Dr. Stephanie Widmer
By Dan Murphy
Dr. Stephanie Widmer, an emergency medicine physician and Director of Medical Toxicology at St. John’s Riverside Hospital, says that substance use issues today have expanded to include synthetic drugs, as well as commonly abused drugs like alcohol and opioids. During a talk at Gorton High School, she explained that substance use is more dangerous than teens know, but treatment is available for teenagers who are struggling with a substance use disorder.
Dr. Widmer is triple board-certified in emergency medicine, medical toxicology, and addiction medicine. In addition to her work as an emergency medicine physician and the director of medical toxicology at St. John’s Riverside Hospital, she is also the associate program director of the St. John’s Emergency Medicine Residency Program. While helping patients with substance use disorders is part of her job, it has also affected her personally.
“This morning, I got dressed, and I pulled out a purse that I have not used in a long time. I went to empty it, and I pulled out three funeral cards from a friend of mine I grew up with who passed away from drug use,” she says. “So, if you think that it cannot happen to somebody that you love, I mean, we live in a county where this is really prevalent. I want to instill in young people that dying is not the only terrible thing that can happen with drug use. It can take away your passion, your creativity, your intelligence. It can rob you of your future, and if it does not kill you first, it can destroy your health. I would love to give young people a 360-degree view of what can happen.”
Dr. Widmer says that synthetic drugs have added a new layer of complications to substance abuse.
“I’ve seen people come into the emergency department after smoking synthetic cannabinoids, and their blood pressure is on the floor,” she says. “They look terrible. It is really scary. And then the next day, we will get somebody who smokes something similar, and they are totally altered, like biting people, spitting. You do not know what you are picking up when you are buying a synthetic cannabinoid. It is not something that is grown naturally. It is not something that we can even say that we recognize—oh, I know that is ____ because they’re synthetic. Somebody is making them, so you can’t possibly know what you’re getting whenever you buy something unregulated.”
Another modern substance use issue is vaping, which has grown in popularity among teens and young adults. The CDC reports that as of 2024, 1.63 million teenagers (about 5.9 percent) used e-cigarettes.
Dr. Widmer explains that vaping can lead to serious lung injury in teens and young adults. “We’ve had young people come into the hospital and end up intubated for really extended periods of time because of this. And it is because sometimes these vaping cartridges are sold unregulated with contaminants in them that are harmful to people’s lungs.”
But despite these new drug concerns, Dr. Widmer adds that older drugs like alcohol, marijuana, and opioids remain risky for teens.
“Alcohol remains a consistent concern among young people because many accidents and dangerous situations occur when people drink too much. The opioid epidemic also continues to be a growing concern.”
Addiction can begin in several ways for teens. In many cases, it starts with substances that may seem safe.
“Very often people start with marijuana, which is legal in many states,” says Dr. Widmer. “And people often believe that it is benign. But people get high, and they decide they like how it feels, and then they move on to other things, which is why I am sure many people have heard the term ‘a gateway drug.’ It is a gateway drug, and it is not the only gateway drug. There are many gateway drugs out there.”
That includes alcohol, a substance that has long attracted the interest of teenagers.
“Alcohol is certainly a gateway drug, and it is also very popular among young people,” Dr. Widmer explains. “When you combine substances and when you escalate the substances that you are using, it becomes even more dangerous because you’re mixing the receptors that are being affected. There is the possibility of impaired coordination, sedation, altered mental status, and accidents. It escalates rapidly when you start combining substances.”
Dr. Widmer adds that addiction is a health issue, and she wants teens to feel comfortable seeking help if they or friends are struggling with substance use.
“I want to be clear that addiction does not make someone a bad person,” she says. “This is not a character flaw. It is a disease. And people need to understand that to help people, you have to approach things on a case-by-case basis, but it’s really important that if you’re thinking that you maybe should get someone to help, you probably should get someone to help.”
Identifying the signs of addiction is not always easy, but Dr. Widmer encourages people to be vigilant and pay attention to changes in their loved ones.
“Sometimes it can be difficult, maybe because of our own biases, because of denial, because of other things,” she says. “But when you start to see loved ones behaving abnormally in any setting, it should cross your mind. Could this be drugs? Could this be addiction? There are certain symptoms that I look for in the emergency department: inappropriate sedation, sleepiness, inappropriate sweating, or signs and symptoms of withdrawal. But really, when personalities change, when the things that are important to them change, when they become more withdrawn, and they are not the person that you once knew, it is time to do a little bit of investigation.
To that end, Dr. Widmer encourages teens who suspect a friend is struggling with substances to seek help from supportive adults. “Go to a teacher or an adult or somebody that you trust, and talk to them about your concerns, and they can help guide you in the right direction because there is not a one-size-fits-all. There are many ways to help support people who may be struggling with addiction, but do not try to carry the world on your shoulders.”
Treatment options today are broad, including new medications to help with opioid addiction.
“There are many options, and it depends on the substance, of course,” Dr. Widmer explains. “It also depends on how willing the person is to engage in treatment and what type of treatment is best for them. But there can be a good deal of therapy involved. There can be individual therapy, group therapy, and there are also medications to help with addiction.”
In some cases, inpatient treatment is necessary.
“Generally speaking, when someone’s going through alcohol withdrawal, they should seek care in a hospital because that withdrawal can be life-threatening,” Dr. Widmer says. “There are medications that we can give for that. And then when it comes to opioids, there’s also opioid withdrawal. There are different medications that people can take in the hospital. But also, on an outpatient basis, there are prescription medications that can help people get off of opioids.”
For more information about substance use disorder and treatment options, visit St. John’s Riverside Hospital’s behavioral health page.