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It’s normal for teens to have questions about substances. Connect. Guide. Empower. can help you start a judgment-free conversation with your teen about the risks and how they can stay safe.

With tips, facts, and resources, this site helps you connect with your teen, guide them toward the facts, and empower them to make safe decisions.

Talking to your teen

Tips for Talking to Teens

Between school, sports, part-time jobs, and chores, there’s a lot on teens’ plates. And, let’s face it, talking about drugs at the dinner table can be awkward and unproductive.

The most important thing you can do is let your teen know that the door is open when they have questions. Make sure they know you won’t judge them or punish them for being curious—because you know curiosity is normal.

Below are tips for connecting with teens in conversations about substance use, including what teens have said they wish the adults in their lives understood

Lead with Empathy

Being a teen is hard. There's a lot of pressure on young people these days, and the world they're growing up in is different from what you experienced as a teen. Teens want their parents to know that they're super stressed and want to identify ways to relieve that stress.

Connecting with an understanding parent may help identify positive ways to address their stress rather than options like substance use. And we don't always give young people the credit they deserve: They're smart and want to be empowered to make positive decisions.

1 Don't Judge

You know your kid best. You know that they're not a "bad" person, regardless of what substances they might be wondering about or have even tried. But the default language a lot of parents use can come off as punitive, rather than supportive. Reacting without judgment or accusations allows for productive conversations that help you understand why your teen has questions.

If your teen does use substances, there is always a risk of addiction or mental health issues. It's important to lay a stigma-free foundation when it comes to talking about substance use. Just like you'd want to get your teen the best possible help if they had asthma, you should want them to get the support they might need for addiction. Addiction is a treatable medical condition, but stigma can lead to feelings of shame or the need to hide, and it makes it hard for teens to ask for help.

2 Leave the Door Open

Maybe you try to talk about substances when you pick up your teen from school one day, and they're just not into it. That doesn't mean they don't want to talk, period. Normalize these types of conversation so that it feels less awkward (for both of you!). This lets your teen know that they can come to you with questions and you won't jump to conclusions about why they're asking.

Not sure how to start? Look for mentions about substances in TV shows or movies or in the news. That can help set up the conversation so that it seems less out of the blue.

3 Be Specific

It is important to provide your teen with guidance on how to make healthy choices. Teens with parents or guardians who provide guidance to avoid substance use have lower rates of use. Each substance has unique risks, it is important to educate yourself about commonly misused drugs so you can discuss these specific risks.

There is a lot of false information online, so it is important to help them sort through truths and myths. Wine and opioids have very different risks, so grouping them together can seem extreme and out of touch and makes teens less likely to ask questions if they think that's your perspective.

4 Build Two-Way Trust

Adolescence is a tricky time to navigate: They’re not a kid, but they’re also not an adult yet. Teens want to feel like they have autonomy over their actions; they want to feel like you trust them and are there for them, no matter what.

The more your teen feels like you trust them, the more they will trust you as a place to turn to with questions, or to get help if they need it.

5

Understanding the Mental Health Connection

What is Mental Health?

Mental health is the physiological and emotional state of mental well-being that allows people to cope with the stresses of everyday life, learn to work and live well, as well as contribute their skills to the community around them.

Teens and young adults are forced to cope with stressors from school, community activities, family, relationships, their peers, and so much more both online and in person. Mental health can often be a balancing act for adults, and for youth it can often feel tenfold.

Mental Health and Substance Use

Mental health is integral to our ability to make sound decisions, build relationships, and set ourselves up for success. Pressures of everyday life and trauma can feel like a weight on youths’ shoulders and substances are often seen as a coping mechanism for them to utilize when life and emotions feel too difficult.

In 2021, 42% of adolescents reported feelings of sadness and hopelessness – which can be indicative of depressive disorder – up from 28% in 2011 (Panchal, 2024). Because of this sadness and loss of hope, a number of youth report using substances in order to “feel mellow, calm, or relaxed” (CDC, 2024).

Because substance use is often found to begin during adolescence, it’s important to address why teens use substances: to cope with mental health obstacles. Adolescents report using substances in order to feel good, relieve pain, aid with sleep, or experimentation. (CDC 2024).

An open, honest discussion with your teens about mental health could help them open up and learn healthy coping mechanisms in order to deal with stress and trauma. Creating a safe space where youth feel comfortable to speak about their mental health could aid in intervening when substance use questions arise.

