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Substance abuse is increasingly becoming a problem among teenagers these days. It can lead to many other serious problems later in life, starting from failing in school and even to extreme consequences like violence and death.

Substance abuse can include alcohol and drugs. These days, it's becoming increasingly easy for young people to get pressured to try these substances and to obtain them from sources outside the home. If you're not sure whether your teen is abusing substances, you can look for the usual signs. Some signs may not start out as obviously as others, but if you know what to look for, some of your teen's unusual behavior may make sense:

• Constant allergy-like symptoms like red eyes, chest pains, runny nose, etc.
• A glazed-over look on his/her eyes.
• Repeated complaints of getting sick (a sign that the immune system is breaking down).
• Becoming less concerned about appearance. Poor personal hygiene.
• Irritability
• Shows poor judgment
• Sudden show of apathy or an attitude that just doesn't care about anything or anyone.
• Showing signs of depression
• Frequent bouts of anger or hostility
• Lying
• Unexplained amount of money, more than their usual weekly allowance.
• Skipping classes
• Showing a marked lack of interest in school
• Too much unaccounted time outside the house
• Changed set of friends

If parents suspect that their teens are involved in substance abuse, it's important that appropriate intervention is staged as soon as possible. There will come a time when one's addiction will rewire the brain in such a way that the body believes it cannot survive without alcohol or drugs anymore, making rehabilitation a lot harder as time passes by. Teenagers are also more likely to overdose on drugs or get alcohol poisoning because most of the time, they are abusing drugs to fill an emotional need. They take more drugs or alcohol to feel numb of the emotional pain they want to escape from.

When dealing with substance abuse in teenagers, it's also important to know that each person has individual needs, and so there's no single treatment to fit all cases. It's also important to understand that addiction can be very hard to treat. When one family member is undergoing treatment for an addiction, the whole family is affected as well. That's why successful treatments for addiction involves family effort.

It's critical in dealing with substance abuse in teenagers to have the person undergo counseling and therapy for an adequate period of time. At times it works to just have the teen go to therapy sessions a few times a week, but oftentimes it's best to take the person out of the environment and into a treatment facility where he/she can receive constant therapy as needed, as well as be taken out of an environment where the substances he/she is addicted to can be easily obtained.

Therapy would also reveal the underlying reasons why a teen started abusing substances in the first place. This is essential in the healing process so that the teen will be more able to identify a dangerous situation and be properly equipped to make better decisions.

It's unfortunate that for some people, addiction is a lifelong struggle. The temptation is always there, always something to contend with. Sufficient aftercare is a big part of a person's continuous recovery.