This is such an important thing you are trying to communicate. Sadly, the kids who need to know this SO badly are not likely to be reading here tonight.

I managed to avoid chemicals in my teens, but fiction, teddy bears and candy only medicated me until I was married and had kids, ptsd, d.i.d. and depression and then I did my best the self-med. with all the opiates I could talk doctors into giving me. The migraines and pain were real, but in the early 70′s they did not know how badly I needed counseling and proper meds – as I Christian I just kept trying to pray harder and read my Bible more. Now I’m in my 50′s and I’m still a Christian who reads her Bible and takes properly dispensed meds to keep me alive until I can work out the nightmare that was my childhood.

You have an essential message, don’t give up, you are needed!! Thank you!

There are many, and often complex, issues underlying teen and adult drug/alcohol misuse. Psychologist and creativity coach/author Eric Maisel, PhD says “The artist is often a drug and alcohol abuser.” Lady Gaga used to lock herself in her room snorting “bags and bags” of cocaine to “get inspiration” for her music, and got high on LSD to emulate pop stars. Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst of “Spider-Man 3″ are both dynamic and accomplished actors – and drug users, like many other creative and talented people have been.
http://talentdevelop.com/21/

Thanks Lisa D., for stereotyping all teens. I in fact am 15 years old and have been sober from alcohol for 9 months and drugs for a week now. My passion is to major in psychology as I get older. Because I used drugs and alcohol doesn’t mean I’m going nowhere in life. I also deal with clinical depression. I hope you know that not all teens are stupid and don’t know about the choices they make. Most teens do know about the consequences of their actions but make those choices anyway, and that is their decision.