Falling in Love With Getting High
Any young person who ends up with an Addiction Problem starts out with loving to get high.
There is no other way to go from Experimentation to Dependency.
As a parent it is very important for us to recognize this.
The falling in love with getting high that I'm talking about is best compared to Infatuation.
Remember the feeling of being head over heals in love with someone? Doing something stupid and silly for that person? Thinking about that special someone, instead of paying attention to your teacher in class? Lying to your parents about your whereabouts? Drawing Cupids Arrows and Hearts on your notebook.
These are signs of being infatuated.
Translate these thoughts and behaviors into getting high and you have signs and symptoms of falling in love with a Mood Altering Chemical.
(M.
A.
C.
) This is what happens when a young person discovers that they love the feeling of getting high.
The same preoccupation, the same type of lies, the same secretive behavior and the same excited energy for this new relationship.
There are similarities and differences between the two types of love.
Falling in love with a person, can result in our brain producing a chemical called Endorphins, helping us feel good, naturally.
Adding a M.
A.
C.
to the mix, takes this feeling one step further.
It combines our brain chemistry with an artificial chemical that gives us a big boost in feeling good.
This more intense emotion is a very powerful reinforcement, it is something that can grab us and not let us go.
Malcolm Gladwell calls this experience a "Tipping Point" where something small makes a huge change.
This little shift in the brain makes a huge change in a young person's values, behaviors, goals, expectations, priorities, relationships, health, in fact every aspect of their life.
If you have a son or daughter who is STRESSED-OUT, you have a kid at risk for falling in love with getting high.
How well is your kid is at dealing with stress? As good as they are at coping, they may have a friend who says "Try this, you'll like it!", and if and when this happens, they may discovered something new, "Wow, this feels great".
A twist on "falling in love with getting high" has to do with how miserable a young person feels when they come down from being high.
Feeling hung over, embarrassed, guilty, sick and worn out, actually adds to their stress.
What started out a solution to feeling stressed and miserable, has now become a huge contributor to stress, misery and unhappiness.
"Now things are worse, so I'll get high even more.
Instead of using a little, I'll use a lot.
Instead of just using on the weekends, I'll start using during the week.
" Our job as a parent is to realize that something maybe going on even if it is now obvious.
Denial about the possibility that our son/daughter is using drugs is powerful.
As a parent it is natural to avoid seeing bad things that are going on with our kids.
However, having this denial shattered by a call from the Police or a call from the Emergency Room is not necessary.
We can start seeing the subtle signs of loving to get high before the need for an Intervention on Addiction.
You might say that the first Intervention that is needed, is the Intervention of our Denial.
There is no other way to go from Experimentation to Dependency.
As a parent it is very important for us to recognize this.
The falling in love with getting high that I'm talking about is best compared to Infatuation.
Remember the feeling of being head over heals in love with someone? Doing something stupid and silly for that person? Thinking about that special someone, instead of paying attention to your teacher in class? Lying to your parents about your whereabouts? Drawing Cupids Arrows and Hearts on your notebook.
These are signs of being infatuated.
Translate these thoughts and behaviors into getting high and you have signs and symptoms of falling in love with a Mood Altering Chemical.
(M.
A.
C.
) This is what happens when a young person discovers that they love the feeling of getting high.
The same preoccupation, the same type of lies, the same secretive behavior and the same excited energy for this new relationship.
There are similarities and differences between the two types of love.
Falling in love with a person, can result in our brain producing a chemical called Endorphins, helping us feel good, naturally.
Adding a M.
A.
C.
to the mix, takes this feeling one step further.
It combines our brain chemistry with an artificial chemical that gives us a big boost in feeling good.
This more intense emotion is a very powerful reinforcement, it is something that can grab us and not let us go.
Malcolm Gladwell calls this experience a "Tipping Point" where something small makes a huge change.
This little shift in the brain makes a huge change in a young person's values, behaviors, goals, expectations, priorities, relationships, health, in fact every aspect of their life.
If you have a son or daughter who is STRESSED-OUT, you have a kid at risk for falling in love with getting high.
How well is your kid is at dealing with stress? As good as they are at coping, they may have a friend who says "Try this, you'll like it!", and if and when this happens, they may discovered something new, "Wow, this feels great".
A twist on "falling in love with getting high" has to do with how miserable a young person feels when they come down from being high.
Feeling hung over, embarrassed, guilty, sick and worn out, actually adds to their stress.
What started out a solution to feeling stressed and miserable, has now become a huge contributor to stress, misery and unhappiness.
"Now things are worse, so I'll get high even more.
Instead of using a little, I'll use a lot.
Instead of just using on the weekends, I'll start using during the week.
" Our job as a parent is to realize that something maybe going on even if it is now obvious.
Denial about the possibility that our son/daughter is using drugs is powerful.
As a parent it is natural to avoid seeing bad things that are going on with our kids.
However, having this denial shattered by a call from the Police or a call from the Emergency Room is not necessary.
We can start seeing the subtle signs of loving to get high before the need for an Intervention on Addiction.
You might say that the first Intervention that is needed, is the Intervention of our Denial.
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