WHS prides itself on its athletics. Student athletes are expected to be examples for others, keeping their minds and bodies in top form.
However, despite all of the negatives that come along with the use of marijuana and vapes, we still have student athletes using them.
Almost every student seems to be going through some mental issues, and they turn to marijuana and vapes to help ‘fix’ them. However, drugs only make your issues worse. According to the National Institute of Health, drugs have been shown by several studies to increase anxiety, depression, and fatigue, and they lower your motivation to do anything. According to the CDC, “people who use cannabis are more likely to develop temporary psychosis … and long-lasting mental disorders, including schizophrenia,”.
Using drugs not only limits your mental abilities but also seriously stunts your physical capacity. “What you want is a high-performance body that can compete at the highest level that they are able to compete at. And any type of substance like alcohol, tobacco, marijuana detracts from how they can compete,” Mr. Hollern states. Using any kind of drugs can cause your coordination to drop drastically, lower productivity, and it can also lower your chances of staying safe while playing.
Participating in athletics in high school comes with several rules and guidelines, many of which specifically prohibit the use of drugs. Our handbook states that if a staff member suspects you have been drinking alcohol, they are allowed to make you take a breath/alcohol test. The handbook also states, “No possession or use of: tobacco products; drugs or drug paraphernalia; alcoholic beverages or products. This includes coming to school after having used any of these illegal substances.”
Other student athletes see this drug use occurring, and this causes unease. When being around this, they feel “unhappy”, “grossed-out”, and “uncomfortable”. This can, overall, lower team morale and performance among everyone.
If you are struggling with the use of drugs, there are ways to get out of this pit and not feel so alone. Talking to any trusted staff member at our school is a great way to start the process of receiving help. The staff cares so much about you, and they want you to be in the best physical and mental shape you can be. If you do not feel comfortable with this, you can always call 988, the national number for the suicide & crisis hotline.
Mr. Hollern is proud of our work that is being done here at WHS. Since the beginning of this school year, we have only had 5 reported incidents of any drug usage. In fact, the number of reports has been going down over the past 30 years, according to Mr. Hollern.
