Being a teenager tends to be a difficult time for many, and resorting to drugs and alcohol consumption is becoming more and more common. Struggling to find themselves in high school and figuring out an idea of what they want to do for the rest of their life is a scary thing, so some teens resort to drugs and alcohol.
The rates of teenage drinking have been growing rapidly every year, and starting at an earlier age as well. 60% of teens have tried drinking before the age of 18; and that’s still three years before it even becomes legal. It’s no secret peer pressure has a drastic effect on these statistics, but the oppressive struggles that come with being a changing teenager.
Our school alone, has a high number of students, which means an even larger amount of active drinkers, vapers, and even some drug users. There have been countless occasions when a student will walk into the bathroom and find other students crowding around and vaping.
“I was in class and I watched one girl go to sign out to use the bathroom, and as she passed one guy, she secretly took something in her hand from him. I have no doubt it was a juul or something,” one student noted.
This may be one reason as to why the repercussions for students caught vaping has changed. Now, the vape test kit is fifty dollars as opposed to 10, which was the previous cost that students would have to pay. The change made this year should have a harsher effect on the students that consequences result from their actions so hopefully the mistake won’t be made again. Even the fact that signs were posted on all of the bathrooms saying, “One Student Per Stall,” should show just how common it is for people to be crowded in the stalls, vaping together.
And even when vaping may seem bad, some teenagers have gone to extremes with the use of dab pens and smoking marijuana. While some people do smoke out of bongs and blunts at the occasional party, more and more teenagers have invested in dab pens. With these dab pens come carts that are used with them, which have lately proven to be rather dangerous. Numerous people have died or become very ill from carts used in dab pens, because it has become prevalent that many companies selling carts use chemicals and pesticides in them. These pesticides are ultimately very dangerous for human consumption.
Each one of these harmful activities initiate when teens succumb to peer pressure or feel intense amounts of stress. With tendencies to give into drug use or drinking, many people will do whatever to fit in or avoid their problems. Drinking alone is the most common among these, and it’s a depressant. Countless teenagers struggle with depression throughout high school and fail to see the negative side effects of their actions, that they consider to be “having fun.” While getting high or drunk with friends may seem like a good time, they aren’t realizing the mental damage they are doing to themselves and how it can lead to suicidal thoughts or other destructive decisions.
