Penn Drug Culture
Posted on 7th December 2012
From my time at Penn, one darker side of it’s character that I have observed is the abuse of a certain kind of drug. Amphetamine misuse is rampant, and in this case the source is dodgy prescriptions. Some students take ‘aderall’ (ritalin) by the bottle-load and ofttimes even in the open, discussed amongst general peers. It’s a sad phenomenon which is chronicled from a different perspective in this opinion piece from the DP (Daily Pennsylvanian), Penn’s student run newspaper.
Thirty minutes later, I was standing outside CVS, washing down 40 milligrams of Vyvanse — an ADHD treatment — with chocolate milk. I was eager to do something — anything — to get my life together.
I found the article most insightful, especially as I try to avoid involving myself with that sort of culture and so am mostly oblivious as to the internal struggles that people on such drugs face.