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Drug Abuse Among Young People

Around half of all school children have tried cannabis, one in ten adults use the drug regularly, ecstasy is seen by many to be an essential component of a good night out and traces of cocaine have been found on 99% of bank notes circulating in London. It is therefore not surprising that some of the stigma surrounding drug use has evaporated over the last few years as societal attitudes have become more liberal. Individuals are less likely to see their habit as something out of the ordinary. Those concerned with the lifestyle of a loved one often feel that their caring words of advice or caution are falling on deaf ears when they confront their son, daughter, friend or lover. Due to the normalization of drug use, there is an ever-increasing difficulty in getting the message across.

If one sits down a handful of recreational drug users and asks them to account for their risk-taking, a number of responses are likely to be repeated. A naïve response might be: 'everyone does it and it doesn't do them any harm'. Another might say 'I don't use that much, not enough to do me any lasting damage’ or ‘I'm in total control, it's not like I’m a junkie or anything'. Faced with a seemingly self-confident façade one might find it difficult to communicate any sort of anti-drug message and risk coming across as antiquated and irrelevant.

Today’s generation has been brought up watching cautionary and unoriginal plot lines in which their favorite soap character ends up in hospital after experimenting with an illegal substance for the first time - a scenario that is not backed up by their real life experiences of care-free drug use. When something does go wrong it can easily be explained away as a freakish event due to someone overdoing it or a chance bad reaction to a drug. No reason for a seasoned partier who knows what he’s doing to change his ways.

One must be not be deterred when confronted with what seems like such a foolhardy attitude towards life. The above sentiments may ring true to many a recreational drug user but it must be remembered that you are dealing with an individual. Some people need the message driven home to them in a manner they cannot ignore. Others know all the facts yet may hold fast to the belief that ‘it would never happen to me’. Such people need a reality check and to realize they are experimenting with their health and by the time they realize that popping a couple of pills every weekend is not such a good idea they have already been transformed into a sluggish shell of their former selves.

A lot of young people, drug users or not, may not know what they want to do with their lives. These feelings of insecurity and disillusionment may fuel drug use but this rarely leads to peace and happiness and is ultimately an empty pursuit. Self-realization is the key to overcoming life’s problems. This is especially true of drugs and if you are still faced with a defiant soul, eager to live fast and die young, one must point out that it may be true now but may not always be so. After all, it is always better to leave your options open than let drugs take them away.