Experimenting with drugs can lead to dangerous health issues, problems with relationships, financial issues, and legal troubles. While most substance abuse can take time to become an addiction, some substances can take just one use to form a physical addiction. This means that your teen will experience withdrawal symptoms after using the drug one time. The dangers of adolescent drug experimentation are multiplied by the fact that young people may experience more effects from drug use because they are still growing physically and emotionally. This can cause serious dependency issues for the rest of their lives.
This is why it is so important to ensure that you get your teen the help they need. With Venture Academy’s drug treatment program, your teen can get the coping skills they need to break free from their emotional drug dependency before it becomes a serious problem in their life.
Drug Experimentation
Drug experimentation can fuel the cycle of drug addiction in several important ways. When the body relies on the use of a drug, taking away that drug can affect the body’s systems in negative ways. But when a drug is used over time, an individual will become emotionally dependent on drug use. This is why addiction is difficult to treat. Even if you remove the substance, there may still be no alternative to drug use to treat symptoms of other problems like trauma, physical pain, or mental illness. Drug treatment programs help to alleviate physical symptoms and to address the underlying emotional need for substance use.
The Dangers of Adolescent Drug Experimentation
Most teens will experiment with drugs at some point. But it is crucial to educate your teen on how this can affect them. When a teen enters the cycle of addiction, they may never come out of it. This is because teens are forming their coping mechanisms, thoughts, behaviors, and physical selves. Adolescent drug experimentation can derail their growth in several important ways, such as:
- Thoughts – Young people may form their basic sense of self in their teen years. This can include the way that they perceive their world and think about their world. Drugs can change this by stunting growth in these vital areas. This can lead to lowered confidence, trust issues, and personality disorders.
- Behaviours – Adolescent drug experimentation can lead your teen to act strangely. If your teen engages in erratic, drug-fueled behaviours, they may not be able to connect to the friends and mentors who can help support their journey into selfhood.
- Coping mechanisms – When your teen learns to use drugs as their coping mechanism, they will continue to support the cycle of addiction. This means that even when they don’t physically need a drug, they will still emotionally believe that drug use will help them through trauma, life changes, and difficulties.
- Physical health -Drug experimentation can cause serious health issues. Some health issues caused by drug use may include cirrhosis, heart problems, breathing problems, digestive issues, nerve disorders, and even death.
These factors are some of the most basic components that build up the experience of life. If your teen’s growth process is altered in one of these vital ways, it can mean disaster for their future success. Venture Academy offers drug treatment programs that can help support your teen and encourage their natural growth.
Help Your Teen Avoid Drug Experimentation with Venture Academy
There are many reasons to worry about your teen’s future, but drug experimentation doesn’t have to be a part of that list. Get your teen the help they need by calling us at 866.762.2211 to discuss our drug treatment program. If you’re still unsure, you can also take our interactive child behaviour test. It will only take about five minutes of your time to ensure that your teen stays free from adolescent drug experimentation or a resulting addiction.
