“Happy Addy” is representing the appropriate use of prescription drugs.

The Rethink campaign is organized by Strategic and Corporate Communication students at Chapman University, with the mission of inspiring peer-driven conversations about the risks of misusing prescription stimulants to study.  By encouraging these conversations, we can reduce the normalization of this behavior on our campus.  With the help of our friend Addy, we hope our peers will reconsider engaging in or approving of the misuse of Adderall, Ritalin, and other prescription stimulant drugs.

Rethink Adderall Misuse… It’s Nastier Than You Think.

It is important to know why we feel strongly that prescription stimulant misuse is a serious issue. Misuse is likely to result in experiencing side effects such as unusual hostility, paranoia, the feeling of a racing heart, physical and psychological addiction. If you have a prescription for a stimulant and choose to give some to a friend who does not, you are putting yourself at risk to spend four years in prison for illegally distributing a controlled substance. The misuse of prescription stimulants is mostly done by college students who feel that they need to increase their grades and is generally socially accepted despite being risky and illegal behavior.

According to a University Primetime survey, Chapman ranks 13th on a list of the 50 most stressed-out student bodies in America. Misusing prescription stimulants happens most when students feel like they are under pressure. We chose to run our campaign during midterms because that is one of the seasons when students are most likely to turn to a pill that will give them a boost.

Rethink is a student-run campaign. We have spent weeks preparing in class deciding on every element – from the logo to our messages. Our class is committed to trying to help our fellow students by raising awareness of the consequences of misuse as well as providing healthy alternatives to increase focus. Next week, students from our class will be tabling in the piazza from 11am-2pm handing out goodies and would love to talk to you about our campaign!

Sincerely,
Mara Manukyan ’17 and the students of Dr. LaBelle’s SCC 400 class