Drug and Alcohol Abuse

Tavish Hower Mr. Peterson Plutto4@aol. com English 101 11 December 2012 Teenage Alcohol and Drug Abuse Every hour, over 3,500 teenagers try drugs for the first time. (Drug facts) This outrageous statistic sadly applies to many of my classmates and peers. Through first hand experiences and other people’s mistakes, I have learned the dangers of teen alcohol and drug abuse. In Desert Mountain High School alone, over 50 percent of the 20 students I asked smoke marijuana on a fairly regular basis. Marijuana is known to decrease productivity and motivation which is extremely dangerous to the minds of potential young scholars.

Whether or not the cause seems to be justified, most teens do not realize the harm they are causing themselves and the people who love them when they abuse drugs and alcohol. The source of teen drug use is different in almost every case. However, drug use generally starts among young people due to stress and issues with self- confidence and fitting in. At a school like Desert Mountain High School, where popularity seems to be more important than academics, one can easily see how drugs can be a gateway to make friends and gain social status.

“When I got to high school things changed.

I felt distant from people, and had to fight harder to have friends — and I was shy all the time. Then I began hanging out with older kids, going to parties and skipping school. My parents didn’t like my new friends and enforced strict rules. I quit school and my relationship with my family fell apart.

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I started smoking pot and drinking heavily. I was taking mushrooms and acid daily. Finally I wasn’t shy around people anymore. I had more “friends” than ever before and for the first time I felt like I was a part of something. People wanted to hang out with me.

I felt cool. ” (Check yourself) In some cases, students are quoted as saying “I only smoke because my parents are too protective of me. ” This logic cannot be reasonable because although young people seem to believe their parents are controlling, they are usually just looking out for their child’s best interests. Parents are smart enough to know the dangerous impacts that drugs and alcohol can have on their kids for the rest of their lives. But all teens need is a reason to do it. Some of the ways you can tell a friend or classmate has started to abuse drugs are obvious.

Others are not quite so visible. Teens have different ways of exhibiting drug use. Some of these include fatigue, health complaints, red eyes, coughing, personality changes, irritability, poor judgment, depression, and lack of interest. (Just think twice) Fatigue is a major problem among young drug users because it prevents them from accomplishing their goals, whether those goals are athletic, academic, or otherwise. Drugs have the ability to take over a person’s identity by causing users to become both dependent and obsessed with reaching new “highs. “One night I couldn’t find anything — no pills, no pot, I even looked for coke. Eventually I stumbled across heroin and snorted it. Some people told me that the high was a million times better if you shot it. So I did. Two seconds after pushing the heroin into my veins I felt like G-d. Nothing in the whole world compared to this experience. I fell in love. ” (Check yourself) Teens often overlook the many health problems associated with drug and alcohol dependency. Over time, drugs can cause separation from reality and eventually loved ones.

Persistent usage of the now popular drug ecstasy causes drainage of spinal fluids and apparent hallucinations, eventually crippling its users. (Just think twice) Other drugs like heroin and methamphetamine have instant negative effects on their users. Meth users lose their teeth and start to look older then they are while heroin users turn pale and completely lose interest with the world around them. Teens are attempting to escape their realities at the unfortunate costs of their own health. I lost a lot of weight and stayed up all night, tweaked out in my room. I started stealing cash from my parents, tried mushrooms, LSD, and cocaine. I dropped everything: school, soccer. I was out having fun and I really didn’t care. ”