Author: VISIONS

Teen binge drinking is a huge problem with teens and more common than one might think. Depending on tolerance and body weight, binge drinking is defined as having five or more drinks within a few hours. This risky behavior can result in serious health problems, sexual promiscuity, and death. Recent research indicates that two-thirds of those high school students surveyed admitted to binge drinking. Teenage males tend to engage in binge drinking more than their female counterparts. Teen binge drinkers were also more likely to use dangerous drugs like marijuana, cocaine, and inhalants. They were also much more likely to smoke tobacco cigarettes.

It seems that binge drinking takes away all capacity for reason, as studies show that binge drinkers are more likely to get in the car with a drunk driver. That’s not to mention the dangers of binge drinkers behind the wheel of a car. Further proof that extreme alcohol consumption is harmful, teen binge drinkers were shown to have lower grades than non-binge drinkers. Perhaps most disturbing, binge drinkers were nearly four times more likely to be highly sexually active, victims of rape, and suicidal.

Long Term Effects of Ecstasy

University of Adelaide researchers have found that ecstasy taken on a few occasions could cause long-term brain damage from severe damage to brain cells, with the potential to cause future memory loss or psychological problems.

Dr. Rod Irvine, of the University’s Department of Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology, with an increased use of ecstasy among teens, major health problems can be expected in the future.

“For many years it has been known from animal experiments that small doses of ecstasy – even if only taken on only a few occasions – can cause severe damage to certain brain cells,” Irvine said in a news release. “More recently, evidence has started to accumulate suggesting that this damage may also occur in humans.”

Brain scans and psychological assessment of teen ecstasy users has been used to obtain this information.

“If our suspicions are proved correct, it will mean many of our young people will have memory loss or psychological problems in the future.”

Irvine’s research shows that the drug seems to work mainly through its effects on one type of brain cell, and even through one molecule in those cells. He said, “the way the body reacts chemically to ecstasy is important in producing adverse effects, as is the surrounding temperature, which can lead to users overheating.”

Irvine is looking at the shorter-term consequences of ecstasy “overdoses” and has found that the high rate of death is due to a different strain of ecstasy appearing on the market in the mid 1990s.

“Normal ecstasy contains the pharmacological ingredient known as MDMA as its main ingredient, but the new strain often contained no MDMA but rather a more potent chemical known as PMA,” Irvin said.

“PMA hasn’t been around since the early 1970s when it was responsible for the deaths of several people in Ontario, Canada, and now it’s reappeared,” Dr Irvine says. “We don’t know where the PMA came from, but we do know that it has been prevalent since the mid 1990s.”

Studies may indicate that the overall percentage of elicit teen drug use has declined over recent years. However, the teen use and subsequent teen abuse of prescription medication has steadily increased in this age group at an alarming rate. Many teens find the pills in their parent’s medicine cabinet IE., Oxycontin, Vicodin, Zanax, Klonopin and Ambien. Others share or buy them from peers. Shockingly, some teen drug abusers even rummage through their neighbors trash to find leftover prescriptions. Furthermore, teens may not risk buying illegal drugs when they can get high on many household products, such as aerosols and other inhalants.

Based on this information, it is important to remember that what we regard as “unsafe to children” extends to teens as well. Reconsider locking up anything that you might consider dangerous to a child. When you throw away an old prescription, seal it, and grind it up in cat litter or old coffee grounds. These simple precautions may save the life of someone, namely someone you love.

Many people think that marijuana is a harmless drug, however an accident last week proved that idea to be wrong.

Last week, an officer pulled a car over for a regular old traffic stop. The officer got off of his motorcycle and was at the side of the car he’d pulled over. Then, a pickup truck driven by a 20 year old male just out of his teens swerved and hit both the officer and the car he’d pulled over. The driver of the car was killed and the officer is now in critical condition.

What caused the pickup truck to swerve? Well, that hasn’t been figured out yet. However, the driver was found to be under the influence of marijuana and a pound of marijuana was found in his truck. So, not only is this guy being charged with a DUI and drug trafficking, but now he is also facing the charge of vehicular manslaughter!

So, next time you think “It’s just weed!” think again. This drug can be just as deadly and dangerous as any other mind-altering substance.

Cough Medicine Abuse

About 3.1 million people between the ages of 12-25 have used cough and cold medicine to get high, the government reported Wednesday.

Dextromethorphan, or DXM, is cough suppressant that teens drug abusers are looking for in many over the counter cough, allergy and cold medications. When DXM is used as directed it is a safe and helpful medication with very little side effects. Although when taken at doses that exceed the recommended dose DXM has mind altering properties and potentially dangerous side effects. When taken at these high doses DXM can produce similar stimulating and euphoric effects to the drug ecstacy on the user, and at even higher doses DXM has been known to cause hallucinations. These hallucinations can include out-of-body experiences where teen drug users can feel complete disconnection from their body and surroundings.

DXM can have many negative side effects while taken at a mind-altering dose such as nausea, loss of consciousness and slowed breathing. Many long term effects of DXM are unknown but there is confirmation that long term abuse may lead to learning and memory impairment.

