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Drugs have always been available in some way or another. One of the most widely used psychoactive drugs is caffeine and it is by far the easiest drug to obtain. Considering all of the drugs we use on a regular basis such as aspirin, cough medicine, and caffeine, it's no surprise that some teens decide to dabble in the more serious kinds of drugs.

No one person is exempt from the temptation of getting high. Teens who were raised in wonderful homes become drug addicts right along side the troubled kids who we most associate this with. But to focus on prescription drugs is another thing. Why do they go after the drugs that are normally less obtainable?

Perhaps they had a parent who was prescribed something, or maybe a friend offered them one. But at some point they decided to try one, and the result was probably comforting. That is how addiction starts really. A person tries something once and likes it enough to try it a second time and a third time.

What type of people like to abuse prescription drugs? Again, there are no boundaries. Some teens are doing it purely for fun while others may have underlying problems that push them to seek comfort. Unfortunately, those are the ones that tend to spiral out of control because they don't know how else to deal with their problems. Eventually the end result may be something worse than it was to begin with. I knew a guy who abused pills while he was in high school. He was into everything and anything, and from what I remember he dropped out. Basically he was a very nice guy, but always a little spaced out and I just assumed he was always on something. Eventually he ended up taking his own life by jumping off a bridge, and it was confirmed he did it while on some pills he took. It was sad because if only in his right mind, he would not of done that. Or at least he would of been capable of looking at his problems and perhaps working through them.

There will always be teens abusing drugs. During these influential years, a person is very curious and vulnerable to try new things. It can easily be peer pressure, or just a random choice made. I know I tried several drugs, and looking back, I am half and half. Part of me is glad I had the experiences I did, but I also had the ability to control myself and not get addicted. Not everyone is so lucky. Another part of me wishes I had never done it at all. I wonder if I may be a different person now if I hadn't.

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