“I thought drugs were an escape.”

　　“When I was 15, a guy I knew raped me. I turned to my friends for support, but they accused me of lying! I was devastated2. I needed to relieve my pain, and I thought drugs were the answer. I found that smoking weed3 made me feel secure and loved, but when the high4 wore off5, I felt even more empty, lost and alone. I thought the solution was to do more drugs, so I started using harder drugs like cocaine and Ecstasy6.

　　One night, I was smoking pot7 at my boyfriend's house. We had a fight and I stormed out and drove off. That's the last thing I remember. When I regained consciousness8, there were paramedics9 over me and lights flashing. I'd smashed into a telephone pole. I suffered shock and a concussion10, but my doctors said I was lucky to be alive—the crash could've killed me.

　　The crash cost me nearly $10000! But I got a second chance at life. I quit drugs, and I look forward to my future—because now I have a future.”

—Stephanie? 18

FACT: “Life's tough enough without a drug addiction,” says Howard Simon, spokesman for Partnership for a Drug-Free America. “Drugs just add more problems to the pile.”

“I didn't think drugs were a big deal.”

　　“My mom started abusing drugs when I was in fourth grade, so when a friend offered me weed in seventh grade, it didn't seem wrong to try it. Pot made me feel distant from my misery at home, and I started smoking and drinking on a daily basis. Then my mother left. It broke my heart—I felt like she chose drugs over me. But that didn't make me stop using them. I relied on weed to handle my pain and anger.

　　I moved in with my dad, but he drank a lot and we argued. I'd avoid going home, staying out with friends instead, drinking and getting high. Before, I only smoked for fun, but now I depended on it to help me through each day.

　　When I turned 18, I hopped a bus to California to try to start my life over. But I felt isolated there. I was smoking weed every day. Getting high was all I had, and it scared me. I realized I was just running from my problems. I called my dad and told him I wanted to come home.

　　I can happily say I've been off drugs for nearly a year now. My dad has also been sober for several months, and it's a lot easier for us to get along now that drugs aren't in the way. I've made new friends, too—my best friend is a girl from high school who didn't do drugs or drink. I still don't see my mom much, and I don't know if we'll ever be close again. All I know is that I don't want to waste my life getting high like she did. I'll never go back to the person I was—I would rather be the girl I always dreamed I could be!”

—Megan? 18

FACT: “Nobody knows how drug use is going to affect them,” Simon says. “You're playing Russian roulette11. Once you start, you can't be sure you'll walk away.”

“I did drugs so I would fit in.”

　　“I started hanging with a crowd that was into drugs. I wasn't into that stuff, but I didn't have anyone else to hang out with, so I started smoking pot to fit in. My parents found out, and my mom started crying. I realized I wasn't just hurting myself, I was hurting the people who loved me.”

—Lisa? 15

“I thought some drugs were harmless.”

　　“I started smoking weed when I was in 6th grade. It seemed like a harmless drug. I was wrong—I've been smoking weed for three years now, and I've ditched all my old friends and probably blown a thousand dollars on pot. The short buzz12 just isn't worth it.”

—Justine?14

FACT: “Sure, marijuana13 is safer—like jumping from the fifth floor is safer than jumping from the eighth floor,” Simon says. “It's still a dangerous drug.”

“I wanted to rebel.”

　　“I tried marijuana because it gave me a sense of rebellion. I didn't like being told what to do, so smoking weed made me feel defiant14. But I realized people expect teens to try drugs, and by smoking pot, I was just conforming to their expectations. It's dumb to think that doing drugs will somehow make you different or unique.”

—Azura? 15

FACT: “Yes, you're making a statement—you're saying, "I'm willing to risk becoming a drug addict,” Simon says. “Really, how does that sound?”