ADHD medications… Helpful or harmful?

These days there are so many teens and young people are being diagnosed with ADHD or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Thank goodness that we have a number of various medications with which to treat this disorder in teens. However, many of these medications lead to more problems than not. The two most commonly used medications for ADHD are Ritalin and Adderall and both of these medications are classified as scheduled II drugs in the amphetamine class. Although classified as amphetamines when used as directed by a medical professional these medications help those with ADHD and ADD to focus for longer periods of time and fully complete tasks.

However, these stimulants also have a high percentage of teen misuse, teen abuse and teen dependence. It has been found that many teens and school-aged children have been trading, buying and selling their prescriptions with one another. Many of them also have taken to snorting these medications thinking that because it is a prescription it is a safer alternative to cocaine. The truth is that when snorted or injected the potency of the drugs increase because it enters the bloodstream directly and if not prescribed to the user the risk is equal or more greater than cocaine. Most teens and adolescents that enter drug rehab have at one time or another abused their own or somebodyelse’s prescription for Adderall, Ritalin or some other stimulant based medication.

A frightening number of teens today are using and abusing drugs. Parents need to be educated on the signs and symptoms of teen drug use in order to keep their teens safe. The two categories or teen drug abuse symptoms are physiological and behavioral.
Physiological:
-Sleeplessness
-Exhaustion
-Blackouts
-Flashbacks
-Red Eyes
-Glassy Eyes
-Dilated Pupils
-Pinned Pupils
-Runny Nose
-Cough
-Needle Marks
-Withdrawal Symptoms
-Increase or Loss in Appetite
-Weight Loss or Gain
-Poor Coordination
-Shakes or Tremors
-Nausea
-Vomiting
-Sweating
-Hyperactivity
Behavioral:
-Extreme Change in Attitude
-Change of Friends
-Social Isolation
-Change or Loss of Interest in hobbies
-Slipping Grades
-Low Self Esteem
-Apathy
-Anger
-Paranoia
-Depression
-Secretive Behavior
-Dishonesty
-Unexplained need for money or stealing
One of these symptoms alone may not be a sign of teen drug use, but if a teen has several of these symptoms there is a strong change that the teen is using drugs. If parents are aware of the signs and symptoms of teen drug abuse it will make early detection easier and help prevent teens from slipping into teen drug addiction.

In my five years of sobriety, I have noticed many factors that play a role in relapse. Two of things contributing to relapse are a cease in service work and a shift in personal priorities. Service work and working with others is one the most important contributors to staying sober. In the movie My Name is Bill W, Which is a movie about Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob Silkworth the co-founders of Alcoholics Anonymous. Bill Wilson’s wife has a conversation with Dr. Silkworth. Lois Wilson was complaining about BIll spending all his time, working with other Alcoholics that were not managing to stay sober. Dr Silkworth asked her if “he was staying sober?” Lois said “yes”, it was then, she realized that working with others was helping bill stay sober.
For alcoholics, Staying sober for 24 hours is a miracle, so to accomplish this, sobriety must be the top priority in their life. I have personally seen dozens of alcoholics who forget their primary purpose. They once again make work, school,relationships, etc. their top priority and end up drinking again. So alcoholics must never forget their primary purpose in life, to stay sober.

I grew up and spent my teen years in Los Angeles, where drugs were easy to find, and alcohol was around all the time. My parents were big drinkers, so they never noticed any booze missing. In middle school, I got into drugs and alcohol a lot. My friends and I stole alcohol, and bought drugs with stolen money. We were rebellious teenagers with a thirst for terrorizing the city. I know what its like to be a teenage drug addict and alcoholic. I relate to a lot of the kids here at the teen-drug-rehab, and I can understand where they’re coming from. I was there once myself. I think its important for the kids here to know that the staff has been through similar circumstances. In my experience, the kids learn to trust and respect the staff and others when they know that they are being understood and heard. Years later, I reconnected with a bunch of my old friends from middle school, and even elementary school. We are all in AA now. Its amazing to see so many faces that I grew up with in the rooms of Alcoholics Anonymous. None of us are alone, and we can all lean on each other.

Drug addiction and Alcoholism is a family disease. Teens that have parents who are drug addicts or alcoholics need to be particularly careful because they have a greater risk of becoming chemically dependent. One in four children will be exposed to alcoholism or drug addiction before turning eighteen. Children of alcoholics are more likely to have behavioral problems, lower IQ’s, and to inherit the disease of alcoholism.

Teens with alcoholic parents are genetically prone to alcoholism. That means that if a teen knows they are predisposed to alcoholism they need to stay away from alcohol and drugs at all costs. But these teens are in a catch 22. They have most likely witnessed their parents consume alcohol or do drugs many times making it seem normal. This makes teens with alcoholic or drug addicted parent more likely to drink and suffer the cost if they are an addict/alcoholic. All teens need to try to avoid drugs and alcohol but teens with chemically dependent parents need to be particularly aware of the risks involved in drinking and using drugs.