What are the factors that influence substance abuse in high school athletes?
Today’s young athletes particularly high school players, are being exposed to substance abuse – alcohol, drugs and other substances that can affect them psychologically.
Although high school sports usually do not involve big paychecks and multimillion dollars endorsement deals, competition can be intense mainly because they could potentially lead a young star athlete to great fame and fortune or a college recruiting scholarship in the near future.
As a result, substance abuse in high school athletes is becoming prevalent to get that extra edge over their competitors. According to a study published in the Doping Journal, 27% of high school athletes admitted to using banned substances.
Some psychological factors that influence these kids to result to substance abuse include:
To Avoid Making Mistakes
The stakes in high school sports such as basketball and football are often quite high. A single player’s mistake can turn a winning team into a losing team. With so much at stake, some turn to banned substances to help them cope with the pressure.
The aforementioned study claims that concern over mistakes accounted for 51.98% of all substance abuse cases among high school athletes. An athlete who is not confident may take drugs to gain confidence and feel in control.
To Avoid Criticism from the Bench
Competition for team slots among high school sports is usually fierce. As such, athletes are likely to go to extreme lengths to avoid drawing criticism from the team coach. According to the study published by Doping Journal, 23.14% of high school athletes engage in substance abuse to avoid criticism from the coach.
A study published by International Journal of Sports Medicine found out that 50% of them purchase the drugs themselves, while about 10% to 14% get the drugs from relatives, family doctors, or friends.
To Boost Personal Ego
At the high school level, ego still plays a big role in sports. This is why at least 21.17% of athletes engage in substance abuse, according to the Doping Journal. The perception that other players have a chemically induced advantage may spur athletes to start using drugs.
A study carried out at the Oxford University’s Department of Psychiatry found that some high school athletes start experimenting with anabolic steroids as early as 15 years of age. For the majority (male), the desire is usually to bulk up and increase body mass by supplementing their strength training.
Of course, substance abuse in professional as well as amateur sports is a big problem. At the high school level, athletes engage in substance abuse for a wide range of reasons. This includes the desire to boost personal ego, avoid criticism from the coach, and avoid making mistakes. Athletes that do not engage in substance abuse (39%) know their fellow athletes banned substances.
What Parents Should Do?
Parents are the main protectors of their children. There are lots of ways that they can help to prevent them from abusing drugs.
First, is to become more vigilant in observing the consistency of their behaviors. Most high school students who are doing drugs would never bring any drugs or drug paraphernalia at home, thus it is very
important to look for obvious signs that they are under substance abuse.
Second, every now and then parents can check their teens’ bedroom to see if there are any paraphernalia or drugs left in their closets or their safe boxes.
Though this could mean that they are invading their children’s privacy, safeguarding them from harm should always be the top priority.
Lastly, it is also very important to check if their schools conduct regular drug testing program, but if there is none, parents can opt to use a home drug testing kit. Though this can possibly jeopardize their relationships with their children, there is always a way to make them understand once they are free from the addiction.
About the Guest Author
Agnes Jimenez is a professional blogger and writer. She writes for many online establishments and currently partners with TheFamilyCompass.com in spreading awareness about troubled and depressed teenagers (and how to deal with them).
The Family Compass aims to increase awareness on the current psychological and societal status of today’s teens and how these factors affect the future of our society.