Short & Sweet Singapore>>

Have you ever done something your friends wanted you to do, even though you did not want to?

It may have been a simple action like playing a computer game, going shopping, or joining a sport.

However, if you agreed to it when you did not want to, you may have been a victim of peer pressure.

Giving in to peer pressure is common among teenagers, but it is important to be able to say “no” when you want to.

Getting accepted is not cool when you face a lifetime of negative consequences.

Just ask Ben (not his real name), 51, who bowed to peer pressure just after he turned 21 and began experimenting with drugs.

“It became a habit just three weeks later. By then, I was taking heroin every day,” he said. 

“When I had the money, I would take it up to seven times a day.”

And when he ran out of money, he would reportedly borrow from his friends or steal from his family.

To date, the former carpenter has spent at least 14 years in drug rehabilitation centres trying to quit a habit, because he could not say “no”.

Part of the problem with peer pressure is sometimes you value your friends so much it is hard to refuse them.

But you could think of it this way: if your friends really cared for you, they would not force you to do something against your will.

Perhaps you could apply peer pressure the other way around and influence them in the right way.

Last year, The Straits Times told the story of how the residents of Pertapis Halfway House helped one another quit drugs with encouraging notes and motivational signs.

Former residents who are now drug-free also return as role models to current residents, who do not want to disappoint their mentors. 
 
Omar (not his real name), 39, who left the halfway house after a six-month stay, said: “The peer pressure is all positive. It has raised my self-esteem,” he said.

The difference between Ben and Omar’s experiences is that Omar has learnt who to listen to, and who to avoid hanging out with.

That way, you can easily say “no” to unwanted and negative peer pressure.

Been a victim of peer pressure? What did your friends get you to do? How did things turn out? Share your story in Stink & Spill »