A Personal Story
May 27th, 2008 • Category: BlogI recently graduated high school and one of the things that really scares me looking back on those years is the amount of drugs that were available to teens my age. I never personally got involved with drugs because I knew about the tragedies they cause: I buried my childhood friend who died from drugs and have been terrified of drugs ever since. However, it’s important for parents of teens in this era to realize the realities of the teenage drug culture that is alive and thriving in our middle and upper class communities.
While I realize that drugs have been present around teens for multiple generations, I personally believe that this current generation faces an even more dangerous situation than any teenage generation of the past; this danger is prescription drug abuse. Prescription drug abuse has become prevalent in teens and is coupled with a mindset that these drugs are not as dangerous as ‘real drugs’ such as cocaine, heroin, etc. It is this mindset of invincibility that makes this teen prescription drug epidemic deadly.
My childhood friend that died, who I will call “Rob”, did not die from a ‘real drug’; Rob died from Oxycontin pills, a powerful time released prescription painkiller that has been called a legal version of heroin. In a nutshell, the drug is prescribed to time release its powerful pain killer ingredients over a number of hours. However, many teenagers prefer to chew or grind up the pill before taking it so that all of these hours of painkiller ingredients are activated immediately. This can lead to deadly consequences.
Rob was at a party when his friend offered him these “Oxy’s”. Rob was depressed due to some recent relationship troubles with his long time girlfriend and decided to go ahead and take the pills. Later in the evening, Rob ended up leaving the party in his car and crashed unnoticed on an uncrowded street. He then wandered into a park where he presumably passed out or fell; his body was discovered days later. Had Rob’s friend not provided these pills to Rob, he might still be alive; had Rob not taken the pills he was offered, he might still be alive; had Rob not left the party and wandered into that deserted park, he might still alive. It broke my heart to bury my friend due to the tragic series of events that night which I personally feel could have easily been prevented.
In this current era, it’s important for parents to have a close relationship with their teens and discuss the true dangers of all the ‘new drugs’ that are available to teens. It terrifies me to see young people popping pills as if they’re simply drinking a beer or two. If parents have an open relationship with their teen, a relationship where their teen can feel comfortable coming to Mom and Dad to talk about anything, then lives will be saved.
Attending my friend’s funeral, seeing myself in pictures from our childhood years, and seeing lives ripped apart by the tragedy really changed my life. I started www.UnderstandMyTeen.com as a way for parents to better understand their teen so that they can ultimately be better parents. It’s important for parents of teens to hear a young perspective communicate the reality of the dangerous world in which their teens live. It’s the job of a parent to ensure their child lives through their teenage years; Rob’s death inspired me to take on the job of helping parents and teens navigate this turbulent path.
-Jonathan Tucker is the founder of www.UnderstandMyTeen.com. Inspired by the life changing event of burying his childhood friend due to a tragic drug incident, Jonathan is attempting to help parents across the country form better relationships with their teens through providing unique and powerful insights into the world in which their teenagers are living. Jonathan hopes to prevent tragic teen deaths from occurring in the future.
! Cheers, Jane