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Detecting Drug Use

Unfortunately, most parents don’t begin looking for the signs of drug abuse until long after a problem exists. 40% of kids who begin drinking before the age of 15 will become alcoholics by the time they are 25. This high risk group is also 18 times more likely to use other drugs like marijuana, and nearly 10 times more likely to become an illicit drug addict. Though we will go into this subject in great detail, these first few sentences highlight the most important concepts for parents to embrace.

1. Substance abuse and addiction are life altering behavioral patterns that often begin in the early teenage years.
2. Alcohol is most often where the fight against substance abuse is either won or lost.

If you need to know how to detect a specific type of drug, just click on one of the links below. For now, we’ll bring you up to speed on some methods you can use to detect drug use in general. If this is your first glance at the topic, please be prepared for a bit of tough love. These lessons have been learned the hard way by millions of heartbroken families. Please keep in mind that we endorse healthy team building measures such as family dinners, parental guidance and incentive based contracts as your first and foremost defense against substance abuse. Still, these measures will ultimately have to be supported by some type of verification. It’s not always easy, but your kids are worth it!

If you’re looking for help in Diagnosing the physical symptoms of intoxication, please visit the “Diagnosing Drug Use” page. If you’re interested in how your family can Prevent drug abuse, please visit the “Preventing Drug Use” page. Visit our “Responding to Drug Use” page if you’re family is trying to confront a problem, and finally, if you need to know more about a particular drug, please visit one of the links below.

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Method 1: Drug Testing Unfortunately, there is a reason why we present this method first. Though some parents express a bit of philosophical difficulty in administering random drug tests to their children, there’s just no getting around the fact that this single tactic is your best insurance policy against undetected drug problems. As many parents and substance abuse counselors will tell you, by the time it becomes obvious, its probably too late. Click here to learn more…
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Method 2: Tuning In About 13 years into parenthood, most parents begin to understand that their teenager leads a dual life, one at home and another amongst her social circle. It is very important to become attuned to both of these lives. If you have never before explored your child’s text messages or facebook posts, you may be shocked at what you find. Click here to learn more…
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Method 3: In The Home For many teens, home is but a mere pit stop. Nonetheless, there are many important cues that can be gleamed from what happens in the family castle. We’ll teach you how to use your senses and investigative skills to pick up on what might be subtle warning signs. Click here to learn more…
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Method 4: In The Car If your teen is driving, and particularly if they have their own car, that is where you are most likely to find evidence of substance abuse. As sobering as that fact is, it’s an unfortunate truth. This page will give you the tips you need to decipher the clues on wheels. Click here to learn more…
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Method 5: Behavioral Cues Behavioral cues are the traditional cornerstone of substance abuse detection. Unfortunately, we now know that by the time these cues present themselves, the child’s life has already been altered by substance abuse. We’ll review this topic, and describe the major behavioral warning signs of teen substance abuse. Click here to learn more…
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