Written by a CSUCI student.

Through working with BRITE, I was able to reflect on my own experiences involving drug and alcohol abuse. By bringing awareness to these dangerous activities I’ve been able to get a better understanding of why underage kids and even my own siblings participate in them. I wasn’t able to help or essentially persuade my siblings against drugs and...

Content warning: This post contains mentions of physical abuse, drug use, and overdose.

Written by a CSUCI student.

It’s crazy to think that drugs do not impact anyone's lives, because for me it’s always been a thing. I’m not saying that I’ve lived a grueling life, in shelters or anything like that, but I have always been aware of terrible things out there and...

Written by a CSUCI student.

You know, I always hear people talk about how a dad is a little girl's first true love and how dad will set the example of who their daughter will see as a potential partner in the future. I also always hear my family say how kids grow up so fast and they remember me running to the door when I would hear my dad get home from work. I really wish I could still remember...

Written by a CSUCI student.

Written by a CSUCI student.

Prior to having taken a class that specifically talked about the opioid crisis in the United States, I truly had no knowledge of any of this. It is very interesting to actually learn about different experiences and also from real-life experiences. Personally, I feel that it is very easy to read an article discussing this serious issue and not really make any...

Content warning - This blog post contains sexually explicit content.

Written by a CSUCI student.

Alcoholism always starts out fun. In the words of a friend, “All I knew was that it was a drink that made him happy and silly.” -- until that drink overtook them.

The first time is always the funnest, everyone’s a lucky winner.

Warm. Funny. Dizzy. Vomit. Again,...

The following poem was written by our weekly writing group, The Green Walls Writer’s Project, in Zoom. Each person wrote a sentence about vaping and then we put them all together to form a powerful poem. 

I want to hold those sleek cool modern devices in my hand and seek comfort from the vapors

My breath becomes short as I inhale; small nails running down the length of my esophagus

A...

This post was written by a CSUCI student.

This is based off of an individual who I will call Jose. He was my boyfriend all through high school and after. Jose was nineteen years old when I met him and I was fifteen, he was a drug dealer that my friends used. Jose used methamphetamines and other narcotics. He often felt alone and depressed as he grew up. His parents worked multiple jobs as...

Written by Sofia Noriega, a Ventura County high school student.

Vaping can bring out the worst in you

It can turn your world around

Thinking that’s the only solution

For you to deal with problems

But it’s just causing addiction

And leading to bigger problems in the future.

Imagine your lungs,

Your heart,

Every organ in your body 

Keeping you alive, 

Only til you...

What can you do to help reduce drug overdoses in your community?

The DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is coming up on Saturday, October 29th, 2022. Rx Drug Take Back Day addresses a crucial public safety and public health issue. According to the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 9.7 million people misused prescription pain relievers, 4.9 million people misused...

Written by a senior at CSUCI.

My parents divorced when my sister and I were young. (I will refer to my sister as Janet). My mother, several years later, began dating a new man, let’s call him Dave. Dave had two children – I will refer to them as Samantha and Tom. Samantha was my sister’s age, and Tom was my age. We all became fast friends (we were 8 at the time) and enjoyed...

This information was originally published on Marijuana Factcheck, a project of Ventura County Behavioral Health. From their website: 

Everyone wants to make the best and most informed decisions they can, for themselves and their families. But decisions can only be as good as the facts they are based upon.

We’ve been hearing from a lot of people who would like to see a clear,...