Drug 411

Facts About Substances

Between friends, TV shows, and TikTok, your teen probably has some ideas about substances already. But not all of the information that’s readily available is accurate. Here are some facts to get you up to speed.

Get important drug facts below!

1. Alcohol is the most commonly used substance among young people in the U.S., and teens who drink alcohol are more likely to experience a range of negative outcomes, including:

Injuries such as burns, falls, or drowning.
Unwanted, unplanned, and unprotected sexual activity.
Problems in school, memory problems, and misuse of other substances.

2. Many don't know that alcohol is a classified Group 1 carcinogen, putting it in the same category as asbestos, radiation, and tobacco. A growing body of evidence supports the World Health Organization's recent statement that there is no safe level of alcohol consumption, and it is a cancer-causing substance.

3. In general, the risk of teens experiencing these negative outcomes is greater for those who binge drink than for those who do not. But, in New Jersey, about a quarter of teens think weekly binge drinking doesn’t carry risk.

1. You probably know what alcohol is, but you might not know that the effects of alcohol depend on more than just how much a person drinks. They also depend on things like a person’s size, whether you’ve had alcohol before, what you’ve eaten, or if you’ve had any water. You should never try to keep up with how much someone else drinks.

2. Alcohol can directly impact a person’s judgment, leading to choices you normally wouldn’t make. Physically, drinking too much can make you sick or even cause alcohol poisoning —which can put you in the hospital or even be fatal. It also increases the risk of injuries like falls, accidents, and assaults, and over time, drinking alcohol often can lead to problems like high blood pressure, stroke, liver disease, and even cancers.

3. You should never drive after drinking or get in the car of someone who has. You’ve heard plenty about drunk driving, but you might also be worried about getting in trouble if you call for a ride home, or you might not want to question how much a friend has had to drink. Remember, getting home safe is always the number-one priority.

ALCOHOL

CANNABIS (AKA MARIJUANA, POT, WEED)

1. Cannabis is only legal in New Jersey for those 21 and older, but youth are exposed to a lot of information about it through friends and social media. It can be hard for them to know what’s true and what’s not.

2. Today's weed is much stronger than it was ten years ago. High-potency THC products are commonly sold as vapes and edibles (the most used marijuana products for youth), and are linked to increased mental health issues and psychosis/schizophrenia.

3. About a third of NJ students have tried it, and about one in five students currently use it —only slightly lower than the number of students who currently drink alcohol.

4. Many NJ high school students think using marijuana once or twice a week has either no risk of harm or just a slight risk. However, using marijuana harms the developing brain and leads to problems with:

Memory, attention, learning, decision-making, and school.
Anxiety, depression, and even self-harm, especially for teens with a family history of mental illness.

5. The risk of developing a cannabis use disorder increases for people who begin using marijuana before 18.

1. Cannabis contains THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), which is what gets someone high. Just because it is naturally occurring, doesn't mean it is safe for human consumption.

2. Your developing brain is way more susceptible to harmful effects of marijuana and THC, which interrupts the part of your brain (called the hippocampus) that forms memories and processes info. It also affects brain areas responsible for decision-making, coordination, and reaction time.

3. Using marijuana can harm your mental health. THC increases your risk of anxiety, depression, and even self-harm, especially for people with a family history of mental illness. High-potency products, which are the most commonly sold, exacerbate all of these symptoms.

4. Whether it’s smoked, vaped, or taken as an edible, marijuana has different risks that you should know:

Smoking marijuana exposes you to toxins and cancer-causing chemicals, just like tobacco smoke.
Vaping can involve stronger high-potency THC, and vaping oils can contain additives or be contaminated.
Consuming edibles is unpredictable because you often don’t know exactly how much THC they contain. Also, the effects of edibles can take a while to kick in, so it’s easy to accidentally take too much.

5. Combining marijuana and alcohol can be super dangerous because they increase each other’s effects and make you more impaired together than they would if consumed separately.

6. Driving while high can be as dangerous as driving while drunk. Marijuana can slow your reaction time, impair coordination, distort perception, and weaken decision-making.

1. All opioids are addictive. Whether it’s prescription painkillers like hydrocodone (Vicodin) or illegal substances like fentanyl or heroin, they all work in the body the same way. Opioid dependence can happen in just five days.

