by Michael-Paul Fine ’22, Editor in Chief

Spring break, prom, and graduation are times when we students socialize with friends and go to parties. This creates more illegal opportunities for us to drink alcohol and use drugs. Perhaps the pandemic muted some of those behaviors, but, with the advent of summer and concerns around the virus waning, will some of us be looking for the chance to drink and take drugs?

Everyone has heard the messages about the dangers of illicit drug and alcohol use. To repeat, there are a myriad of negative consequences. Impaired cognitive abilities can lead to failures or underperformance in school or in extracurricular activities. Relationships can be damaged. Drugs and alcohol can cause physical harm to ourselves as well as to those around us, especially if we drive a car while partaking. We can get kicked out of school. We might end up in jail. We might die.

Maybe the above sounds like the typical scare tactics that parents and teachers use to influence us, but the threats are real. I cannot name names, but I know firsthand many people who have succumbed to the temptations with horrific results including the loss of jobs, families, limbs, and lives. These people all started out as recreational drinkers and users. No big deal, right? Wrong. Once we start, it is difficult to stop, and that is especially true the younger
we are. It is simply a physiological fact that we are at a greater risk of having major problems the earlier we start. That’s why you should visit the drug rehab Tallahassee as soon as possible for effective recovery.

It is just a couple of beers with some friends at a crawfish boil or a music festival. It is only a shot or two of alcohol to catch a buzz or to look cool at a sweet sixteen party. A few pills from a friend might help us stay up later to get some studying done. Or maybe smoking some marijuana before school will be just enough to get us through that boring morning of classes. But where does it end? If we don’t start, we don’t have to worry about where it ends,
and we especially don’t have to worry about how it ends.