a negative influence. If you or someone you know has a problem with drug and alcohol abuse or addiction, it is important to get help. By getting help, you are helping yourself or a friend to get back on the right path away from drugs and alcohol.
Labels: at-risk-teens, teen-addiction, teen-drinking, teen-drug-abuse, teen-drug-help, teen-drug-rehab, teen-rehab, teen-substance-abuse
