More teens using drugs at school, study shows

By Eileen FitzGerald

Teens in a national study reported that nearly one in five of their classmates drink, use drugs and smoke during the school day, and more than a third said it is fairly easy to do so without getting caught.

More middle and high school students than ever know how to buy alcohol, marijuana or prescription drugs within a day and for the first time, private schools are no longer immune from drugs on campus.

The 17th annual back-to-school survey just released by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse focused this year on use at school -- and it's not good.

For the sixth consecutive year, 60 percent or more of teens in the survey reported that drugs are used, kept or sold at schools and 52 percent said there's a place on or near school grounds where students go during the day to use drugs, drink or smoke cigarettes.

In the survey by the center at Columbia University, 1,003 teens were surveyed. The results are national.

"Kids are feeling much more emboldened to use at school,'' said psychotherapist Elizabeth Jorgensen, who has a private practice treating teens in Ridgefield. "There is not the stigma among teenagers not to use drugs, even for high-achieving students. It used to be that kids understood that doing drugs would jeopardize their future, but that's no longer the case.''

The CASA report also shows, for the first time, a sharp rise in use at private schools.

In 2002, the survey found that 46 percent of students at public high schools said there was drug use at school compared to 24 percent in private high school.

But in 2012, 61 percent of public high school students said drugs were at school compared to 54 percent in private schools.

"It's not the schools' fault that kids are doing drugs, but that's where access is,'' Jorgensen said. "This is a culture problem. They think it's all right. Teenagers are concrete and decriminalizing marijuana makes them think it's legal."

Jorgensen has been in practice for 27 years, and said once it was the troubled teens with psychiatric problems who used drugs but now use is ubiquitous.

Research shows that more young people smoke marijuana than cigarettes these days, she said, and since June, when marijuana was decriminalized for medical use, she's had young clients come in shocked they'd been arrested.

"More teens don't feel any fear about trying drugs,'' she said.

Sandy Atanasoff, coordinator of pupil services for Danbury public schools, hadn't yet read the report, but said she would take it seriously.

"It does sound concerning to me," she said. "I'd like to think the security advocates would keep control of the scene at the high school. Are there things in place yes? Can we step up efforts? Yes."

She agreed that the Connecticut decriminalization for small amounts of marijuana has become problematic.

"Taking the risk is a little easier than it was in the past," she said.

She thinks a lot of the prescription drugs are coming from the home and wants more parents to attend the drug education programs the Housatonic Valley Coalition Against Drug Abuse offers.

If parents express strong opposition of drug or alcohol use, teens are less likely to use them, the study found.

The Newtown Parent Connection, which helps parents struggling with their teens, has more parents attending support groups, co-founder Dorrie Carolan said Thursday.

"We have four to five new people every week. These people are struggling with their kids. They don't know what to do," she said.

Schools need to educate staff about substance abuse, she said, and schools, parents, and police need to work together to combat drug and alcohol abuse.

Carolan also thinks schools and parents need to be tougher about setting boundaries and then following through on consequences as soon as teenagers get into substance abuse, instead of calling it a "rite of passage.''

"We're not just talking about something petty. We had a kid overdose yesterday but they revived him. We're talking about saving people's lives,'' she said.

For the first time, the study looked at social media, which found that 75 percent of teens said that seeing pictures on social network site of kids partying encourages other teens to want to party like that.

"It changes the norm,'' Jorgensen said. "The pictures show other teens that it's not such a big deal."

The high-risk kids or novelty-seeking teens who are pictured online, end up having a much stronger influence on their peer group, Jorgensen said.

Before social networking, kids had to be at the party to be part of the scene.

Read more: http://www.newstimes.com/local/article/More-teens-using-drugs-at-school-study-shows-3811037.php#ixzz2EOJ4bbYb

Kratom is the latest "legal" high for teens

"It's very very addictive. And, therefore long-term kids start using it... they like the feeling and then they move onto harder stuff later on." - Sandor Cheka III

Reported by: Phillip Ohnemus

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WIAT) - In 2010, Alabama passed legislation to ban other "legal highs" including Salvia, Spice, and K-2.

