Heroin, which has often been portrayed as being highly addictive, is only so for a small percentage of users. Current legislation also has ramifications on the social lives and well-being of individuals who are prosecuted under anti-drug laws. The primary means of this is stigmatization. According to Cleveland, a policy economist, “policies that stigmatize and imprison drug users may hurt rather than help young people and problem users” (as cited in Thronton, 2007, p.423). Indeed, the criminalization of individuals who—often—are otherwise law-abiding citizens, can affect their relationships with family and friends, as well as their standings with employers and loaners (Ezard, 2001).
Another concern is rape and or other unintended sexual activity and how it has become a constant concern amongst teenage drinkers, by keeping the age limit at 21 this can also reduce the likeliness of such detrimental activities. This in turn will continue to keep the majority of teenagers under the age of 21 safe and out of harms
Any drug one uses has a high potential of becoming addict status. Its how one decides to use the drug that dictates if he or she will become an addict. If one were to observe the trends of drugs he or she would see that the effects drugs have vary. According to GetGoing (2011) marijuana is a highly addictive drug but with few ill effects. Marijuana may cause panic and stress attacks in extreme cases but helps ones gain back loss of appetite, and can dull pain from radiation treatments (GetGoing, 2011).
Peers talk about their drug experiences as being "cool" and if you havent experinced it yourself many feel out side of the circle. Many teens who try drugs for the first time are pressured into it. A lot of the time the teen may have no intention of trying a drug but feel
However, these teenagers also live in fear of getting caught for drinking and thus, consume their alcohol in unsafe environments; typically, these dwellings are where they can “escape” disturbances and predicaments, but usually encounter more. These environments are generally unsupervised and in groups of “children” that are ignorant of responsible drinking habits. Due to their apprehension of being caught, teenagers tend to never confess to an adult of the troubles they encountered as they drank and, therefore, may further affect their experience. Thus, if the drinking age was lowered to eighteen, a teenager would have the ability to be more straightforward with their drinking and would be able to drink in more supervised locations. They would also begin to drink in moderation since there is no longer the appeal of a “forbidden” rebellion.
Studies have shown that for the most part, we have increased the probability that our child or children will not have a problem with alcohol or drugs. A teenager’s brain reacts differently to alcohol than an adults brain would. We know that because the beginning of this addiction can happen much quicker in a teenager than it would on an adult. I think that the main reason for this policy is to help teenagers avoid the use of alcohol as much as possible. As you can see, the seriousness of alcoholism is by far worse than what most teenagers may think it is.
Several teenagers choose to criminal acts because of peer pressure, the lifestyle which grown up in, being around gangs, guardians who lack the responsible duties, etc. Not all threats will deter juveniles from committing crimes again. If one decides a rational choice or a
Abnormal Adolescence It has been said that adolescence is by far the most difficult stage of life to go through even under normal circumstances. Having psychological issues coupled with trying to find out who you are as a person makes life as an adolescent hard for some. Interpersonal issues such as poor body image, peer pressure, substance abuse or social issues like bullying can make even the most well rounded teen buckle under these types of pressures. In some cases, suicidal thought and suicide make it an extremely sensitive and dangerous time in the life of an adolescent. This particular topic interested me because my goal is to work with adolescents in a school or clinical setting.
Many people tend to get into trouble with alcohol, rather than being responsible with age and maturity. Consuming alcohol has a lot to do with age and maturity. At the age of eighteen, young people are either attending high school or entering college. Alcohol can lead to many dangers in one’s life, such as brain and liver damage, addiction, and failure to a make wise decisions, all compounded by lowering the drinking
Treatment Variables and Issues: Adolescents with Co-Occurring Substance Abuse and Mental Illness Treatment Variables and Issues: Adolescents with Co-Occurring Substance Abuse and Mental Illness Adolescence and early adulthood are periods of growth, exploration, and for some young adults, the development of drug abuse and addiction (Volkow, 2004). Historically, the addiction and mental health systems have been separate entities with little collaboration between the two. There are many problems associated with completely separate addiction treatment systems and mental health treatment systems and approaches, especially when treating adolescents of whom the majorities do not present for