What Makes Kids Vulnerable to Drug Addiction—and What Parents Must Do

*Adil Seemab*

Children do not fall into addiction in one day.
They slide into it quietly.
Through small hurts. Through silence. Through longing.
Some children feel unseen at home.
Parents are busy. Words grow rare.
A child learns to sit alone with his thoughts.
When loneliness stays too long, he looks for something to numb it.
Drugs promise that numbness.
Some children live under constant pressure.
To score high.
To behave well.
To be better than others.
When breathing itself feels heavy, they look for escape.
Some children follow the crowd.
They want to belong.
They fear being alone.
Saying “no” feels harder than doing what everyone else does.
Some children are running from pain.
A broken home.
Harsh words.
Humiliation.
Violence.
All of it stays inside.
Drugs make it quiet for a while.
Some children begin out of curiosity.
They do not see the end at the beginning.
Their minds cannot yet measure danger fully.
Addiction is not rebellion.
It is a wound asking to be seen.
A child who feels safe, heard, and valued is less likely to destroy himself.
Parents must first build a home where truth is safe.
A home where a child can admit mistakes without fear.
Where questions do not invite anger.
Where honesty does not bring shame.
Do not only forbid.
Explain.
Tell them what drugs do to the body.
To the mind.
To dreams.
Not with fear—but with truth.
Know their friends.
Their names.
Their homes.
Their habits.
Not to spy—but to protect.
Give them something healthy to belong to.
Sports.
Books.
Music.
Service.
Work.
An empty mind often walks into dark places.
If you ever sense danger, do not close your eyes.
Do not shout.
Do not accuse.
Talk.
Listen.
Seek help.
Addiction leaves not through silence—but through understanding.