The law was written to outlaw any substance that mimics the effects of illicit drugs.

  

But that law may not be as far reaching as legislators wanted.

Recently they had to make a change to include bath salts, and now an ingredient in the natural pain reliever Vicozen may be next.

The drink is being abused by teens for one of the listed ingredients on the label, Kratom.

Kratom is not listed as a banned substance by the Department of Justice's Drug Enforcement Agency, but the "natural herb" is listed on its page for drugs and chemicals of concern.

Addiction Coalition Executive Director Sandor Cheka III says, "The issue with Kratom is it's a heroin substitute."

Cheka describes the substance as a gateway drug. "It's very very addictive. And, therefore long-term kids start using it... they like the feeling and then they move onto harder stuff later on."

But there is an online campaign to defend Kratom. One man on youtube who is serving as the face of the Kratom Association describes Kratom as "a wonderful natural incredible herb that ought to be respected and adored everywhere."

The person in the video is not identified. He argues "Kratom" is revered in the far East for its medicinal effects.

But the DEA points out there is no legitimate medicinal use for Kratom in the United States.

You can read the DEA fact sheet here.

To see what the Kratom Association is saying about efforts to ban the herb click here.

OTC use by teens is now increasing

From Cleveland Daily Banver Staff Reports

Over-the-counter drugs, especially cough and cold medications, are becoming very popular as recreational drugs for teenagers as young as 3 to 16 years old. 

“As parents, relatives, teachers, and concerned adults, we spend a great deal of our time assisting teens in circumventing the challenges that could be detrimental to their lives,” said Tanya Southerland, director of the Going Respectively Against Addictive Behaviors coalition.

“We talk to them about the hazards of underage alcohol use, and the problems associated with abusing marijuana and other dangerous drugs such as heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine. However, teens can face dangers from within the home as well.” 

According to the National Council on Patient Information and Education, every day 2,700 teens try a prescription medicine for the first time. These drugs are variously used to get high, fall asleep, stay awake or deal with stress. Teenagers use these medications in the same ways their peers abuse alcohol, tobacco, and other narcotics to fit in and cope with their lives. 

Data collected from a 2008-09 Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Services School Health Survey revealed only 9 percent of sixth-graders had abused OTC medications in their lifetimes. This number increased to 22 percent by eighth grade and peaked at 24 percent in twelfth grade. 

By comparison, only 3 percent of sixth-graders had abused prescription drugs in their lifetime. The number increased to 26 percent by the 12th grade. Seniors in high school had the highest 30-day usage rate at 15 percent. Thirty-day usage refers to those who have used a controlled substance within the last 30 days. These same middle school and high school students rated the availability of the drugs. Approximately 79 percent of the sixth-graders stated it would be “very hard” to obtain medication without a prescription. By twelfth grade, the number dropped to only 28 percent. 

“Teens believe that because prescription and OTC medications are legal, they are safer than their illicit counterparts, making these medications the statistical (illegal) drug of choice after marijuana,” Southerland said. “Prescription drugs are also relatively easy to obtain, with 56 percent of people who use Rx medications nonmedically saying they obtain these drugs from friends and relatives. This means drugs are freely shared, or taken from medicine cabinets or other accessible places within the home.” 

One of the most commonly used OTC medications teens are abusing is cough and cold remedies. The side effects include a narcotic “high” or euphoria similar to the effects of alcohol. Many of these products are widely available and can be purchased at supermarkets, drugstores, and convenience stores. Many OTC drugs intended to treat headaches, sinus pressure, or cold/flu symptoms contain the active ingredient dextromethorphan (DXM). They are the ones teens use to get high. 

“When taken in high doses, DXM can produce the narcotic ‘high’ that abusers crave, but it can be extremely dangerous in excessive amounts,” Southerland said. 

DXM is not the only OTC drug teenagers abuse. The list also includes diet pills, sleep aids, motion sickness medication, laxatives, diuretics, and emetics (chemical compounds administered to induce vomiting). 

“All of these are legal, cheap, and very easy to obtain, often without any parental oversight. While the abuse of over-the-counter ephedrine used is the making of methamphetamines has been controlled, other substances have come along to replace it as the drug of choice for a quick fix,” Southerland said. 

