How I Got Excited About Life

So I just celebrated two years of sobriety two days ago and it feels amazing. I can’t even put into words how grateful I am for my life today. Two years ago, my life revolved around getting that next high. To be quite honest, life was miserable. Today, I can honestly say that I am excited about my life.

Today, instead of being a slave to my addiction, I get to devote my life to helping other people find the happiness that I have found in recovery. I get to come to workat a teen treatment center and be a role model to teens struggling with drug and alcohol problems that are just like I was. I get to show them that it is possible to get clean at a young age and have an awesome life.

I look at life in a totally new perspective than ever before. I try to view everything as an opportunity for change rather than an obstacle or a tedious task. I get to appreciate everything in my life, even the simple things like the trees and clean water. I never even thought about those things. I took everything in life for granted. I always wanted everything handed to me on a silver platter. And, no matter what was handed to me, I was never happy. Nothing was ever enough. I now realize that everything in my life is a gift. And, without my sobriety I probably would have lost everything that I have.

Anyway, I am just so grateful for all the gifts that I have received through recovery. I am excited about life today. I have never been excited about life. I never knew a happiness like I have today. Life is truly beautiful.

Elizabeth M

How Drugs Effect Teenagers

How Drugs Effect Teenagers

A drug is any chemical that produces a therapeutic or non-therapeutic effect within a body. Teenagers may be involved with legal or illegal drugs in various ways. Sometimes, experimentation with drugs during adolescence can be common. However, teenagers generally do not see links between their actions of the present and their consequences of the future. Teens also tend to feel invincible and immune to the problems that others around them experience.

Using alcohol, marijuana and tobacco at young ages will increase the potential of using other drugs like heroin, cocaine or speed later down the road. Some teens might experiment and stop, or continue to use occasionally, without significant problems. Others develop a dependency, moving on to more dangerous drugs and causing significant harm to themselves and possibly others.

When teenagers use drugs, they will tend to have symptoms or signs of something being wrong. For example, as far as physical appearance goes, the teen might have a sense of fatigue, red and glazed eyes and/or a lasting cough. On an emotional level, the teenagers might have general mood swings, or irresponsible behavior, possible low self-esteem, general lack of interest in anything or could be generally depressed. In a family environment, a teen drug abuser can often be argumentative, or they become very secretive in movements. In school, a teenager could decline participation, drop in grades, skip certain classes, or generally accumulate a myriad amount of tardiness. These are some of the reasons why it is important to keep kids safe and pay more attention to all that they need. They (teenagers) are always in need of something one way or another.

Zippers, New Teen Drink!

Zippers are a new trend in the teen drinking world. They are individual gelatin shots that have the same appearance as the Jell-O snacks that teens often bring to school. Although zippers are 24-proof (12% alcohol by volume) they come in packaging that seems as if it is marketed to teens or younger children. This makes it very easy for teens to sneak zippers into school with them.

Zippers are manufactured by Zippers Co. of the Netherlands. The idea is to capitalize on the homemade Jell-O shots that have become so popular in recent years. Zippers come packaged in the same way as common children’s snacks like Jell-O and pudding. The lid has a warning label that alcohol is in the product, but when the lid is removed it is impossible to tell the difference between Zippers and their non-alcoholic twin Jell-O if you are just looking at them. When the lid is removed the only way to differentiate a Zipper from Jell-O is to eat it.

Many teens today are using these unsuspecting drinks to consume alcohol right under the noses of their parents and teachers. Because teachers can not tell the difference between Zippers and Jell-O, teens are bringing them into school lunchrooms. Parents and schools need to be aware of these new alcoholic beverages because they are easy to miss.

Living the dream

Living the Dream

As a teenager I never in my wildest dreams would I think I would able to have fun in sobriety and enjoy life. My definition of enjoying life was a two bottomless glasses of beer, just in case one ran out. Alcohol let me escape to being comfortable with who I was. My dream of growing up and being successful was exactly that, just a dream. There came a point were I could not enjoy my drinking if had set a limit on it. Also I could only enjoy my alcohol when I there was no control. The funny thing is when I have no control I often found myself in situations that, through my actions, set me up for complete disaster. So when I got sober, my perception of what felt good was contorted. I really had no clue about enjoying anything except through my selfish motives.

