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No. I think lack of parental supervision, guided direction, goals/ambition, and self-esteem lead to drug use.
I really wouldn't say that. My parents were amazing and loving, I've never fought with them since I was a child. I got A's in school, went straight to college, got my Master's and at 22 was working for a large firm in downtown Chicago.
That said I certainly jumped on the bandwagon and was drinking and smoking pot when I was 16 just like everyone else. My high school has multiple people every year get perfect on their ACT and SAT, and was one of the best schools with the most successful students in a state that normally ranked in the top 3 as far as education. Many of the top students smoked pot and did other drugs on the weekend, and most everyone drank.
It's all about how you handle yourself and personal control and being rational. I loved getting hammered on the weekends and getting high to relax, but it certainly never took away any drive or slowed me down in school. Obviously other people fall into that hole - but everyone is different.
I really wouldn't say that. My parents were amazing and loving, I've never fought with them since I was a child. I got A's in school, went straight to college, got my Master's and at 22 was working for a large firm in downtown Chicago.
That said I certainly jumped on the bandwagon and was drinking and smoking pot when I was 16 just like everyone else. .
That wouldn't have been possible for me with my stay-at-home mom being so involved in my life, getting to know my friends, and creating rules, trust, and responsibility when I got my car on my 16th birthday...so even when she wasn't there, I knew how to act right.
Saying you're fine because you 'have your life together' is one of the biggest and most ridiculous rationalizations I have ever heard. Obviously not if you had to do things that would disappoint and hide from your oh-so-loving parents.
I would like to know your views on teen drug use due to suburban enviornment. I live in an affluent north chicago suburb. alot of parents move to the suburbs when they have kids to be AWAY from crime, drugs, and such. However where I live a very high percentage of kids are into drugs/alchohol abuse. TIME Mag did an article about our school some years back called "High Times at New Trier High" saying that more than 60% of kids used drugs. Now i belive around a third of the kids do drugs (according to my schools statistics). I believe that do to the lack of exiting/cultural activities (in the eyes of most teens )or their distance from the activities (normally in the city) they are more likely to use drugs due to their bordom, their disposable income (in a good number of cases) and in the case of rigorus school districts high stress. What are your opinions. Do you know if there is a higher drug use among city teenagers (both wealthy and poor).
I think if your raised in the middle of a nowhere town, you gotta do something for fun and excitement. So yes, maybe living in the surburbs does have something to do with the high usage of drugs. But it's also the parent's sole responsibility to watch their child so you can't really blame the entire city for that.
But on the other hand, If you were to live in the surburbs of a big city like say Boston, more than likely, there's not gonna be that high usage of drugs because the teens can go straight to town and party it up or what the crazy kids do these days. Big City VS Nowhere town = less teen drug usage/high drug use.
Club drugs, yes....... but definitley not heroin. The junkies and heroin addicts are far, far more common in urban areas.
Speak for yourself. There's a huge heroin/oxycontin problem in my area, unfortunately.
I live in a relatively wealthy area too...Median Family Incomes of my town and the surrounding areas in 2000 were: $86,000, $104,000, $97,000, $100,000, $135,000, and $106,000...so I would imagine at this point all towns median family incomes are greater than $100k, which is decent.
Obviously other drugs are prevelant (sp?) in the area...weed is everywhere and cocaine is pretty common too.
I personally know a few heroin addicts (north burbs of Chicago, probably close to the OP). I also know a couple of people who over-dosed and died. The neighborhood I live in is one of the wealthiest in the country. In the past 3 weeks there was a meth lab bust and a crack ring run by gang members taken down.
There is high use of heroin in Monmouth County, NJ, sixty miles from "the big city".
There is high use of heroin in Monmouth County, NJ, sixty miles from "the big city".
New Jersey in general has had the biggest issues with Heroin since heroin was first introduced.
In January 2001, of 57 kilograms of SEA heroin from a container ship docked at the port in Elizabeth, New Jersey. The largest seizure of SEA heroin in recent years.
Hard drugs are big in small towns as well. The largest meth but in Texas history happened in Burnet not too long ago. You don't hardly at all in the small town high schools from my experience though.
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