Parent Education: Drug and Alcohol Abuse
February 24, 2010 Parent Education Minutes:
Parent Education Series – Continuation of last month’s topic, Drug and Alcohol Abuse
Randy Bernstein moderated and introduced the panel of 8 speakers including Erin McIntyre from Looking Glass, Kara Penniman from My Health Center, Laurene Larson, academic counselor and Officer Zeltvay, and 4 student representatives.
The panel answered questions collected from parents at last month’s meeting. The format was question and answer.
How do parents know if their rules are too strict or too lenient? What is the community norm?:
Eugene can be a difficult place because it is a university community. It is important for parents to use the student directory to contact other parents. Call parents of kids your kids are hanging out with. Use of cell phones makes it hard for parents to know where their kids are. Once you’ve made your rules, it’s important to be consistent. It’s a conversation that keeps happening. Make sure there are consequences for violations and follow through on consequences. It’s hard work for parents, but kids need to know they care.
Officer Z clarified laws about prescription drugs. It is illegal to possess prescription drugs unless they are prescribed to you. It is unlawful to have drugs outside the prescription bottle. It is illegal to take someone else’s prescription drugs. It does not happen very often here, but parents should be aware if their kids are purchasing drugs on-line. Be aware of packages arriving from Mexico or Canada. If kids show changes in personality, address it and get help. Parents should get rid of old medications they don’t need and keep track of medications they use regularly. It is important to talk to kids about the dangers of taking drugs with alcohol.
What strategies do you use to help a friend who is using drugs? How do you show your concern?
I would talk to the friend. When you first start using, you don’t know how it takes over your body. Let them know what they are getting into.
I would try to notify someone of authority.
How do you avoid kids getting loaded and getting in a car?
Let your kids know they can depend on you for a ride. Officer Z clarified that there is a 12 to 4 am curfew that is unenforced. It is a civil penalty, not a crime. A kid may receive a citation, but nothing legal will happen. Sometimes the police will use the curfew to pick up a kid, if it looks like they are getting into trouble.
It is hard to make the decision not to get into the car. Research shows that the frontal lobe of the brain, the inhibition center, doesn’t mature until 24 years of age. Excitement, fun and risk interfere with reason. Repetitive instruction will make a difference, called strengthening and pruning, the neural pathways will develop with repetitive use.
How can we trust our teens to make these decisions when we know their brains are not fully developed?
Many kids are getting into cars with kids who have restricted licenses (just passed, but required to wait 6 months before allowed to take passengers). Parents need to be aware of the consequences. It is a $200 fine if a driver with a restricted license has unrelated passengers under 21 in the car while they are driving. Also, parents can be sued if their young driver has an accident with unrelated passengers under 21 in the car. If parents and kids are aware of the liability exposure, they are less likely to take the risk.
Evidence is out there that chronic use of alcohol, drugs slows the maturation process.
Question to student panelists: Are you finding you are getting support from your friends not to drink or do drugs?
My friends support me because they know I do sports.
We can remain friends and not drink or do drugs. Not everybody uses, but it depends in a big way who you travel with.
Officer Z noted that a first-time violation will require you to show up at juvenile court, but recently violators have received notices that due to lack of funding they need not show up. Eugene police are in the process of developing an education program that violators will be required to attend. If you have an alcohol or drug abuse offense, you may have your driver’s license suspended, be suspended from school, or not have access to financial aid when applying for college.
A parent asked, “What does the school provide for instruction to students from teachers or peer groups?
Randy Bernstein replied: The school requires health education in freshman year. Health classes in junior and senior year cover alcohol, drug, nutrition and STD education. ASAP is a group of peers trained to meet with freshmen. Sport coaches have athletes sign a contract in order to play a sport.
Student panelist: ASAP did not affect me much. It’s a lot of information on drugs and alcohol, but it does not address why students use. I used drugs because of depression, not for recreation.
Another student panelist: The people who were talking to me about what to do and not to do were users. I knew what they were doing outside of school. A lot of kids participate in ASAP as a resume stuffer. There is hypocrisy to it.
Randy acknowledged their comments.
How do you justify your own use of alcohol or drugs to your children if you use?
Student panelist: It’s legal for parents. If you are a parent who uses, it is really hard to tell your kid not to use. You are their number one role model.
There are some kids who decide not to use because they have seen what it does to their parents.
Be careful of the message you are sending. If you are drinking to medicate (I need a drink. I’ve had a really hard day.), kids hear what you are saying. Keep tabs on how much alcohol you have in the fridge, the cupboard. A lot of kids get their alcohol from home.
Every kid has the potential to be a user. Your kid may have a 4. Grade average, but they may be using, too. Parents think, “Not my kid.”
You don’t need to share everything you did. You can tell kids that you will tell them when they are 25. You can phrase it, “I had a good friend who…”
Student panelist: My mom’s stories made me lose respect for her – I didn’t feel like I was letting anybody down by using.
