AHS Views

Anyone who’s been a teenager knows that it can be kind of tough. It’s can be very hard to hold your own - be who you are - under peer pressure. What makes it even harder is that many kids don’t really know who they are yet. They’re like leaves blown by the wind. One of the most prevalent winds these days is prescription drugs - and if they do wind up taking them, they may need addiction help.

Here are some somewhat startling facts - courtesy of Connect With Kids:

• The largest group that abuses prescription drugs is young adults aged 18 to 25. The second largest is 12 to 17 year olds.
• 6.8 million teens (nearly one third of the U.S. teen population) think prescription drugs are not addictive - even if they didn’t get them from their doctor.
• 4.5 million teens say they’ve taken prescription drugs that were not prescribed to them.
• More than one in three teens feel pressured to abuse prescription drugs and nearly one in ten say that taking prescription drugs is important if you want to fit in. 

I don’t know how many of the 18 to 25 year olds started when they were younger but statistics show that the younger you start the greater the chances of you continuing. A lot of these young adults will need addiction help before they finally stop taking them.

Parents, you need to know this information and take it seriously. Find out if your kids - no matter what their age group - are using prescription drugs. And find the addiction help services that can help them before it goes too far. With one third of kids thinking these drugs are not addictive, they’re likely to get hooked without even being aware of what’s happening.  They’re also likely to combine one drug with another - that has caused a shocking number of deaths.

Get them the addiction help services they need fast. If you think there might be a problem but you’re not sure, or you’re not sure what to do about it, call Addiction Help Services. One of the addiction specialists can help you.