The beginning of enjoying life sober was my experience bowling. I was newly sober and my new friends invited me to go bowling. As a teen in recovery I had already made up my mind it was not going to be fun do to the fact that I would not be drunk. My head told me “Obviously everyone drinks when they bowl, why do you think they invented beer frames?” Yet little do I know that hanging out with 10 sober people bowling, talking trash, and hearty laughs was the beginning of the change of my perception of enjoying life. Soon I was able to find fun to going to movies, amusement parks, weddings, and even playing video games sober. I began to realize that I had more opportunities to express myself sober than being a slave to my addiction to alcohol. There is something stress free about not having to keep up with my lies, who was out there to get me, and who I had hurt. All because I was sober. Alcohol with no control gave me only as much fun until there was no more left. Sobriety has shown me that there is no glass ceiling to the opportunities that life offers. The freedom today, because I am sober, has given me the opportunity to be “living the dream”

Alberto P.

Study Links Early Alcohol Use and Behavior Problems in Young Adulthood

Children who are drinking alcohol by 7th grade are more likely to suffer employment problems, abuse other drugs, and commit criminal and violent acts once they reach young adulthood, according to a RAND Health study released today.

Following a group of young people from 7th grade through age 23, researchers found that youthful drinking was not only associated with an increased likelihood of people having academic and social problems during their teenage years, but was associated with a heightened risk of behavior problems at least through their early 20s.

"Early drinkers do not necessarily mature out of this problematic lifestyle once they become young adults," said Phyllis Ellickson, a RAND researcher and the study's lead author. "Early alcohol use is a signal that someone is likely to have more problems as they transition into adulthood."

Researchers say the findings suggest that adolescents who drink are at high risk and should be targeted early with intervention programs that focus not only on alcohol, but also cigarette smoking, use of illicit drugs, and perhaps other problem behaviors. The study appears in the May issue of the medical journal Pediatrics.

Underage drinking is a major national problem, with estimates suggesting that by the 8th grade one-fourth of all adolescents have consumed alcohol to the point of intoxication. In addition, adolescent drinking plays a key role in the four leading causes of death among teens--car accidents, accidental injuries, homicides and suicides.

The RAND findings are from a study that followed about 3,400 youths who were recruited in 1985 from 30 socially and economically diverse schools in California and Oregon when they were enrolled in 7th grade. Participants were surveyed during the 7th grade, 12th grade and at age 23 about their current use of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs, and about a number of behavioral issues.

At the outset of the study, about three-quarters of the 7th graders had used alcohol. Researchers labeled 46 percent as "experimenters" (had consumed alcohol, but fewer than three times in the past year and not within the past month) and 31 percent as "drinkers" (three or more alcoholic drinks within the past year or any drinking in the past month). Nondrinkers (those who had never drunk alcohol) accounted for 23 percent of the 7th graders.

Students who used alcohol by the 7th grade were far more likely than nondrinkers to report using other substances, stealing and having school problems. For example, the drinkers were 19 times more likely to be weekly smokers or hard drug users, and 4.5 times more likely to have stolen items in the past year when compared with nondrinkers. Experimenters reported fewer problems, but were still 2.5 times more likely to have used hard drugs and twice as likely to have stolen when compared with nondrinkers.

The differences remained at the 12th grade, although they were less pronounced. Compared with nondrinkers, drinkers were 5 times more likely to be weekly marijuana users, 3 times more likely to use hard drugs or experience several drug-related problems in the past year, twice as likely to have been suspended or dropped out of school, and about twice as likely to engage in violent or criminal behavior in the past year.

Experimenters were about twice as likely to be weekly marijuana users, use hard drugs, and have multiple drug problems, 1.2 to 1.7 times more likely to engage in violent or criminal behavior, and 1.5 times more likely to commit a felony or be suspended from school.

"Early drinking clearly is associated with other problems that develop in school and in many other settings," said Joan S. Tucker, a RAND psychologist and another author of the report. "Differences between drinkers and nondrinkers show up early and persist over time."

At age 23, those identified in 7th grade as drinkers still showed significantly more behavior problems than those who had been nondrinkers. The drinkers were 2 to 3 times more likely to use hard drugs, experience multiple drug problems, or have undergone alcohol or drug treatment, 3 times more likely to have been arrested for drunk driving, twice as likely to engage in violent or criminal behavior in the past year, and nearly 1.5 times more likely to report missing work for no reason.