青少年為何吸毒

“我曾以為毒品是一種解脫。”

　　“15歲那年，我被一個熟人強暴了。我向朋友們求助，可是他們卻指責我撒謊！我徹底垮了，想找點什么東西減輕痛苦，于是我想到了毒品。抽大麻使我有了安全感，有一種被愛的感覺。但是，當快感消失之后，我愈發感到空虛，迷惘和孤獨。我想多吸點毒或許能解決問題，因此，我開始使用像可卡因和搖頭丸之類毒性更大的毒品。

　　一天夜里，我在男朋友家里抽大麻。我們打了起來。我一氣之下沖了出去，開著車走了。這是我記得的最后一件事。當我恢復知覺時，我抬頭看到的是醫護人員和閃爍的燈光。原來，我撞到了電話亭后，頓時休克，造成了腦震蕩。不過，醫生們說我能活下來真是幸運，那一撞本可以要了我的小命。

　　那次車禍花了我差不多一萬美元！但我卻獲得了第二次生命。我戒了毒，對未來充滿了期盼——因為我終于擁有了未來。"

——斯特凡妮，18歲

實話實說：“沒有毒癮的生活已經夠艱難的了，”美國反毒合作協會發言人霍華德·西蒙說，“毒品只會令生活雪上加霜。”

“我以為吸毒沒有什么大不了的。”

　　“還在我上四年級的時候，母親就開始吸毒，因此在我上七年級時，一個朋友偶爾給我大麻，讓我嘗嘗，我也不覺得有什么不對。大麻使我在感覺上遠離了家庭的不幸，我還開始每天抽煙酗酒。后來，母親離開了我。我傷心極了——我覺得她寧愿選擇毒品，也不愿和我在一起。但是，這并沒有使我停止吸毒。我得依賴大麻來消弭內心的痛苦和憤懣。

　　我搬了家和父親住，但是他酗酒成性，我們經常爭吵不休。我盡量不回家，與朋友們一起喝酒，吸食大麻，從而得到飄飄欲仙的快感。我原來吸食毒品只是鬧著玩兒，久而久之，我卻不得不靠它挨過每一天。

　　到了18歲時，我跳上了一輛開往加利福尼亞的長途汽車，想開始我的新生活。可是，在那兒，我感覺自己與世隔絕。我每天抽大麻。我惟一能做的就是把自己抽得暈暈乎乎的，這使我感到很害怕。我意識到我這么做只是在逃避問題。于是，我給父親打了電話，告訴他我想回家。

　　我可以高興地說我現在快一年沒有沾過毒品了。父親控制飲酒也有幾個月了。現在，我們相處容易多了，毒品不再從中作梗。我還交了些新朋友——最要好的朋友是一個高中女生，她既不吸毒，也不飲酒。我還是與母親見面不多，也不知道我們是否還能親密起來。我只知道我可不想浪費生命，不想像她那樣整天精神恍惚。我決不會回到從前的我——我當然愿意成為夢中的那個女孩！”

——梅根，18歲

實話實說：“誰也不知道吸毒將會如何影響人生，”西蒙說，“這就像玩俄羅斯輪盤賭。一旦開始了，你就不能肯定自己能不能走開。”

“我吸毒，是為了成為其中一員。”

　　“起初，我雖與一些吸食毒品的人來往，并沒有沾上那玩意兒。但是，我又沒有其他人可以廝混，于是我開始與吸毒者為伍，加入了他們的行列。我父母發現了這一情況，母親還為此哭了。我意識到我不僅在傷害自己，而且還在傷害所有愛我的人。”

——麗莎，15歲

“我原以為有些毒品是無害的。”

　　“上六年級的時候，我開始抽大麻。大麻看上去像是一種無害的毒品。可是，我錯了——三年來我一直在吸大麻，離開了所有要好的朋友。吸大麻大概揮霍掉了上千美元。為了那稍縱即逝的快感可真不值得。”

——賈斯汀，14歲

實話實說：“沒錯，大麻是安全一點——就好像從五樓往下跳要比從八樓往下跳安全一點。”西蒙說，“可是，大麻仍然是一種危險毒品。”

“我想要反抗。”

　　“我開始吸大麻是因為它能給我一種叛逆感。我不喜歡聽人指揮，吸大麻使我感到自己有叛逆性。但是，我意識到有人希望青少年吸食毒品，而我抽大麻也就正好滿足了他們的期望。實際上，認為吸毒能夠使自己與眾不同簡直太傻了。”

——阿祖拉，15歲

實話實說： “你是在做一個聲明——你在說，‘我愿意冒險做一個癮君子，’西蒙說，“真的，這聽上去又怎么樣呢？”