Teens Take Drug Use to New Heights

For thousands of years people have been trying to get high in way or another, whether it be on marijuana, alcohol, opium, or even normal experiences such as sex, music, and sports. While sex, music, and sports are mostly natural joys and harmless, controlled substances can take a toll on the body. But now it's not just marijuana and cocaine that is being abused, it is what is in your very house that teens are abusing.

There are some people that are severely prone to addiction and when they high they will never stop pursuing that feeling, no matter what it takes. You probably already know about the kids that sniff glue and markers, but there is a lot more out there than that. Huffing is still fairly new. It usually involves the inhalation of a solvent, such as spray paint or air freshener. One who is seeking a high deeply inhales this paint, air freshener (usually sprayed into a bag), nail polish remover, etc. and continues to do so until experiencing tunnel vision. This is not a high. A "high" is when serotonin is released in the brain. Huffing is constricting air ways that supply oxygen to your brain, killing brain cells rapidly, therefore being virtually the same as suffocating or drowning. Huffing will lead to severe brain damage among other health problems, and will most likely leave you mentally challenged or even dead. Huffing can become an addiction. It is serious and even trying it once can kill you.

Another thing that desperate drug users do is raid the medicine cabinet. Remember how when you get a cold you get groggy and your senses are off? That's not the illness, it's the medicine. Most cough syrups are filled with alcohol and other ingredients that acts as depressants and make you feel like death itself. Excessive usage of these medicines as well as several other types, including Nyquil capsules, will have the same effect. This is very dangerous because it goes through the liver, which works very hard to filter out the junk in your system. This leads to major health problems down the line.

I have done research on the stupid things that teens do to get high, and you wouldn't believe how far it goes. Eating large quantities of nutmeg, smoking green tea bags, eating chewable Dramamine are just a few of the ridiculous things teens are trying to get high. There is even a huge rumor on the internet about how smoking banana peels can get you high if you soak it in alcohol, dry it in the oven, and smoke the black ash left. It turned out to be a huge joke.

These alternative ways of getting high are very dangerous. But since marijuana is so hard to find and expensive to purchase, many people turn to other things. Methamphetamine has ruined entire towns because it is easy to make and highly addictive. It is also relatively cheap and spreads through small towns like a plague. Easy to find products and over the counter medicines are used to cook up Meth. Not to make you paranoid, but these things are right in front of your face every day. Whether these things are being used to get high or not is up to you and your family. With that said, don't automatically assume that you teenager is hooked on cough syrup and smoking tea bags. Just be observant enough to recognize a potential problem.

At 19 I am at the very end of my teen years. I have had talks about drugs with my parents in the past and I can say from experience that talking "with" instead of "to" your teen is much more effective. If you lecture your teen about drug use it will turn him/her off and they will feel a need to rebel. If you have genuine conversations about drug use and talk to them like a helpful friend, they will be much more receptive to your input. If you have experience with drug use be honest about it. Talk about your own drug use and also about what people around you were doing. In these situations teens need to believe that you know what you are talking about, so do the research and be prepared for your talk. If they trust you to do what's right for them, they will be far less likely to attempt to deceive you and act rebellious. If your teen has already abused drugs, seek help for them. Be supportive and caring. They need everything they can to get through this obstacle.