The differences were smaller for the group identified as experimenters in 7th grade. Compared with nondrinkers, experimenters were twice as likely to have multiple drug problems, 1.6 times as likely to engage in criminal behavior, use hard drugs, or have undergone alcohol or drug treatment, and nearly twice as likely to have been arrested for drunk driving.

"These results suggest that drinking in early adolescence may be among the most important risk factors for a wide variety of behavior problems during the transition to young adulthood," Tucker said. "Preventing drinking initiation before Grade 7 may help reduce these later problems."

Researchers say it is not clear what mechanisms link early alcohol use to behavior problems later in life. It may be that alcohol disrupts the development of adequate social and academic skills that are needed to succeed later in life. Or early alcohol use may signal that an individual is predisposed to use drugs and develop other behavioral problems.

The research was supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. The project also included RAND researcher David J. Klein.

RAND Health is the nation's largest independent health policy research organization, with a broad research portfolio that focuses on medical quality, health care costs and delivery of health care, among other topics.

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Unsupervised Teens Have More Sex

Unsupervised Teens Have More Sex

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The less after-school supervision teens have, the more likely they are to have sex, new research says. And that sexual activity is likely to happen at the home of one of the teens, claims a new study in the December issue of Pediatrics.

Dr. Deborah Cohen, a researcher at the RAND Corp. in Santa Monica, Calif., and her colleagues evaluated more than 2,000 students in grades 9 through 12 in six public high schools. They found that 56 percent were home without an adult present at least four hours each day after school.

Then they compared supervision with sexual activity and found a strong relationship between the number of unsupervised hours and sexual activity. Those who were unsupervised for at least 30 hours a week, or roughly six hours each weekday, were more likely to be sexually active compared with those left alone for no more than five hours a week. Those who were unsupervised for more than five hours weekly also reported more sexually transmitted diseases.

They also found that among those who had intercourse, 91 percent said the last time occurred at their home, their partner's home, or a friend's home -- usually after school.

The students who were evaluated were 98 percent black, many from low-income families and more than half from single-parent homes. While the study results may not be applicable to all populations, Cohen says, it "should raise red flags."

She adds there were no differences between single parent and two-parent families, further lending credence that it was indeed the lack of supervision, not the family structure, that was associated with the sexual activity.

She also points to a report done earlier this year by Child Trends, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit group, in which those researchers found that more than half of boys and girls aged 16 to 18 had sex for the first time in their own home or that of their partner's -- presumably when parents were not around, although the researchers didn't ask that question. In the current study, the most surprising finding to Cohen was the amount of unsupervised time. "These are high school kids," she says. "People expect them to be more responsible."

While teens are physically more able to take care of themselves than younger children, she says teens would still "be better off if adults were around more."

If that's impossible because of work schedules, parents might investigate after-school activities that are supervised, she suggests.

The findings of the latest study don't surprise Julia Davis, a senior program officer at the Kaiser Family Foundation. "You can only assume the less time parents spend with the kids, the less opportunity [they have] to talk about sex." Even though teens are uncomfortable talking to their parents about sex, says Davis, citing her own research on teen sexuality, they still look to their parents for guidance.

Spending more time with teens will present more opportunities to open that dialogue about sex, Davis says. "Make it clear what your opinion is of being sexually active, what they need to know about protection, risks and consequences," she adds. "The key issue is to communicate to your teen there can be a dialogue. It isn't just one talk, but ongoing dialogue."

The dialogue, she adds, must change as your teen's needs change. A 15-year-old, for instance, probably needs very different information than an 18-year-old about to go off to college.

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Mixing Sex, Drugs and Alcohol Puts Many Teens at Risk

Mixing Sex, Drugs and Alcohol Puts Many Teens at Risk

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Experts say adolescents should be made aware of how using drugs and alcohol can lead to sexual activities that may change their lives forever. While drinking and having sex may be unofficially authorized milestones in the typical American teen's coming of age, a new study reveals that more and more adolescents are experimenting with both, leaving themselves susceptible to pregnancy, disease and violence.

In a random survey of 1,200 adolescents and young adults ages 13 to 24 throughout the United States, the Kaiser Family Foundation found that 81 percent reported that they have had intercourse, and 50 percent agreed that "people their age" mix alcohol and drugs "a lot."

Experts say these findings, to be presented today at a substance abuse and sexual behavior conference at Columbia University in New York, are so disturbing because drugs and alcohol can significantly compromise one's judgment and put teens into high-risk situations.

