Drug and alcohol use is less common among New Hampshire high school students than a decade ago, but today’s students report worse mental health than in the past, the 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Survey results show.
Experts say mental health and substance use are intertwined, as some teens turn to substances to cope with mental health problems. In the Monadnock Region, a lack of resources for teens dealing with substance use compounds the problem, local experts say.
The Youth Risk Behavior Survey is a national survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention every two years and the results are drawn from a sample of the 9th- through 12-graders who take the survey.
Overall, drug and alcohol use by New Hampshire students has trended down over the past decade. Although full national data is not yet available for 2023, New Hampshire students have historically been less likely than the national average to have their first drink of alcohol before age 13, try marijuana before age 13, or currently use alcohol, according to survey data.
More than 75 percent of New Hampshire students report they know their parents would be unhappy if they were drinking alcohol, smoking marijuana or misusing prescription drugs. That’s an important factor.
“I want parents to know that they have more impact than they may think. Research shows parental disapproval of substance abuse does have an impact on teens,” said Jen Porschitz, Keene High School student assistance counselor.
The overall trend is positive, but things aren’t all rosy for New Hampshire students. Since 2021, there has been a slight uptick in New Hampshire high school students’ use of substances — possibly due in part to a change in the timing of the survey in 2021 — and while drinking, smoking and drug use are all less common now than a decade ago, about three out of 10 New Hampshire high school students still report consistent drinking, about two in 10 currently use marijuana and about two in 10 vape, according to survey data.
At Keene High, Porschitz supports students who are caught violating substance use rules as well as those working on quitting.
To reduce peer pressure and monitor vaping in bathrooms, the school recently renovated some bathrooms to include a vaping sensor in each stall.
Vaping reached a peak in 2019, when one-third of New Hampshire high school students reported they currently vaped. Use rates have fallen since, but vaping remains the most common substance use violation at Keene High, Porschitz said.
The school offers a “Quit Nic” group for students who want to quit or are considering quitting.
Porschitz said the school is also partnering with the Serenity Center, a recovery center in Keene, this year to offer weekly peer support meetings for students curious about sobriety. The meetings will be led by local adults who are in recovery and will be optional for students.
The meetings, which will start by the end of September, according to Porschitz, are intended to help students explore sobriety and access support if they’re ready to quit. It’s also an opportunity for the Serenity Center to gain name recognition.
“When our teens graduate and they go out into the community and they’re already high-risk and they’re already using substances, I want them to know what the available resources are,” Porschitz said.
Many teens want to quit, Porschitz said, but find it difficult because they rely on substances as coping mechanisms to deal with mental health problems.
For many teens who use substances, substance use goes hand in hand with mental health challenges, Desaulniers said.
Mental health problems have become much more common among New Hampshire high schoolers in the past decade, on par with national trends.
In the 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, about 40 percent reported feeling hopeless or sad almost every day for two weeks or more in a row during the previous year, compared with 25 percent in 2013.
More than 20 percent reported seriously considering suicide in the past year in 2023, up from 14 percent in 2013.
About 17 percent of New Hampshire students said they made a plan for suicide in 2023 and about 9 percent reported a suicide attempt.
Teens say they turn to substances like nicotine to cope with stress, anxiety and depression, Porschitz said.
“For most of them, it feels like an easy solution. So many of them lack other coping strategies. It’s hard to give up what feels like your biggest coping strategy,” Porschitz said. But “what feels good now — what feels like a solution to stress and anxiety — will often lead to bigger problems like grades, school issues, mental health and parent conflict.”
According to Dr. Geraldine Rubin, chair of pediatrics at Cheshire Medical Center, issues related to vaping can include nicotine addiction and lung damage from inhalants like formaldehyde, acrolein, arsenic, benzene, nickel and lead in the vape.
Students may turn to nicotine for help with their mental health, but in reality it only makes things worse. Nicotine addiction can contribute to anxiety, depression, learning issues and concentration problems, Rubin said.
In classrooms throughout the region, Desaulniers works to equip students with coping skills besides substances. She said healthy coping can look different for everyone, from deep breathing to getting outside and exercising.
Rubin recommends students learn to cope with stress by establishing positive relationships with friends and family, developing good sleep schedules, exercising regularly, practicing meditation, eating nourishing meals and seeking counseling support when needed.
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