Last updated : November 11, 2024
In the past, many people thought of heroin as an inner-city scourge that was nothing to worry about for parents outside of urban centers. Now, this has changed as more suburban teenagers are getting high on dope. Many teens get started using opiates when their doctors prescribe them pain medication, but others start off using alcohol and milder drugs before graduating to the harder stuff. With new prescription drug laws and an easier flow of dope from south of the border, dope is a cheap and easily available buzz in towns across the country. Below is more information about the rise of heroin use among suburban teens.
Teen Drug Use on the Rise
According to statistics, more American teenagers are turning to drugs and alcohol. For many, substance abuse begins with experimentation using drugs and alcohol provided by friends or a parent’s liquor cabinet or stash. Frequently, the curious young person goes on to wonder what other substances are available for even more euphoria. After using costly black-market painkillers, some teenagers have a growing addiction that demands more no matter what. For many teens, the answer lies in a cheap and powerful bag of dope.
Reasons for Addiction
The dope use among teenagers in the American suburbs is astounding to observers, but explaining the mess is another matter. However, many teens seek dope after being hooked on opiates from a doctor’s prescription. In many cases, teens only have to speak with a friend to find out that black tar or China white is available and will do the trick.
While someone with a tolerance might pay almost $100 to get high on painkillers, a $20 bag of dope may last for several sessions of drug use. As a result, addiction to dope occurs not only because of its strong buzz but also because of its relatively low cost. Once users gain even more tolerance, they might decide to get even more bang for their buck by injecting, which they might have never considered trying before becoming severely addicted. As a result, the addiction becomes far more intense and challenging to treat.
Easy Availability
During this epidemic, law enforcement officials have mentioned that many urban teens stay away from dope because they’ve seen the damage it can cause, but suburban teenagers are often ignorant of its effects beyond the high it produces. This makes suburban areas an attractive market for urban dealers who need a change of surroundings. In the suburbs, drug peddlers are finding crowds of students interested in getting higher on their black tar and China white.
Some teenagers get their dope from friends who are willing to take regular trips to dilapidated inner-city areas to pick up plenty for everyone. In some cases, these drug buyers don’t have to venture far from the freeway to locate an open-air drug market that supplies themselves and their friends with plenty of the dope they crave.
Modern Gateways to Dope Addiction
Drugs and alcohol may be addictive gateways to dope, but today’s teens are getting on board through other aspects of culture as well. For example, social media has been found to promote drug and alcohol abuse among teens who see pictures of their friends indulging. The nearly constant exposure to imagery and text depicting illicit indulgence is a major risk factor for teens with plenty of time and money to waste. Many modern parents also work more hours than parents decades ago, which leaves their teenage children at home alone without supervision. Unfortunately, this also puts teens at a higher risk of abusing substances.
Fortunately, opiate drugs such as dope aren’t hard to detect with standard drug tests. For the most reliable results, parents can have their teenagers screened at a drug testing company. After determining whether a teen has been using dope, parents can take steps to eliminate the drug problem. When heroin is involved, many parents choose some form of inpatient treatment program for its superior record of long-term effectiveness.