“We knew that teenagers were doing this, but frankly it is a bit shocking that the numbers were so high,” said Dr. Timothy Johnson, ABCNEWS' medical editor.

Unintended and Unprotected Sex

Drinking and doing drugs often leads young people to engage in more sexual activity than they intended to partake in, and more importantly, to unprotected sex, says Joseph Califano, former U.S. secretary of health, education and welfare and president of The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia.

Overall, 29 percent of sexually active 15- to 24-year-olds surveyed say that they have “done more” sexually than they had planned while drinking or using drugs, and 74 percent say their peers "often do not use condoms when they are drinking or using drugs."

Considering the high rate of alcohol use among high-schoolers, it is no wonder the Centers for Disease Control reports that almost 1 million unwanted teenage pregnancies occur every year, and one in every three sexually active people in the United States will contract a sexually transmitted disease by the age of 24. This includes everything from genital warts to the life-threatening HIV.

In addition, drinking has been shown to play a predominant role in sexual violence, with more than half of college campus rapes including alcohol use by either the victim, the attacker, or both. Experts believe alcohol causes people to both misread and missend sexual signals, and also can create situations where people are vulnerable to attack.

Mix Your Messages

So what can concerned parents do to help their teens avoid these hazards? Califano says the best thing you can do is get involved.

“Parental engagement is probably the most effective way to reduce the risk of smoking, drinking, and doing drugs, and the overwhelming majority of research studies show that teens who are close to their parents are more likely to remain sexually abstinent and postpone intercourse, more likely to use contraceptives if they are sexually active, more likely to have fewer sexual partners, and less likely to become pregnant,” says Califano.

And whether you believe that abstinence is a moral imperative, or if you think that sexual activity is simply a rite of passage for all teens, Califano emphasizes that “everyone must drive home the very real dangers of mixing alcohol, drugs, and sex — pregnancy, HIV, STDs, and rape.”

He also strongly recommends that when having the “big talks” with your kids, emphasize the connection between drinking and sex. Because even though your teen may feel strongly about “how far they will go,” morals and intentions can be easily led astray after a couple of beers at a party.

“Make sure that every time you talk to your kids about sex, you also talk about drugs and alcohol, and every time you talk to them about drugs and alcohol, you talk to them about sex,” Califano advises. He says kids should learn how the topics are connected, so they are better equipped to deal with challenging situations when they arise.

Experts also suggest keeping an eye on the television shows your children watch, the music they listen to, and the Web sites they visit, because staying aware of outside influences helps parents become better equipped, as well.

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Study: 1 in 5 Young People Drink and Drive

Study: 1 in 5 Young People Drink and Drive

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December 30, 2004WASHINGTON (AP) -- More than four million people younger under age 21 drove under the influence of drugs or alcohol last year, according to a government report released Wednesday. That's one in five of all Americans aged 16 to 20.

"That's an awful lot of kids if you think about it," said Charlene Lewis, acting director of the Office of Applied Studies at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, which produced the report.

The report, based on a large household survey of drug use, found a small drop in driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol between 2002 and 2003. In 2002, 22 percent drove under the influence; last year, it was 20 percent. Just four percent of these young people reported being arrested and booked for driving under the influence in the year before they were interviewed.

The report was released Wednesday in advance of New Year's Eve in hopes of raising consciousness of the issue on a night when the risk of drinking and driving is high, federal officials said. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death among young people. The data come from face-to-face interviews in the homes of people ages 12 and up, part of the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. People were asked to define for themselves what driving "under the influence" of drugs or alcohol means. Young people were most likely to drink alcohol and then drive, with 17 percent admitting this. Fourteen percent said they had driven under the influence of illicit drugs, and eight percent reported driving after consuming a combination of alcohol and drugs.

The rates were highest among people who lived in the Midwest and among those who lived outside of metro areas. Researchers did not have data to compare the 2002-03 rates to earlier years. But a similar survey of teen behavior found that drunken driving fell steadily between 1984 and the early 1990s, as media campaigns pleaded "friends don't let friends drive drunk" and urged partygoers to choose a designated driver.

