The Ups and Downs of Teen Substance Abuse In East Lyme, Old Lyme, and Lyme

While some people may have celebrated the new state law legalizing marijuana for medicinal purposes, drug and alcohol counselors who work with students in Lyme, Old Lyme, and East Lyme weren't among them.

A recent survey of drug use among students in East Lyme shows that though marijuana use has dropped among seniors, with 21.7 percent reporting recent use (about 5 percent fewer than reported smoking pot in 2008), it's on the rise in 10th grade.  

About 7 percent of 10th graders in 2008 reported smoking pot compared to 17.5 percent of 10th graders in 2012. The current rate is on par with national and regional statistics but it's a big spike locally.

That trend is echoed by students in 8th grade. In 2008 barely any 8th graders said they smoked marijuana compared to about 2.7 percent this year. That's still lower than regional and national averages which are 6.1 percent and 7.2 percent respectively, but the latest data is very troubling to East Lyme Youth Services Director Sarah Butterfield, chair of the town's Alcohol and Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition (ASAP). 

"This is really habitual smoking and that's very concerning," said Butterfield. Equally worrying to Butterfield is what the survey says about attitudes toward marijuana. Although marijuana use among 12th graders in East Lyme has dropped, Butterfield noted that "33 percent of 12th graders thought there was no harm in marijuana."

That's a view that the new law approving medical marijuana only helps perpetuate, she noted.

How East Lyme Compares to Old Lyme and Lyme

East Lyme and Lyme-Old Lyme Youth Services conduct drug and alcohol surveys every couple of years and the results are compared with surveys conducted by the Southeastern Connecticut Regional Action Council (SERAC), which was established to try to reduce the impact of substance abuse and addictive behaviors.  

The surveys of student drug and alcohol use are modeled on those conducted by Monitoring the Future, a national survey of drug use by children and young adults. Surveys are anonymous to encourage kids to answer honestly and towns tend to stagger their surveys.

Lyme-Old Lyme Youth Services conducted its survey in December, 2011 and found that about 48.8 percent of high school seniors reported smoking marijuana in their lifetime. The rate dropped to 24.4 percent when students were asked if they had smoked pot within the last 30 days.

Use of marijuana for the lower grades was much lower, with 12.6 percent of 8th graders and 21.4 percent of 10th graders saying they'd tried it in their lifetime but only 8.4 percent of 8th graders and 11.7 percent of 10th graders reporting they'd smoked pot within the past 30 days. (This particular question is designed to distinguish between experimental use and habitual use of drugs or alcohol.)

East Lyme conducted its survey of youth in grades 7-12 in April, 2012, the results of which were just released recently.

East Lyme's latest results come from a survey of 1,234 students; Lyme and Old Lyme's results come from a survey of 580 students. Here's what they have in common. 

• East Lyme, Old Lyme, and Lyme all report that, on average, kids start experimenting with alcohol and drugs at age 14, although some start as early as age 10. 
• In all three towns, alcohol is the number one substance that kids are using. The second is marijuana, followed by cigarettes and prescription drugs.

Here's the Good News

In East Lyme, cigarette smoking has declined since 2008. In the most recent survey, about 15.4 percent of students in 12th grade said they smoke cigarettes, that's lower than the national average from 2011, which was 18.7 percent but slightly higher than the regional average of 14.6 percent.

For Lyme and Old Lyme, the tobacco use rate had also declined from 16 percent among high school students in 2009 to drop "way below national and regional average," said Karen Fischer, prevention coordinator for Lyme-Old Lyme Youth Services Bureau.   

Although alcohol remains the most available and widely-used substance, in East Lyme the rate of use is lower than national and regional averages. Among seniors, 35.5 percent report recent use, compared to 38.7 percent regionally and 40 percent nationally.

Among 8th graders, the rate is significantly lower, with 2.7 percent reporting using alcohol recently compared to 12.7 percent nationally and 13.5 percent regionally. 

Compared to 2008, alcohol consumption in 2012 by 8th graders dropped by about 50 percent, and while it remains about the same or slightly higher in 10th grade, it has dropped significantly in 12th grade from nearly 50 percent to 38.7 percent.  

In Lyme and Old Lyme, the 2011 survey found 4.2 percent of 8th graders, 6.9 percent of 10th graders and 32.9 percent of 12th graders reported drinking alcohol recently.  

The top sources for obtaining alcohol, by the way, are friends, parents (with and without permission), parties with adult permission, and siblings.

Alcohol is considered to be a gateway drug. Kids who report drinking were 13.5 times more likely to report using marijuana and youth who smoke pot are 39 times more likely to use other illegal drugs. 

Prescription Drugs and Synthetic Marijuana

Prescription drug use in East Lyme, Old Lyme and Lyme is relatively low. In East Lyme, 22.2 percent of high school seniors said they had misused prescription drugs in their lifetime versus 8.8 percent who say they misused prescription drugs within the past 30 days. 

In Lyme and Old Lyme, students surveyed in 2011 said they had abused prescription drugs and synthetic marijuana, known as Spice or K2, at about the same rate, with about 18 percent of high school seniors reporting using both.  

In East Lyme, 15.5 percent of high school seniors surveyed reported using synthetic marijuana. It's worth noting here, however, that synthetic marijuana or Spice was legal in 2011 and easily purchased at convenience stores. Synthetic marijuana was outlawed in Connecticut in July, 2012. Fischer said she expects to see a decline in use of synthetic marijuana as a result.  

Cocaine Makes a Comeback

Perhaps most troubling of all, however, are the rates of cocaine use among seniors in East Lyme. According to the most recent survey, about 4.6 percent of high school seniors said they'd used cocaine recently. The regional average is .05 percent and the national average is 1.1 percent. That rate is even higher for lifetime use, which is 11.4 percent in East Lyme compared to 5.2 percent nationally and 4.3 percent regionally.  

"This cocaine number, that is significant," said Butterfield.

By the Numbers—2012 Survey 

East Lyme—Alcohol

7.1 percent of 7th graders report they have consumed alcohol in their lifetime, by 12th grade the rate is 64 percent.

Only .5 percent of 7th graders report drinking alcohol in the past 30 days, by 12th grade, the rate is 35.5 percent.

East Lyme—Marijuana

Just 0.5 percent of 7th graders said they had tried marijuana in their lifetime. By 12th grade that rate is 44.2 percent. 

The percentage of 7th graders who said they'd used marijuana in the past 30 days was also 0.5 percent; the rate in 12th grade is 21.7 percent.