For Teens: Understand the Cycle of Addiction

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Drugs lie. They promise that you’ll be independent and feel good. But they give you something quite different. They make you dependent on the drugs, and that doesn’t feel good at all. Alcohol, the nicotine in cigarettes, marijuana, cocaine . . . each is a drug, and each can lead you along the same addiction process. It all seems so innocent those first few times—until you’re hooked. Some people will become addicted quicker than others, so it's important not to compare usage among your peers.

Trying it out

Experimentation means you try drinking or using a drug out of curiosity, to see what it’s all about. Most kids try alcohol and drugs with friends or an older sibling.

Misuse

Misuse means you use a drug to cope with certain situations. Some kids think using drugs will help them do better in school or at sports. “Weekend partyers’’ may think a drug helps them relax or forget problems.

Abuse

Abuse means you use a drug out of habit, regardless of the situation. Some kids use a drug just to get through the day. They think they need the drug, even though they know it’s causing problems.

You’re hooked

Addiction means you’re hooked both body and mind. Kids who are addicted can’t stop using their drug even when they want to, and use it on a regular basis (whether that’s every weekend, every day, or several times a day).