“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?”
“我曾以为毒品是一种解脱。”
“15岁那年，我被一个熟人强暴了。我向朋友们求助，可是他们却指责我撒谎！我彻底垮了，想找点什么东西减轻痛苦，于是我想到了毒品。抽大麻使我有了安全感，有一种被爱的感觉。但是，当快感消失之后，我愈发感到空虚，迷惘和孤独。我想多吸点毒或许能解决问题，因此，我开始使用像可卡因和摇头丸之类毒性更大的毒品。
一天夜里，我在男朋友家里抽大麻。我们打了起来。我一气之下冲了出去，开着车走了。这是我记得的最后一件事。当我恢复知觉时，我抬头看到的是医护人员和闪烁的灯光。原来，我撞到了电话亭后，顿时休克，造成了脑震荡。不过，医生们说我能活下来真是幸运，那一撞本可以要了我的小命。
那次车祸花了我差不多一万美元！但我却获得了第二次生命。我戒了毒，对未来充满了期盼——因为我终于拥有了未来。"
——斯特凡妮，18岁
实话实说：“没有毒瘾的生活已经够艰难的了，”美国反毒合作协会发言人霍华德·西蒙说，“毒品只会令生活雪上加霜。”
“我以为吸毒没有什么大不了的。”
“还在我上四年级的时候，母亲就开始吸毒，因此在我上七年级时，一个朋友偶尔给我大麻，让我尝尝，我也不觉得有什么不对。大麻使我在感觉上远离了家庭的不幸，我还开始每天抽烟酗酒。后来，母亲离开了我。我伤心极了——我觉得她宁愿选择毒品，也不愿和我在一起。但是，这并没有使我停止吸毒。我得依赖大麻来消弭内心的痛苦和愤懑。
我搬了家和父亲住，但是他酗酒成性，我们经常争吵不休。我尽量不回家，与朋友们一起喝酒，吸食大麻，从而得到飘飘欲仙的快感。我原来吸食毒品只是闹着玩儿，久而久之，我却不得不靠它挨过每一天。
到了18岁时，我跳上了一辆开往加利福尼亚的长途汽车，想开始我的新生活。可是，在那儿，我感觉自己与世隔绝。我每天抽大麻。我惟一能做的就是把自己抽得晕晕乎乎的，这使我感到很害怕。我意识到我这么做只是在逃避问题。于是，我给父亲打了电话，告诉他我想回家。
我可以高兴地说我现在快一年没有沾过毒品了。父亲控制饮酒也有几个月了。现在，我们相处容易多了，毒品不再从中作梗。我还交了些新朋友——最要好的朋友是一个高中女生，她既不吸毒，也不饮酒。我还是与母亲见面不多，也不知道我们是否还能亲密起来。我只知道我可不想浪费生命，不想像她那样整天精神恍惚。我决不会回到从前的我——我当然愿意成为梦中的那个女孩！”
——梅根，18岁
实话实说：“谁也不知道吸毒将会如何影响人生，”西蒙说，“这就像玩俄罗斯轮盘赌。一旦开始了，你就不能肯定自己能不能走开。”
“我吸毒，是为了成为其中一员。”
“起初，我虽与一些吸食毒品的人来往，并没有沾上那玩意儿。但是，我又没有其他人可以厮混，于是我开始与吸毒者为伍，加入了他们的行列。我父母发现了这一情况，母亲还为此哭了。我意识到我不仅在伤害自己，而且还在伤害所有爱我的人。”
——丽莎，15岁
“我原以为有些毒品是无害的。”
“上六年级的时候，我开始抽大麻。大麻看上去像是一种无害的毒品。可是，我错了——三年来我一直在吸大麻，离开了所有要好的朋友。吸大麻大概挥霍掉了上千美元。为了那稍纵即逝的快感可真不值得。”
——贾斯汀，14岁
实话实说：“没错，大麻是安全一点——就好像从五楼往下跳要比从八楼往下跳安全一点。”西蒙说，“可是，大麻仍然是一种危险毒品。”
“我想要反抗。”
“我开始吸大麻是因为它能给我一种叛逆感。我不喜欢听人指挥，吸大麻使我感到自己有叛逆性。但是，我意识到有人希望青少年吸食毒品，而我抽大麻也就正好满足了他们的期望。实际上，认为吸毒能够使自己与众不同简直太傻了。”
——阿祖拉，15岁
实话实说： “你是在做一个声明——你在说，‘我愿意冒险做一个瘾君子，’西蒙说，“真的，这听上去又怎么样呢？”
1. rampant v． 蹂躏
3． weed [美俚] 大麻，劣等雪茄
4． high [美俚] 被麻醉品麻醉了，这里指吸食毒品后的快感
5． wear off 消失，逐渐减弱
6． Ecstasy n． 迷幻剂，摇头丸
7． pot [美俚] 大麻叶
8． regain consciousnesss 恢复知觉，恢复意识
9． paramedics n． 医护人员
10． concussion n． 脑震荡
11． roulettete n． 轮盘赌
12． buzz n． （俚） （饮酒或吸毒产生的）兴奋
13． marijuana n． 大麻
14． defiant adj． 挑衅的，叛逆的