Addiction Among Adolescents
Adolescents and Addiction
Liberty University Illegal Drug Use Adolescent years can be considered one of the toughest time periods of development in a person’s life. It can be marked with the three p’s: peer pressure, pimples, and unfortunately pushers. Of all the things that an adolescent can experience, one of the most detrimental, to what should otherwise be the healthiest time of life, is the use and abuse of drugs and alcohol (Feldman, 2014). Illegal drug use among adolescents seems to be commonplace. It was reported that one out of 15 high school seniors smoked marijuana chronically, with this particular drug being at a thirty-year all time high (Feldman, 2014). It has been said that marijuana is the gate way drug to all …show more content…
Youth often cite the need to get away from the pressures of life, the pleasurable experience, or just the sheer excitement of doing an illegal activity as reasons why the participate in this type of activity (Feldman, 2014). Another excuse given for using illegal drugs is to increase academic performance. Although I think it was an error with the omission of the word “school”, strangely enough, Feldman (2014) stated, “ A growing number of high students are using drugs such as Adderall”, to increase focus and enable students to study for long periods of time (pp.371-372).
Effects of drug abuse One of the dangers of doing drugs is that it can become habit forming or addictive. When a person becomes addicted to drugs, he or she has to have the drug in order to function. This is a biological addiction, where an actual change in the nervous system has occurred (Feldman, 2014). At this point, the person may not want to continue drug use, but due to the physiological and psychological changes caused by the drugs, a chemical dependency occurs. “People grow to depend on drugs to cope with everyday stress of life” (Feldman, 2014).
Alcohol …show more content…
On most college campuses it is not uncommon for underage drinking to happen. Seventy-five percent of students reported consuming at least one alcoholic beverage within a 30 day time frame, while forty percent admitted to having five or more drinks within a fourteen day period (Feldman, 2014). Binge drinking, defined as having five or more drinks for males and four or more for females at one sitting, is a problem on college campuses (Feldman, 2014). When comparing brain images of those that binge and those that do not, tissue damage in areas of the white matter of the brain can be seen ( McQueeny et al., 2009, as cited in Feldman, 2014). Alcoholics are unable to regulate their drinking which leads to an increase in consumption of liquor. Under age alcohol consumption does not appear to be exclusive to college students. Sadly, over fifty percent of high school seniors and one out of five eighth graders said they have been inebriated at least one time in the short time of their life span (Ford,2007; Johnston et al.,2009, as cited in Feldman,
Liberty University Illegal Drug Use Adolescent years can be considered one of the toughest time periods of development in a person’s life. It can be marked with the three p’s: peer pressure, pimples, and unfortunately pushers. Of all the things that an adolescent can experience, one of the most detrimental, to what should otherwise be the healthiest time of life, is the use and abuse of drugs and alcohol (Feldman, 2014). Illegal drug use among adolescents seems to be commonplace. It was reported that one out of 15 high school seniors smoked marijuana chronically, with this particular drug being at a thirty-year all time high (Feldman, 2014). It has been said that marijuana is the gate way drug to all …show more content…
Youth often cite the need to get away from the pressures of life, the pleasurable experience, or just the sheer excitement of doing an illegal activity as reasons why the participate in this type of activity (Feldman, 2014). Another excuse given for using illegal drugs is to increase academic performance. Although I think it was an error with the omission of the word “school”, strangely enough, Feldman (2014) stated, “ A growing number of high students are using drugs such as Adderall”, to increase focus and enable students to study for long periods of time (pp.371-372).
Effects of drug abuse One of the dangers of doing drugs is that it can become habit forming or addictive. When a person becomes addicted to drugs, he or she has to have the drug in order to function. This is a biological addiction, where an actual change in the nervous system has occurred (Feldman, 2014). At this point, the person may not want to continue drug use, but due to the physiological and psychological changes caused by the drugs, a chemical dependency occurs. “People grow to depend on drugs to cope with everyday stress of life” (Feldman, 2014).
Alcohol …show more content…
On most college campuses it is not uncommon for underage drinking to happen. Seventy-five percent of students reported consuming at least one alcoholic beverage within a 30 day time frame, while forty percent admitted to having five or more drinks within a fourteen day period (Feldman, 2014). Binge drinking, defined as having five or more drinks for males and four or more for females at one sitting, is a problem on college campuses (Feldman, 2014). When comparing brain images of those that binge and those that do not, tissue damage in areas of the white matter of the brain can be seen ( McQueeny et al., 2009, as cited in Feldman, 2014). Alcoholics are unable to regulate their drinking which leads to an increase in consumption of liquor. Under age alcohol consumption does not appear to be exclusive to college students. Sadly, over fifty percent of high school seniors and one out of five eighth graders said they have been inebriated at least one time in the short time of their life span (Ford,2007; Johnston et al.,2009, as cited in Feldman,