Pubdate: Fri, 20 Oct 2000
Source: Munster Times (IN)
Copyright: 2000 The Munster Times
Contact:  The Times, 601 45th Ave., Munster, IN 46321
Fax: (219) 933-3249
Website: http://www.thetimesonline.com/
Author: Patricia Briske

HARDER DRUGS ARE PART OF SCHOOL SCENE

Vince Amador has talked to kids who have taken Ecstasy, the designer drug, 
and he has warned them it's dangerous.

"It doesn't matter," he shrugged. "The kids know it's dangerous, but that 
just makes it more exciting."

Over his 15 years as a school psychologist for Thornton High School 
District 205, Amador has talked to plenty of students who smoke, drink and 
take drugs.

"Club drugs like Ecstasy appeal to risk-takers, not to everyone. When it 
comes to drinking alcohol, kids may do it because their friends do it, or 
because it's socially acceptable," he said.

Amador was one of about 100 health and social workers who heard the latest 
on the school drug scene at a conference hosted by the South Suburban Youth 
Service Alliance. The workshop at South Suburban College covered everything 
from the drugs themselves to the Internet's role in distributing them.

Dave Hurley, who works in behavioral medicine at Christ Hospital in Oak 
Lawn, said statistics indicate drug use among teens is going down.

"But clinicians say it's getting worse," Hurley added. "There are tougher 
cases. We're seeing earlier use, with the average at 11, 12 or 13 years. 
We're seeing the rebirth of marijuana, which kids think is healthy, or not 
that bad. We're seeing acid and designer drugs like Ecstasy, GHB, MDMA, 
LSD. Kids are taking them at parties they call 'raves' or 'trances.' You 
can guess what's going to happen at a 'trance.' "

Teen-agers can get any drug they want once they're inside, but then the 
focus is on music, Hurley said.

"They have live bands, and they dance all night," he said. "Kids say 
there's a real mixture of people, and it's all about peace, love and 
tranquillity. It sounds like the 1960s. Kids just want peace of mind and 
acceptance."

They don't realize the danger of ingesting some chemical designed to get 
them high, and while Ecstasy has been around for 70 years, scientists 
haven't studied it much, Hurley said. Sometimes teen-agers take lookalike 
substances by accident.

"They truly don't know what they're taking," he said.

Keeping children from smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol remains the 
best way to keep them off other drugs, but it's hard to battle national 
advertising campaigns, according to Hurley.

"We're trying to change social norms," he said. "That's the problem. It's 
become a way of life." 
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