Top 10 Reasons Why Teens Use Drugs

When teenagers use drugs, one of the first questions parents ask is why. There are thousands of potential reasons that adolescents get involved with drugs or alcohol. Here are 10 of the most common reasons:

1. Stress

According to the Partnership for a Drug-Free America’s 2007 Partnership Attitude Tracking Study (PATS), the number-one reason why teens use drugs is to deal with school stress. An accompanying study showed that parents severely underestimate the amount of stress their teen is under and the impact it has on their life.

2. Social Acceptance

When they were young, your children wanted nothing more than to please you. Now that they have become teenagers, they want nothing more than to please their peers. In previous PATS studies, the majority of teens (65 percent) reported using drugs to “feel cool.”

Teens’ self-worth depends on the approval of others, even if they know their behaviors are destructive and counter-productive. If your teen’s friends think it’s cool to use drugs or alcohol, or if your teen is searching for a peer group that will accept them, they may be lured into drug use by their desire for social acceptance.

3. Low Self-Esteem

Another common reason teens cite for using drugs, according to PATS studies, is to feel better about themselves. Teens who have low self-esteem are at high risk for falling in with the wrong crowd and using drugs.

4. Curiosity

Adolescence is a time for trying to establish an identity separate from one’s parents. The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry describes adolescence as a "time for trying new things." Some teens use alcohol and drugs because they’re curious about how drugs will make them feel and want to try everything life has to offer, even if it puts their future at risk.

5. Self-Medication

Some teens experiment with drugs and find the euphoria to be too enjoyable to resist. Problems at home, in school or with friends may seem to disappear when using drugs.

Although they may not know it, teens may be suffering from an underlying mental illness that they are trying to medicate by abusing illegal, prescription or over-the-counter drugs. Getting appropriate treatment for an illness like depression or anxiety may offer enough relief to dissuade teens from abusing drugs.

6. Boredom

Teenagers need stimulation and in some ways are programmed for thrill-seeking. This need can be met through involvement in healthy activities like sports, clubs, volunteer work or part-time employment, or it can be met in unhealthy ways like drug use. A bored teen is more likely to take risks that put their well-being in jeopardy.

7. Parental Influence

According to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University (CASA), parents are the key to keeping teens off drugs. By setting rules and monitoring their children, parents can lower the risk of teen substance abuse.

If your teen sees you, a friend’s parent or another authority figure using drugs, they may think the behavior is normal and acceptable. According to CASA’s National Survey of American Attitudes on Substance Abuse XIV: Teens and Parents, teens who have seen their parents drunk are more than twice as likely to get drunk in a typical month, and three times more likely to use marijuana and smoke cigarettes than teens who have not. If you drink or use drugs or expect that your teen will use drugs, chances are they will.

Teens need their parents and other adults to take a clear stand against drug use and encourage rising to challenges in positive ways.

8. Ease of Access

Drugs are relatively easy to come by, especially prescription pills and over-the-counter medications. Most teens report getting these drugs from their parents’ medicine cabinet or from friends. Because of the ease of access, abuse of prescription pain medications by teens is on the rise.

Once teens start using drugs, it can be difficult to stop. With extended use, teens can develop a psychological and physical dependence on drugs, which can escalate into a full-blown addiction.

9. Attention

Sometimes the “bad kids” get all of the attention. Parents, teachers and other adults tend to spend more time dealing with troublemakers than praising teens for living up to or exceeding expectations.

In some cases, parents are too busy with work, siblings or each other to give a teen as much attention as they crave. Rather than asking for more quality time with you, teens will act out.

Drug use also may be a sign that your teen has given up on personal success. If your teen has been disappointed with their performance in school, sports or their social life, they may feel that risk-taking is the only area in which they can achieve success.

10. Addiction

Addiction is a disease with a strong genetic component. It is possible for a teen to be predisposed to addiction, and for the disease to rear its head when certain emotional and environmental factors come together.

Drugs are a threat to every adolescent and every family. Whatever reason your teen has for using drugs or alcohol, the behavior is risky and illegal and requires your attention. In some cases, professional assistance from a teen substance abuse treatment program may be necessary.

SunHawk Adolescent Recovery Center is a 12 Step-based, long-term drug rehab program for teens that helps adolescents understand their reasons for using drugs and develop the coping skills to manage stress and peer pressure and stay off drugs for good.