The Facts

Substance abuse has become an everyday feature of the landscape for young people in our state. 

A survey discovered that, of New Hampshire minors:

• 44% reported having at least one drink during the past 30 days
• 28.4% reported having five or more drinks in a row on at least one occasion during the past 30 days
• 44.45% reported trying marijuana
• 25.9% reported smoking marijuana at least once during the past 30 days
• 26.9% reported being offered, sold, or given an illegal drug on school property during the past 12 months

A Federal study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Association determined that more than 6% of people nationwide desperately require some form of substance abuse intervention.  Yet only 1-in-10 within this group is receiving the treatment necessary to abandon their addictions and reclaim their lives.

Often, even those who have successfully completed a recovery program return to the very same schools, friends, communities, and conditions where substance abuse first took hold of their lives.  Not surprisingly, many succumb to former habits while simultaneously feeling helpless to climb back out of this hole again on their own.

Research by the National Association of Recovery Schools concludes:

• 80% of students returning to public school after substance abuse treatment will relapse within a single year.  
• Within only 90 days after completing their treatment, more than 50% of students will return to their previous level of substance abuse or more.
• Indeed, approximately 50% report being offered drugs or alcohol the first day after returning from a treatment program.