People have lots to say about that defiant kid who got messed up in crack, heroine, fentanyl or other dirty drugs. Disrespectful and useless, they say. The kid had a choice and chose wrongly. The kid will end up in jail or dead, just watch and see, they say.
Sometimes it isn’t just the wrong choice. What if, to that kid, it feels like the only choice after some ruthless dealer supplied the drug to try. Try before you buy, right? And it felt good to be euphoric, even if it was an illusion, and accepted! But why would a kid even fall for that? Why is he or she hanging out with those kinds of kids? Why? Because home life is dysfunctional, perhaps. Because the kid can relate better to kids who get him or her. Anything is better than the nothingness of a hopeless home life, an abusive parent who hates, and long since lost hope when there was only a thin trickle of optimism to begin with.
If the kid has an alcoholic, psychotic father and a mother too terrified to do something or tell someone, her kid will look for other ways to cope. And it sure isn’t going to be cuddling up to a favourite stuffy as a teenager.
Life is never easy. We live in a fallen world, but when that fallen world is the private world at home with no relief, kids do look for coping mechanisms. Like attracts like, so the dealers are dealing for a reason, kids are buying for a reason.
Maybe it’s a simple as the kid has too much time while both parents work full time jobs to afford the basics of a mortgage, household bills, debt, cars and car insurance etcetera. Teenagers are not logical. They’re impulsive. Kids do what they feel they need to do to feel alive, wanted and nurtured. I’m not saying parents should not work. I’m simply saying when teens are left to their own rules, they may cut their leash. Even I have a loved one who took the wrong route while my husband and I worked. It was an addiction nightmare, but she did recover. When we talked about it, she said she was trying to become popular in high school. Her focus went from me to her peers—and it happened so fast I didn’t see the blur whiz by. It just takes one try with some drugs when within the family DNA is an addict.
So what if a kid who became addicted had someone who knew the signs and were willing to help? Would he or she talk about why they need to get high to escape? They would if they felt comfortable. There is a myriad of reasons why being high is easier than being in the pit of anguish. Every kid has a story. Every story has been hushed up or spoken. For those who are being reticent and edgy, they’re likely being told what goes on in the home stays in the home.
Why do teens get addicted to hard drugs?
Let the addict talk.
ohsohumanspirit 