She unknowingly became addicted to fentanyl as a teenager. A first-in-the-nation program for Santa Clara County youth helped her get sober.

As a 15-year-old high school student, DeAnna Duran thought the little blue pills that quickly ensnarled her into addiction’s unrelenting grip were “percs” — the street name for the prescription opioid Percocet.

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“At first, I didn’t want to do it, and I think it got to the point where (my friends) were doing it, so why can’t I?” DeAnna, who is now 21, recounted in a recent interview. “After a while, I was doing it more and more and more.”

She tried to convince herself that she wasn’t an addict. But she couldn’t stop, and definitely didn’t want to experience the pain of opioid withdrawal. She started skipping school, failing classes and getting in trouble with teachers. Eventually, she dropped out of high school altogether.

But the pills that DeAnna believed to be “percs”