Added Southerland, “How do we protect the rights of those who need these medications to relieve their ailments, while also preventing their abuse? We have to sound the alarm to parents and adult caregivers, that prescription drugs and over-the-counter medications are a source of grave concern. Teens are abusing these drugs, and some are even dying because of it. Adults need to lock up their meds, keep track of their medication quantities, and learn how to properly dispose of unused medications.

Southerland said adults can be a part of the solution. 

“Talk to your teen about the risks of taking any medication without a doctor's supervision. Prescription and OTC drugs are powerful and, when abused, can be just as dangerous as street drugs,” Southerland said. 

The GRAAB Coalition is committed to educating the community on the dangers of substance abuse, Southerland stated. In the coming weeks, GRAAB will release a comprehensive plan to outline goals and strategies for addressing prescription drugs and over the counter medications abuse in the community. To be a part of the strategic planning and to learn more about the GRAAB Coalition, please contact Tanya Southerland, executive director, GRAAB Coalition at 423-472-5800 or 423-653-9969.

The mission of the GRABB Coalition is to bring together concerned members of the community and service providers to facilitate lowering the misuse of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs, as well as other addictive behaviors by providing effective education, recovery, and support for youth, families, and the community.

Paradigm Malibu is devoted to the provision of state of the art Teen Drug Treatment, Adolescent Behavioral Health, Mental Health and Emotional Health Treatment. To learn more about our services, please visit our web site at: www.paradigmmalibu.com

 

Synthetic Pot Dangers: Side Effects Send Thousands of Teens to ER

BY JANELLE VAESA

In 2010, synthetic pot sent 11,406 people (mostly teenagers and young adults to the hospital, according to the Drug Abuse Warning Network. This report, the first one on synthetic pot, examines the impacts that the drug has on society. Synthetic pot, also known as herbal incense, showed up in convenience stores and online in 2009, reports USA Today, and has a variety of street names including; K2, Spice, Bliss, Fake Weed, Black Mamba, Bombay Blue, Genie, and Zohai.

Fake Pot: Health Effects

Synthetic pot is sold in small silver bags containing leaves and plant material that resembles potpourri. The synthetic pot is smoked in a pipe or a joint, and can be made into tea. Similar to marijuana, it can cause the user to experience panic attacks, paranoia, and giddiness. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, there have not been any scientific studies conducted on synthetic pot’s effects on the brain; since the chemical composition of Spice is unknown, and it can be made up of a variety of compounds, the drug can cause dramatically different results than what the user may expect. Those users who have been taken to Poison Control Centers have exhibited the following symptoms: rapid heat rate, vomiting, agitation, confusion, increase in blood pressure, and a decrease in blood flow to the heart, which has even resulted in a few heart attacks.

Drug Trends

While Spice isn’t as common as other illegal drugs, the number of users continues to climb, which is a cause for concern. According to the National Institutes on Drug Abuse, the “Monitoring the Future Study” in 2011 reported that 36.4 percent of high school seniors used marijuana and 11.4 percent of seniors used Spice. Not only that, one-third of patients admitted to emergency rooms due to fake pot were ages 12 – 17; the other 35 percent were young adults ages 18 to 24.

Spice: Legal Status

On July 10, 2010 President Obama signed into effect the Synthetic Drug Abuse Prevention Act of 2012, which places synthetic marijuana, bath salts, and other synthetic drugs under Schedule 1 of the Control Substance Act. According to The Partnership at Drugfree.org, drug users can easily alter the chemical compounds to make new synthetic drugs that are similar to the banned ones.

Paradigm Malibu is devoted to the provision of state of the art Teen Drug Treatment, Adolescent Behavioral Health, Mental Health and Emotional Health Treatment. To learn more about our services, please visit our web site at: www.paradigmmalibu.com

Effective Treatments for Teens with Social Anxiety Disorder

By Christine Cadena

Teenagers experience a unique set of emotional health complications, often attributed to hormonal fluctuations. For teens that develop anxiety early in childhood, there is often a risk for developing social anxiety disorders in adolescence - a condition that requires effective treatment using a collaborative approach into adulthood.

