Just because I’m not a mother running around all day after my kids or a hardworking executive of a high-profile company does not mean I don’t get headaches. Or backaches. Or cramps. I do. And so does the rest of my generation. But Tylenol and Advil advertising campaigns don’t seem to think so.
To us as children, the best part of the War on Drugs were the anti-drug Public Service Announcements that interrupted cartoons and episodes of the Power Rangers. We still fondly remember these commercials and, hey, maybe they actually worked!
Hollywood has long been plagued with drug abuse overdose, which has been a problem since before Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley were popular. Recent celebrity abuse scandals and deaths have brought more attention to the growing epidemic as the stories spread on Twitter, via text, and through more new media sources, all of which Gen Y is actively engaged in. But how do celebrities’ actions really influence our decisions?
Beer pong, the king of drinking games, is the defining aspect of Gen Y’s party life. It speaks to our generation’s love of excess and competition, even though the game is generally dominated by frat boys. Still, girls can enjoy triangular formations of red, plastic cups too.
I can’t stand having drugs in my body, and I’m not just talking about the hard stuff. I will suffer through a headache if it means avoiding even a baby aspirin. My generation is one that follows our passions based on what feels right to us. Well, not taking drugs is what feels right to me.
My drug week confessions aren’t nearly as juicy as most others, but here it goes: I’ve never smoked pot, and the hardest drug that’s ever been in my system was the hydrocodone the doctor prescribed after I got my wisdom teeth pulled. It’s just a choice, and it’s my choice.
To say Gen Y is addicted to caffeine is an outrageous understatement. That’s like saying Wile E. Coyote kind of wants to catch Roadrunner if it’s manageable and doesn’t cut into his lunch date with Yosemite Sam. No, Millennials are full-out lunatics for caffeine. Not only do we consume tons of coffee and soda, but have come into the world of energy drinks, energy shots, and, so help me God, energy pills.
Filmmakers have thrown themselves right into the vortex of the national drug debate, and the use of drugs that appear in movies primarily targeted at Gen Y varies so greatly it makes you spin in circles until you think you’re on an acid trip.
As a culture, we want to be better, faster, stronger, smarter, prettier. Adderall helps us get there. Some people truly need the drug to function. And then there are other students whose pockets become much deeper as they sell Adderalls and Ritalins for cash.
Usually when I have to have a connecting flight, I get upset, but Amsterdam is different. I love my connections there, and I always make sure that I have at least eight hours so I can enjoy the sights (museums, the Amstel brewery and all Amsterdam has to offer). The problem is that I never see the sights.
