Millennials Turning to Hallucinogens and Marijuana Instead of Opiates—Why?
Millennials seem to be one of the most interesting generations yet. They never cease to surprise us. They never cease to surprise each other too, sometimes. Even in something as grim and unusual as drug and alcohol abuse, there-in, of course, millennials also have their own way of approaching addiction. Studies show that millennials and generation Xers are more likely to change their lifestyle habits to handle a painful physical condition than they are to take pharmaceutical drugs for chronic pain.
This study comes straight from the American Society of Anesthesiologists. According to the study, millennials do face pains as they age into their late twenties and early thirties, yet they are less likely than previous generations to turn to opioid pharmaceuticals than previous generations are.
“It’s encouraging that millennials see the value of opting for safer and often more effective methods of managing pain. But clearly, they are in need of further education when it comes to opioids and chronic pain because using the drugs initially to treat pain can turn into a lifelong struggle with addiction.”
According to the study, six in ten millennials have experienced pain at some point, often chronic. According to the study results, millennials prefer to treat that pain with a lifestyle change. This could be:
- Exercising in cardiovascular exercises
- Going to the gym
- Taking exercise classes
- Taking dance classes or Yoga or Pilates classes
- Getting massages
- Receiving Acupuncture
- Eating right and changing current eating habits
- Quitting smoking or drinking if those are current habits
- Losing weight and getting back into shape
- Engaging in spiritually healthy activities such as meditation, group activities, religion, etc.
When we look at previous generations, like the baby boomers, these adults are twice as likely to use opioids to treat pain than millennials are.
Millennials Surveyed on Opioid Drugs
Nearly thirty percent of millennials believe that it is fine to take opioids without a prescription. One in ten millennials said they either currently know or have known someone who had obtained opioid drugs unethically and who was abusing them.
The interesting disparity here is that millennials clearly see the value in opting for safer methods for addressing pain, yet they also at the same time see nothing wrong with those who do want to take opioids for pain. In a direct quote from the President of the American Society of Anesthesiologists, Jeffrey Plagenhoef:
“It’s encouraging that millennials see the value of opting for safer and often more effective methods of managing pain. But clearly, they are in need of further education when it comes to opioids and chronic pain because using the drugs initially to treat pain can turn into a lifelong struggle with addiction.”
The survey was a very simple and very direct one, with only ten questions. The intention was to keep it short and sweet so that millennials would be more likely to answer truthfully and to really give each question some thought.
The survey by the ASA was conducted in 2017 and it included exactly1,011 Americans from the age of eighteen and on up. The survey included 504 men and 507 women. According to the analysis of age of participants, thirty-four percent of those who took the survey were millennials. Twenty-five percent of those who took the survey were Generation Xers (ages 37 to 52). Thirty-five percent of those who took the survey were baby boomers (ages 53 to 71). Last but not least, six percent of those who took the survey were from the silent generation (ages 72 to 92).
It is a bit perplexing that so many millennials felt the way they did about opiates. It’s actually kind of a dichotomy. Almost uniformly their response was on the line of, “Hey man, it’s not for me, but I don’t mind if you do it.” At the very least, this is worth more investigation to really see for ourselves if we as a nation can tap into the mindset of the millennial and thus reduce pharmaceutical abuse nationwide.
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