Collaborative approaches to treating mental health disorders often encompass the use of medications, therapy, and alternative medicine in a supportive role. For teens that have social anxiety, medications will be necessary as a first line of treatment as they work to minimize the physical symptoms of anxiety. Once medications are used, and symptoms of anxiety are controlled, then other forms of treatment can work to resolve underlying causes of anxiety.

For most teens, treating social anxiety disorder will require exposure therapy as well as cognitive-behavioral therapy. Because your teen will need to be "exposed" in some social situations, and the techniques of these therapies tested, it is not uncommon for additional anxiety to develop. As a parent, it is important to support the treatment nonetheless.

Beyond medications and therapy, teens may also benefit from support groups, the use of acupuncture, hypnosis, and even aromatherapy. Before considering these effective treatments for your teen, be sure to follow up on traditional care and then use these as supportive treatment. Keep in mind, most teenagers need customized care and can not seek out treatment that is not customized as what works for one teen may not work for another. When treating social anxiety, it is important to also keep a close eye on the use of social networking as this can often make the treatment ineffective if your teen is anxious when interacting with peers online.

Social anxiety in adults is often related to a condition of childhood and can adversely impact an adult in many ways. To reduce the risk for adult complications with social anxiety, always work to effectively treat the condition, in adolescence, using these effective remedies.

From Teenage Singer and Actress to Addicted and Homeless

As featured on Dr. Phil

At 19, Monet Monico was fast becoming an acting and singing sensation, opening for teen heartthrob Jesse McCartney and appearing on Disney’s The Suite Life of Zack and Cody and Nickelodeon’s Zoey 101. But just two years later, Monet’s family says the Hollywood hopeful has gone from promising young talent to homeless heroin addict, and they’re desperate for help. Don’t miss what happens when Monet and her boyfriend, Chris, face her family for the first time in six months on Dr. Phil’s stage. Will Monet accept help before it's too late?

From Riches to Rags

“It’s raw, it’s real; it’s her life,” Dr. Phil says of Monet Monico, the once-Hollywood hopeful. Monet’s mother, Diane, says that since the death of Monet’s father, the aspiring star has been on a downward spiral with drugs, alongside her boyfriend, Chris. For the last six months, the couple has lived on the streets, where Dianne says Monet has nearly overdosed two times. “She’s killing herself,” Diane says. 

Reunited

Monet hasn’t seen her family in six months and says her mother is to blame. “I feel very neglected,” she tells her. Monet also blames her boyfriend, Chris, who she says got her hooked on opiates by telling her she was taking something else. “It really hit me when I found out what they were, but I couldn’t stop because I liked it so much.” She says that soon led to a heroin addiction. 

"Partners in Self-Destruction?"

Monet’s family says they blame her boyfriend, Chris, for her addiction. They call Chris manipulating, controlling, cruel, obsessive and abusive. What does Dr. Phil think is best for the couple? Then, Ben Levenson of Origins Recovery Centers weighs in. “We want to help you return to your higher calling,” Ben says. “What that process looks like is the road to recovery.” Dr. Phil offers Monet and Chris the opportunity to go to rehab, and both accept the help.

Former Teen Addict Now Helps Those In Trouble

(Editor's Note: Thanks to reader Steve Stahovich  for contributing this story).

Like many other communities in south Orange County, Laguna Niguel has a problem; Kids are hooked on heroin and prescription drugs.

These aren’t bad kids. They are good kids who make bad decisions. Despite the anti-drug education in schools, kids are still experimenting with high-powered prescription drugs. Prolonged abuse of opiates can lead to heroin. The detox process from these drugs is excruciating.  

Each year we lose teens and young adults to these drugs. Government studies show that 4,000 kids try drugs for the first time every day. Around 2,500 of those kids experiment with prescription drugs. Our community has lost several lives to prescription abuse.  We shouldn’t have to lose another teen with a bright future. 

More than 20 years ago, I was a teen addict. I struggled with peer pressure. I found sobriety and dedicated my life to treating users. As I evaluated and treated teens, parents would ask me what they could have done to prevent this. Mom and dad are distraught that their child has been using, because they never could have imagined it.   