The rates remained level from 1992 to 1995 before jumping a bit in the late 1990s and then declining a little in 2003, said Lloyd Johnston, principal investigator for the University of Michigan's Monitoring the Future survey of students. "It's not nearly as serious a problem as it was in the mid '80s but it's still a serious problem," he said. He said that his survey also found that a substantial number of teens rode in cars where drivers had been drinking, adding to the number of young people at risk.

Johnston added that while teens growing up in the 1980s were exposed to heavy media campaigns against drunken driving, that's not true for today's teens. He warned of "generational forgetting."

"Each generation has to be reeducated about the dangers of any of these behaviors," he said.

“Make sure that every time you talk to your kids about sex, you also talk about drugs and alcohol, and every time you talk to them about drugs and alcohol, you talk to them about sex,” Califano advises. He says kids should learn how the topics are connected, so they are better equipped to deal with challenging situations when they arise.

Experts also suggest keeping an eye on the television shows your children watch, the music they listen to, and the Web sites they visit, because staying aware of outside influences helps parents become better equipped, as well.

Phone 866-889-3665
Visions Adolescent Treatment Center

Study Links Early Alcohol Use and Behavior Problems in Young Adulthood

Study Links Early Alcohol Use and Behavior Problems in Young Adulthood

Phone 866-889-3665

Press Release: RAND - www.rand.org

Children who are drinking alcohol by 7th grade are more likely to suffer employment problems, abuse other drugs, and commit criminal and violent acts once they reach young adulthood, according to a RAND Health study released today.

Following a group of young people from 7th grade through age 23, researchers found that youthful drinking was not only associated with an increased likelihood of people having academic and social problems during their teenage years, but was associated with a heightened risk of behavior problems at least through their early 20s.

"Early drinkers do not necessarily mature out of this problematic lifestyle once they become young adults," said Phyllis Ellickson, a RAND researcher and the study's lead author. "Early alcohol use is a signal that someone is likely to have more problems as they transition into adulthood."

Researchers say the findings suggest that adolescents who drink are at high risk and should be targeted early with intervention programs that focus not only on alcohol, but also cigarette smoking, use of illicit drugs, and perhaps other problem behaviors. The study appears in the May issue of the medical journal Pediatrics.

Underage drinking is a major national problem, with estimates suggesting that by the 8th grade one-fourth of all adolescents have consumed alcohol to the point of intoxication. In addition, adolescent drinking plays a key role in the four leading causes of death among teens--car accidents, accidental injuries, homicides and suicides.

The RAND findings are from a study that followed about 3,400 youths who were recruited in 1985 from 30 socially and economically diverse schools in California and Oregon when they were enrolled in 7th grade. Participants were surveyed during the 7th grade, 12th grade and at age 23 about their current use of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs, and about a number of behavioral issues.

At the outset of the study, about three-quarters of the 7th graders had used alcohol. Researchers labeled 46 percent as "experimenters" (had consumed alcohol, but fewer than three times in the past year and not within the past month) and 31 percent as "drinkers" (three or more alcoholic drinks within the past year or any drinking in the past month). Nondrinkers (those who had never drunk alcohol) accounted for 23 percent of the 7th graders.

Students who used alcohol by the 7th grade were far more likely than nondrinkers to report using other substances, stealing and having school problems. For example, the drinkers were 19 times more likely to be weekly smokers or hard drug users, and 4.5 times more likely to have stolen items in the past year when compared with nondrinkers. Experimenters reported fewer problems, but were still 2.5 times more likely to have used hard drugs and twice as likely to have stolen when compared with nondrinkers.

The differences remained at the 12th grade, although they were less pronounced. Compared with nondrinkers, drinkers were 5 times more likely to be weekly marijuana users, 3 times more likely to use hard drugs or experience several drug-related problems in the past year, twice as likely to have been suspended or dropped out of school, and about twice as likely to engage in violent or criminal behavior in the past year.

Experimenters were about twice as likely to be weekly marijuana users, use hard drugs, and have multiple drug problems, 1.2 to 1.7 times more likely to engage in violent or criminal behavior, and 1.5 times more likely to commit a felony or be suspended from school.

"Early drinking clearly is associated with other problems that develop in school and in many other settings," said Joan S. Tucker, a RAND psychologist and another author of the report. "Differences between drinkers and nondrinkers show up early and persist over time."

