"My brother does drugs, I've tried to make him stop. I talk to him about it and I’ve tried everything. But he just won't listen. He thinks I'm overreacting, but I know I'm not. What should I do? "

The fact that you told him that you’re concerned about his drug use is the first step (and often the hardest). You can’t force your brother to stop using drugs, just like he can’t force you to do anything that you don’t want to do. One of the most effective ways to help him is to be consistent with what you say to him. For instance, you might say, “you know, I worry about you when you take drugs. If you ever change your mind and need help, I will always be here to help.”

Another piece of advice is to make sure that you don’t do anything that will enable him to continue using drugs. For instance, don’t give him money, don’t cover up for him with your parents and don’t protect him from the consequences of his drug use (like doing his homework or his chores).

Finally, if you need more support for yourself, there are groups called Al-Anon (which includes Ala-teen for younger people) or Nar-Anon that are for the family members of drug users – these support groups can give you a lot of other ideas on how to deal with your brother’s drug use.

Check out these pages for more online resources and advice on how to help a friend.