Drugs abuse: what parents should know

According to the survey - which collected 1,562,986 questionnaires from April 20 to May 9, 2006 - alcoholic drinks (such as, beer, wine, wine coolers, and cocktails) and cigarettes remain the most popular choices of the target group. Interestingly, the survey shows that the target group's appreciation of the potential harmful effects of legal drugs (cigarettes, beer and wine, for example) is much less than their respect for the addictive threats of illegal drugs.

Forty percent of those surveyed, for example, do not think of alcoholic mixed drinks as addictive. In addition, more than 20 percent also say that liquor, beer, wine, and wine coolers are not addictive. On the other hand, the sample group fared better with illegal drugs. Less than 10 percent think amphetamines, inhalants, ecstasy, morphine, marijuana, and cocaine are not addictive.

Dr Suchart Threethipthikoon

A general understanding of drugs, says Dr Suchart Threethipthikoon, a psychiatrist who specialises in drugs abuse treatment at Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital, plays a determining role in whether or not a teen is at risk of future addiction. The risk is particularly high among teens who are not properly informed about the harmful effects of illegal drugs and those who think alcoholic mixed drinks are not addictive.

"Smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol are a threshold to using illegal drugs," Dr Suchart says. "Research shows that most illegal drugs addicts have progressed from either smoking or drinking, or both. It's very rare to see an otherwise well-behaved kid jumping straight into using amphetamines," he says.

Stages of addiction

In order to detect early signs of addiction, it helps to understand how drugs addiction takes place and how it progresses over time. Addiction, says Dr Suchart, is both psychological and physical, although it always manifests psychological symptoms first. At this early stage, drugs usage remains habitual, meaning that the person can still limit both the quantity and frequency of consumption. This could be smoking a pack of cigarettes per day or drinking two beers a week.

The next step up from habitual usage is when users begin using drugs for a particular purpose, such as for stopping an emotional pain, reducing stress, or increasing pleasure. Experts refer to this stage as drugs abuse. From abuse, users progress into the addiction or dependence stage when the frequency of usage becomes higher, and when users start to experience withdrawal symptoms when not using drugs. At this point, addiction becomes a physical problem, which is when parents usually find out.

Parents will start to witness changes in behaviour, temperament, and thinking patterns as physical dependency increases. These changes may become more apparent as the child starts to come home later than usual, spend money lavishly, ask for pocket money more frequently, perform poorly in school, act with aggression and vulgarity, or steal.

"Parents should send the child to a doctor as soon as they become aware of the problem," Dr Suchart says. "We can't prolong treatment even a day later because these kids will negotiate and keep on saying that they are not ready."

Throughout Dr Suchart's 14 years of experience in drug treatment, most patients usually come to him at the last stage, when their behaviour gets out of control. At this stage, treatment is always the most difficult. "The truth is that there's no pill that can directly treat addiction or stop the urge to consume drugs," he says. Rather, drugs treatment involves two steps: the treatment of physical addiction through detoxification, then the treatment of psychological addiction through a rehabilitation programme.

The parents' role throughout the treatment is to remain positive and provide positive emotional support. In addition, parents should participate in the rehabilitation programme with their child. "We educate parents so that they can follow the patient's thinking pattern and know how to handle any subterfuge that their child may use to escape treatment," Dr Suchart says.

Targeted education programme

While a good family relationship remains fundamental to every child's ability to avoid drugs, a proper drugs education programme in schools can also help to correct misconceptions about drugs. The Ministry of Education revised the national basic education curriculum plan in 2001. Now drugs education is included under the health studies and physical education section of the plan. Besides guiding students through written materials, schools organise exhibitions where students can learn more about the types, compositions, effects, and consequences of drugs.

However, a proper drugs education programme is a delicate science that requires more than exhibitions and displays. The student's age, Dr Suchart says, is the most important variable because children learn differently as they grow. "Eight-year-olds, for example, learn better when exposed to explicit information. As a result, the programme should emphasise why smoking cigarettes is bad, how the tar in cigarettes will lead to cancer, or which chemicals are inside a cigarette," he says. Exhibitions that display each type of drug or show a video work well in the 8-11 age group.

The 12 to 15-year-olds, on the other hand, learn by what they see happening in society. During these ages, peer pressure plays a crucial role in the way students behave and think. When educating this group, the programme should apply social reasoning and aim to build social skills through hands-on activities, such as rallies or games.

The late teens group (16 to 19-year-olds) is primarily concerned with their self-esteem and ego. This is the group that may pick up various habits as a way to show off individual identity. They may, for example, associate smoking with manhood. In this case, Dr Suchart says, educators must use psychology and point out [other] negative aspects, such as the number of women smokers is increasing, for example. "When kids reach 18 or 19 years old, exhibitions are only minimally effective," he adds.

Students musts be armed with the proper knowledge and support drugs education programmes, Dr Suchart says. Besides schools and parents, the government also plays a crucial role as the policymaker. The Director of Abac Poll Centre, Dr Noppadon Kannika, in concluding the report, calls for the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Justice, and the Royal Thai Police to step up efforts in the fight against drugs. After all, the effort to prevent drugs usage is a collaborative effort, and no one should be left to fight it alone.

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