My X-treme Life by Jessica

I’m lucky because my parents are open with me whenever I ask questions about drugs or alcohol and always gave me lots of facts. I’m a very curious person and love to try new things, but because of their help I don’t want to drink or try drugs.

When I was in grade 8, I was hanging out at a friend’s house. One by one my friends got up to go outside. I could see through the sliding doors that they were sitting in a circle, and there was smoke. My friends asked me to join them, but I said no. I had joined the track team and was working hard towards being the best on the team.

Because I was always trying new things I made new friends and we ended up going to some parties together. I didn’t like beer and that’s what a lot of people were drinking there. When I was offered a can by my friends, I just said ‘no’. They soon realized that I can still be the life of a party without that stuff. I never judged my friends, and they never judged me except to sometimes tease that I was a “goodie-goodie.” But I didn’t have time for drugs because I was really involved in lots of activities and it just wasn’t me.

I try to fill my life with activities that give me excitement in ways drinking or drugs never could. I love snowboarding, white-water rafting and am going skydiving with the X-treme sports club soon. This summer I helped Habitat for Humanity raise more than $6000 to build homes.

No one knows how strong they are until they’re tested. You can make your own choices, and become a person you can be proud of. By trying new things and living my life to the fullest, I’ve made the decision that unhealthy risks like drinking and drugs aren’t something I need. When I spend time with my family and friends and dare myself to take healthy risks, it’s the coolest feeling that drugs or alcohol can never give. I do what I do, I am who I am and I won’t let alcohol or drugs get in the way!

Hi, My Name is Dave and I Was a Pothead

I had a pretty normal childhood. I was shy, but I’d say I was an average kid.

I smoked pot for the first time the summer before Grade 7. It was at a friend’s birthday party and he had a bunch of guys over. I knew they were going to be smoking pot and I decided to try it. I hadn’t done any drugs or alcohol before that – maybe a sip of my parent’s beer but nothing serious.

I don’t think I got high by the drugs – but I got high on the acceptance. That was a big part of it.

I started smoking pot a couple times a month. One night we got caught and my mother went nuts! She grounded me forever. She wanted to send me to rehab right away. She made me see a therapist – which I hated - I didn’t think I needed to.

After that, my parents told me that if they caught me again, they were going to send me to rehab. I stopped smoking pot… until the next summer.

That year I did really bad at school but I didn’t care. I wasn’t doing homework and I was falling asleep in class. Getting caught was always hanging over my head – so I kept getting high so I wouldn’t have to think about it.

One night, at the start of the next summer, my parents asked me to come home early. They knew I was doing drugs and they had made arrangements for me to go to rehab the next day.

I was really mad at my parents and I thought they were being dumb. I didn’t think I had a problem and I didn’t think I needed help. I thought rehab was just for people who did hard stuff, like cocaine. I just smoked lots of pot – I didn’t belong in rehab.

A few days off of drugs, I could feel it in my body. I started to realize that I was addicted, and I didn’t want to end up being a junkie. I knew I needed help. I wanted to live a better life and have a future.

Now, I have so many more opportunities and better friends than I ever had when I was using drugs. It was hard to stop but it was the best thing I ever did!

I Wanted the Life the Other Girls Had by Chantel

I grew up in an everybody-knows-everybody neighbourhood. My mom was really young when she had my brother and me. We moved around a lot as kids and I changed schools every year. My parents weren’t ready to be parents; they were drinking and partying a lot. I ended up taking care of my brother all the time, even though I was only 6 or 7.

I smoked my first joint when I was 10 years old. I thought it was cool. I was drinking alcohol with my friends and sometimes I drank with my mom.Finally my mom left my dad and went into a treatment centre, and got sober and got her life together.

But when my mom got clean, I started doing drugs. In school, other girls didn’t like me. They had money; we were on welfare. They could go to the mall and get what they wanted, but I had to wait. I wanted the life they had. My self-esteem was so low, I felt like nobody cared about my grades or if I would accomplish anything, so I started to ditch school.

My mom took my brother and me to a counsellor. I didn’t want to go and I threw a big fit. But after awhile I got into it, and gave it a shot. I did a lot of growing and healing. It interested me; I wanted to hear how broken families got back together. I started to get clean and now I don’t drink or do drugs.

What I know now is that I don’t need anything or anybody else to feel better about me. First of all, love yourself. Second, be with positive people and surround yourself with people who love you. You can't do this thing called "life" alone but you can do it with help, because you’re worth it!