Signs of Use

Determining if your child is using substances can be challenging. Many of the signs are common behaviors among teens and young adults. For example, shifts in mood or personality, behavioral changes, and mental health issues like depression or anxiety can often be mistaken for child substance use.

However, if you have reason to suspect use, don’t be afraid to err on the side of caution. Prepare to take action by asking direct questions to your child about drugs and seeking support resources if you confirm they are using.

Finding clues might be challenging unless you know what to look for, how to look for signs, and where to look. That’s where we come in!

LEARN MORE

Spot the Signs

What to Look For in Teens and Young Adults

Shifts in mood & personality

  • Sullen, withdrawn, or depressed
  • Less motivated
  • Silent, uncommunicative
  • Hostile, angry, uncooperative
  • Deceitful or secretive
  • Unable to focus
  • A sudden loss of inhibitions
  • Hyperactive or unusually elated

Behavioral changes

  • Changed relationships with family members or friends
  • Absenteeism or a loss of interest in school, work, or other activities
  • Avoids eye contact
  • Locks doors
  • Disappears for long periods of time
  • Goes out often, frequently breaking curfew
  • Secretive with the use of their phone
  • Makes endless excuses
  • Uses chewing gum or mints to cover up breath
  • Often uses over-the-counter preparations to reduce eye reddening or nasal irritation
  • Has cash flow problems
  • Has become unusually clumsy: stumbling, lacking coordination, poor balance
  • Has periods of sleeplessness or high energy, followed by long periods of “catch up” sleep

Hygiene & appearance

  • Smell of smoke or other unusual smells on breath or on clothes
  • Messier than usual appearance
  • Poor hygiene
  • Frequently red or flushed cheeks or face
  • Burns or soot on fingers or lips
  • Track marks on arms or legs (or long sleeves in warm weather to hide marks)

Physical health

  • Frequent sickness
  • Unusually tired and/or lethargic
  • Unable to speak intelligibly, slurred speech or rapid-fire speech
  • Nosebleeds and/or runny nose, not caused by allergies or a cold
  • Sores or spots around mouth
  • Sudden or dramatic weight loss/gain
  • Skin abrasions/bruises
  • Frequent perspiration
  • Seizures and/or vomiting

How and Where to Look

Use your nose
Have a real, face-to-face conversation when your child comes home after hanging out with friends. If there has been drinking or smoking, the smell will be on their breath, clothing, and hair.

Look them in the eyes
Pay attention to their eyes, which will be red and heavy-lidded, with constricted pupils if they’ve used marijuana. Pupils will be dilated, and they may have difficulty focusing if they’ve been drinking. In addition, the red, flushed color of the face and cheeks can also be a sign of drinking.

Watch their behavior
How do they act after a night out with friends? Are they particularly loud and obnoxious or laughing hysterically at nothing? Unusually clumsy to the point of stumbling into furniture and walls, tripping over their own feet, and knocking things over? Sullen, withdrawn, and unusually tired and slack-eyed for the hour of the night? Do they look queasy and stumble into the bathroom? These are all signs that they could have been drinking, smoking marijuana, or using other substances.

Search their spaces
The limits you set with your child don’t stop at the front door or their bedroom door. If you have cause for concern, it’s important to find out what’s going on. Be prepared to explain your reasons for a search, though, whether or not you tell them about it beforehand. You can let them know it’s out of concern for their health and safety.

Common places to conceal vapes, alcohol, drugs, or paraphernalia include:

  • In small boxes or cases – think jewelry, makeup or pencil cases, or cases for earbuds
  • Under a bed or other pieces of furniture
  • In a plant, buried in the dirt
  • In between or inside books
  • Under a loose floorboard
  • Inside over-the-counter medicine containers (Tylenol, Advil, etc.)
  • Inside empty candy bags such as M&Ms or Skittles
  • In fake soda cans or other fake containers designed to conceal

*As a Partnership to End Addiction Community Partner, the above information is shared with permission from Drugfree.org.