Drug and Alcohol Use Teens

Drug and Alcohol Use TeensDrinking and Teens: What can parents do? Parents worry about their teens using illegal drugs, but there is an equally dangerous threat for them–alcohol. As children enter their teenage years they begin to separate from their parents, explore the adult world and fashion an image of their place in it. Even the most conscientious parents may not be able to protect their teens from the predatory lure of alcohol. It is readily available, maybe in your own home. Drug and Alcohol Use teens usually starts in the home. Borrowing a sports analogy, the best defense against teenage drinking is a good offense. Parents need to equip themselves with solid information about teen Drug and Alcohol Use, a realistic view of their child and access to professional help if there are any early warning signs Drug and Alcohol Use. Parents need to begin their offensive preparations long before the teenage years to try to avoid Drug and Alcohol Use teens. See the problem of drinking before it comes into your home. Be proactive and establish your own game plan for educating your child on the topic, handling the problem if it arises and limiting the damage. Parents do not want to believe that Little Johnny or Little Jane is going to drink, or worse yet is having a problem with Drug and Alcohol Use teens. Thats something that happens to somebody else. This is not true. Alcohol is everywhere, so is Drug and Alcohol Use teens; parents need to be savvy and look for the warning signs. Dont assume that the problem is going to pass you by because youre the right kind of parents. Human nature hasnt changed over centuries and if parents are honest, they will recall their own view of the world when they were teens. Warning Signs of Drug and Alcohol Use Teens, Teen Drug and Alcohol Use/Addiction:

School: Is your child keeping up with his/her school work? Have they lost interest in going to school and look for excuses to stay home? Call the school and keep track of your childs attendance in class. I coach football and basketball for middle school and high school. I get attendance records and if a teen has missed class, they dont play in the games. But do you know your child skipped second period math class? Are there days when you think your child has gone to school, but the attendance records do not match up? Children who are in trouble with alcohol or drugs will often begin failing classes, not turning in homework assignments or in general just fall behind. I cant believe Johnny is failing math, it was always his favorite subject. A new pattern has emerged and it isnt pretty. Schools have open campuses, allowing kids to come and go. They can easily slip into the community and get into trouble. Health: As a person slips into Drug and Alcohol Use a variety of physical signs point to drug to the problem. Are they listless all of the time? Kids dont want to get up in the morning anyway, but they dont always refuse to get moving. Weight loss and weight gain are signs. Are there changes in eating habits? The eyes are an indicator. Has the life gone out of their eyes, or is there a major change? Appearance: This can be a difficult area to discern, as fashions change and often times what adults feel is acceptable dress may not have anything to do with current trends. Watch for changes in dress. Does a child lose interest in how they look? Kids want to fit in and there is peer pressure influence on the way they dress. Girls, especially, are bombarded with images on appearance. Has there been an attitude shift? Have grooming habits changed? Attitude and Behavior: As children enter their teen years it is natural for them to want to break away from the family. When kids go to extremes to make sure you dont know who theyre with or what they are doing, the red flag should go up. When they become secretive and guarded, when their privacy at home prevents your open access to them, look for something beyond mere adolescent rebellion. Money can be a sign. If their only interaction with the parents is to ask for money, and when asked why they need money they refuse to answer, or become indignant, that is an indicator of possible drug abuse. Worse yet, they may steal items from home to buy beer or liquor. Communication is Essential to avoid Drug and Alcohol Use teens Communicating with teens can be a challenge, especially because they are beginning to spread their wings and desire independence from mom and dad. Stay calm. The most common mistake parents can make is trying to force ideas and values on the defiant teenage mind. I was that way. There’s a leadership responsibility that always needs to be in evidence, and parents need to be parents. Trying to be best buddies is not a good strategy. However, parents need to meet their children where they are at. That means trying to understand the situation from your childs perspective. Teenagers will probably come up with some very wrong reasoning, seriously flawed ideas and their whole world view will likely be counter to that of their parents. But they have a NEED to be heard and respected. Its one thing to accept an opinion counter to your own, and its quite another to approve of it. Try working with your teens ideas and concepts, and have an open and non-threatening discussion about them. You can establish rules of engagement with your teen and agree that both of you are allowed to express ideas and opinions without fear of retribution. The key is to remember that the parent needs to be the one in control. As a chaplain, I do a lot of counseling work and my approach is entirely patient-centered. They establish the themes of the conversation, but even though I am not deciding the topic, or necessarily directing the conversation, I am still in control. Remember that your teenager, like a patient in a hospital, is probably going to be very myopic. He/she will see things only from their perspective. Take a step back and see the entire situation. Go with their feelings, their concerns and walk down their path. Share the experience. Parents are the front line of the fight against teen drug addiction. Dont push that responsibility off to the schools. Rather, partner with the school counselors, teachers and administrators, never forgetting that you are the one responsible for your teen. If Drug and Alcohol Use or addiction enters your home, seek professional help and form another partnership in the effort. Be in control. Be honest. Be alert. Be proactive. Teen ChallengeMany parents have enrolled their teens into a program called Teen Challenge. This program is extremely successful and transforming the lives of Teens who are addicted to drugs and alcohol. This site contains five MAIN pages that EVERYONE should read:

ABOUT

SYMPTOMS

CAUSES

EFFECTS

TREATMENT

Read these five pages and learn what you need to know to spot Drug and Alcohol Use in: Yourself… Your Family… Your Friends… Your Community…The rest of the pages are there for your reference to explain important topics in more detail.

Finally dont miss the Spiritual and 12-step sections to fully explore how understanding THE SPIRIT can lead to recovery!

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