Officer Z encouraged parents with questions to contact him by e-mail at Zeltvay@4j.lane.edu
Parent Education Series – Continuation of last month’s topic, Drug and Alcohol Abuse
Randy Bernstein moderated and introduced the panel of 8 speakers including Erin McIntyre from Looking Glass, Kara Penniman from My Health Center, Laurene Larson, academic counselor and Officer Zeltvay, and 4 student representatives.
The panel answered questions collected from parents at last month’s meeting. The format was question and answer.
How do parents know if their rules are too strict or too lenient? What is the community norm?:
Eugene can be a difficult place because it is a university community. It is important for parents to use the student directory to contact other parents. Call parents of kids your kids are hanging out with. Use of cell phones makes it hard for parents to know where their kids are. Once you’ve made your rules, it’s important to be consistent. It’s a conversation that keeps happening. Make sure there are consequences for violations and follow through on consequences. It’s hard work for parents, but kids need to know they care.
Officer Z clarified laws about prescription drugs. It is illegal to possess prescription drugs unless they are prescribed to you. It is unlawful to have drugs outside the prescription bottle. It is illegal to take someone else’s prescription drugs. It does not happen very often here, but parents should be aware if their kids are purchasing drugs on-line. Be aware of packages arriving from Mexico or Canada. If kids show changes in personality, address it and get help. Parents should get rid of old medications they don’t need and keep track of medications they use regularly. It is important to talk to kids about the dangers of taking drugs with alcohol.
What strategies do you use to help a friend who is using drugs? How do you show your concern?
I would talk to the friend. When you first start using, you don’t know how it takes over your body. Let them know what they are getting into.
I would try to notify someone of authority.
How do you avoid kids getting loaded and getting in a car?
Let your kids know they can depend on you for a ride. Officer Z clarified that there is a 12 to 4 am curfew that is unenforced. It is a civil penalty, not a crime. A kid may receive a citation, but nothing legal will happen. Sometimes the police will use the curfew to pick up a kid, if it looks like they are getting into trouble.
It is hard to make the decision not to get into the car. Research shows that the frontal lobe of the brain, the inhibition center, doesn’t mature until 24 years of age. Excitement, fun and risk interfere with reason. Repetitive instruction will make a difference, called strengthening and pruning, the neural pathways will develop with repetitive use.
How can we trust our teens to make these decisions when we know their brains are not fully developed?
Many kids are getting into cars with kids who have restricted licenses (just passed, but required to wait 6 months before allowed to take passengers). Parents need to be aware of the consequences. It is a $200 fine if a driver with a restricted license has unrelated passengers under 21 in the car while they are driving. Also, parents can be sued if their young driver has an accident with unrelated passengers under 21 in the car. If parents and kids are aware of the liability exposure, they are less likely to take the risk.
Evidence is out there that chronic use of alcohol, drugs slows the maturation process.
Question to student panelists: Are you finding you are getting support from your friends not to drink or do drugs?
My friends support me because they know I do sports.
We can remain friends and not drink or do drugs. Not everybody uses, but it depends in a big way who you travel with.
Officer Z noted that a first-time violation will require you to show up at juvenile court, but recently violators have received notices that due to lack of funding they need not show up. Eugene police are in the process of developing an education program that violators will be required to attend. If you have an alcohol or drug abuse offense, you may have your driver’s license suspended, be suspended from school, or not have access to financial aid when applying for college.
A parent asked, “What does the school provide for instruction to students from teachers or peer groups?
Randy Bernstein replied: The school requires health education in freshman year. Health classes in junior and senior year cover alcohol, drug, nutrition and STD education. ASAP is a group of peers trained to meet with freshmen. Sport coaches have athletes sign a contract in order to play a sport.
Student panelist: ASAP did not affect me much. It’s a lot of information on drugs and alcohol, but it does not address why students use. I used drugs because of depression, not for recreation.
Another student panelist: The people who were talking to me about what to do and not to do were users. I knew what they were doing outside of school. A lot of kids participate in ASAP as a resume stuffer. There is hypocrisy to it.
Randy acknowledged their comments.
How do you justify your own use of alcohol or drugs to your children if you use?
Student panelist: It’s legal for parents. If you are a parent who uses, it is really hard to tell your kid not to use. You are their number one role model.
There are some kids who decide not to use because they have seen what it does to their parents.
Be careful of the message you are sending. If you are drinking to medicate (I need a drink. I’ve had a really hard day.), kids hear what you are saying. Keep tabs on how much alcohol you have in the fridge, the cupboard. A lot of kids get their alcohol from home.
Every kid has the potential to be a user. Your kid may have a 4. Grade average, but they may be using, too. Parents think, “Not my kid.”
You don’t need to share everything you did. You can tell kids that you will tell them when they are 25. You can phrase it, “I had a good friend who…”
Student panelist: My mom’s stories made me lose respect for her – I didn’t feel like I was letting anybody down by using.
Officer Z encouraged parents with questions to contact him by e-mail at Zeltvay@4j.lane.edu
posted by Parent Council @ 8:03 PM
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