College campuses across the country have to battle the many issues that come with students who are abusing their drug policies. Not only is drug use on the rise, but it is at one of the highest points it has ever been in American history. This means that if there was ever a time to get clued into what your son or daughter is up to at college it’s now! It can be very stressful when you first send them off to college and begin to wonder what they are up to. However, it is probable that many high school students are secretly engaging in illegal behaviors that their parents have no idea about. In a recent survey that was taken approximately 1 out of 16 high school seniors admitted to daily marijuana use, and 60% had admitted to having tried alcohol. These figures speak for themselves showing the prevalence of common street drugs in our society, starting as young as high school. I am sure that not all of these parents knew that their child was actively using marijuana, however if they did there would have been serious consequences. So the first question we need to answer is, “How are so many young adults getting away with illegal drug use in today’s world?”
Different names for common street drugs
The first answer to that question is that many of these drugs have street names that have no relevance at all to the substance they are using. There are many slang terms for drugs that students may come across over. As an example drugs like cocaine and codeine are currently being called by other names such as blow c, coke, freeze, sizzurp, purple, and lean. Another example of different terminology being used to describe a drug is when Adderall is referred to by addy, study buddies, dexies, zing, pep pills. Finally, another very well-known street drug such as marijuana has many different names like weed, pot, herb, broccoli, green, and many more are used throughout high schools campuses. In my personal opinion broccoli seems the most suitable fit, because at the end of the day everyone needs their daily dose of green right? (That’s called irony). It might seem light-hearted but it really is a serious issue. The college use of drugs has grown 11.8% and will continue to rise if nothing is done about it. Therefore as a parent or older adult it’s very important that you become aware of some of the highly used slang phrases for these drugs. It can protect you from dangerous activity going on in your area and give you a better idea of how to detect if these drugs are being used by a loved one who doesn’t want you to know. Finding the full list of illegal drugs and street names online can be a good starting point to use as a reference.
How to combat drug abuse
College campuses are always the hardest place to stop the distribution of common street drugs; they are readily available and too easy to come into contact with. With the current situation, there is a good chance that more than one of your son or daughters friends has access to such drugs and may even be using them. Therefore equipping them with the right information before and during school can always have a major impact on the decisions you make. This means it is extremely important to continue to educate yourself on the drugs that are out there and the effects they can have. With that being said there is only a certain amount you can do as a parent to keep your children safe, as the saying goes, you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make them drink it. At the end of the day, if they want to find drugs and use them on a college campus there is no way of truly stopping them. So in that case, using a drug and alcohol rehab center may be the best decision for you. If you feel unsure about what to do, giving a specialist a call is never a bad option. There are some warning signs that drugs are present in your son or daughter’s life, these can range an increase in aggression, abnormal sleeping or eating patters, unusual scars or bruising on the body or a constant need for money. If you feel they are demonstrating some of these signs then it is never too early to give a drug and alcohol rehab center a call. Common street drugs can be life threatening and the sooner this issue is treated the better.