By Anika Gundlapalli
Numerous trends today are being revived from the sixties’ hippie movement. A trademark of the sixties, the hippie movement advocated for nonviolence and the rejection of societal norms. This movement was also known for the eccentric, unconventional characteristics of the people who partook in it– outlandish fashion styles, the habitual use of hallucinogenic drugs, and a propensity to go without footwear. An influx of these trends have appeared in mainstream culture again. But unfortunately, flared jeans and flamboyant prints aren’t the only trends staying from the sixties, drug usage among adolescents is too.
Throughout the sixties, there was a proliferation in the usage of psychoactive drugs such as marijuana and this increase is not only trending again in today’s teenagers, but also transforming into a disturbing phenomenon. While most adolescents of the sixties used drugs to “expand consciousness”, teenagers now are using an array of drugs with higher potencies for a plethora of reasons and at higher rates. Today, teenagers recreationally use drugs for experimentation. But for most adolescents, experimentation spirals into chronic addiction. Other teenagers abuse drugs, ingesting them as a coping mechanism, for personal problems like mental health issues. As mental health disorders rise, the rate of drug abuse among teens is following suit with a direct correlation between the two. Recreational drug usage disproportionately affects teenagers, especially those with mental health issues as these groups are more susceptible to their effects. The effects of drug abuse on teenagers include addiction, worsening of mental health disorders, and severe medical conditions. These implications make the drug abuse among adolescents impossible to neglect.
DRUGS AND MENTAL HEALTH DISORDERS
The correlation between mental health disorders and substance abuse is unambiguous. Thirty to forty-five percent of adolescents with mental health disorders have coexisting substance abuse issues. Young individuals seek harmful substances such as drugs in an attempt to manage undiagnosed mental health problems. Numerous studies demonstrate that ADHD, depression, anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder in adolescents increase the probability of drug abuse.
Substance abuse also provides an avenue for the development of mental health disorders. Mental health disorders can arise from or become exacerbated by the recreational use of prescription drugs and antidepressants. Teenagers with a family history of psychotic disorders can trigger psychosis by misusing drugs such as marijuana. Heavy usage of psychoactive drugs at high potencies can lead to symptoms of psychosis such as hallucinations, strange behavior, and an inability to distinguish between fantasy and reality. Ingesting high doses of marijuana also gives rise to self-destructive thoughts and depression.
Drugs are used by adolescents with anxiety disorders to momentarily mitigate anxious feelings such as those stemming from interacting with peers, presenting in class, or trying to satisfy expectations. When these feelings exceed their thresholds, drugs offer them an avenue to alleviate their anxiety for a brief duration. This only makes conditions worse. The effects of drugs conceal symptoms of anxiety, making it significantly more complicated to diagnose the disorder which prevents adolescents from accessing appropriate treatment. Teenagers who use drugs to assuage their anxiety may feel their conditions more acutely when they aren’t using. This leads to increased usage or even tolerance which transforms into addiction.
ADDICTION
Both mental health issues and experimentation lead to addiction. Drugs have a more formidable effect on teenage brains as they are not fully developed. Ninety percent of people who are addicted to drugs began drug usage as adolescents. Teenagers are especially affected by drugs because they are more likely to become addicted compared to adults. Adolescent brains possess the flexibility to change. On the other hand, developed adult brains are fairly stable. This flexibility in teenage brains raises the probability of drug usage changing interactions between neurons in the brain and rest of the body. As a result of these altered synaptic connections, usage of these stimulants amplifies the feelings of pleasure associated with drug usage. This leads to chronic addiction.
A significant percentage of the adolescent population has mental health issues, but these issues are not the only factor influencing teenagers to abuse drugs. Many teenagers use drugs to experiment. This is concerning as teenagers are far more likely to become addicted to drugs than adults. Results from a new study demonstrated that 11 percent of adolescents had become addicted to marijuana within a year of trying it compared to only 6.4 percent of adults. Appallingly, 20 percent of teenagers — twice the number of adults— became dependent on marijuana a mere three years after experimenting with it.
This trend is similar when it comes to prescription drugs. Results from the study displayed that teenagers who recreationally used prescription stimulants also demonstrated a greater tendency to become addicted. Adolescents experimentally using prescription drugs developed an addiction within one year at a rate of 14 percent, a stark contrast to a rate of 4 percent in adults. Other results showed that 11.2 percent of teenagers recreationally using opioids became addicted compared to a rate of only 7 percent in adults.
HEALTH COMPLICATIONS
Mental health disorders and addiction are not the only complications that result from adolescent substance abuse. Several marijuana users have been diagnosed with cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome, a condition that involves uncontrollable, periodic bouts of vomiting and severe nausea and abdominal pain. A patient diagnosed with this syndrome reported that she felt as if her body was “levitating” after she recurrently vomited over an hour.
Compared to previous decades, the potency of drugs such as marijuana is much higher. The amount of THC detected in weed has risen from a concentration of four percent in the nineties to twelve percent now. This makes marijuana more harmful than it’s ever been as THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) can cause serious side effects such as memory loss and problems with concentration.
Substance abuse can also result in overdose and death. Not only is there the risk of overdosing, heavy drug usage also raises the probability of fentanyl ingestion. Fentanyl is a highly addictive narcotic that can result in death when consumed in high doses. Common drugs used among adolescents are frequently laced with fentanyl. In fact, the DEA (United States Drug Enforcement Administration) reported over 4 in 10 pills are laced with fentanyl.
IMPORTANT MEASURES
Many states are legalizing the recreational use of drugs and this will disproportionately affect teenagers and significantly hurt those with mental health issues. It is essential that policymakers implement regulations directed towards protecting teenagers. Policymakers must reassess the effects of the legalization of marijuana through a lens which concerns adolescents.
Medical professionals are aware that drugs are a detrimental force on the adolescent mind and body. Therefore, they tirelessly work everyday to protect teenagers from drugs and must continue to do so by screening adolescent patients and suggesting treatment.
Lastly, parents play a role in preventing substance abuse and the effects it has on teenagers. Adolescents who are educated about risks of drug usage such as health disorders and addiction are 50% less likely to use drugs. The rate of recreational substance use in adolescents dropped by up to 14% when teens felt that their parents were monitoring their actions.
The effects of drug usage on today’s adolescents indisputably make substance abuse unignorable. Substance abuse and mental health disorders are a never ending cycle. Experimentation with drugs eventually becomes an addiction, particularly in teenagers. The potency of these stimulants is escalating, resulting in death and severe health issues. Actions must be taken to guarantee that today’s teenagers do not become another statistic for mental health disorders, addiction, and death.
Policymakers, medical professionals, and parents must work to ensure that the trends coming back from the sixties are limited to fashion and eccentric mannerisms– not drug use.
