High school haze

In 2017 Monitoring the Future reported the decline in teen drug use, holding steady at the lowest levels in over two decades. Down to an average of 11.35% of users in high school, still drugs continue to be a pressure directed towards today’s youth.

Once teen drug addiction begins, children are at a higher risk for social problems, early death and a long list of serious issues. Adolescents are drawn to drugs for different reasons whether to experiment, compete, fit in or feel better. Although teens have different motivation, the abused drug is commonly a substance with easy access.

According to research completed by the University of Michigan in 2014, the most popular drugs used by high school seniors include: marijuana, adderall, cough medicine, vicodin, hallucinogens, molly, and cocaine. Each drug brings different side effects but consequences and risks are prevalent across all substances.

“Drugs unnaturally increase dopamine in the teen brain, the using teen gets the message, ‘you don’t need food or sleep or friendships as much as you need alcohol and other drugs’. What was once a healthily functioning survival mechanism of the reward pathway becomes a broken tool, damaged by repetitive substance use to create addiction,” according to the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation.

Administrators believe the most prevalent drugs at Pleasant Valley are marijuana and adderall. “The only issues that I’ve dealt with in at least 5 years have involved marijuana or prescription meds…It seems like medical personnel may be more apt to prescribe something if people aren’t getting the therapy they need. These people then turn to self medication, making it more
prevalent,” said Associate Principal Darren Erickson.