At age 23, those identified in 7th grade as drinkers still showed significantly more behavior problems than those who had been nondrinkers. The drinkers were 2 to 3 times more likely to use hard drugs, experience multiple drug problems, or have undergone alcohol or drug treatment, 3 times more likely to have been arrested for drunk driving, twice as likely to engage in violent or criminal behavior in the past year, and nearly 1.5 times more likely to report missing work for no reason.

The differences were smaller for the group identified as experimenters in 7th grade. Compared with nondrinkers, experimenters were twice as likely to have multiple drug problems, 1.6 times as likely to engage in criminal behavior, use hard drugs, or have undergone alcohol or drug treatment, and nearly twice as likely to have been arrested for drunk driving.

"These results suggest that drinking in early adolescence may be among the most important risk factors for a wide variety of behavior problems during the transition to young adulthood," Tucker said. "Preventing drinking initiation before Grade 7 may help reduce these later problems."

Researchers say it is not clear what mechanisms link early alcohol use to behavior problems later in life. It may be that alcohol disrupts the development of adequate social and academic skills that are needed to succeed later in life. Or early alcohol use may signal that an individual is predisposed to use drugs and develop other behavioral problems. The research was supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. The project also included RAND researcher David J. Klein.

RAND Health is the nation's largest independent health policy research organization, with a broad research portfolio that focuses on medical quality, health care costs and delivery of health care, among other topics.

Phone 866-889-3665
Visions Adolescent Treatment Center

Teens Report Peer Pressure To Have Sex

Teens Report Peer Pressure To Have Sex

Phone 866-889-3665

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Waiting to have sex is a nice idea, teenagers say, but they believe hardly anyone does it. Many teens, particularly boys, feel pressure to have sex, and they say drugs and alcohol often lead to sex -- often without condoms. The teen survey, released Monday by the Kaiser Family Foundation, paints a comprehensive portrait of youth attitudes about sex and the risk of pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.

Teen pregnancy and birth rates have been falling for a decade -- a trend that other surveys have attributed to a drop in sexual activity and an increased use of condoms and other forms of birth control.

Still, the Kaiser survey spotlights areas of concern: Four in 10 sexually active teenagers have taken a pregnancy test or had a partner who did so. A significant minority of young people -- about one in six -- say having sex without a condom occasionally is not a big deal. And one in five say they have had unprotected sex after drinking or using drugs. Other surveys have found that nearly two in three teens will have had sex by the time they graduate from high school. The Kaiser survey shows that many have intimate relationships before that, with more than half of 15-to-17-year-olds saying they have been with someone in a sexual way. Among teens who have not yet had sex, nearly a third say they have been "intimate" with a partner.

"Changing social norms and cultural expectations as well as delayed marriage means many young people have multiple sexual relationships in their lifetimes and need the information and tools to make healthy decisions and communicate with their partners," the report said.

About one in three teens said they had been in a relationship where they felt things were moving too fast sexually. Separately, the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy was releasing its own study Tuesday examining sex among younger teens. It found that about one in five teens report having sex before they turn 15 years old. That report, a compilation of data from earlier surveys, also found that younger teen girls who are sexually experienced were more likely than older teens to say they wish they had waited to have sex.

"Parents, program leaders, school officials, community leaders and others need to recognize that sex and dating are important issues for middle school age youth that cannot be ignored," the campaign said.

The Kaiser survey found that boys face particular pressure to have sex, often from male friends -- in contrast to the typical portrait of boys pressuring girls.

"There are a lot of expectations for boys to be sexually active," said Julia Davis, senior program officer at the Kaiser Family Foundation, an independent group that studies health issues.

One in three boys ages 15-17 say they feel pressure to have sex, compared with 23 percent of girls. The pressure to drink alcohol was greater for both boys and girls; pressure to use drugs was about even with pressure to have sex. Overall, 63 percent of all 15-17-year-olds agreed either strongly or somewhat that "waiting to have sex is a nice idea but nobody really does it," with boys 6 percentage points more likely to say so.

The survey also found:

-More than eight in 10 teens say that a lot or some people their age drink or use drugs before having sex. Seven in 10 said their peers don't use condoms when they are drinking or using drugs. -About a quarter said that alcohol or drugs had influenced their decision to do something sexual at least once. -More than half of teens believe oral sex is not as big a deal as sexual intercourse, with boys more likely to believe this. Four in 10 consider oral sex "safer sex," although some diseases can be transmitted this way.

Phone 866-889-3665
Visions Adolescent Treatment Center