How do we combat it? Parents need to have continual discussions with their kids about drugs. It’s imperative that they reinforce the message that alcohol and drugs are bad. I also believe that home drug testing is the answer. I helped create the Teensavers Home Drug Test Kit to provide parents with a helper in the home. We have every kind of wrench, screwdriver, and thingamajig in our toolboxes and garages to fix the problems with our homes and cars. But we don’t keep a tool on hand that can help bring a solution to our family problems.

For me, a home drug test kit is as critical tool in your medicine cabinet as a thermometer. After all, many teens these days are fueling their drug habit at the family medicine cabinet. Some parents are unknowingly their child’s drug dealer. 

Drug addiction can decimate a family. It can tear apart relationships, violate trusts, and lead to financial strain or ruin. I nearly destroyed my family with my problem, because I was one of those teenagers who thought I knew everything when I was 16 years old. Now a father of two, I am determined to keep my family drug-free. 

I know there are parents who are skeptical.  Home drug testing doesn’t have to strain relationships between parent and child, and can actually help build trust.  It should not be accusatory. It can be introduced to teens by saying, “there is a growing problem in our schools and community, and I want to protect you from it.”

Parents may never decide to utilize such a kit, but they should be educated on what the popular drugs of choice are for kids. They also should know some of the street terms for these drugs. It’s quite possible that your teen is using a nickname for a narcotic right in front of you.  

I encourage parents to check out our parental guide online here or email me atsupport@myteensavers.com if you have any questions.  

Heroin use soars for suburban teens

Heroin use among teenagers is increasing at an alarming rate as experts say the drug, long considered to be prevalent only in urban areas, is infiltrating the suburbs.

All across suburban America, young people are getting hooked on a drug parents never suspected they needed to fear.

“Kids in the city know not to touch it, but the message never got out to the suburbs,” former Chicago Police Capt. John Roberts told NBC News.

Roberts’ 19-year-old son died of a heroin overdose after the family moved to Chicago’s suburbs. Roberts, newly retired from the police department, thought his children would be safer.

“We didn’t think it would ever be a problem out here,” he said.

National data from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration shows that the number of teens dying from heroin abuse has skyrocketed. In 1999, 198 people between the ages of 15 and 24 died of a heroin overdose, compared to 510 deaths in 2009, the latest year data was taken.

More teens are seeking treatment for heroin abuse, too — the figure jumped from 4,414 to more than 21,000 (about 80 percent) between 1999 and 2009. Ninety percent of teen heroin addicts are white, according to the data.

According to NBC News, prescription painkillers are the link between suburban teens and heroin. Teens addicted to pills like Oxycodone can find the same high in heroin, which is cheaper, more intense and easier to buy.

Roberts says his son, Billy, first became addicted to prescription painkillers, but when he and his friends could no longer afford their habit, they turned to heroin, which they could buy for 1/10 of the price.

“It’s hard to talk about the heroin problem without talking about the prescription drug problem,” Rafael Lemaitre, of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy told NBC News.

Death from prescription drugs tripled between 2000 and 2008, according to national data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

NBC News reports that out of dozens of interviews with former heroin addicts, nearly all reported getting hooked the same way. They started with prescription drugs they purchased from friends, and when they became too addicted to afford the number of pills they needed to get high, they switched to cheaper heroin.

A March 2010 report by ABC News highlights efforts by drug traffickers in Mexico and Columbia to market heroin to suburban teens, by splashing popular logos, like Prada or Chevrolet, on the small drug packets.

Some dealers even give it away for free in the suburbs, then sell to the kids once they become hooked.

Mexico has seen a huge increase in heroin production to meet the demand — from 7 metric tons in 2002 to 50 metric tons in 2012, according to the National Drug Intelligence Center.

The supply ensures the drug makes it across the United States.

“Twenty years ago, half of the heroin addicts in treatment lived in two states — New York and California,” Dr. Joe Gay, director of Health Recovery Services in Ohio, told MSNBC. “[Now, in Ohio] we’re seeing it spread out of the cities, into the suburbs and into the rural areas.”

rmurray@nydailynews.com