By Debbie Zwanikken
I had the privilege to sit with a teen and talk about his experience of experimenting with marijuana. While there are many reasons why one would start a habit, it is clear that substance abuse comes from the inability to process emotionally upsetting events; sometimes, experimentation is also a logical explanation to start, but people that abuse have a different metabolism of drugs in the brain. More evidence is showing that it is the discomfort, and rejection or even the inability to recognize the feelings that have caused many to become so emotionally confused, and the lack of explanation.
A young life filled with themes of abuse, neglect, trauma, nasty separation of your parents, etc., impacts your emotional wellbeing, touching on your mental wellbeing. How many youth nowadays do not experience these on a consistent basis? The coping strategy of dealing with emotional stress seems to be a taboo subject in our society. Understanding emotions is key to not having it dictate and control us. Adding a psychosocial curriculum can give youths a better chance to take responsibility for their lives.
Jackson’s right to be
Jackson is an extremely handsome young black man of English Caribbean decent. Physically lean and strong, his athletic body stands firm. He flashes me with a politician smile and laments he isn’t tall enough. He describes himself as being a musician and sportsman. He is shy and thoughtful but has his moments of coming of age and standing firmly in this experience. The year 2013 started as a fabulous year for him: School, work and girlfriend were all going well, and he had the plan to join the police force and was busy investigating how to make that a reality. Jackson is now 18 years and has had the disastrous experience of being raped. He found the courage to put an end to it, and refers to it as the “incident.” This story today is not about rape, but about his use of marijuana. This is a story that asks you to look at the reasons behind the smoke in the mirrors.
The struggle is real
Jackson recalls his first space-cake (marijuana baked into brownies) adventure in school; he was 14 at the time. He thought he was really funny and had the best time ever. One of his teachers noticed his strange behaviour and investigated and explained that he should never eat this forbidden dessert again. Jackson’s parents were not informed of the space-cakes mishap. “What was it like?” I asked. Jackson said he had been feeling tense. In his class, though he never noticed it before, there were always subtle hints of encouragement to use marijuana to “relax.” “You need to have a joint...” “You look stressed...” “Lemme know if want to chill.”
“Though I was anxious (racing heart) the first time I smoked, I learned not to panic and worry about everything as my senses were hyper alert, I learned to relax.” His buddies kept telling him to keep calm. Jackson tells of the habit growing slowly, of the smell of marijuana having the effect of breaking him out in a cold sweat, and the sensation was not unpleasant either: “It’s like it’s calling me.” His body seduced by the lure of so-called un-addicted marijuana.
Relax, don’t do it
Apparently, feeling relaxed is a challenge for many youths. In a report from our island’s Health Department done on adolescent (15-19) health and sexuality in 2013, the statistics reveal that “Over the past 30 days, close to two-thirds of in-school participants (61.0%) had drunk alcohol, with 4.1% being heavy users of alcohol in that they drank on 11 or more days. Around a quarter (25.2%) had ever been “really” drunk, with this having happened on 10 or more occasions to 1.2% of participants. A minority of respondents, 7.5%, reported having gotten into trouble with family and friends, missed school or got into fights as a result of drinking alcohol; marijuana had been used by 20.2% of in-school participants, with 7.8% having first used marijuana by the age of 13. Sexual activity was more likely if adolescents used alcohol or drugs, including marijuana and cigarettes. Higher levels of use of alcohol also increased risk.”
Losing his religion
“I felt more in control of who I was... As a musician, I could compose more soulful music; I could feel it coming out from deep inside myself.” Without it, the process was more laboured. We walked through his neighbourhood, and he told me what is most deceiving to outsiders, is that marijuana is everywhere. “You’re over at a friend’s house and he offers, or a friend of your friend comes over to smoke and offers it to you. He tells about fathers giving it to stepsons, and of gardens garnished by marijuana plants.
After basketball practice, a smoking ritual has evolved that bonds boys to talking deeply about life as they relax on the bleachers under the stars. There is a longing for making deep connections these youths seem to lack, and they long for the fulfilment of this basic human need. To Jackson’s observation, even his girlfriend is more enchanted by him under the influence of his marijuana use, though he never told her he used it. “She says I’m funny in a good way, and she feels closer to me.” “I feel attractive, and I can focus on just her.” He loves her quietness, her ambition, and her intellectual capabilities, and though he respects her wishes to remain a virgin for now, the “incident” had forced him to seek validation that he was not homosexual and drove him into the arms of another young lady.
Here again was an opportunity to experience sex with heightened senses, which seem to lengthen and enhance the pleasure of sex. Jackson said he realized he returns to smoking to get peace of mind if it starts to stick on the “incident.” He will still have thoughts of it, but he isn’t emotional floored by it. His self-confidence also takes a boost under the influence of marijuana, his inhibitions in social settings fall away. When I asked if he would want marijuana legalized, he indicated that this would make him feel better as by his religious values, he is committing sin. Sins and crimes; hell or jail, Jackson says, “It’s in the music, music videos, video games.”
He spoke about the artist “Wiz Khalifa” and said he was one of the most influential personas in promoting smoking weed. He said; “If Wiz says it’s okay, then we think it’s okay.” The explicit messages of fast and loose sex, drugs, violence, and fame are hardly countered anywhere in the lives of youths today. The moral slackness that happens in Jackson’s neighbourhood, like bullying, theft, and unskilled parents, is adding rocket fuel to scooters. Jackson comes from a good home with loving parents and he still feels the pressure of his community weighing on him.
Jackson said that since our interview (I also counselled him) he has stopped smoking and is finding his way back to his values.
