The users can engage in unprotected sex, drive while intoxicated, or engage in violent activities such as fights or riots with other people. These activities may have negative consequences later on. For instance, a girl engaging in sex while high in cocaine may become pregnant and later on become teenage mother or decide to have an abortion, which will leave them physically and emotionally hurt or disturbed. On the other hand, by driving while under the influence of drugs and engaging in violent acts, the users will be put behind bars, or worse, die.
Ecstasy, marijuana, and other illicit drugs have similar effects on the users, and they may suffer the same consequences as a result of using these drugs (Dowshen, 2008). Drugs can also be helpful, but more often than not, they have several harmful effects to a person especially if they abuse these drugs. Effects can be both physical and emotional to a person. When abused, these illegal drugs can actually bring serious damage to a human’s body, most especially to adolescents who are in the maturing stage.
The physical condition effects of adolescent drug use can be different, depending on such factors as frequency of use, the type of drug taken, how much is used, how quickly the brain absorbs it, what other drugs are taken at the same time, the differences in body size and chemistry, the length of time the drugs are used, and other components (Dowshen, 2008). Reasons for Drug Abuse Since there are a lot of different types of drugs that a teenager takes, there are also several reasons why people in this stage of development engage in drug abuse.
There are some people who take drugs because they just basically enjoy the pleasure that they believe those drugs can give them. In addition, since in the fifth stage of Erikson, it is said that a person or an adolescent has a high sense of curiosity in life, it is therefore a possibility that adolescents will take drugs because they are just curious about their effects, and they would just like to know what these drugs will give them when they take them. Peer pressure is also another reason.
A lot of times, an individual may have also been convinced and persuaded by another to take drugs because he or she wants to belong into a group and become famous in school or in the neighborhood. Others may have also lured him or her to use drugs with the idea he or she will be able to think more clearly. Moreover, many teens use drugs because they are depressed with their own problems in life, whether it is a school, family, or even love problem. Thus, it is also one reason that triggers them to use drugs because they believe that drugs will help them solve their problems.
However, the truth is that drugs do not help them at all. Drugs just simply help hide the feelings, emotions, and problem of an adolescent. When the effects of the drug wear off, the feelings and problems remain or become worse. Furthermore, if the child has a history of substance abuse in the family, there is a possibility that the adolescent will do the same since nature and the environment has a very great influence on a child, especially to a curious and experimental adolescent.
For example, an adolescent has a father who engages in substance abuse. He or she may always be exposed to the father’s condition because they live in the same house and they see each other everyday, giving the child an idea and an inclination that there is nothing wrong with engaging in substance abuse because he or she is seeing it from his or her father. Lastly, environment has a great influence when it comes to substance use especially in adolescents.
Environment such as family, neighborhood, and the vast impact of media to teenagers is very influential. Use of substance can always be seen on television, news, movies, and other sources of media that expose an adolescent to the use of drugs, making them feel curious and convinced to try a certain substance. These mentioned factors are all reasons why the number of teenagers today who uses illicit drugs is relatively increasing (Klein, 2003).