When you receive the Seal you no longer need drugs for anything but essential medical treatment. A recent study shows that drug use among teens is generally down from previous levels except in a few areas.

The study is being conducted by the Institute for Social Research of the University of Michigan, and has been conducted for 33 years. It is a survey of 50,000 students in the 12th, 10th, and 8th grades, in which the students are asked about their drug use.

Drug use is down among the teens of the survey, except in use of some drugs, including prescription painkillers. Good news is that methamphetamine use is down, but the painkillers are not good news.

Over the last 10 years the number of 8th graders claiming to have used drugs illegally at least once in the last year dropped from 24 percent to 13 percent. That is a reduction of almost 50 percent.

The 10th graders over the last 10 years saw rates drop from 39 percent to 28 percent. 12th graders saw a drop from 42 percent to 36 percent. The drops are most marked among the younger people, which is more good news.

But 5 percent of 12th graders have at least tried OxyContin and nearly 10 percent have at least tried Vicodin. These are the prescription pain killers which are more powerful than anything ever used in past generations.

Another increase in drug use for the teens was with the drug Ecstasy, which saw a decrease 5 years ago as it was thought to be too risky. The most recent years have seen an increase again as students deflect from perception of risk.

The use of amphetamines has fallen by 50 percent for 8th graders and 30 percent for 10th graders and 12th graders. That is particularly good news since methamphetamines have the reputation of being among the most destructive of all drugs.

Cocaine did not show a decline in 2007, and neither did marijuana for 12th graders. But marijuana, though the most popular of all the drugs, has shown sharp declines in recent years, carrying much of the weight of the decrease in drug use by students.

Anabolic steroid use is also down, by 40 percent in the 12th graders, and by over 50 percent in the last 5 years by the 10th and 8th graders. And in the last 10 years the 8th graders who smoke has declined by nearly 70 percent.

The news about the prescription painkillers is not particularly good news, since those painkillers are highly addictive. They may be more addictive than opiates have been in the past since they are stronger than anything previously available.

But the news is generally good news. Teenagers are in a sensitive period of their life, when they often feel rebellious and apt to experiment with new things. It is not the time to develop habits which could completely destroy their lives.

When you are sealed God will begin to work on your addictions. He is the one who will deliver you from all addiction. You may get support from other people, but God is the one with the Power to break all your old habits.

You will find that you do not need drugs anymore because God will change the way you think and feel. Changing your thinking is important when you need to break a habit.

And changing the way you feel is important when you need to be comforted or have feelings of joy or pleasure that you once got from the drugs and their social circle.

When you are sealed God will give you all those new thoughts and new feelings. It never happens overnight because it is always a lifelong experience of growth. But it does happen when you receive the Seal.

Jason Witt

Article Source: EzineArticles.com