Teenage Rehab - Teenage Addiction Substances
There is no single or a particular substance that teenagers can be said to get addicted to. Teenagers are at risk of misusing or abusing any addiction substance that is available, making the need for teenage rehab a living reality amongst parents.
All over the world, children and teens start to experiment using drugs by taking common medications that are readily available. Some of the medications that cause hallucination as side effects are the common starters. Parents need to be careful with the common drugs that they keep at home and keep them away from the reach of children.
Some of the common drugs and substances that children and teens start to misuse at an early age and that can necessitate the need for teenage rehab include:
- Over-the-counter drugs - Some simple over the counter drugs have side effects that if sustained for a long time result in dependency. Robitussin, a simple cough expectorant has hallucination side effect that a child or a teen may find appropriate to use to get 'high'. Others in the same class include Benadryl and Coricidin tablets. Expectorants that cause hallucination contain dextromethorphan, an ingredient that caused hallucination and can damage the brain and in extreme cases death. Benzodiazepine, a drug used to treat anxiety is another drug whose misuse is on the rise amongst teens. The drug causes sedation, depression and can cause psychosis.
- Marijuana - This is another drug that teens use in order to get 'high'. The drug is common at back streets of major cities peddled by small scale retailers.
- Cocaine - This is the most abused drug amongst teenagers after marijuana and in most cases, teens who use marijuana end up using cocaine, whose effects are serious.
- Alcohol - Drinking of excessive alcohol is not considered by many parents as a form of drug. Such parents only come to realize that it is a drug when its effects start to manifest in their teens. Drinking alcohol has been directly linked to violent behavior amongst teens who drink.
The age at which children start to engage in drug and alcohol abuse is worrying all over the world. Children as young as 9 years have been found with marijuana in schools packed in their bags.
In studies undertaken in the US, teens who engage in drugs and drink alcohol were found to involve themselves in sexual activities that they would not otherwise got involved in. Such sexual behaviors are also risky to their lives as in most cases it is unprotected. This puts them at risk of early pregnancy, diseases and other dangers.
With all the dangers that drug and substance abuse pose to teens, it is important for parents to take a leading role in engaging their teens in discussions to make them aware of the dangers they face if they resort to do drugs. It has been observed that teens who are very close to their parents and continuously engage in discussions with them are less likely to engage in acts of smoking, drinking and doing drugs. They are also likely to engage in irresponsible sexual behaviors.