Why do teens take drugs and how can we prevent this

Sebastian Kahlstatt,

Florian Martin,

Nadja Schmitt

Outline

• Top three reasons why they take drugs• Drugs & school• Is it easy to get drugs?• I could never get high enough – story• How to prevent drug use and how to help

friends to stay away from them• Drug use compared Europ & America

Top three reasons why teenagers take drugs•Peer Pressure •more freedom•Being accepted

Peer Pressure

More Freedom

Being accepted

Peer Pressure

• Teenagers don’t know where they fit• One feels better when he/she is

attached to a group• TV shows, stars and parents

Freedom

• Teenagers have a lot more freedom than ever before

• More oppertunities to take drugs• Influence of parents

Being Accepted

• Teenagers test the limits• Rebelling and provoke

Drugs & school

• Teens take drugs to escape from the pressure in school.

• But then the grades will go down.

• And the students are in big danger to faill in everything in school.

Is it easy to get drugs?

Source: University of Michigan, The Monitoring the Future

“I could never get high enough“a true story from Mindy

• She wanted to be a rocker and life a hard-core life

• Mindy with 15 →

• Tent where she and her son lived →

A happy end

• Mindy today with her son Isaiah

http://www.drugfree.org/Portal/Stories/I_Could_Never_Get_High_Enough

How to prevent the use of drugs and what can help you or a friend to stay away from them, and how

you can help a friend

The most important thing is to be informed about drugs and how they work in your brain

-The brain repeats life-sustaining activities by associating them with pleasure or reward and it notes them as something important that needs to be remembered, and teaches us to do it again and again-Drugs are stimulating this feeling of pleasure which makes the brain wanting to do it again-Those stimulations (dopamine) are too much for the brain so it tries to adjust to it, by producing less of the dopamine itself-That’s what makes drug users feel flat, lifeless, and depressed because the brain has stopped to produce much dopamine-Now the drug user needs to take drugs just to bring their dopamine function back up to normal, and they also need a larger amount to get the dopamine high which known as tolerance

Some of the disadvantages if you take drugs:

-Depression, anxiety, nausea, confusion, lack of control, paranoia, guilt, embarrassment, hangovers, loneliness, and cravings for more drugs-Drug users may never learn how to solve problems or things that can make them happy which will maybe make them returning to drugs-Some abused substances can cause immediate-Social consequences such as lying to friends and losing the trust of friends and family; performing poorly in school; quitting academic, athletic, or social activities; losing self control, making bad decisions like drugged or drunk driving; getting pregnant; becoming violent or placing yourself at risk to be a victim of violence; and abandoning old friendships-No one knows how fast you can become addicted but if could happen the first time you use a drug-Once addicted you will always be addicted even though the addiction is treatable, you will still stay an addict-And once you are addicted its hard to get away from the drug

Advices how you can prevent the use of drugs:-Learn to deal with pressure and stress->Some people may think drugs will help them with their stress; drugs can actually worsen the situation and lead to even more stress->If you’re having a time where you feel hopeless, talk with someone about it and confront the problems and work through them because there’s always a solutionDeal with yourself and accept the way you are>Many people just try drugs because they want to fit in, but in reality former users often say that drugs isolate even more>Try to find your own styleAccept yourself the way you are>If you want to change something just go for it, but don’t do something that would be unhealthy for you>Love what you’ve goyMedia>With all the hype about drugs you may forget that it is not normal to use drugs and that they’re bad for you > Build your own opinionYou want to change your life>Drugs can’t help you solving your problems>Find ways how to solve problemsLearn to find ways that are making you happy without taking drugs

What if your friend does have problems with drugs?

Signs:

If he/she:Gets drunk or high on a regular basis. Drinks or uses drugs when he/she is alone. Shows up at school drunk or high or has skipped class to use. Needs drugs or alcohol to have a good time or cope with everyday life. Plans for drug use in advance. Starts hanging out with new friends who will do drugs with him/her or can score for him/her. Lies about drug use. Pressures others to use drugs. Has broken plans with you, or showed up late, because he/she was getting drunk or high. Shows little interest in or quits sports or activities he/she once enjoyed. Has driven a car while drunk or high. Borrows or steals money to buy drugs or alcohol.

Things to consider if you talk with your friend about it:

-Your tone

-Be discreet

-Consider what you want to say

-Give some examples of what you’re talking about

-Ask what they think about it and listen well

-Find a qualified counselor

-It’s not enough to talk with your friend only once

->Friends aren’t disposable!

Drug use compared from Europe to America

• The drug use is much more controlled in the USA than in Europe • More students said they have taken marijuana in the US than in

Europe (US=41%/ Europe=28%) other illicit drugs was 23% for the US and only 6% for Europe

• But when they asked about the past month about use of alcohol and Cigarettes, a lot more students from Europe said they did than form the US, Europe had 37% for Cigarettes and 61% for Alcohol where the US only26% for Cigarettes and 40% for alcohol had

• The numbers for the US are lower than from Europe at some points but however not really low themselves

• The drug commitee form Europe stated that the drug abuse is coming to a steady point, but the deaths of drug abuse keep rising, Another thing they said was that every hour a jung person of about 21 and under is dying because of drug abuse in Europe

http://www.lcet.org/downloads/pop/10reasons_drugs.pdfhttp://www.abovetheinfluence.com/http://www.drugfree.org/Portal/Stories/I_Could_Never_Get_High_Enoughhttp://ncadi.samhsa.gov/govpubs/prevalert/v5/5.aspxhttp://www.teendrugabuse.us/drugsnschool.htmlhttp://www.teendrugabuse.us/drugsnschool.html

Work cited