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Braveheart Project
Genscore

Beyond the High: Understanding Why Young People Turn to Substance Use

June 19, 2025

Beyond the High: Understanding Why Young People Turn to Substance Use

  • Peace Oregbesan

Substance use among young people is often talked about in headlines, warnings, and statistics. But behind every number is a story. And most of the time, that story isn’t just about wanting to “get high.” It’s about pain. Pressure. Loneliness. Confusion. Sometimes it’s just about trying to feel something when everything else feels numb.

The BraveHeart Project, isn’t here to judge. We’re here to understand. And understanding means going deeper than the surface  beyond the high.

Why Young People Turn to Substances:

  1. To Escape What Hurts
    2. Anxiety, depression, trauma  many young people are dealing with more than they let on. Substances can feel like a temporary escape from everything that hurts, but that relief is short-lived. The pain doesn’t go away, it just gets buried.
  2. Because They Don’t Feel Enough
    3. In a world obsessed with image and success, it’s easy to feel like you’re falling behind. Drugs and alcohol might seem like a shortcut to confidence, but they often deepen the insecurities they’re trying to cover up.
  3. To Fit In and Feel Accepted
    4. When everyone around you is doing something, it’s hard to be the one who says no. But fitting in shouldn’t come at the cost of losing yourself.
  4. Because They Don’t Know How Else to Cope
    5. Most young people aren’t handed tools to manage stress, pain, or anxiety  so they find their own ways. Unfortunately, substances often become that unhealthy substitute for real healing.

How to Stop and Start Healing

Stopping substance use isn’t easy. It’s not a switch you flip overnight. But it is possible. And it’s not something you have to do alone.

  1. Admit What’s Really Going On
    2. This is the bravest step  being honest with yourself. What are you using the substance to escape? What emotions are you trying to silence? Awareness is the first key to change.

  2. Talk to Someone You Trust
    3. Whether it’s a friend, parent, counselor, teacher, just talk to someone. You don’t need to have the answers. Just letting someone in is already a huge step forward.

  3. Find Healthier Ways to Cope
    4. When you take something out of your life, you have to replace it with something better. Try things that ground you and help you process emotions:

    Journaling, Talking to a therapist, music or art, Exercise or movement,being in nature, joining a support group, Talking to a therapist No, it won’t feel the same as the high  but it will last longer, and it will heal deeper.

    1. Create Some Distance
    If you’re constantly surrounded by people who use, or places that trigger you, it’s okay to take space. It doesn’t make you weak it makes you strong enough to protect your peace.

    1. Be Patient with Yourself
    Healing isn’t linear. You might have setbacks. That doesn’t mean you’ve failed. What matters is that you keep choosing yourself. One decision at a time. One day at a time.

    You Deserve More Than a Temporary Escape which is why the BraveHeart Project exists, we don’t see you as “a problem to fix.” We see your strength. We know you’re more than your past or your choices. And we’re here to walk with you,  no shame, no pressure, JUST SUPPORT! 

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