During the teenage years is when most people first come into contact with the substances that lead to addiction. With the amount of stress that these kids are under, they want something that can take them away for a little while. Know your kids and know the warning signs.

1. YOUTH AND ADDICTIONS By: Family TLC

2. THE PRESSURE OF BEING A YOUTH
A definitive group of people who are affected by addictions are
youth.
They face pressures in all areas of their lives.
 Their parents pressure them to get good grades.
 They pressure themselves to do well enough to get into their college or university
of choice.
 They feel pressure from their friends to take part in activities they may not have
participated in.
 They try to balance school, work and making the basketball team
 Being on the competitive dance team, skating, swimming or any other extra-
curricular activity that they enjoy doing.

3. THE PRESSURE OF BEING A YOUTH
CONTINUED..
Sometimes all of the pressure we and society puts on our children can
break a young person down. This may cause them to turn to drugs,
alcohol, video games. They are looking to escape from the pressure
that they are feeling.
Teens are often unsure who can they can talk to about these feelings
so it may be easier for them to ignore or suppress the feelings all
together in hopes that they will go away on their own.
The truth is that these feelings do not go away on their own. If they
are left untreated, the behaviour may get worse.

4. IF TREATMENT IS NOT SOUGHT
OUT
When a person allows this type of behaviour to become the focus of
their life, the addiction grows and becomes all consuming.
This inevitably leaves the young person feeling like they have even
less control over their own life and the cycle continues.
They may realize and understand that the behaviour is harmful.
They may recognize that the addiction is, affecting their life in a
negative way.
By now it has become such a part of them, a part of their daily life that
they do not see how they can stop.
The pressures remain the same and often increase.

5. TREATING THE ADDICTION
The first step in treating addictions is recognizing that there is a
problem.
Parents need to be aware that their child has a problem and a parent
must get them help immediately.
It is important to remember a young person cannot tackle this on his
or her own.
The parent needs to be the child’s biggest support and advocate.
Parents need to be aware of the warning signs and they need to
recognize the signs in their child’s behaviour.

6. THE WARNING SIGNS
Your child’s behaviour is suddenly different
Skipping school
If they suddenly become disinterested in previously enjoyed activities
These are all signs that something is happening in a child’s life and a
parent must pay attention and address these changes before the
problem gets bigger.

7. CONCLUSION
There is help available and with the right support system.
There is no shame in asking for help and young people as well as
parents need to know this.
Some things cannot be dealt with on your own.
Contact us
Phone: 705-737-3513
Email: clientservices@familytlc.ca