Teenagers say they turn to drugs because they need to relax and escape worries, according to research published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This follows reports of rising anxiety and depression in youth, including unprecedented levels of hopelessness.

Seventy three percent said they used drugs "to feel mellow, calm or relaxed." Forty-four percent used drugs, such as marijuana, as sleep aides.

The same percentage cited drug use as a way to "stop worrying about a problem or forget bad memories." And 40% said they used to cope with depression or anxiety. Dr. Leslie Walker-Harding, "If you have a kid who you think might not be using very much, but say they're using to feel less depressed or to stop worrying, that's a really big warning sign" that they need help.

We know that drugs and depression go hand in hand. This is consistent with previous studies that say we need more mental health services for our kids. It also would indicate that conventional counseling is falling short of meeting the need.

Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, wrote in an email. "Early prevention interventions are crucial to support teens who may turn to drug use to cope with stress, anxiety or depression”.

Eighty four percent of the teenagers in the study used a form of marijuana. This becomes increasingly problematic in the face of growing evidence linking cannabis use and psychotic disorders. Forty nine percent said they use alcohol and a further 19% were misusing prescription drugs.

"We worry about kids using cannabis, alcohol and nicotine because we know long term, it's going to take a toll on their mental health and their physical health," said Dr. Sharon Levy, chief of the Division of Addiction Medicine at Boston Children's Hospital.

Even more alarming is that over fifty percent of teens said that they do drugs alone. With the prevalence of opioids and fentanyl, this greatly increases the risks of a deadly overdose. This is even truer given the sheer number of counterfeit prescription drugs laced with fentanyl.

Teens today are immersed in stressors that we didn’t have growing up. It was hard enough figuring life out in our day, today the pressure comes from every angle. I had a teenage client that overdosed because his peers ridiculed him over his shoes. Obviously, the problems were deeper than just the shoes, but shoes are identity to kids today and if you don’t have the right shoes, you are an outcast.

This is the soup teenagers are swimming in and it is the maze they are trying to navigate. At the same time, they were locked down, told they had to stay away from everybody and that everyone outside their house was dying. We know now that the lockdowns were ineffective and that school age children suffered a two year setback that they will never recover from.

For seniors, it meant an uncertain future. On the cusp of becoming adults, their futures were stolen from them. For many, it meant scholarships were withdrawn and college was no longer an option.

The studies show that stress and anxiety were on the rise in teens before the pandemic and that the trajectory of the problem has only steepened since. The problems already existed and the pandemic brought the hopelessness to the surface.

Every day kids are turning to drugs to dull the pain, and it shouldn’t be surprising. It is the example we have set. We drink to celebrate, and we drink when we are depressed. After all, teenagers are just pre-adults that watch how we deal with life.

I have found two things about teenagers in my practice; they will talk when they feel like someone will listen to them, and that they are very intuitive when it comes to where they are hurting. Many of them are still living in a pre-cognitive state of mind that allows them to still be very much in tune with their inner being.

This means that they are very easy to work with in hypnosis and the results are amplified by their natural state of mind. Every teenager I work with is easily able to access their subconscious mind with guidance and effectively works through their problems. We just have to find ways to get them in our office.

They easily learn techniques that will help them deal with chaos in their world, so that they can successfully navigate the teen years and beyond. Many of them continue a personal meditation program after they are done working with me, and report that it keeps them stress and drug free.

We have a societal problem where we have made it acceptable to do drugs in spite of the evidence all around us. We should not be surprised that our kids emulate what they see us doing. We need to recognize what we have done and change the culture before it is too late. Hypnosis works wonderfully with teenagers and saving a young life brings with it a reward that is special.

If you are a hypnotist, find ways to reach out to parents and teens, conventional counselling isn’t keeping up with the problem and we can do a better job. If you are a parent with a teenager that isn’t getting the help they need, hypnosis is a powerful tool that can help your teen find the peace they are looking for. If you know someone that has a teen that is struggling, help them out. Tell them there are alternatives that can help. We created this mess, and it is going to take all of use to fix it. Our children deserve that.

If you or someone you know has a teen in need, simply go to my scheduling page, or refer them to my website where they  can get more information on how hypnosis can help them deal with stress and anxiety, and recovery from drug abuse.