Texting has taken over. If you’re a parent of a teen, you probably know this better than anyone. It’s not to say this is a bad thing. Shooting a quick text is an easy way to communicate something fast.
But if you’ve ever been suspicious of your teens texting, and wondered if there was something more sinister to their conversations, you could be right.
Teens today are abusing prescription drugs in overwhelming numbers, and unfortunately, texting has made it a lot easier for them to communicate about these things without their parents knowing.
Monitoring your teen’s phone and online activities may give you the clues you are looking for to see if he is experimenting with pills. Your teen’s texts and chat conversations may look like Egyptian hieroglyphics to you, but you can decode the slang and acronyms with a little help.
Here are some of the texting terms, acronyms, slang and drug street names that you don’t want to see on your teen’s phone.
Prescription Drug Street Names
General Slang and Street Terms for Prescription Drug Use or Pill Parties:
- Pilz
- Pharming
- Pharm Parties
- Recipe (mixing prescription drugs with alcoholic or other beverages)
- Trail Mix (mixing various prescription drugs at pharm parties)
Opioids (such as Oxycontin and Vicodin) Slang and Street Terms:
- Hillbilly heroin
- Oxy
- OC
- Oxycotton
- Oxycet
- Percs
- Happy pills
- Vikes
- Watson-387
- Tuss
- Big Boys
- Cotton
- Percs
- Morph
- Kickers
Benzodiazepines (such as Xanax and Valium) Slang and Street Terms:
- Candy
- Downers
- Sleeping pills
- Tranks
- Totem poles
- Chill Pills
- French Fries
- Tranqs
- Blues
- Z-bar
- Bricks
- Benzos
Sleep medications (such as Ambien) Slang and Street Terms:
- A-minus
- Zombie pills
Stimulants (such as Adderall and Ritalin) Slang and Street Terms:
- Skippy
- The smart drug
- Vitamin R
- Bennies
- Black beauties
- Roses
- Hearts
- Speed
- Uppers
- Kiddy cocaine
- West Coast
- Crosses
- LA turnaround
- Truck drivers
- Beans
- Christmas Trees
- Double Trouble
- Rid
- Jif
- R-ball
- Rittys
- Rits
- Vitamin R
- Smurfs
Your teen may or may not be using these exact terms to discuss pill use and pill parties; he may be using a variation or maybe a term not even on this list.
Suspicious Texting Terms
Here are some common texting acronyms and their meanings that your teen may use if they are trying to hide conversations about drugs from you:
Acronym and Translation
- PIR = Parent in room
- 9 = Parent watching
- 99 = Parent gone
- 1174 = Party meeting place
- POS = Parent over shoulder
- CD9 = Parents around/Code 9
- DOC = Drug of choice
- KPC = Keeping parents clueless
- PAW = Parents are watching
A little knowledge can go a long way to protect your teen from the dangers of prescription pill misuse and abuse. Locking and securing any prescription pills you have in the home goes a long way towards protecting your teen. Paying close attention to their activities, friends, behavior, and looking for signs of prescription drug abuse are critical if you suspect your teen may need help.
