Youth Eastside Services (YES) Counselor Describes Drug Trends

On Saturday, November 20, some 45 people gathered at YES for a workshop on Drug Awareness and Prevention. "The best prevention is being involved with your kid and educated about what drugs they may come across," said Noble Erickson, a substance abuse counselor at YES and the workshop leader. "It's equally important to let your kids know you won't tolerate alcohol or substance abuse of any kind and set clear consequences," she added.

Following are some drug trends Noble shared at the class:  Read more...

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· Heroin is being used among area teens more and is often being smoked.
· Cocaine is making a big comeback and now viewed as a "soft" drug.
· Ecstasy/MDMA has been primarily a club drug, but is becoming more popular to use when just "hanging out."
· Psilocybin or Mushrooms are considered "natural" and therefore "safe" though it can be toxic to the liver.
· Prescription medications can be abused in many ways and can be addictive & dangerous.
· Marijuana is still very popular among teens and is often a gateway to other drug use. And the marijuana available today is much more potent than that of 20 or 30 years ago.
· Alcohol is widely used by teens, poses huge risks, and has high rates of addiction among early users.

· Synthetic Marijuana (Spice or Herbal Insense) has a more potent high with serious and unpredictable side effects.

Compliments of Patti Skelton-McGougan, YES.