2. Fentanyl is an extremely potent opioid (10 to 50 times stronger than morphine), and it has led to increases in opioid overdoses and deaths across the country. It has also become increasingly common for fentanyl to be found hidden in other types of drugs without a person’s knowledge, making any opioid (or other drug) use even riskier if it's not from a legitimate pharmacy.

3. About a third of U.S. youths think opioids are easy to acquire; the most common way that high school students in New Jersey get prescription opioids is from friends or family members. About 1/3 of New Jersey student-athletes who misused prescription painkillers got them from their own prescription.

4. One way to keep your teen safe from opioids is to practice safe storage and disposal of prescription medications in your home. Keep opioids in a secure place that others can’t easily access, and always properly dispose of unused prescriptions. This site can help you find a convenient drop-off location

1. Prescription opioids for pain like hydrocodone (Vicodin) and oxycodone (Percocet/OxyContin) and illegal opioids like heroin or fentanyl all work inside the body in the same way, and they are all addictive.

2. Even when taking them as prescribed by a doctor, everyone is at risk of developing a tolerance and becoming dependent or even addicted to them. People can become dependent on opioids after just five days.

3. Overdose is a serious risk no matter what kind of opioid a person takes. Taking too much can slow down a person’s breathing to the point of stopping altogether, which can be fatal if someone doesn’t get medical help right away.

4. It’s extremely dangerous to take opioids at the same time as alcohol or other drugs because doing so increases the chance of overdose and death.

5. It’s really important not to take pills from anyone else—even if they swear they’re real. Fentanyl is an extremely strong opioid that can be added into other drugs without someone’s knowledge. Even a tiny amount of it can be deadly, like 10-15 grains of salt. And it’s not just opioids: Counterfeit pills that claim to be other prescription drugs can also be laced with fentanyl.

6. You should always call 911 immediately if you think someone is overdosing. New Jersey’s Good Samaritan law means that you and your friends won’t get in trouble, even if drugs are around. Overdose symptoms include losing consciousness and being hard to wake up; choking or gurgling sounds; small, “pinpoint pupils”; cold, clammy skin; and discolored lips and nails.

OPIOIDS

1. Stimulants are a class of substances that includes things like cocaine, methamphetamine, and ADHD medications —all substances that speed up communication between the brain and the rest of the body. ADHD meds include Adderall, Ritalin, and Concerta, and you may hear young people call them “Addy” or “study buddies.”

2. Some teens will turn to ADHD meds to try to stay awake or focus. But they can actually make it harder to study and make teens feel anxious, panicky, or sick if the meds weren’t actually prescribed to them to manage ADHD.

3. Most teens who misuse prescription stimulants say they get them from someone they know.

4. Anything that didn’t come directly from the pharmacy is risky. It is possible that counterfeit pills masquerading as Adderall could actually be laced with dangerous other substances like fentanyl.

1. ADHD medications are ”stimulants,” and they are in the same class of drugs as cocaine and methamphetamine. They all “stimulate” (speed up) the connection between your brain and the rest of the body.

2. For your friends or classmates who do have diagnosed ADHD, prescription stimulants increase alertness, attention, and energy so they can focus better on everything from a history lesson to driving. But for people who were not actually prescribed these drugs to manage ADHD, they can actually make it harder to study and can make you feel anxious, panicky, or sick.

3. You can keep yourself and your friends safe by never sharing prescription medications.

4. Be aware that there can be fake pills pretending to be Adderall that could have other dangerous substances added to them, like fentanyl. So anything that can’t be confirmed as from a legitimate pharmacy is extra risky.

5. Never mix ADHD meds with alcohol or other drugs like opioids. Doing so really increases the risks of all the substances involved.

STIMULANTS

Cannabis

Alcohol

Opioids

Stimulants

Local Resurces

Find Support

Click the image to visit each resource.

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is a free, nationwide digital dialing code providing compassionate, accessible care. Text or call 988 24/7 if you are in crisis.

NJ REACH is a free central call-in line for New Jersey residents who are looking for help with substance use disorder.

Call 1-844-732-2465, 24/7

Screening 2 Support is a free, confidential tool to self-screen for anxiety, depression, substance use disorder, and more.

Get free and anonymous naloxone at participating pharmacies through the statewide NALOXONE365 program.

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