When struggling drug addict Daniel Regan lost contact with his parents, Lynn and Marc Regan, his mother tracked him down and found him living in an abandoned hotel in Palm Springs, Calif. in a ten by ten room just as he was about to shoot heroin, spoon in hand.

"I came to pack your bags and take you home and get you better," she told him.

He followed his mother in a stupor. Soon afterward, however, he went into psychosis, attacking two of Lynn's friends and prompting her to call the police. After classifying him as a 51-50, an involuntary psychiatric hold, they confined him to a psych ward where he was institutionalized for nine days.
Daniel had unsuccessfully cycled in and out of three rehab centers before he was institutionalized. Discouraged at his poor progress at these centers, he'd given up. He began to shoplift from stores to fuel his addiction and ended up getting kicked out of his apartment. Eventually, he found himself holed up with four other friends in the abandoned Palm Springs hotel.

"I really came to the conclusion that this was going to be my life," Daniel said.

As Daniel related his story over the phone he had the practiced, measured tone of someone who'd told his story many times.

Now sober for a year, Daniel is involved with a not-for-profit organization called Steered Straight, founded by Michael Deleon in 2000. According to its website, it aims to inform high school students of the dangers of making poor life choices with motivational presentations that are specifically tailored for each audience depending on its region, culture and local issues.

As a 22 year old recovering addict, Daniel's personal story echoes the reality of many kids living in suburbs across the country. He didn't fit what many people assume to be the stereotype of a drug addict. "He was a straight A student," said his mother Lynn. "In high school he was on the swim team. He had a presidential scholarship to Fairleigh Dickinson University."

But red flags popped up early for Lynn. When he was in the 10th grade she happened to check his cell phone and saw a message that said, "I'll bring perc to school." Lynn was incredulous: "I remember thinking, there's no way this is Percocet," she said.

But Daniel was far from an anomaly, even among his friends. Prescription drugs are some of the most commonly abused drugs among high school students today. According to one survey, 14.8 percent of high school seniors abused a prescription drug in 2012.

So what went wrong? "Like any suburban mom, I blamed it on the school, or anyone who he was hanging out with in school. I blamed everything except Daniel and his decision making," said Lynn Regan.

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