You may already know this, but prescription drug abuse on campus is on the rise.

It’s hard to get an accurate read on just how rampant the problem is, but some reports suggest as high as 40% of students misuse prescription drugs just to aid in their studies.

And that doesn’t account for students who are misusing drugs for the sake of getting high or “taking the edge off” in order to have less anxiety in different social settings.

With a generation of students that were more heavily (and quickly) medicated as youth, now arriving on campus, the amount of prescription drugs on campus shouldn’t surprise us.

And when you add to that an America culture of achievement and a greater number of students struggling with anxiety, stress, and depression (related or not to the pressures to achieve), it shouldn’t surprise us.

Yet, to view the statistics listed below relating to the “Good Grade Pill” and its prevalence on campus — we must commit to being a part of the solution.

And we should also acknowledge that many of our students — who also feel pressure to achieve and/or struggle with anxiety or depression — are not excluded from this illegal activity on campus.

Young believers, just like their non-believing counterparts on campus, will rationalize the (mis)use of these drugs in order to achieve their desired results.

Take a read — and then see the questions I pose below:

(provided by OnlineDegrees.org)

QUESTIONS:

1. Have you ever addressed this issue with your students? If so, what reasons do they give for why they (or others) use them?

2. Do they know that it’s illegal to misuse prescription drugs? or share prescription drugs with others?

3. Do they know it can lead to be suspended or expelled from school? or that they can be charged with a crime?

4. How do you address the issues of faith, medication, and dependence on foreign substances?

Yes, some students will need some form of medication in order to be their best — or maybe just to function — but clearly we’ve entered into a real dangerous place in this area.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this!