The Best Strategy to Prevent Drug Abuse

During adolescence, it is a critical time to prevent drug addiction. These are the reasons kids fell into it.

                First, peer pressure. At a time when you were a kid, you’re trying to figure out whether you could fit in. Say no to drugs when the Miss Popular says “It’s FUN!”

                Next, young teens are trying to look like an adult. They suddenly drink, smoke and take drugs. It seems like they are wearing a sign that says, “Hey, look at me, I’m all grown up.” It’s making you vulnerable and it doesn’t make you more mature.

                Besides, children that have parents that smoke, drink or do drugs model their parents blindly. They tend to follow their parents footsteps, making it rather hard to break out of their habit. However, there are those that do the opposite. They go with a motto,” I will not be like my father.” And try to break the trait that ruin their family’s lives.

                Next, it’s just kids trying to be rebellious. Rather than responding to strict parents with restricting parenting, they tend to rebel by drinking alcohol and drugs, just to embarrass their parents or anger them.

                Furthermore, a young teen maybe using drugs to self-medicate. They do drugs because of the pressure in the school perhaps, and resort to drugs because they need to drown themselves in their sorrow. Perhaps never ending means to social problems, kids like them already have problems at home, with the teachers and probably the other classmates do not like them either. That’s probably why they self-medicate with taking drugs and abuse their body in doing so. Not everyone is as strong as we think they are.

                Now that we’ve identified reasons that teens take drugs, we are going to apply principles of prevention. Define a population and assess the level of risk and substance abuse for that group. Prevention programs and policies should focus with special attentions to those exposed to high risk and low protection.

                Next, reduce the availability of drugs through policies and community laws. Strengthens environmental for anti-drug-use attitudes by sharing accurate information strengthen social bonding. Try to bond with people holding against drug abuse in schools, families etc.

                Lastly, how do teens assist with drug awareness programs. First, when you work with schools, young people who are aware of the effect of consequences of taking drugs can make sound decisions about rejecting them. Good prevention programs include interactive methods and peer discussion group.

                Next, how do you approach middle school students? All junior high school teens should be told about the legal, psychological consequences of substance abuse. They should be sent to a positive thinking group. People should act in this group as role-playing in a mini drama, so that they can reinforce this thinking inside the people that a drug addicts.

                Moreover, in high school, get pointers from a trusted teacher, a counsellor about persuasive ways to deliver information to your peers.